Distance Education: Not Just for Distance Students

A Mechanics of Materials course was offered with two enrollment options.Students could enroll in the class as on-campus distance students or as regular students.The regular students attended the lectures live in the usual fashion.The on-campus distance students did not come to class, other than to take the exams.The on-campus distance students could watch the class live on the internet, or watch the recorded lectures at a time more convenient to them.Office hours for all students in the class were conducted as distance office hours using Webex .The focus of this paper is the distance office hours.The Webex software allows many people to participate simultaneously.Typically 30 to 40 students participated in each distance office hour session.The faculty member used a microphone, and students used their computer speakers to hear his voice.The faculty member wrote and drew pictures on his tablet computer, and these images were displayed on the students' computers.Students asked questions through a chat box, so that all those participating could see the questions asked.The interaction during the distance office hours allowed the faculty member to develop a personal relationship with the students, and allowed the students to develop personal relationships with each other.Surveys were conducted to evaluate student perceptions, which were very positive, and results are presented in the paper.