New University Policies for On-line Courses
The university has made some changes in its policy for distance education courses with an associated, simultaneous in-class section. This may be of interest to students even if they usually come to campus for their classes.
As you may know, the MS in TCOM program has been offering on-line classes since the Spring 2010 semester. These classes enable students to follow and participate in a simultaneous class-room lecture. Additionally, lectures are recorded and can be reviewed by students, e.g., because they had to miss class. The new policy clarifies student's access to live and recorded classes through the Internet.
Classes with an associated on-line section are scheduled as two separate sections. The in-class, face-to-face section has a section number consisting entirely of digits (e.g., 001), while the distance section number begins with the letters DL (e.g., DL1). Both the in-class and the on-line section will have the same course number, instructor, day, and time. Students enrolling in the on-line section will be charged a distance education fee.
According to the new policy, students enrolled in the in-class section will not have access to the on-line version of the class - they can neither follow the class remotely nor review recorded lectures. In contrast, students enrolled in the DL section of the class may come to class in person or follow the lecture remotely via the Internet; they also have access to the recorded lectures.
As a consequence, for students who anticipate that they may have to miss classes because of travel or work requirements, it may be wise to enroll in the DL section of a course even if they plan to attend classes in person regularly.