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Assignment submission methods reflect the efficiency of a distance studies program. Correspondence schools have long relied on the traditional methods of communication by utilizing postal mail as a means to accept assignments and communicate with students. However, the advent of communication technologies like the internet has greatly improved the distance learning system. These technologies have created a degree of connectivity that was previously unimaginable; they allow students to interact with one another in real time, and instantaneously submit assignments. Given these numerous revolutionary advantages it can be concluded that internet based assignment submission, particularly through the WebCT assignment submission system, is more effective than traditional submission methods like postal mail. However, there are still some points of discussion in which the traditional system has advantages, and as this paper further discusses, the basis of the debate can be rooted on the issues of accessibility, costs and the required learning curve when it comes to operating the WebCT assignment submission system.
Young students are becoming increasingly familiar with technology. Most students are aware of how to navigate the internet, how to use word processing software, and how to access massive information sources that make Stauffer Library look like a family?s personal book collection. However, despite increasing prevalence of the internet, internet accessibility still poses a milestone to web based assignment submission. While most students are familiar with the internet, it is inevitable that some students will lack the necessary know how to navigate the internet and utilize it in their studies. Furthermore, Internet access is unavailable in some rural areas, or too slow and unreliable for regular use. In addition, students may find Internet access (and the technologies on which it depends) to be too expensive to fit their budget.
The Internet, though generally a free world, is not entirely free; one must have an up-to-date computer with a modem, a telephone line and a subscription to an Internet provider. This can become quite costly, and it is in addition to peripheral costs like the cost of electricity, the cost of computer repairs, and the cost of subscriptions to services which protect one from computer viruses. These costs can total several hundred dollars a month. Consequently, it has the potential to segregate students based on financial status; the market (and its benefits) is limited to those who can afford and have the capability to be online. Furthermore, not only is it costly, some students may find it difficult to use.
The WebCT assignment submission process may seem easy for any experienced Internet user; as long as the user knows how to navigate the Internet, it is quite easy to submit an assignment through WebCT. Online assignment submission systems require the student to upload the assignment online, typically in a Microsoft Word format. Uploading may seem complicated at first because there is a stage in the submission process where a student must locate the document on their personal computer, thus, linking the assignment to the submission system and making it available to their professor or marker. This is not entirely a complicated process, but it requires that students have the ability to locate files on their personal computer. In order to minimize the difficulty of submitting assignments online, the WebCT system has a friendly user-interface.
On one hand, postal services are not very expensive and anyone can mail a letter. Everyone also has access to postal services, and this service has been used successfully by correspondence programs for quite some time. Of course, between the WebCT assignment submission system and the postal mail system, postal mail evidently takes longer to deliver the assignment, and there is always the possibility that the document might get lost in transit. Therefore, the strength WebCT over the postal mail is time and efficiency of delivery, whereas the strength of the postal system over online submissions is that it is a much simpler and less costly process.
Evidently, between WebCT based and postal based assignment submission, WebCT remains to be more advantageous than postal mail, for obvious reasons: transit time and reliability. The issue as to whether any student can have access to the Internet has been resolved through public venues like Internet cafes and libraries that provide Internet access for free. When it comes to learning how to navigate the site, this becomes the responsibility of both the school and the user: the school has to make sure that the user interface is friendly and easy to understand, in addition to making itself available to assist students. It is also important to conduct interactive orientations to make the students feel more at ease moving about this new learning platform. Thus, having the know-how in online operations can be easily learned, and with the school?s help, any student, whether young or old, can find the confidence in taking communication and assignment submission to a new level.
