End of Semester

WebCT-Vista Professional Opinion Survey

East Georgia College

Spring 2003

 (Partial findings of a formative evaluation of the

implementation of WebCT VISTA at East Georgia College)

 

Prepared by

David L. Strickland

Office of Institutional Research

East Georgia College

http://www.ega.edu/irp    (478) 289-2037

 

 

Contents

• Introduction

• Methodology

• Respondents

• Educational Value of WebCT Vista

• What Respondents Like About WebCT-Vista

• What Respondents Dislike About WebCT-Vista

• Respondent Disposition Toward WebCT-Vista

•  

• Appendix A (Questionnaire)

 

List of Tables

• Table 1. Respondent Position

• Table 2.  Degree of WebCT-Vista Use

• Table 3. Assessment of Educational Value

• Table 4.  Frequencies for Question 3:
                Vista enhanced my course.

• Table 5.  Frequencies for Question 4:
                Vista helped me to organize my course better

• Table 6.  Frequencies for Question 5:
                Vista can be use to enhance faculty-to-student interaction.

• Table 7.  Frequencies for Question 6:
                Vista can be used to increase or enhance student-to-student interaction.

• Table 8.  Frequencies for Question 7:
              Vista can be used to increase or enhance student-to-resource interaction.

• Table 9.  Frequencies for Question 8:
                Vista rarely works correctly.

• Table 10.  Frequencies for Question 9:
                I believe that I can use Vista to stimulate student thinking.

• Table 11.  Frequencies for Question 10:
            I believe that I can use Vista to improve my level of feedback to students.

• Table 12.  Frequencies for Question 11:
                  I have found WebCT-Vista to be a useful tool.

• Table 13.  Frequencies for Question 12:
                I would like to learn to use more of the features of Vista.

• Table 14.  Frequencies for Question 13:
                I believe that most of my students like Vista.

• Table 15.  Frequencies for Question 14:
                I hope we continue to use Vista in future semesters.

 

INTRODUCTION

 

This report presents findings from the End of Semester WebCT-Vista Professional Opinion Survey.  Faculty, administrators, and computer services personnel were surveyed at the end of spring semester 2003.  This survey was part of a formative evaluation of the implementation of WebCT VISTA at East Georgia College.

Beginning Spring semester of 2003 East Georgia College launched WebCT-VISTA campus wide.  All courses were entered into WebCT-Vista and enabled as potential hybrid courses (i.e. class meetings with online activities and support).  Faculty were expected to use the course email and syllabus tools as a minimum level of participation and they were encouraged to use as many other tools within the program as they wished.  All but four faculty members used Vista.  The five most commonly used tools (used by at least half of the faculty) were syllabus, calendar, grade book, announcements, and email.

Surveys of faculty disposition were conducted twice during the semester and once at the end of the term.  This end-of-semester survey was administered during the last week of classes and during final exam week.  This survey was conducted as a follow-up to the formative evaluation surveys that were conducted during the semester and was intended to measure faculty opinion about the educational value for WebCT-Vista and the general disposition of faculty toward the program at this point in time.  Basic research questions included the following.

·        To what degree (how often) did faculty use WebCT-Vista?

·        To what degree did faculty feel that WebCT-Vista added educational value to the course?

·        What did faculty, administrators, and computer services personnel like about the program?

·        What did faculty, administrators, and computer services personnel dislike about the program?

·        What was the disposition of faculty, administrators, and computer services personnel toward the program after having used it all semester?

 

METHODOLOGY

 

A convenience sample of 27 faculty, administrators, and computer services personnel responded to the anonymous 17 question survey.  Questionnaires were distributed to faculty mailboxes and emailed to everyone on the faculty-staff email distribution list between April 24 and April 30, 2003.

The one page questionnaire contained 14 closed-ended questions and 3 open-ended questions.  The first two questions collected demographic information so that the data could be disaggregated by the respondent’s primary position and frequency of WebCT-Vista useage.  A series of statements measured on a Likert scale were presented in questions 3 through 14 to measure opinions about the educational value of WebCT-Vista.  The three concluding questions were open-ended and asked respondents to identify what they like and dislike most about WebCT-Vista and to describe their general disposition toward the program at this point in time.

