What did I learn in the class that I liked?
I thought the class touched on several concepts that could have some dramatic effects on education. We began by looking at Problem Based Learning. I think that this method of studying a topic could have very strong results in getting students to explore and study a problem at higher levels of thinking skills. The farm class had some good articles on PBL and also linked to a good tutorial and several sites related to the topic. I think the coverage of PBL was one of the strongest areas of the class.
We studied the creation of web pages also. I already had some extensive knowledge in creating web pages so this section was not real helpful to me but there was some good instruction on publishing the web pages. In most of the training that I have attended there was instruction on creating the pages but not in publishing them. It was good to see this aspect added to the instruction.
It was good for my students to see how the farming community affects the economy of Nebraska. With the decline in the number of farmers in Nebraska students are not exposed to farming and need to be aware of its influence in Nebraska and need to be aware of different topics that affect farmers.
There were some very good references in the class. There were links to materials such as the web quest templates that made the creation of student lessons much more convenient and easy to use. What was the most interesting part of the class?
It was interesting to work with a group of people who had talents in different areas such as technology, science, biology, etc. Through the use of the discussion boards we could share our expertise on our strengths.
What did you not learn that you would have liked to?
The software package DataSlate seems to have almost infinite uses in the classroom but there was some confusion in the training in the use of this package. You need to have several different software packages installed and be able to use them proficiently to understand the tutorials. I think that there are tutorials available that show how to use the package but it was confusing and time consuming. I think this area could have been handled better. Overall evaluation of the class:
The class was very informative and was a learning experience. The instructors did a very good job of replying to questions and comments of the students. They assigned topics that would increase learning without overwhelming us in work that was without meaning. The format of allowing us to develop a lesson for use in our own classrooms is a strong way to encourage us to take the time to develop new lessons. Also by creating them in a web format is a great way to share the lessons with other educators.
We were encouraged to tie the lessons with state standards and have valid ways to evaluate the students work . These are key concepts that will face educators in Nebraska.
Overall I think Americas Virtual Farm Class was a good learning experience and I think it would be good to continue the class in the future.
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This course pushed me to get more motivated about computer technology. I was a person who was content to be blissfully ignorant about computer technology and all that it offers to teachers. However, due to taking this course I now feel confident to learn more. I even plan on creating several other webquest projects on my own. I have changed the future direction of my education because of this course as well. I was working towards a Masters Degree in Art Education. Now that has changed to a Masters Degree in Art Education with an emphasis in Technology.
Lastly, I liked this course because it did keep me interested in computer technology through excellent course content and by allowing some freedom on our personal webquest projects. Above all else, I found that I should no longer fear technology. It is here to help us grow and learn in ways I could never have imagined before taking this course.
Although the course did help me tremendously, I would like to mention a few items that I feel could be improved upon. I know that when I signed up for this course I really had no idea what I was getting myself into. I think it would be beneficial to let prospective students know exactly what technology they will be asked to leam or know before signing up for it. For example, a student entering this course should have some basic computer skills such as basic word processing (cut, copy, paste), e-mail access, internet access, some knowledge in creating web pages (this would be helpful but not necessary), and you will need to be able to unzip files. I would also add more directions in the weekly assignments. The current directions are sufficient for students who have some basic knowledge of computer applications. However, I feel it would help the true beginners to have a step by step outline of how to complete several of the basic skills they will use throughout the course assignments, such as; how to cut, copy, minimize the screen and so forth.
Overall, I thought this course was excellent. The assignments were planned well and organized in an easy to understand manner. As was the entire site. I would have to say that I was most impressed with the motivation of the instructors. They took the time to help me whenever I needed it throughout the length of the course. They are the true reason a course of this type is possible. I hope that I will be able to take similar courses in the future. Thank you for the opportunity to be part of this one.
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I had the pleasure of taking part in the America's Virtual Farm class this fall. It has been a very worthwhile experience and as with all worthwhile experiences there have been moments of enjoyment and frustration. I have certainly grown from taking the course and will be in turn using what I have learned to improve my teaching. I also will be passing along many of the things that I have learned to my colleagues in my building, my district, and in workshops that I present.
