Ken Marra, administrator of the MBA/MSIT programs at USD says face-time and interaction is important. (photo/lambertphoto.com)

Shalisa Davis began working on an undergraduate degree in human resources after enlisting in the U.S. Marine Corps at age 18. She went to school nights, but put studies on hold when she was deployed by the military. “I started in 1988 and finished in 1996,” says Capt. Davis, a financial management officer at Camp Pendleton.

When evaluating graduate schools, Davis preferred the “on-ground” experience of a classroom. However, she worked full time, was married and had a daughter. Davis didn’t want a completely online degree program, so she enrolled in University of Phoenix’s FlexNet that combines classroom experience with online learning.

“In the last several years, we have seen a tremendous growth in the number of students wanting to access their education using an Internet platform,” says Bruce Williams, vice president/director at University of Phoenix San Diego. “An online curriculum adds a dimension of convenience not previously available.”

Davis began work on a master of arts in organizational management in February 2003, the same month her husband was deployed to Iraq. She goes to University of Phoenix’s Rancho Bernardo Center for the first and last nights of six-week classes. In between, she’s an online student. Each course has 12 Internet folders. In the classroom folder, Davis asks questions. Another folder contains the syllabus and other reading material. Davis sends assignments to a folder, works with other students through the team folder and can meet online in the general chat room.

“Obviously, there’s the convenience everyone appreciates,“ Davis says. The first night is efficient. You meet, go over the syllabus and ask questions. The last night, you give final presentations,” says Davis, whose last class is in October.

Online learning takes various forms. The University of Phoenix and Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University offer fully online programs. And, as Davis discovered, it’s not always an either/or choice of classroom or computer. Furthermore, business schools incorporate a range of technologies into classes.

Keller has seven online graduate programs and four undergraduate programs, says Thomas Horstmann, San Diego center director. He sees busy people take one course at the center and the other online. “They have time to go in person to only one,” he says.

Enrollment in online courses is on the rise at Chapman University campuses statewide, says Ruth Claire Black, director of distance learning. While 50 percent of students prefer the traditional classroom format, the other half opts to learn at their computers. These students range from the parents of young children to deployed military people.

Although online courses won’t “supplant mainstay courses,” Black says Chapman’s long-term plan is to add from 20 to 30 online courses. Chapman’s goals for the next 18 to 24 months include adding more teachers and working to improve technology so that students feel “more like they’re in the classroom.”

University of Redlands blends class time with computer time in degrees including the MBA and the master of science in information technology program starting in the fall. Students attend classes and use Blackboard educational software to answer instructors’ questions or participate in threaded discussions, says Keith Roberts, assistant business school dean. He’s teaching “Legal Policy and Ethics” and other courses for the new degree that focuses on managerial business skills. Issues such as outsourcing will be addressed, and Roberts wants to use Blackboard to connect Redlands students with peers in India and Mexico.

Web-based technology allows MBA students at the University of San Diego to log on and download information from instructors. However, the emphasis is on “face-time interaction and student interaction,” says Ken Marra, administrator of the MBA/MSIT (master of science in information technology) programs.

USD has a broadcast studio where instructors can tape presentations for downloading. In addition, the university offers several business degrees that combine online learning with on-ground meetings. Students from around the country are enrolled in the master’s in supply chain management and global leadership programs. They travel to San Diego for some classroom sessions and then return home and attend classes online.

Online learning may be done in a synchronous format, where students choose when to go online at set times. This can be challenging when teaching students in different countries, as Sharon Lightner learned when she taught a synchronous class to students around the world. Her online class started at 11 p.m.

Lightner teaches accounting at SDSU. She has students upload their assignments so that she can grade work and bring it to class. Students in SDSU’s experimental classroom put their answers in PDAs or hand-held computers and then check their laptop screens. The computers are connected to an automatic response system that registers students’ responses.

“It helps if they think they don’t know the answer. They may think they’re the only ones who don’t,” says Lightner. She’ll ask for volunteers to explain how they got an answer. Furthermore, Lightner uses the technology to put quizzes in the PDAs.

Cynthia Larson-Daugherty has taught online at National University where instructors can use technology to enhance instruction. She says it is easy to have a 10-minute lecture and then click on an animated flow chart.

At National University, online learning has gone off-campus. Spectrum Pacific Learning Co., an affiliate of the university, provides e-learning services for clients including National University and other schools and businesses. The services include developing courses and training instructors and students. Technical support is available seven days a week, and the staff does hear from frazzled students stalled in the middle of an exam, says general manager Cynthia Larson-Daugherty.

Larson-Daughtery has taught online at National, where instructors can use technology to enhance instruction. She says, “You could have a 10-minute lecture and then click on a flow chart” that’s animated.

UCSD’s Rady School of Management launches its first executive MBA program this fall. Future plans for the graduate school include incorporating technology for asynchronous learning and in Web-based and video-based formats, says Dean Robert Sullivan. Asked about the new business school’s first class, Sullivan said he was “encouraged. There were 65 openings, and we had 500 applications.”

Students in UC Irvine’s Graduate School of Management receive a laptop when they start classes. The university’s technology includes video streaming. Some teacher assistant sessions are taped, and an instructor records a response to frequently asked questions. While the university has been at the forefront of technology, UCI will never be completely online, says Jone Pence, GSM dean. “We’re really big on face-to-face interaction.” In the classroom, management students refine communication skills. “They’re forced to talk and think out loud,” she says.

The Internet connects some graduate students to summer courses at Alliant International University, says Ali Abu-Rahma, assistant dean of the business college. The university offers from five to six courses on subjects like finance. Courses are geared for international students who go home during the summer, says Abu-Rahma. The arrangement is similar to a correspondence course.

Alliant had planned to partner with Santa Monica Community College to allow students to take undergraduate business courses online. Budget cuts put that plan on hold, and Alliant may enter a similar agreement with local community colleges. The university offers an online master of education program that attracts students from around the world.

At CSU San Marcos, the computer won’t replace the classroom. “Since our inception, we have emphasized face-to-face interaction with our faculty,” says Keith Butler, MBA program director.

When campuses began scheduling Internet courses, students could either log on or attend on-ground classes. Now most campuses offer a hybrid that combines keyboard and classroom. Schools offer 24-hour technical support and the online lessons are now more visual than just words on a screen.

Marine Capt. Davis appreciates paying only $60 per class for online textbooks and other class material. She points out that textbooks cost an average of $85. For those considering an online course, Davis advises using DSL or a cable modem. Only dial-up is available where she lives. While she likes access to Phoenix’s virtual Apollo Library, “downloading takes a long time.” Reflecting on her undergraduate studies, she adds, “Back then, it was high-speed if you could fax.”