 

RESPONDENTS

 

There were 27 total student respondents.  Nineteen (70.4 %) were faculty members, five were computer services personnel (18.5%), and three (11.1%) were administrators.  Table 2 presents the frequency of WebCT-vista use for each type of respondent.  Nearly eighty percent (77.8%) of respondents reported that they had used WebCT-Vista regularly (defined as 4 to 10 occasions) or frequently (defined as about once a week or more).  Four (14.8 %) reported rare use and two (7.4 %) reported no use.

 

Table 1. Respondent Position
		Number	Percent
	1  Administrator	3	11.1
	2  Faculty	19	70.4
	3  PC Service	5	18.5
	Total	27	100.0

 

 

Table 2.  Degree of WebCT-Vista Use			Respondent Type			Total
			Administrator	Faculty	PC Service
	Frequently	Count	2	8	4	14
		% Respondent type	66.7%	42.1%	80.0%	51.9%
	Regularly	Count	1	5	1	7
		% Respondent type	33.3%	26.3%	20.0%	25.9%
	Rarely	Count	0	4	0	4
		% Respondent type	.0%	21.1%	.0%	14.8%
	Never	Count	0	2	0	2
		% Respondent type	.0%	10.5%	.0%	7.4%
Total		Count	3	19	5	27
		% Respondent type	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

 

 

EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF WEBCT-VISTA

 

Respondents were presented with a series of 11 statements about the educational value of WebCT-Vista and asked to register agreement on a four point Likert scale.  The statements addressed course functionality, level of interaction, critical thinking, and general attitude toward the program.  Each statement and the mean response is presented in Table 3.  Cases in which respondents had never or rarely used WebCT-Vista were removed from the sample for the analysis of educational value (questions 3 – 14).

Based on the response to these agree-disagree statements, the overall disposition of respondents toward WebCT-Vista was positive.  These findings were consistent with the open-ended responses given to questions 15, 16, and 17.

 

Table 3. Assessment of Educational Value

	MEAN	SD	Strongly Agree	Agree	Disagree	Strongly Disagree
WebCT-Vista enhanced my course.	3.06	.725	5/27.8%	9/50.0%	4/22.2%	0
WebCT helped me to organize my course better.	2.78	.732	3/16.7%	8/44.4%	7/38.9%	0
WebCT can be used to increase or enhance faculty-to-student interaction.	3.32	.671	8/42.1%	9/47.4%	2/10.5%	0
WebCT can be used to increase or enhance student-to-student interaction.	3.00	.612	3/17.6%	11/64.7%	3/17.6%	0
WebCT can be used to increase or enhance student-to-resource interaction.	3.28	.461	5/27.8%	13/72.2%	0	0
WebCT rarely works correctly.	2.11	.809	1/5.3%	4/21.1%	10/52.6%	4/21.1%
I believe that I can use WebCT to stimulate student thinking.	2.89	.567	2/10.5%	13/68.4%	4/21.1%	0
I believe that I can use WebCT to improve my level of feedback to students.	3.28	.669	7/38.9%	9/50.0%	2/11.1%	0
I have found WebCT to be a useful tool.	3.16	.765	7/36.8%	8/42.1%	4/21.1%	0
I would like to learn to use more of the features of WebCT.	3.16	.898	8/42.1%	7/36.8%	3/15.8%	4/5.4%
I believe that most of my students like WebCT.	2.72	.826	3/16.7%	8/44.4%	6/33.3%	1/5.6%
I hope we continue to use WebCT in future semesters.	3.37	.597	8/42.1%	10/52.6%	1/5.3%	0

 

Question 3 presented respondents with the statement, “Vista enhanced my course.”  The count and percentage for each answer value disaggregated by respondent type (administrator, faculty, or computer services staff) is presented in Table 4.