The things that I liked the most about the class were the step by step instruction to build computer and teaching skills and the discovering of a multitude of ways of using the internet for instructing. The instructors of the course did an excellent job of building our skills week by week. They accomplished this through several tutorials that I found to be easy to use and very informative. Most of the weeks were just about the right amount of training, the only exception was week 6 which, for me, tended to be a bit too much for one week. The instructors were also very good about getting back to me with problems that I was having. They were patient with me and offered good suggestions. I was having some difficulties (since I am in the most technological deficient district in the state) that nearly made me drop the class, but they were able to talk me through it and were always encouraging.
I had never seen Webquests before and I was quite impressed with the concept, their organization, and their overall potential for teaching students. I view them as one of the real keys to making the internet a real useful tool and not just an interesting novelty. I had been introduced to the Casde work before at a one hour session with Rick Perk a few years ago, but it was great to see it again and work through the lesson on the Atlantis in Nebraska. It was particularly interesting to my students and me since we are only 20 miles from the Harlan County Lake.
Some of the most interesting aspects of the course include the sites with aerial photos that one can work to see your own backyard and the progressive aerial photos of selected areas. I enjoyed working the site from photo to map and then closer view to work to find my hometown. Since I only had a few minutes available to me at a time that week, it took a few attempts to locate our small town of a thousand and then find my barns and house. The photos taken over time showing Boys Town and Elkhorn were also quite interesting, they certainly revealed the growth of the city of Omaha. They also give strong evidence to our desire to lay out cities in grid patterns and now our disdain for that pattern.
I was surprised to learn how little I know about computers. As I stated earlier, our school district has been lagging behind in technological advances particularly in computers. About three years ago I had the privilege of working on a committee with teachers from all sizes of school districts from around the state. One of the coordinators asked us to share where our school district was concerning internet access. I was amazed when schools smaller than ours not only had an access for each building, but access in each classroom as well. We were still working on having internet access to the libraries of each elementary. Since that time our computers have improved and the number of accesses jumped from one last year to thirteen in the building in which I teach. I have also tried to learn a lot in that time and felt that I had done a pretty good job, but this course made me realize I certainly have a lot more to learn. I want to thank everyone responsible for this course and the instructors particularly for providing me with that opportunity to gain more skills and knowledge with the computer.
One of the assignments that I particularly enjoyed and found to be challenging to teaching even without the computer was the topic of Problem Based Learning. Although I was introduced to some new terminology such as "ill-constructed problem", most of the points of these articles were things that have been introduced to me over the last few years. I have learned about this approach through my association with the National Geographic Society's Education Department. Some of my colleagues through NGS, particularly those in Colorado have been pushing for the development of units based on a question. In reading the articles I also reflected on what I felt have been my most effective units of teaching in social studies, and most have been PBL type units. As a result of that week's assignment, I have resolved to work more a toward PBL-type teaching.
I found all of the exercises on aerial photos and remote sensing to be very fun activities. It was enjoyable to try to figure out vegetation patterns and how to read the many aspects of the landscapes from a view from above instead of eye-level.
The class was at times quite frustrating for me and I realize that some of the best growth and learning occurs when we are pushed out of our comfort zones. If I could make the class better, however, I would extend it over a longer period of time. I felt that week 6 was very time consuming and perhaps could have been even three weeks in length. I really would like a chance to make more than one project, it would be great to have the opportunity to develop both a Webquest and a Digital Imaging project. Perhaps even to make more than one of each project. I certainly learned quite a bit during the development of the Webquest that would help me do the next one even better. I realize that the course allowed for more than one project and that our instructors were more than willing to work with us on the development more than one project, but I just did not have the time to get to the computer each week to do more. I am sure that most teachers share that same time constraint during the school year as we are stretched not only from the day to day development of lessons and grading papers, but extra assignments such as coaching and committees.
Another aspect of the class that bothers me, but may be a problem only with me, is the lack of personal contact. I don't know if this is something anyone else struggles with or not, but I certainly miss the personal, real physical contact with the teacher and other students. Is this something that needs to be addressed as we head down the online education road, or am I just alone in this need?
Aside from those two concerns one specific to this course and one in general about online education, I feel that this has been a great experience and that this class should continue to be offered. A multiple-recipient email I received indicated that it is being offered at least once more and I emailed a recommendation for it to all the recipients of that list serve. Again, I wish to thank you and the instructors for including me this fall in America's Virtual Farm class.
