| TCU hopes that an on-line version of its proven English-language course will appeal to students who can't afford to study in the U.S. |
The courses target students who need only one or two semesters of English study to matriculate at an American university. So far, only two of the 24 students enrolled in the on-line course are actually living overseas. But, says Kurk Gayle, director of TCU's Intensive English Program, the school expects that number to grow as word of the course spreads. Students enrolled on line, he says, are progressing faster than those involved in the live courses.
Classes are taught by three full-time instructors who also teach the same class live at TCU. The coursework, which is all Web-based, focuses on writing skills, listening comprehension, and speaking ability. Students prepare spoken assignments which they upload onto the server for teachers to download and correct. There are on-line lectures on topics like American culture or American politics, where students practice listening comprehension; students answer questions or take dictation based on the lectures. They are also required to complete reading comprehension assignments and to write essays on assigned topics. And when teachers correct students' papers, their responses include hyperlinks to existing or specially created Web sites offering help with grammar or other problem areas. "It's really a whole-language approach," says Gayle, who helped develop the program.
The course can currently handle about 25 students--TCU has traditionally limited its total enrollment in intensive English to about 45 students--but, Gayle says, the school would like to have around 100 students by early next year. Plans call for 400 to 500 students by 2001.
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