Technology and the Online Classroom

With current technology we are able to manipulate space and time in convenient ways. For example this week my English class was held online via a chat room. Class was very different sitting at a desk in the student lounge with the comfort and abilities I would have outside of class. The technology manipulated space by allowing me to be in both physical and virtual spaces at the same time. Also with every piece of information transferred being logged in chat rather than spoken, time was manipulated.

I was able to use all of my comforts that I was normally not allowed use in class. I ate my breakfast while listening to music and vaguely paying attention to class. Though I was able to capture everything in class while multitasking. This was because instead of having to listen to the professor I was able to simply read the chat log and I would be caught up.

Being in both spaces at once allowed for me to lose a certain perception. I was both in class (virtually) and away from class (physically) at the same time. It allowed for a somewhat awkward feel of the class. The awkward feeling stemmed from not being in a classroom setting I tend to forget what I am suppose to be focusing the majority of my attention on. I was caught between two worlds that of my surrounding and that of my computer ‘window’. Having to bridge the gap of the two worlds every few minutes probably allowed for more of a loss than a gain.

With the logged conversations time seemed to be more controllable. Even though new pieces of information were added to the logs which allowed being able to see a progression of time, there still existed the ability to go back and read previous statements. There is nothing wrong with being able to manipulate time like this; in a way it allowed me to create time. I was able to do other things while class was going on and still get the information I needed, whenever I needed it.

The subject matter covered during the online class session was pretty easy. We simply went over an assignment sheet and asked questions or got clarification. I believe if I were taking a physics class I would pay full attention to the chat room and the only difference that being online would give is a distraction. There are too many opportunities and distractions online which is why I believe there is a reason for classrooms.

What happens when you hold a class online? Simply you allow students to have even more distractions than normal at hand. Although the students can go back and read the log they won’t get the full effect unless they are paying tentative attention. I could have simply logged on and got credit for attendance and return to sleep. The main benefits I see with the classes online are being able to reach people at vast range of distances.