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In an effort to earn nine graduate college credit hours by the fall of 2001, I was investigating possible class offerings when I received an e-mail regarding America's Virtual Farm. My only experience with online classes was last fall through Classroom Connect's Connected University. I found the experience exhausting with assignments due and communication required on a daily basis. Paul Clark, a former colleague, assured me that assignments were weekly and encouraged me to participate. Both Michelle Blanchard and I, building level technology facilitators for the Elkhorn School District, signed up. As a fourth grade teacher, she predicted having no difficulty creating an agriculture unit that could be incorporated into current curriculum. At the time, I could not conceive of how to integrate farming with media skills, but decided I might be able to find a topic in our fourth grade pioneer unit that would be suitable. I also thought it would be good for Michelle and I to bounce ideas off one another.
Interpreting digital imagery was an interesting part of the course, though I found this to be my weakest area. More guidance from instructors or more online resources to assist with interpretation of the images would have given me more confidence in my interpretations. Some students were incredibly adept at determining shapes and colors depicted in the images. Frequently, I didn't see what they saw, but their interpretations helped me refine my own views. Personal lack of information about modern farming techniques may have contributed to my difficulty in this area. Still, I particularly enjoyed the aerial shots of Elkhorn, Nebraska, an area where I have observed growth for 17 years. I was able to identify specific roads and buildings, a definite confidence booster.
I appreciated delving into problem-based learning, having read very little about it. Its premises align well with The Big Six principles of research in library media instruction, which was already familiar to me. The WebQuest format was excellent, very thorough in its requirements for a project.
There were several things I especially liked about this class. In spite of having some problems getting started, I enjoyed the online aspect. The weekly assignments were manageable, though I had to do the online work at school, lacking Internet service at home. Sending answers and comments online was fun and helped us become a group of learners. Support and feedback from instructors was excellent. Both were especially important in the virtual classroom format. I particularly liked the links to WebQuest projects and Claris Home Page tutorials, since I hadn't worked with this program in over a year and needed much review.
I certainly expanded my view of agriculture as a result of this class and was amazed to find a vast number of online resources supporting various agricultural topics. For weeks, I had only a vague idea of a WebQuest project idea, though something about sod houses was flitting around in my mind. After locating an existing sod house in northeastern Kansas, my husband and I decided to investigate its photographic possibilities. Completely by chance, we decided to stop in Beatrice, Nebraska, at Homestead National Monument of America. This marvelous national monument has a museum, farm equipment building, log cabin, one-room schoolhouse, bookstore and walking trails through a restored tall grass prairie, as well as a Web site with virtual tours of all aspects of the facility. At that point, the project clarified in my mind and expanded to "homesteading on the prairie." There were more Web sites available than I would be able to use, and it was a pleasant challenge to fit appropriate sites into the project format.
A problem I never solved was how to use a photo as a background in Claris Home Page so that the photo wouldn't wrap around one or more times on the page. I posted this question, but received no reply from instructors or class participants. Perhaps there is no solution.
One suggestion might be to separate this into two classes, one on digital imagery and one on creating agricultural WebQuests using problem-based learning. I would have liked to do more work with digital images.
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I was intrigued to take this class for two reasons. One reason was to try a college course on line. The second reason was the topic virtual farm. I teach fourth grade and one emphasis of the curriculum is agriculture of Nebraska and the regions of the United States. This class turned out to be a success in taking an on line course and learning about farming in Nebraska and the different regions.
The one thing I learned that I liked the most was the digital imaging. I have used digital images with weather, which is simple. The digital images that we used were difficult to decipher, at first. I found looking at them with someone else helped to get perspective and share ideas. I am still not really comfortable with digital images, but look forward to using them more and more. I was surprised at the amount of information one could get from digital images. When we looked at Elkhorn and Boystown, that was great. I will share those images with my class when we study Nebraska, later this year.
This class was very well organized. That made it very easy to work on. The communication between professor and students was great. I liked the idea of taking it a week at time. If I was stuck I e-mailed the professor and had a response quickly. There were always reminders and helpful hints e-mailed to us. This was very effective in keeping me informed of what was going on. The course was also set up so that you could go ahead if needed. That was wonderful. I found in the beginning 1 set a side one night a week to work on the class. That started out wonderful. In the middle of the class I did not do that. I would recommend that time be set aside until the end of the course. That was easier for me.
