There are many advantages of using the Web for active learning. The Web provides easy access to course materials, relevant Web sites, and Library resources. The Web can be used to develop online discussion groups and collaborative working groups. The Web can encourage undergraduate research through more direct contact with data unavailable locally. Through the use of self-tests put on the Web, students can access their knowledge and mastery of material.
Students can use the Web to develop class projects and presentations.
In addition to enhancing active student learning and the ability of faculty and graduate students to meaningfully apply technology to their courses, this project also provides faculty and graduate students from within the same discipline but from different campuses an opportunity to engage in extensive discussions and redesign of course content, organization, and teaching methods. Such collaboration, as we know from BioWeb and similar System initiatives, leads to pedagogically and technologically innovative and useful approaches to teaching and learning. The inclusion of graduate students serves several instructional purposes. First, at UWM, graduate students have a lot of classroom contact with entry-level students. Engaging them in this conversation will make them better teachers and benefit their students.