Distance Education is in its new office and has its new, state-of-the-art proctoring center up and running, according to Rebecca Swanson, associate vice provost for Distance Education Planning and Development.
The new proctoring center, which is housed within the Distance Education offices in Suite 140 of Venture IV, is equipped with computers and individual test-taking stations, as well as a video-surveillance unit. Swanson said everyone in Distance Education is very excited about the new offices, and the new opportunities that are to follow, such as media labs, which will allow Distance Education professors to record and reach their classes at anytime.
These labs will contain recording equipment, and will be open 24-hours a day, seven days a week, making them more convenient for professors. One of these new labs is housed right next to the proctoring center within the Distance Education offices, which is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Wednesday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday.
However, the new proctoring center hasn’t been convenient for everyone. David Clagg, a distance education student taking a summer course, had a hard time working the hours the center was available for testing around his full-time job in Research Triangle Park. “I work 9 to 6 Monday through Friday. There are four proctored tests in the course of this class; however, you can only take the tests on the assigned day,” Clagg said. “I’d like to know how I’m supposed to take a test.”
According to Clagg, his professor told him she would not be making testing exceptions for one student. And according to Swanson and Melissa Williford, associate director of Distance Education Administrative Services, exam schedules are left up to the professors of the courses.
“[Curriculum is] something that is entirely within the perview of a faculty member, and different courses have different requirements,” Swanson said.
According to Williford, students taking distance education courses should be aware of professors’ requirements before-hand.
“We usually respect that individual instructor,” she said. “It’s at their discretion what standards they want to set. ”
Eventually, an agreement was worked out, and according to Williford, Clagg took his first exam last week and is scheduled for his next three.
Williford also said the Distance Education department did research into how many students have faced problems with exams due to their other obligations.
“We were able to go back and look at the instances of students taking exams in the evening hours,” she said. “We actually went back and looked at numbers because we certainly want to keep that in mind because of working students. We went back and did our research.”
According to Swanson, the Distance Education department works hard to accommodate students the best it can.
“David’s circumstance is certainly not usual but we pride ourselves on … any student’s special circumstance we will certainly work with, she said. “I’ll stay myself and proctor an exam, and in fact have. We always will do whatever it takes to get the student tested.”
Williford said the Distance Education department is always trying to be as flexible as possible. They have recently began a new system where students can arrange their testing times online, and Swanson said Distance Education is excited about a new system called Elluminate which will allow students to meet with professors in real-time sessions, communicating either by voice or by type.
“We are all aware that the whole point of distance education is to be as flexible as possible. People generally are taking D.E. courses because of circumstances that preclude coming to campus,” she said. “We certainly don’t want any part of a required time to be a stressful situation for anybody. Exams are stressful enough as it is.”
