Survey: Students want D2L to be mandatory

By Dave Born

It has been 48 hours since taking the grueling comprehensive final exam, and the fate of the overall grade in the class remains teetering on the pass or fail precipice.

It will be an agonizingly long time before learning the ultimate fate of the grade, because the professor does not post grades on D2L.

With the effects of the past late-night Red Bull-driven cram session still lingering and beads of nervous sweat glistening on the forehead, today is going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.

The above scenario is an extreme example of what can result when a professor chooses not to utilize D2L, and according to the results of NCC’s 2007 Student Technology Survey, this continues to occur frequently.

According to the survey, 80.5 percent, or 389 of the 483 students who responded, answered that they “strongly agree” or “agree” with the statement, “I would like more of my traditional classes to use NCC Online (D2L).”

Moreover, 77.5 percent, or 374 of the 483 students, responded that they “strongly agree” or “agree” with the statement, “On-line learning environments (i.e. NCC’S Online site) helps me manage my coursework.”

Approximately 70 percent of the respondents attended mostly day classes, and 68 percent attended full-time.

In addition to targeted questions, the survey offered a feedback section, in case students wanted to make any comments or suggestions to improve the technology at NCC. Of the 127 comments,

38 included references to the D2L website.

The following are some comments taken directly from the feedback section.

“Can it be required that teachers used D2L so we can track our grades, please?”

“All of the instructors should use D2L and know how to use it. I want to know if the instructor has cancelled classes on D2L. I’d like to have my class assignments, syllabus and grades there, also. Honestly, if the technology is available, why aren’t all of the instructors utilizing it?”

“I would like to see all classes use NCC On-line because there would be no time wasted in the classroom to discuss grades and it would help students keep track of their progress.”

“Teachers should learn how to use D2L for grading at least.”

“I love being able to download notes off of D2L when it’s offered in a class.”

“I love being able to check my grades through D2L.”

“Online classes and D2L are tools of great value for the nontraditional student. Being middle-aged and working full-time, I need as much flexibility as possible to be able to maintain my job and also further my education.”

“I think it is the most important part of classes to use D2L, I do way better on classes that use it then don’t. I also think that it should be mandatory for professors to use it.”

However, not every student is in favor of greater utilization of D2L. The following are a few of those comments.

“Online learning, although possibly effective if run correctly, still lacks the social learning aspect that a classroom and any good college provides. I also think that D2L is taking away from the student teacher relationship we pride ourselves on here at NCC. People no longer check with their instructors for grades. This was the normal way an instructor gets to know their students.”

“D2L works fine, just sometimes the instructor input is of less than desirable quality. Problems with other websites for homework decrease my time available to do homework because too much time is spent on things like trying to get the printable version to print properly.”

The Desire 2 Learn website appears to be the strongest technological issue to NCC students, based on the survey results.

The entire survey, and surveys from the previous two years, can be viewed at http://www.normandale.edu/itsdept/?choice=StudentTechSurvey.