 

Table 4.  Frequencies for Question 3.  Vista enhanced my course.			Type of Respondent			Total
			Administrator	Faculty	3PC Service
	Strongly Agree	Count	2	2	1	5
		% of Respondent Type	66.7%	15.4%	50.0%	27.8%
	Agree	Count	1	7	1	9
		% of Respondent Type	33.3%	53.8%	50.0%	50.0%
	Disagree	Count	0	4	0	4
		% of Respondent Type	.0%	30.8%	.0%	22.2%
Total		Count	3	13	2	18
		% of Respondent Type	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

 

Question 4 presented respondents with the statement, “Vista helped me to organize my course better.”  Data from this question is presented in Table 5 below.  The count and percentage is presented for each answer value disaggregated by respondent type (administrator, faculty, or computer services staff).

 

Table 5.  Frequencies for Question 4: Vista helped me to organize my course better			Type of Respondent			Total
			Administrator	Faculty	PC Service
	Strongly Agree	Count	1	1	1	3
		% of Respondent Type	33.3%	7.7%	50.0%	16.7%
	Agree	Count	1	6	1	8
		% of Respondent Type	33.3%	46.2%	50.0%	44.4%
	Disagree	Count	1	6	0	7
		% of Respondent Type	33.3%	46.2%	.0%	38.9%
Total		Count	3	13	2	18
		% of Respondent Type	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

 

Question 5 presented respondents with the statement, “Vista can be use to enhance faculty-to-student interaction.”  Data from this question is presented in Table 6 below.  The count and percentage is presented for each answer value disaggregated by respondent type (administrator, faculty, or computer services staff).

 

Table 6.  Frequencies for Question 5 Vista can be use to enhance faculty-to-student interaction.			Type of Respondent			Total
			Administrator	Faculty	PC Service
	Strongly Agree	Count	2	5	1	8
		% of Respondent Type	66.7%	38.5%	33.3%	42.1%
	Agree	Count	1	6	2	9
		% of Respondent Type	33.3%	46.2%	66.7%	47.4%
	Disagree	Count	0	2	0	2
		% of Respondent Type	.0%	15.4%	.0%	10.5%
Total		Count	3	13	3	19
		% of Respondent Type	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

 

Question 6 presented respondents with the statement, “Vista can be used to increase or enhance student-to-student interaction.”  Data from this question is presented in Table 7 below.  The count and percentage is presented for each answer value disaggregated by respondent type (administrator, faculty, or computer services staff).

 

Table 7.  Frequencies for Question 6: Vista can be used to increase or enhance student-to-student interaction.			Type of Respondent			Total
			Administrator	Faculty	PC Service
	Strongly Agree	Count	0	2	1	3
		% of Respondent Type	.0%	16.7%	33.3%	17.6%
	Agree	Count	2	7	2	11
		% of Respondent Type	100.0%	58.3%	66.7%	64.7%
	Disagree	Count	0	3	0	3
		% of Respondent Type	.0%	25.0%	.0%	17.6%
Total		Count	2	12	3	17
		% of Respondent Type	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

 

Question 7 presented respondents with the statement, “Vista can be used to increase or enhance student-to-resource interaction.”  Data from this question is presented in Table 8 below.  The count and percentage is presented for each answer value disaggregated by respondent type (administrator, faculty, or computer services staff).

 

Table 8.  Frequencies for Question 7: Vista can be used to increase or enhance student-to-resource interaction.			Type of Respondent			Total
			Administrator	Faculty	PC Service
	Strongly Agree	Count	1	3	1	5
		% of Respondent Type	33.3%	25.0%	33.3%	27.8%
	Agree	Count	2	9	2	13
		% of Respondent Type	66.7%	75.0%	66.7%	72.2%
Total		Count	3	12	3	18
		% of Respondent Type	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

 

Question 8 presented respondents with the statement, “Vista rarely works correctly.”  Data from this question is presented in Table 9 below.  The count and percentage is presented for each answer value disaggregated by respondent type (administrator, faculty, or computer services staff).

