OWL-Socrates expansion a welcome addition
Rice is expanding the OWL-Socrates program, which allows professors to record lectures and post them online for students to peruse (see story, page 4). This expansion to the academic curriculum will be extremely advantageous for students. The ability for students to view lectures online provides for exceptional flexibility. Should a student be put at disadvantage for missing class because they were sick or representing our university at an athletic event? Furthermore, students would have the option to delay their lecture after an all-nighter of studying; going to a 9 a.m. class on two hours of sleep is simply useless if a student crashes 10 minutes into the lecture. Not only will this enhance overall wellness, but students can be sure they were alert when attending lecture; the osmosis method of absorbing lecture while falling asleep simply does not work. These online lectures will also provide the benefit of being a tool for studying for exams. Looking back at lectures of challenging asset could prove to be an indispensable asset.
Furthermore, Rice's distinctive courses, such as "Religion and Hip-Hop," could easily gain more exposure and bring heightened attention to the diverse curriculum at Rice. It's not difficult to imagine the social-networking splashes that would become possible with OWL-Socrates: "Dude, check it out, Chamillionaire came to my class today." Therefore, we encourage the university to make the OWL-Socrates site public if it isn't already. Classes that are unavailable because of scheduling or enrollment restrictions would be instantly accessible to all.
Rice is a top academic institution and the addition of this extra resource is an excellent use of technology for the university to fulfill its ultimate purpose - to educate and disseminate knowledge. This is true both for enrolled students and those who are not able to attend Rice but are still interested in learning and gaining knowledge on a given topic. In addition, students will reap the irreplaceable asset of schedule flexibility once OWL-Socrates becomes available at Rice. Students, no longer despair your 9 a.m. classes.
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