The next two issues of the Georgia Center Quarterly will highlight the four "functions" of the Georgia Center's Division of Academic Credit. Providing intensive academic programs of study for students who pursue their education in traditional and non-traditional patterns and committed to excellence in instruction, scholarship, and service, the division includes the American Language Program, the recently formed (as of July 1) University Studies, and University System of Georgia Independent Study.
The division also coordinates programs offered by the University as part of a consortium of University System of Georgia institutions at the University System Center--Gwinnett, which was established by the Board of Regents in 1984. The University offers upper-level undergraduate and graduate courses for resident credit and offers continuing education programs at the University System Center--Gwinnett.
Highlighted here are the American Language Program, which is presently enjoying record enrollments, and University System of Georgia Independent Study, which is venturing into the Internet with a few of its services, with plans for more later in the year.
Next issue: University Studies and University System Center--Gwinnett.
A new way to ease lesson submission is now available for University System of Georgia Independent Study students and teachers. And a chance e-mail from Norway provided an ultimate method to debug the new system.
In July, Independent Study began offering the option of e-mail lesson submission for 18 of its courses, all part of an ongoing effort to weave such distance education technologies into the overall program. Courses over the World Wide Web and other Internet instructional services are also planned for this year (to be highlighted in future issues of the Georgia Center Quarterly).
In early April, Independent Study received an e-mail message from a student in Norway, enrolled in the "History of Georgia" course. The student was anxious to begin submitting lessons via e-mail to avoid potential international postal mail, and other, delays. Since Independent Study staff members were working on the e-mail lesson submission system at the time, they decided the student in Norway could help them pilot-test the new technology.
"We found that having an e-mail student in another country provided the perfect opportunity to develop procedures for students and faculty and really test the system. We were able to help the student, and he helped us," said D. Scott Smith, Independent Study instructional design and technology specialist. Also involved in the pilot test were faculty members B. Ikubolajeh Logan, University of Georgia associate professor of geography, and Joseph A. Tomberlin, history professor and head of the Department of History at Valdosta State University.
Independent Study is a University System of Georgia academic credit program that provides freedom from the classroom structure and places the responsibility for learning directly on the student. The program, which enrolls approximately 3,800 students (more than 5,000 course registrations) annually, offers 157 credit courses from academic departments at four University System universitites in addition to The University of Georgia (Independent Study is administered though the Georgia Center)--Georgia College and State University, Georgia Southern University, North Georgia College and State University, and Valdosta State University. Courses are offered in such areas as agricultural and environmental sciences, arts and sciences, business, education, family and consumer sciences, forest resources, and journalism and mass communication. Faculty of the academic departments prepare the courses for the distance learning format and grade the lessons and proctored examinations.
Independent Study began surveying faculty and students in 1994 to determine the level of access to the Internet, interest in e-mail lesson submission and grading, and interest in World Wide Web courses. Based on growing interest and increased Internet access internationally--at present, there are close to 71 million people in the United States with e-mail access--Independent Study developed a plan to improve their computer infrastructure and to develop personnel to support technological instructional design and delivery improvements. In consultation with Georgia Center Computer Services and University of Georgia Computing and Networking Services, Independent Study developed a wide-ranging plan for implementing several technology options during 1997, the goal of which will be to better serve the students and faculty members.
Students enrolling with the e-mail submission option will learn that there are only a few minor variations for submitting a lesson via e-mail in lieu of the traditional postal service method. Students submitting lessons via U.S. and international postal services are given envelopes, lesson cover sheets, and labels to aid them in submitting their lessons. In developing the e-mail procedures that students will follow, attention was focused on streamlining the process as much as possible. Realizing that having to open and close each lesson as it arrived would seriously hinder lesson processing time, staff developed procedures to have the student place essential information on the subject line of the message. If this is done correctly, the Independent Study staff member processing the e-mail lesson is able to record its arrival and forward it on to the professor for grading without ever opening the lesson. When faculty open the e-mail lesson for grading, they are also able to type feedback comments directly into the body of the e-mail lesson, edit the subject line to include the lesson grade, and transmit the graded lesson back to Independent Study where the grade is recorded before the graded lesson is returned to the student. These measures enable more efficient processing of e-mail lessons. Also, safeguards have been put in place to ensure authenticity of senders and receivers of information.
Independent Study faculty now have new opportunities for offering academic courses at a distance. In addition to the standard mail delivery system for graded lessons, faculty can choose to participate in the e-mail delivery option and eventually consider developing totally Web-based courses. With the assistance of Smith, faculty will have technical support in translating Independent Study academic credit courses into on-line learning experiences. For example, an assignment requiring students to submit clippings of current event articles in a print-based, traditional mail delivery course might instead allow students submitting the assignment via e-mail to cut and paste articles from Web periodical and journal sites directly into an e-mail message.
The greatest instructional benefit of e-mail lesson submission experienced by collegiate independent study programs may be the improved grade turn-around period that reduces the time the student must wait to receive the graded lesson. Quick grade turn-around keeps student interest high, encourages a well-paced schedule of lesson submission, and provides faculty feedback for use in preparation of subsequent lessons and in examinations. The combined benefits of e-mail technology for University System of Georgia Independent Study are great--including increased student access, improved grade turn-around, and increased likelihood of course completions according to student schedules and deadlines.