 

Table 9.  Frequencies for Question 8: Vista rarely works correctly.			Type of Respondent			Total
			Administrator	Faculty	PC Service
	Strongly Agree	Count	0	1	0	1
		% of Respondent Type	.0%	7.7%	.0%	5.3%
	Agree	Count	0	4	0	4
		% of Respondent Type	.0%	30.8%	.0%	21.1%
	Disagree	Count	2	5	3	10
		% of Respondent Type	66.7%	38.5%	100.0%	52.6%
	Strongly Disagree	Count	1	3	0	4
		% of Respondent Type	33.3%	23.1%	.0%	21.1%
Total		Count	3	13	3	19
		% of Respondent Type	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

 

Question 9 presented respondents with the statement, “I believe that I can use Vista to stimulate student thinking.”  Data from this question is presented in Table 10 below.  The count and percentage is presented for each answer value disaggregated by respondent type (administrator, faculty, or computer services staff).

 

Table 10.  Frequencies for Question 9: I believe that I can use Vista to stimulate student thinking.			Type of Respondent			Total
			Administrator	Faculty	PC Service
	Strongly Agree	Count	1	1	0	2
		% of Respondent Type	33.3%	7.7%	.0%	10.5%
	Agree	Count	2	8	3	13
		% of Respondent Type	66.7%	61.5%	100.0%	68.4%
	Disagree	Count	0	4	0	4
		% of Respondent Type	.0%	30.8%	.0%	21.1%
Total		Count	3	13	3	19
		% of Respondent Type	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

 

Question 10 presented respondents with the statement, “I believe that I can use Vista to improve my level of feedback to students.”  Data from this question is presented in Table 11 below.  The count and percentage is presented for each answer value disaggregated by respondent type (administrator, faculty, or computer services staff).

 

Table 11.  Frequencies for Question 10: I believe that I can use Vista to improve my level of feedback to students.			Type of Respondent			Total
			Administrator	Faculty	PC Service
	Strongly Agree	Count	2	4	1	7
		% of Respondent Type	66.7%	30.8%	50.0%	38.9%
	Agree	Count	1	7	1	9
		% of Respondent Type	33.3%	53.8%	50.0%	50.0%
	Disagree	Count	0	2	0	2
		% of Respondent Type	.0%	15.4%	.0%	11.1%
Total		Count	3	13	2	18
		% of Respondent Type	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

 

Question 11 presented respondents with the statement, “I have found WebCT-Vista to be a useful tool.”  Data from this question is presented in Table 12 below.  The count and percentage is presented for each answer value disaggregated by respondent type (administrator, faculty, or computer services staff).

 

Table 12.  Frequencies for Question 11: I have found WebCT-Vista to be a useful tool.			Type of Respondent			Total
			Administrator	Faculty	PC Service
	Strongly Agree	Count	2	2	3	7
		% of Respondent Type	66.7%	15.4%	100.0%	36.8%
	Agree	Count	1	7	0	8
		% of Respondent Type	33.3%	53.8%	.0%	42.1%
	Disagree	Count	0	4	0	4
		% of Respondent Type	.0%	30.8%	.0%	21.1%
Total		Count	3	13	3	19
		% of Respondent Type	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

 

Question 12 presented respondents with the statement, “I would like to learn to use more of the features of Vista.”  Data from this question is presented in Table 13 below.  The count and percentage is presented for each answer value disaggregated by respondent type (administrator, faculty, or computer services staff).

 

Table 13.  Frequencies for Question 12: I would like to learn to use more of the features of Vista.			Type of Respondent			Total
			Administrator	Faculty	PC Service
	Strongly Agree	Count	1	5	2	8
		% of Respondent Type	50.0%	38.5%	50.0%	42.1%
	Agree	Count	1	5	1	7
		% of Respondent Type	50.0%	38.5%	25.0%	36.8%
	Disagree	Count	0	3	0	3
		% of Respondent Type	.0%	23.1%	.0%	15.8%
	Strongly Disagree	Count	0	0	1	1
		% of Respondent Type	.0%	.0%	25.0%	5.3%
Total		Count	2	13	4	19
		% of Respondent Type	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

 

Question 13 presented respondents with the statement, “I believe that most of my students like Vista.”  Data from this question is presented in Table 14 below.  The count and percentage is presented for each answer value disaggregated by respondent type (administrator, faculty, or computer services staff).

