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| Why do we “Do” Distance Learning at MCC? |
The Distance Learning initiative at MCC began in 1996. In Fall of that year there were a handful of courses and approximately 100 students enrolled in them. (Precise figures are unavailable because MCC didn’t have distinct site code for DL courses at that time.) Accurate statistics are available starting in 1998, and as the chart below shows, the growth of Distance Learning has been extraordinary:
| Year (Fall Highpoint) |
Students |
% Increase |
| 1998 |
665 |
2.7 |
| 1999 |
982 |
4.1 |
| 2000 |
1215 |
5.0 |
| 2001 |
1605 |
6.5 |
| 2002 |
2316 |
8.9 |
| 2003 |
2705 |
10.0 |
During Fall 1998 MCC offered 60 on-line sections consisting of 36 distinct courses. This past Fall, 105 faculty taught 247 sections consisting of 99 distinct on-line courses.
Why do we do Distance Learning? As most faculty who teach on-line would attest, we offer on-line courses because they fulfill a distinct need among our student population. While roughly 2/3 of MCC’s current on-line students take courses at other on-campus sites, the remaining 1/3 ONLY take on-line courses. Without the Distance Learning option, where would they go?
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