Development, Delivery, and Outcomes of a Distance Course for New College Students

A FOUR-WEEK ONLINE INFORMATION LITERACY COURSE for new college students at Ohio State University enrolled almost 500 students during the 1999-2000 academic year. The course, Internet Tools and Research Techniques, utilizes net.TUTOR interactive tutorials as an electronic text, along with Web-based tests and practice-oriented worksheets that are graded automatically by the course management software. This article presents an overview of the course, provides data about the student population, and examines various measures of success, including performance on assignments, final grades, and student attitudes toward the course. Communication challenges, student self-regulation, and the value of flexible assignment schedules are also considered.