 

Table 14.  Frequencies for Question 13: I believe that most of my students like Vista.			Type of Respondent			Total
			Administrator	Faculty	PC Service
	Strongly Agree	Count	1	2	0	3
		% of Respondent Type	33.3%	15.4%	.0%	16.7%
	Agree	Count	2	5	1	8
		% of Respondent Type	66.7%	38.5%	50.0%	44.4%
	Disagree	Count	0	5	1	6
		% of Respondent Type	.0%	38.5%	50.0%	33.3%
	Strongly Disagree	Count	0	1	0	1
		% of Respondent Type	.0%	7.7%	.0%	5.6%
Total		Count	3	13	2	18
		% of Respondent Type	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

 

Question 14 presented respondents with the statement, “I hope we continue to use Vista in future semesters.”  Data from this question is presented in Table 15 below.  The count and percentage is presented for each answer value disaggregated by respondent type (administrator, faculty, or computer services staff).

 

Table 15.  Frequencies for Question 14: I hope we continue to use Vista in future semesters.			Type of Respondent			Total
			Administrator	Faculty	PC Service
	Strongly Agree	Count	2	3	3	8
		% of Respondent Type	66.7%	23.1%	100.0%	42.1%
	Agree	Count	1	9	0	10
		% of Respondent Type	33.3%	69.2%	.0%	52.6%
	Disagree	Count	0	1	0	1
		% of Respondent Type	.0%	7.7%	.0%	5.3%
Total		Count	3	13	3	19
		% of Respondent Type	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

 

 

WHAT RESPONDENTS LIKE MOST ABOUT WEBCT-VISTA

 

Question 15 was an open-ended question that asked respondents to identify what they liked most about WebCT-Vista.  There were # individual responses.  The raw data for this question is presented below in disaggregated form for administrators, faculty, and computer services personnel.

 

Administrator Comments (Liked Most)

 

• It takes less time (once you learn it) than to develop your own web page.  It is standardized for all classes, which should be easier for the student.
• Asynchronous, threaded discussion
• Sending emails to a class

 

Faculty Comments

 

• I liked learning to use a new program.
• WebCT was useful in posting grades and sending/receiving e-mail messages to/from the students.  The students seemed to appreciate the gradebook aspect of WebCT.  I am planning to use WebCT much more extensively next semester to post class notes and assignments.
• Grade and resource features
• Enhancement of communication with students.
• Provides excellent tools for online or hybrid courses.
• All the features – grade posting, email, and announcements, etc.
• I found WebCT to be a useful way to make my lectures available to my students, as they wanted them.  Most of my lectures were Power Point presentations, which the students could access as they wanted to.
• Posting CPE scores
• I can post practice tests in WebCT for my students.
• I could provide feedback quickly.
• It is a very good technology for WEB based courses.
• It has some potential to enhance specific aspects of the course, ie., allow students to check grades, allow posting of copyrighted materials, articles.
• I don’t have enough experience to say, but if I could get the gradebook to work for me, I think that would be helpful and good for the students.
• I think that my students experienced more rapid feedback, critical thinking, interaction, reading, and writing in the hybrid WebCT-Vista course than they would have in a face-to-face lecture only course.

