|
In response to the University's call to promote the use of IT to enhance
teaching, the Faculty of Architecture and Building has undertaken a comprehensive
exercise to place on-line all lecture course materials from both the School
of Architecture and the School of Building and Estate Management.
The phenomenal growth and development of the Internet has opened up new
opportunities for information presentation and exchange through links
within the vast World-Wide Web network. An increasing number of academic
institutions throughout the world have established server nodes with links
to web pages created by their own academic staff as well as by other academics
around the world to deliver and share teaching materials. Some of these
major links (e.g., the World Lecture Hall) are captured in the newly established
NUS Computer-Based Education Information Map.
Most of these digital information repositories rely on voluntary contributions
from staff members. Our Faculty felt that to realise the maximum impact
and benefit for both staff and students, a concerted effort is necessary,
with full support and participation by all staff. It was decided that
all lecture courses offered in the School of Architecture (for both the
BA (AS) and B Arch degrees) and Modular Courses (Levels 1 and 2) offered
in the School of Building and Estate Management (for the BSc (Building)
and BSc (Estate Management) degrees) would be placed online in the first
instance. The School of BEM is transitioning to the modular system, and
Levels 3 and 4 course materials will be uploaded into the system when
they are available.
To facilitate efficient search and information retrieval, a common framework
is established. Each School is provided with a homepage indicating the
module code, title, type (e.g., essential, elective or enrichment) and
the lecturer's name. The module is linked to the homepage of the appropriate
lecture course. These pages contain the following basic information.
- Course Objectives
- Lecture Title Listing
- Method of Teaching (e.g., lecture, tutorials, labs)
- Assessment (e.g., project work, assignments, examinations)
- General Reading List
The Lecture Title Listing is in turn linked to sets of pages containing
text and graphics relating to each lecture. Academic staff have complete
freedom to present their material in whatever format they wish. Initially,
most material probably will be "self-contained". However, as
staff become familiar with accessing and using the system, they can make
links to the extensive resources available globally. We will see a paradigm
shift in the way lecture notes are prepared. For example, there might
be more dynamic keyword links to encourage students to explore concepts
interactively and conduct their own independent research and study rather
than being limited by the traditional "static" and "self-contained"
lecture handouts. Modes of presentation will also be greatly expanded
from conventional text and graphics to multimedia applications to convey
information in the most effective manner.
Initially, Lecture On-Line will be accessible by staff and students of
the Faculty through NUS IntraNet. Eventually, as the system is thoroughly
tested and all staff members become familiar with the procedures for updating
and editing their own lecture material, it will be opened to all members
of the NUS community for reference.
The staff of the Faculty of Architecture should be commended for their
tremendous effort in contributing towards this Lecture On-Line System.
|