The interesting part of the class was Web Quest and farming topics. I was interested in the Web Quest projects. I had not heard of them before and found a wealth of ideas that will enhance my curriculum. 1t was interesting on how easy it was to incorporated farming into the curriculum. State standards dominate what is taught in fourth grade. 1t was great to have some ideas about using agriculture to meet state standards. I thought of many ways to using farming to teach some of the economic standards that I have to meet. I am very excited about the new ideas I have for the use of farming in the classroom.
The most surprising part of the class was the topic of farming. I was amazed at all the resources that were on the web about farming. My father farms part time and I really never followed what he did. After starting this class I would give him lists of web sites to look at, some he had heard of and some he did not. We also looked up digital images of the farm and the town he works in. That was great fun. I was surprised at what the students could do with farming. I found that my topic of farming in the different regions was very broad and I would keep coming up with different ideas and had to narrow them down. The use of agriculture in the classroom almost seems endless. I look forward to using my project and projects of others to incorporate farming into the curriculum.
As I stated in the beginning, the digital imagery was very interesting and the area I feel I still need to learn about. This course was a great introductory to digital images. I feel that there could be a class just on the uses of digital images. I was not real comfortable with digital images and choose to do the Web Quest project. I feel that the class did a great job of introducing digital images, but I was not comfortable with reading them and also not sure how to use them in the curriculum. I will say that working with someone else made digital images easier. Pam Olsen and I teach in the same building and took the course together. We meet several times in the beginning with the digital images to talk about then~ and see if we were on the same track. That was very helpful. I would like to learn more about digital images and how to use them.
There really is nothing that could have been done better. Overall the class was great. The professor was very well organized and the communication was excellent. The only comment as far as improvements go, is the digital images category, which I discussed previously.
I was very pleased with the on line course. The web site was very friendly and easy to maneuver in. The web site was organized in a way that i could easily get to the assignments and the communication page quickly. I like the way the assignment pages were set up. The assignments were spelled out with expectations and not cluttered with information. That made it so much easier. You could tell the professor and the group that worked with the class had thoroughly done their research. The web sites that were used were great and they all worked. This was a great success. I know that I would take another course on line. This was a very positive experience. My knowledge of farming and the use of technology that goes along with it grew tremendously.
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The Class "America's Virtual Farm" was frustrating, fulfilling, exciting, and time consuming. Those words sum up my feelings for the class, however, as I look back in retrospect I did learn more than I ever imagined.
The exciting part was searching the net for new information and discovering the amount of information actually on the Internet about farming. I am not a teacher per se but an elementary school counselor which posed several problems; one, how will I tie farming into a unit on careers since farming is not a popular area for young people to consider. Through my research, I found farming as I remember it when a child has changed into numerous careers in agriculture. All of which requires at least a bachelors degree in education. My research included general information on exploring careers, which led me to the discovery of child friendly sites; I can use these in my guidance lessons. That was very exciting and motivational for me. Using Boolean searches and different search engines, finding WebQuests, using the DataSlate, learning to use the Claris Home Page (which I didn't know we had on our Macs at school until I starting looking for a resource to build my WebQuest), all contributed to learning exciting new skills I can use in my teaching. I will be teaching teachers on my staff how to develop a WebQuest.
The frustrating part was trying to understand the terminology the instructors used. I am not proficient in using computer technology nor do I understand the terminology. Maybe when this class is advertised again, put in the description that students need to have skills in reading Image Maps, Remote Sensing, developing WebQuests, uploading information to your server, even entering the chat room and discussion boards, etc. These skills were all new to me. We were to sign up for the trial copy of Claris Home Page which I did but it seemed a little early in the class because when I started to do the WebQuests for the class, the trail subscription expired. Therefore, I had to find some other way to do my pages. I was lucky to have Claris Home Page on my computers at school but that caused more of a time crunch for after school hours.
The biggest problem was time. When I would do the lessons, then I would have difficulty with the programs or some of my lessons didn't get posted and I had to redo them for the instructors. In fact, I did the one lesson twice because they didn't receive it the first time. The instructors were great and very patience with me, but some times they didn't have the right information for us for the lessons nor did the programs work or they forgot to give us the pass words. All in all the instructors helped me a lot. I think the class could have been divided, and those who wanted to do a WebQuest learn more about developing a good one. Most of the information on developing WebQuests was from the samples on the Internet not from the instructors. It would have been nice to know what made a "Good" WebQuest and a "Bad" WebQuest. (User friendly for the teachers and students, in other words.) There could be a class just on making a Digital Imaging Strand then more explanation on using the DataSlate. The CD's that were sent to me did not have enough information on its usage. That was confusing to me. I was using a PC and I believe the thrust of information was for the Mac.
