by Paul Azrak, professor of economics at Queensborough Community College, CUNY (letter to editor of NY Times)
As someone who has been teaching online classes for the last eight years, I found the online experience that was described in “Still in Dorm, Because Class Is on the Web” (front page, Nov. 5) unfamiliar. Students get a large dose of one-on-one interaction with the instructor that is often missing in a traditional classroom setting. Some students who would be loath to discuss their views when face to face with their professor thrive in an asynchronous discussion in which they have the time to digest what is being said and formulate their thoughts before replying. Others, however, find the high level of weekly interaction too much to take and would prefer to sit in the back row and take notes. Online education is clearly not for everyone, but it certainly doesn’t have to be the impersonal experience that you describe.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/12/opinion/l12educ.html?_r=1
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