 

Computer Staff Comments (Like Most)

 

• Since I’m not faculty, my “WebCT likes” will probably be from a different angle.
  1) I like the ability to make campus-wide announcements via WebCT Vista.  Provides us with another quick and easy method for informing students of important events, issues, etc. 
  2)  I like the capability that WebCT provides for faculty to post documents (i.e., Power Point files) to their respective courses.  Again, another tool for quickly getting info out on the web.  In addition, after faculty have learned how to post documents in WebCT, it had been a time-saver for our department (computer services) because faculty have the capability of posting info to the web.
• I found that teachers who chose to make use of the tool and took an active interest in learning how to use the basic tools provided by Vista became more interested in using the other tools Vista has to offer.  Most calls I got were the “show me once” variety, In fact, a couple of teachers, once they had learned to use a couple of the basic tools, were more able/confident to try the other tools on their own.
• It is a good way to keep students informed about campus events.
• Provides a uniform look and feel for all courses to the students.  It also prepares the students for when they transfer to another institution that uses WebCT, they will have enough to get used to when going to a new school and it will benefit them to already feel comfortable using WebCT.

 

 

WHAT RESPONDENTS DISLIKE MOST ABOUT WEBCT-VISTA

 

Question 16 was an open-ended question that asked respondents to identify what they disliked most about WebCT-Vista.  There were 23 individual responses.  The raw data for this question is presented below in disaggregated form.

 

Administrator Comments (Dislikes)

 

• Sometimes the server was down at times I needed to use it.
• Having to type same material in more than one section of many courses.
• Having to select a class/section and then other options, such as grades or email.  I’d like to be able to send an announcement or email to most or all sections at once.  It would be faster to select grades and then section without having to constantly click in and out of classes.  The flow or path is troublesome.

 

Faculty Comments (Dislikes)

 

• I mostly disliked giving to check WebCT everyday for messages posted by students, and having to post grades on WebCT.  I am not used to being bound to my computer to such a degree.  It quickly became tedious logging on everyday and sometimes several times a day just to see if a student had sent me an email.
• Slowness, Poorly laid out, takes longer to utilize than it should
• The time involved.
• Students continually spoke of system down, hard to use, and need of passwords – I found moving between courses – not as easy as it should be.
• Too difficult, needs to be made much easier
• Setup time- takes a while
• What I disliked most about WebCT was that it was turned over to us to use with far too many bugs in it.  More effort should have been made to insure that it was ready to go when we received it.  Had we been able to wait until the fall to implement it, I think it would have been better.  It was too rushed.
• Arcane protocols
• The materials linked to the courses have to be uploaded each semester.  All the work I’ve done will have to be done, except scanning next semester.
• Glitches.  It crashed too often.
• It is not reliable.  It is an obtrusive technology, when mandated for non- WEB based courses
• It was foisted on us; it is too complex and user unfriendly/  it is an abstract medium.
• It’s complicated, often doesn’t work right, and creates much more work for the faculty member trying to use it.
• Everything

 

Computer Staff Comments (Dislikes)

 

• I guess the one thing would be the period when we started using WebCT Vista.  Seemed like either WebCT of GA State was constantly applying patches to correct problems.  I realize that we were in a testing stage, but I feel that faculty and students initially got a bad taste for the WebCT Vista application due to the functional problems.
• Many of the processes loading course content, etc., took way too many steps.  Removing content, also, meant going to three or four different places to completely get rid of files and their associations.  Also, I was never able to copy an updated version of a file over an older one.  This consistently locked up my sessions.
• Students have problems remembering login and password information
• I did not like the fact that you couldn’t go back in the group discussion with the back button.
• It was buggy at first, but it’s getting much better.  I can’t believe they don’t have the Banner interface completed; hopefully it will be ready for fall.  The largest problem I had was just getting the students to remember their passwords, but overall I think the students transitioned to the system very well.

 

RESPONDENT DISPOSITION TOWARD WEBCT-VISTA

 

The last question (Question 17) was an open-ended question that asked respondents to describe their disposition toward WebCT-Vista.  There were 25 individual responses.  The raw data for this question is presented below in disaggregated form.

 

Administrator Comments

 

• I would like to continue to use the program and to use more of the other options.  I think it is a good tool.
• If it were a bit more “user-friendly,” I would really enjoy it.  I’d like more practice and want to be able to use it in the future.
• It’s very time consuming and when it is slow, my patience wears thin!