The fulfilling part was the completion of my project. Surprisingly it was better than I had anticipated when I started. I showed it to some of the teachers in my district and they thought they could integrate the information into the social studies unit. Our media specialist liked the format; therefore, we will be using it to teach the teachers how to develop a WebQuest for their social studies unit on a particular country.
One of the skills I would like to have learned was getting pictures off the Internet and pasting them onto my WebQuest with success. Also I still don't know how to put the hot links into flashing images. I really liked the Web Page on Buffalo's vs Cattle and how she set up the hot link buttons you could click on to take you to the sites. This class developed my interest in researching and motivated me to learn more about different programs that I could use with my students for guidance.
Time was a major factor in my life. The timing to take this class was not the best for me because of my personal life. We are building a house so there wasn't much time left for a computer class. Of course the decision needed to be reevaluated for myself. I have learned to be careful on the amount of time I have and what projects need to be finished&emdash;prioritize.
I want to thank the instructors for their time and patience with me. Bill and Brian were very helpful. I appreciate being able to finish each lesson on my own time because some weeks it was difficult to work on the computer.
This completes my evaluation of the class. Again thank you.
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This letter will serve as a critique of the America's Virtual Farm class offered during the fall of 2000. As a "farm boy" I enjoyed most of the activities offered and was able to share many sites with my farming relatives. Through this class I have gained many ideas on how to offer a web-based class.
Positives
The best part of the class for me was creating the WebQuest. As a Technology Coordinator, I am constantly looking for ways that Seward teachers can implement technology into the classroom. By being "forced" to create and complete a WebQuest, I can share with my teachers how they can put one together. The WebQuest site has many valuable resources and examples of how it should be done. The templates provided allowed me to focus on content rather than design.
I also really enjoyed finding and working with satellite images. The week we spent searching by city and county looking for familiar sites was really fun. I spent a lot of time finding my backyard and those of my family and then forwarding the pictures on. The feedback from them - ranging from excitement to fear (someone's watching) - was real interesting. My backyard didn't make any of the images, since those images hadn't been updated for about 10 years.
The course flowed nicely. Each week we were looking at individual parts of a WebQuest and then allowed to work on that area of our project. Although I was usually behind, it was easy to continue from where I left off in the process. It was also nice having the choice between creating a WebQuest or the Digital Image Strand. As we all know, choice is important to students.
Feedback from the instructors was excellent. Weekly e-mail updates also helped remind me of what needed to be done. Student comments were also helpful the discussion board was one of the first things I looked at each time. Having Russ Wissing, another Seward teacher, take the course with me was very helpful. We were able to discuss and critique each other's project.
The tutorials provided for Claris Homepage were excellent. I will use them with my teachers when creating web pages.
Less Positive (not that negative)
The one area that I had the most trouble with was working with DataSlate. I know it is a powerful tool, but I had a lot of trouble trying to get other images into the program. I'm not sure if a better tutorial would help or if this program requires an actual meeting time to demonstrate and then practice with it. The examples within the program were great, but I was hoping to be able to input my own images.
The only other frustration (a very minor one) that I had was with viewing outside web pages within the AmFarm page. I learned quickly to open the links in a new window, but it would have been nice if the site had been set up that way. Most of the pages didn't display correctly when forced into the smaller window, so it would have been easier for me if they would have automatically popped up as a new window.
I hope this provides some tangible feedback for the grant. I know first-hand how important it is to give evaluators good feedback.
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I am writing in regards to the internet class that I took this last semester (Fall 2000). The class was the American Virtual Farm (TED 8000) class and was held strictly over the internet through discussion groups and email.
This is the first class I have ever taken over the internet. I am currently working on my master's in general science through the University of South Dakota. I took the class because it sounded interesting and fit in with the area of science. Currently, I teach high school science in Winnebago, Nebraska.
I found the course to be well thought out and very easy to understand. From the start you new and understood what your requirements were and what was expected from you and when. I really like the way the course was separated into the fifteen separate weeks. This made it easy to keep track of where you were and where you were suppose to be! Another feature of the course was how the discussions were set up. There was a place where you posted your "homework" or just your thoughts on the assignment or other things. I enjoyed this, as I really enjoy discussing things with my fellow students. I also liked how the instructors set up the assignment pages. It was easy to follow and you knew exactly what needed to be done and when it was due. This made things less stressful.
