Contact: Monty Jones, (512) 499-4363

Date: September 9, 1998

UT System News Release

AUSTIN - Two on-line graduate degree programs, in business management and educational technology, will begin next fall in The University of Texas System, allowing students to earn a master's degree entirely through the World Wide Web, multimedia, and related technologies.

The programs are being designed to fill a need for graduate education among Texans who cannot attend classes on a university campus because of conflicts with their work hours, family responsibilities, distance from a campus, or other reasons. The master's degree program in educational technology is expected to be especially attractive to public school teachers.

By enrolling in these on-line programs, students will be able to complete a master's degree through instruction delivered to a computer at the office, home, a public library, or other remote site that is accessible to the Internet. They will be able to interact with faculty members and other students via the Internet, and they will have access to digital libraries and the full range of student services enjoyed by campus-based students.

The course work and other services will be "asynchronous," meaning that a student will be able to use the on-line services at any time and from any place.

"We are developing these graduate programs as a way to help meet the educational needs of Texans who, for whatever reasons, cannot attend classes on a university campus in the traditional way," said U.T. System Chancellor William H. Cunningham.

"New information technologies now make it possible to offer these services while maintaining the high academic standards that U.T. System institutions are known for," Cunningham said. "These programs will certainly depart from the traditional way that educational services have been delivered, but we will continue to uphold our traditional high quality."

These are the first graduate programs to be offered through the UT TeleCampus, the centralized Web-based system that opened last spring. The TeleCampus, a comprehensive electronic conduit to the resources and services of all 15 institutions in the U.T. System, provides a "one-stop" source of support services for students engaged in distance education. Many of its services are also accessible by the general public.

In the business program, students will take 48 semester hours of classes and will earn an MBA in general management. To participate in the program, a student must enroll in one of eight U.T. System general academic universities that are participating. Faculty from the eight campuses will teach the courses, but a student's degree will be awarded in the name of the institution in which he or she is enrolled.

The eight institutions are U.T. Arlington, U.T. Brownsville, U.T. Dallas, U.T. El Paso, U.T. Pan American, U.T. Permian Basin, U.T. San Antonio, and U.T. Tyler. U.T. Austin decided not to participate in this program and, instead, is concentrating on expansion of its "executive format" MBA programs to serve non-traditional students.

The educational technology program will include 39 hours of courses leading to a Master of Education degree in educational technology. The program will be offered through the auspices of U.T. Brownsville, which will deliver the first 12 hours of courses. Other academic institutions in the U.T. System are in the process of submitting proposals for delivery of the remaining 27 hours of courses.

"We believe this degree program will appeal particularly to public school teachers who want to integrate new technologies into the classroom," said Dr. Darcy Hardy, director of the TeleCampus. "The program will include all aspects of educational technology, such as the design of instructional materials, the use of multimedia in the classroom, presentation skills, networking, and distance learning."

As faculty members across the U.T. System develop the details of the courses for the on-line degree programs, the TeleCampus will provide training, design support, and other assistance.

One goal is to design the programs so that students have a wide range of access to faculty. The programs will include "virtual conference rooms" in which, for example, a faculty member could post discussion topics. Students can connect to the conference room at any time and contribute their ideas. There will also be live chat rooms, in which messages can be exchanged in real time. These can be used for review sessions, for group projects, and similar purposes.