 

Faculty Comments

 

• It is undoubtedly useful for some courses, but at the present time, it is not useful to me for my courses.
• I believe that WebCT has a great potential.  It is just a matter of time to get use to using it on a regular basis.  I like the ability to post notes, activities, and exam keys on the Web for each class, and plan to make more use of this in the future.
• Would still use it.
• I started off pretty good with WebCT and then found it very time consuming, at least for those of us in the PE dept.  with all the different sections we have.
• Very positive.  I just need to learn more.
• Use when required
• I like it, but think it has several bugs that need worked out.  Many of the tools also need to be easier (assessments).  Needs to be more compatible with other software.
• Hope we continue to use it!
• I did not use WebCT, but I am knowledgeable of its features and services.  It is a great tool/instrument to enhance student input and feedback!

• I think WebCT holds a great potential for us, a potential that has yet to be realized.  I personally liked it and used it as appropriate in my courses/ but I think that in the future, faculty should be encouraged to use it and that it not be mandatory that everyone use it.  There are many different teaching styles among the faculty of East Georgia College, and individual faculty should be encouraged to select what is most appropriate for their courses.
• I am willing to give it a chance.
• Good idea, bad implementation
• I like it, I just wish the students knew how to use it.
• WebCT is useful when applied correctly.
• It stinks.
• So far, it’s not very positive.
• Poorly implemented.  Does not work half the time.  Wastes time, energy, and money!

 

Computer Staff Comments

 

• Overall, I feel that EGC should continue to utilize and incorporate WebCT Vista within our course offerings.  I feel that whether we like it or not, online education is becoming an expected and necessary item in high education and those institutions that do not embrace this technology will be left behind.
• Those teachers who made a serious attempt at using the tools seem to have gained a confidence that should allow them to take the learning process, for the most part, into their own hands, saving a lot of service calls.  Others I’ve worked with, who are still nervous about using the technology, still seem to be eager to learn how to use it.  Of course, the faculty who’ve contacted me with questions, are only those who have made an effort to use Vista.
• I feel it has great potential as a tool for teaching and communication with students.
• I like it and think it is useful.
• Overall, I think or pilot project was successful.  I hope we continue to have “every” section with an online component.  If nothing else, it gives the student a central location to obtain basic information (syllabus, grades, announcements, and a way to get in touch with their instructors).  I know there will always be faculty who resist, but I really think once the faculty really get the hang of it, it will benefit not only the students but the faculty itself.

 

 

 

This survey is being conducted to measure faculty attitudes about WebCT-Vista at the end of the spring semester.

Please complete and return it to David Strickland ASAP and before Tuesday, May 6th.

 

1.  What is your primary position? 

q Administrator     q Faculty       q Computer Services Staff     q Other Staff 

 

2. How often did you use WebCT-Vista during this semester?

q Never  

q Rarely (only a few times during the semester)

q Regularly (4 to 10 occasions)

q Frequently (about once a week or more than 10 times)

 

	Strongly Agree	Agree	Disagree	Strongly Disagree
3.	q	q	q	q	WebCT-Vista enhanced my course.
4.	q	q	q	q	WebCT helped me to organize my course better.
5.	q	q	q	q	WebCT can be used to increase or enhance faculty-to-student interaction.
6.	q	q	q	q	WebCT can be used to increase or enhance student-to-student interaction.
7.	q	q	q	q	WebCT can be used to increase or enhance student-to-resource interaction.
8.	q	q	q	q	WebCT rarely works correctly.
9.	q	q	q	q	I believe that I can use WebCT to stimulate student thinking.
10.	q	q	q	q	I believe that I can use WebCT to improve my level of feedback to students.
11.	q	q	q	q	I have found WebCT to be a useful tool.
12.	q	q	q	q	I would like to learn to use more of the features of WebCT.
13.	q	q	q	q	I believe that most of my students like WebCT.
14.	q	q	q	q	I hope we continue to use WebCT in future semesters.

 

 

15.  What did you like most about WebCT-Vista?

 

16.  What did you dislike most about WebCT-Vista?

 

17.  Please summarize your current disposition toward WebCT.