I must admit, that when I first looked into taking an internet course, I was hesitant. I have taken an telecourse and I really did not like it. There is little to no interaction between students and faculty, and no interaction between the students at all. I am happy to say that this was not the case in this course. Help was just a mouse-click away and you always got a response, from both the instructors and the other students. It was just like being in a regular classroom!
Some of the more interesting things that were covered were how to find satellite images of your home town (or in my case where my school is located), using images to create your own Dataset file for the DataSlate program. I really enjoyed learning to use the DataSlate program. That was the most exciting thing. I had never seen such a program and am hoping to be able to implement it in my lessons. I was pleasantly surprised that part of the course requirements was to create a web page and to upload it to the internet. I really enjoyed this, as I teach internet classes at the college level on Saturday's.
I can't really think of anything that I would have liked to learn that wasn't covered. I believe that the instructors did an excellent job setting up the course and in delivering the course through the internet.
The course was of great value to me. I believe that I came away with a lot of new ideas and information that I can use in my own classroom. Some of the examples that the instructors provided can be adapted for use in my classes. I feel that learning is always a positive experience and this one was more positive than most. I came away with knowledge that I did not have and a better understanding of farming, teaching, and the internet.
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Agriculture in the classroom??? That was my first impression when I received information about the Farm Class I just completed via the Internet. Having grown up in western Kansas. The daughter of a county extension agent and having graduated from Kansas State University, a land grant college - I was intrigued. How does one incorporate agriculture into the classroom outside of an ag-tech curriculum? It was because of the agriculture connection and because of the technology involved - that I decided to pursue this class initially. And I am glad I did.
The most important concept that I walked away from the course with was an understanding of the scope of agriculture (farming) in the 21st century. Having lost contact with the agricultural "world". I was amazed at the technology and information that is available to farmers at the touch of a mouse. It was even more amazing to me how these farmers are putting this technology and information to practical use. This became apparent to me, through the research I did on the web for the class, from the Mead farm website and various experiment station sites that I landed at.
I loved the independence of the course - never having to go on campus, fighting the parking, the traffic, etc. I am definitely going to look into other courses that UNO has to offer via the Internet; especially now that I have survived one Internet class and know a few of the pitfalls. One downside of the course was really generated by my lack of prioritizing the course and allowing myself to get behind on the work. When the course first started, I was diligent about doing each week's required work as it was due that week.
What became quickly apparent was that some assignments were not very time consuming; however, others were very time consuming. After a couple of weeks of extreme frustration over computer glitches, I was very slow to go back to the site and try other assignments. Especially, as the school year got into full swing. For about a month I felt very lost as to what I was suppose to be accomplishing and was always wondering if I was on the right track. Part of this, I finally figured out, was due to the fact that I didn't make a final decision on a direction I wanted to take for the final project until very late. Each week I was sorting through the Data Slate assignments and the Web Quest assignment. The Data Slate information is extremely interesting to me - but I had very little success with the computer skills needed for that project. I spent countless hours hunting for maps and information for that side of the final project. As with all of my web searching, one site would lead to about three or four more and I would get lost in all the information available and end up spending lots of time on the computer - but not come away with the information I needed for the course. That is the second major hazard of an independent, computer based class. Learning to keep the search narrow and to the point. I hope to get my Data Slate CD back out and try to attempt that program again, along with the PhotoShop tutorial that was given in one of the week's assignments. This will most likely have to be summer type of project - as time is too tight while school is in session between the daily lessons, extra curricular duties and my own personal life. The generational time comparison of the landscapes was truly fascinating and that information should have lots of practical applications - if for no other reason but to illustrate to students that the information is out there. But unfortunately, I did not take that path for my final project because I never felt comfortable handling the Data Slate.
Another favorite aspect of the project for me was the opportunity for urban students to think about the rural life and the possibility of being a farmer or at the very least all of the hard work that farmers/ranchers must endure. One of the participants did their project over the possibility of making farming a career choice. I haven't read through the project in its entirety but it would be interesting to find a statistic on how many people enter into farming that had no prior connection to a farm. Even if no students were recruited to become farmer, the exposure to the various web sites made available to us through this project should certainly help an individual to grasp the magnitude of the work and planning that goes into farming. And hopefully, that would carry over to an appreciation of all agriculture products.
