UpDate - Vol. 12, No. 32, Page 1
May 20, 1993
E-mail messages travel into, and beyond, the classroom

     Peter Byrne, a junior English major, taps frantically at his computer
keyboard, his thoughts on romance novel critiques racing faster than his
fingers can respond.
     Hundreds of miles away, at Hamilton College in Clinton, N.Y., another
on-line literature student settles down at her terminal to read Byrne's
thoughts and compare them to her own class' discussion on romance novels.
     Byrne is using electronic mail, a newly adopted educational tool, for
his team-taught "Introduction to Literature and Cultural Studies" class.
     "E-mail is another way of writing a letter," said Leila Lyons,
director of User Services in Computing and Network Services. "Instead of
sending it through the mail, you're sending it through a computer."
     Ann Ardis, assistant professor of English and Byrne's on-campus
instructor, said she conceived of the idea of using e-mail as a
correspondence-style teaching tool with Hamilton College while talking with
Peter Rabinowitz, who teaches "Introduction to Literature Criticism" at the
New York college.
     "I have known Peter for four years," Ardis said. "We would swap hints
on what works and what doesn't work in class."
     Upon noticing the similarities in their syllabi, Ardis and Rabinowitz
decided to experiment with e-mail this semester. They each divided their
classes into four groups and asked each student to send an e-mail response
on the week's discussion to their corresponding group at the other school.
     "The goal is to have the students at both campuses talk about the
differences between each class' discussions," Ardis said. "It's interesting
for them to find out what happened in the other class."
     Ardis said using e-mail was difficult at first because she was
learning the technology along with her students.
     Byrne said he mastered how to send messages after a few practice
tries. "For me," he said, "typing on a keyboard is faster than using a
pen."
     Byrne said he enjoys the extra dimension e-mail has brought to the
experimental class. "I like it because I can somehow gauge what sort of
ideas fellow students are discussing at another college far away," he
explained.
     Ardis said the e-mail communication extends outside of class. "In some
of the groups, they have carried on personal conversations as well."
     While Ardis' students are electronically writing to the students at 
Hamilton, Bob Caviness, professor of computer and information sciences at
the University of Delaware, receives a question on his home computer in
Washington, D.C., from a puzzled student in Newark.  Caviness, who has an
apartment in the nation's capital, gave his e-mail address to his students
along with his office hours and telephone number.
     "Most of the messages I receive are from students working in the
evenings and getting stuck on an assignment," he said. "They want to know
if I can help them."
     Caviness said e-mail is more effective than the telephone because he
can respond more quickly to his students and can be reached easier on
evenings and weekends. It also by-passes the annoying problem of telephone
tag.
     "Students will ask more questions on e-mail than they will in class,"
he said. "They are more willing to approach me because e-mail breaks down
the perceived barriers between students and faculty."
     When a certain question frequently appears oin Caviness' electronic
mailbox, he knows the students are unclear of the topic, and he said he
makes certain to review the question during the next class.
     Caviness stressed the importance of students learning the mechanics of
e-mail and experiencing its benefits, because "we live in an electronic
world," he said.
     Byrne agrees. "I'd love to have this option in other classes," he
said. "I encourage professors to try it out."
     Lyons said everybody associated with the University-students, faculty
and employees-has an electronic mailbox, allowing them to send and receive
messages.
     According to Janet de Vry, user education coordinator in User
Services, the e-mail system is very popular at the University as a method
of communication used by faculty, professionals, salaried staff and
students who have access to the campus network.
     Individuals activate their mailboxes by creating a personalized and
secret password for the system to know them by. Then they may exchange
electronic messages with other from computers located throughout campus in
individual offices, residence halls and at strategically located campus
sites.
     "E-mail makes it possible for persons to avoid playing telephone tag,"
de Vry said. In addition, it gives them as much time as they need to
compose their thoughts before replying to a message or initiating one. For
those who take advantage of e-mail on a regular basis, de Vry added, the
convenience and time savings increase productivity and communication.
     Anyone interested in activating their mailbox may bring their
University I.D. card to User Services, located in the basement of Smith
Hall, or to the Student Services Building on Lovett Avenue. Classes on
using e-mail are held at the beginning of each semester and printed
tutorials on e-mail are for sale the University Bookstore.
     The CNS Help Line at 831-6000 will answer any questions on e-mail and
its uses.
                                        -Patti Zielinski