Hybrid

This course is similar to other hybrid courses at other universities with about 20% of the activities of the course are online. There are some overlaps with our hybrid course with enhanced courses at other universities. I was surprised to find how many universities offer hybrid courses. I did not realize how popular they are today,even though I should not be surprised given where we are today as a society.

Reflecting back on the course, overall the online activities did play into the course, but more so in discussion than in lecture as the graduate student TAs did bring in the activity into discussion, or talked about the assignment a little bit. I feel as if this course could and maybe even should be taught by graduate students where there is discussion two times a week instead of lecture and discussion. Lectures were not as informative as discussions, or not always as worth while attending. The biggest component of this course that I was a more effective student was face-to-face in discussions, there was immediate feedback and interaction, plus I will not have my opinions and writings saved into the digital sphere. The ability to have opinions and state things, but not always be haunted for years to come by them as one can be with posting them online.

I was already comfortable with blogs and somewhat with wikis before this course. I do not feel that this course, maybe the final assignment if I choice to do a blog will, aided in teaching me about to use a blog. However, not every student has that existing experience, and it is a valuable skill in today's work force. UW professors should use online resources, but resources that are closed to the general public without being signed up for the course, or an administrator connected to the class somehow. Resources like Moodle, or Learn@UW mainly for their ability to have more privacy. The use of online resources do depend on the course being taught-using a blog format for the professor and students to interact in a Linear Algebra class would not be as effective as we did in LIS201. There are more and more resources to supplement teachings and courses online and professors should, no NEED to take advantage of them. However, there needs to be an overwhelming concern for privacy and a SAFE space, free of malicious trolls, to express their opinions, view points in order to develop them. Students should also have the ability to maintain their privacy in a blog centered class like this one, the option to make their discussion blog a private one where only certain people can access it.