The most surprising part of the project to me was the information that is available via the Internet. I have spent a lot of time on the web, but it never ceases to amaze me the information that is available to everyone at the touch of a button. I can't imagine how long it would have taken to locate this type of information back in the days I was on a college campus - and how boring the information would have been with out the real time information, the color photos, graphics and animation. The scariest aspect to me was the realization that with the satellite imagery, we were under constant "surveillance". It made some of the new science fiction based movies seem very possible. That alone could have made a good project. One could have students explore the various imagery sites, see how close they could "see" into people's lives and then have a debate on the moral, ethical aspects of that technology.
A lot of the suggestions I have to make the class better for the next time. I believe, have already been addressed. I would suggest that all the various assignments be posted up front at the beginning of the class. One advantage of this is for the weeks when the assignments were not too involved, or when one was more proficient in that week's assignment. I also know, from having to play catch-up, on a few week's assignments that, sometimes, it was helpful to look ahead to the next couple of assignments to really understand how some of the information was going to fit together. That helped to lift the fog I was in for a while about this course - which was truly trying to decipher exactly what it was I was trying to accomplish for a culminating activity. I really enjoyed the lay out of the web site - the program that was used. I wish I had the program available for my own classroom - it seems much more manageable than just putting up a web site; especially for a novice HTML person like myself. I didn't realize until the very last weeks of the class how to get rid of the list of links on the left hand margin of the opening page of the site - that was annoying to me through out the course as it limited my screen view. I also became very frustrated when I knew I had linked out of the course information - but yet all I got was the URL of the course. These are probably both due to my general lack of computer skills. I did not enjoy the requirement of always having to "communicate" with my classmates. Except for sharing good web sites - or general de-bugging issues - the rest of the commenting could have been eliminated, I would b e curious to know if the instructors felt this part of the course objective was met - as I know I personally did not gain anything from the class comments that I read.
On the whole, I am glad I participated in the class. It certainly opened my eyes to the new agriculture community that is out there. I was so very impressed by my fellow classmates projects, especially the Art in Agriculture project and I certainly walked away from my computer feeling more confident about my ability to produce web pages and get them up and running. I must say that I could not have accomplished all of this with out the help of Brian Sandall. He helped me, on several occasions, to work through various stumbling blocks.
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This letter is submitted as a critique of the TED8000 internet class that was offered this last fall semester.
I found that the class was informative and helpful in the ways of some computer applications that I was not proficient in such as file transfer protocol and use of a web page editor to construct web pages. I liked that the class had applications in Photoshop, Dataslate and Claris Home Page. Working in these programs helped me feel more confident to try more in these programs and in other related programs.
The best part of taking an internet class is not only the programs we worked with but also the format of the class in which I could pace myself and still find the information and tutorials when I wanted to complete them. This was another plus as I did not have to buy an accompanying textbook as is usual with most college classes. Also to go with that, there was no textbook to sell back to a bookstore and receive a fragment of my investment cost. The instructors were easier to communicate with as they were more involved in our learning processes of the lessons and programs. This is not always the case with the traditional classroom as some instructors cannot communicate on the same level as is possible with e-mail and chat room abilities.
The most surprising part of this class for me was how easy using a web page editor could be. My past experiences have included using html and the tedious programming and time consumed with it. The web page editor went through construction at a much quicker pace for this processor, taking out time spent on finding color backgrounds and text fonts.
The class could be improved by making the course site navigation easier such as linking weekly assignments and course documents to avoid having to backtrack through various pages to find the information needed. At times the assignment and course document pages were so very similar in content, it was difficult to find previous information for referral.
Another disappointment I experienced in this class was the movement of class final deadline. I don't feel this was the fault of the instructors. They did everything in their ability to work around this obstacle and succeeded in helping the students achieve the final goal with the ease of flexibility. My disappointment lies most with the University in that the institution could not accommodate this class especially in view of its participants and format in a better way. In the future, the University will need to establish these deadlines much further in advance as I foresee internet classes increasing in number. This action did not demonstrate support of this class nor of its department.
Overall, I would recommend this class to my colleagues as a helpful tool in advancing computer application background and technology knowledge. I would also ask that more internet classes be set up to further more teachers on computer techniques and programs with the ease of time spent and cost of materials.