Creating an environment where more than 350 students can learn and share ideas — and feel confident and comfortable while doing so — is a challenge faculty face when preparing to teach large undergraduate classes.

Dr. Leila Hudson, assistant professor of Near Eastern Studies, is an instructor who believes the goal in teaching these large classes is to "transmit the most material, most efficiently, to the largest number of people — basically maximizing information and access while providing clarity in communication." This philosophy was brought to life by posting her complete original lectures and PowerPoint presentations on her class Web sites, which also included streaming video of her lectures and additional materials.

"So often," says Dr. Hudson, "students are so intent on making sure they're writing down everything the professor is saying that they're not thinking about the content. By posting the videos, I'm allowing them to review what has been said as many times as they need to."
She believes that student/faculty accountability goes both ways. "I think instructors should provide students an opportunity to learn the basic background and context of a subject in order to prepare them for the more complex ideas that are about to be presented in class. This is one way of helping them gain that background."

LTC Audio & Video Production staff was responsible for coordinating the videotaping of Dr. Hudson's lectures. A staff member captured each lecture, then transferred it to streaming video for on-demand delivery. The goal was to have the lectures available online by midnight of the same day.

If you build it will they stop coming?

Dr. Hudson cites positive repercussions to providing so much content online. The plan was to free up the students — and herself — to participate in real face-to-face discussion during class meetings and she says it worked. The result was a qualitative difference in students' progress.

To make sure students felt even more compelled to come to class, Dr. Hudson occasionally asked students to hand in their notebooks, gave random quizzes and regularly changed Web site passwords. She believes the process created an "atmosphere of trust" where the exchange of ideas and the posing of questions was as important a reason to meet as the traditional lectures. One semester one of her class Web sites had over 10,000 hits.

Designing the house

"Constructing my Web sites was like having a house built. (LTC graphics manager) Mike Martelle is the architect and I'm the homeowner,” said Dr. Hudson. “I tell him what rooms I want, he designs the house and then later I move my stuff in." Mike created a template in response to her needs and she customized it when needed.

Another key feature to her portal was the Middle East News current news section. Located prominently in the center of the home page, it included linked news articles pertinent to class discussion topics. She's adamant about the need for continual posting to sites in order for the students to feel compelled to keep returning to see what's new.

Making life easier

Dr. Hudson says incorporating this kind of technology into her classes freed up her time for commitments to other faculty members and her department, as well as to her students.

When asked if she would have been able to add these features to her Web sites without the support and resources of the LTC, her response was a resounding "absolutely not!" She views the LTC staff as part of her team, "a group of people helping you with what you need for technical issues. It's empowering to have these amazing resources at my disposal."

If you're interested in having some of our "amazing resources" at your disposal, be sure to contact us at the LTC.