Also, check out Independent Study's Web site at http://www.gactr.uga.edu/usgis/.
The University of Georgia American Language Program has instituted a new curriculum to better serve its changing student body. The program, an intensive English program administered through the Division of Academic Credit of the Georgia Center for Continuing Education, was established in 1980 to meet the needs of international students who intended to study at The University of Georgia or other colleges and universities in the United States.
What began in a trailer classroom with 17 Venezuelan students and a few teachers in 1980 now serves approximately 200 students per quarter from more than 24 countries and is housed in the Georgia Center. During Spring Quarter 1997, the program offered 53 courses, taught by a staff of 23 instructors.
The mission of the American Language Program is to teach English as a second language to speakers of other languages seeking to improve their communicative skills. In courses offered by the American Language Program, students in the intensive language curricula study English for preparation for enrollment in universities or colleges whose primary language of instruction is English or for cultural adaptation; in the GSC 777 graduate courses, taught in conjunction with the University's Office of Instructional Development, prospective international graduate teaching and laboratory assistants at The University of Georgia study to improve their English language pronunciation and fluency and to improve their teaching techniques.
One of the unique features of the American Language Program is a dual-track curriculum that was developed because of an increasingly wide diversity of students with a variety of needs. Since 1980, the use of English for purposes other than university work has grown, and this has had a significant impact on the program, directing and informing the need to adjust and broaden course offerings.
In 1994, the department conducted brainstorming sessions to consider how best to serve the changing student body. It had become evident through reviews of end-of-the-quarter course evaluations and meetings with students that it was time for the American Language Program to expand its curriculum. In addition, as the program and its faculty had grown rapidly, it was clear that the existing curriculum should be revised and new procedures implemented to ensure coherence and excellence.
The strategy set in motion at that time, and continuing to evolve today, involves a three-part, dual-track curriculum that provides for effective delivery of courses suited to students' needs, greater unity in the curriculum, and accommodation of a variety of learning styles and goals. At the same time, this change offers more choice to the students. Through these attractive curriculum alternatives, students are able to focus and gain experience in the types of language tasks that they are most likely to use in the future. The American Language Program's six levels are now divided into three sections, as follows:
Core Curriculum--three levels of courses for beginning to low-intermediate students
English for Academic Purposes (EAP)--three levels of courses
English as a Second Language (ESL)--three levels of courses
At each of the six levels of the Upper Division, students take courses in reading, writing, listening/speaking, and grammar. Each Upper Division level also includes the option of a Special Topics course, allowing the flexibility of including, for example, adjunct courses which combine ALP support classes with content classes from University System of Georgia Independent Study (see Georgia Center Quarterly, Spring 1995) or courses focusing on a particular skill. In addition, intermediate to advanced students may take an optional class to prepare for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL).
The American Language Program's Core courses develop the language skills of beginning and low-intermediate students for the purposes of establishing a strong language base and providing the necessary experience and practice for successful interactions in English. Students moving through Levels One through Three develop fluency and accuracy in spoken and written English. They move from dependence and survival strategies in a second language into becoming independent learners and more confident users of English. The Core courses also prepare students for the Upper Division.
Within the Upper Division, students have the option of selecting English for Academic Purposes (EAP) or English as a Second Language (ESL). The entrance qualifications for both tracks are identical--all students who qualify for Upper Division may select whichever track best meets their personal language learning goals. This is true whether they are new students who qualify through initial testing and placement or continuing students who have completed the prerequisites for the Upper Division.
The American Language Program's EAP courses develop the academic language skills of intermediate and advanced students for the purposes of interacting in English in a university environment. Students moving through EAP Levels Four through Six develop their understanding of formal academic English in text and oral presentation, practice the communicative patterns used in academic contexts, and develop accuracy in academic written and spoken communication. Following the pattern set in the Core, each level offers four courses. The difference is that while the Core courses provide a strong, general language base, the EAP courses have narrowed the focus considerably. For example, while the core emphasizes a "wide variety of language styles," EAP develops the language goals and tasks of the university. Classes use university-level materials from various disciplines to develop skills in formal expository and analytic writing, lecture comprehension and note taking, advanced grammar, and academic communication patterns.
The American Language Program's ESL courses develop the language skills of intermediate and advanced students for the purposes of interacting in American English. Students moving through ESL Levels Four through Six become fluent in both speaking and writing. They develop understanding of the distinctions between formal and informal language, sensitivity to and knowledge of culture in the United States, awareness of communication patterns in a variety of authentic contexts, and accuracy so as to present themselves as educated speakers of English.
Courses in the ESL curriculum parallel EAP courses in terms of student advancement and language development, but the possibilities for course content and materials are much wider and more inclusive in ESL. In ESL, there is a stronger emphasis on the students' participation in defining their needs for content suited to their language learning goals. For example, through a variety of media, ESL students may study in the context of the community, a professional environment, or specific social or cultural situations.
Web administrator: webmaster@gactr.uga.edu All contents copyright © 1997 University of Georgia Center for Continuing Education. All rights reserved. Last revised: Thu, Sep 18, 1997, 1:17 PM URL: http://www.gactr.uga.edu/GCQ/gcqsum97/acadcred.html