Dubbo's Rumpus Campus
Sydney Morning Herald
Wednesday February 26, 2003
Computer power is transforming education in western NSW by bringing the university to its students, writes Bill Bennett.
Control freaks might have difficulty coping with Charles Sturt University's (CSU) ground-breaking Dubbo campus.
In effect, it is a regional online learning hub. There are no formal lecture theatres, no tutorial rooms and no laboratories. Instead inside students will find microwave communications, video links and fast data networks.
Dr Peter Hodgson, CSU pro vice-chancellor and head of the Dubbo facility, describes the building as being coiled in a long helix where the library is a large central open space with a pool table, coffee-making facilities, work areas and comfy chairs.
"At times it can get really noisy," says Hodgson. "There are some doors you have to knock on, but it's mainly one big rumpus room."
He says the use of technology allows the campus to challenge many preconceptions about higher education. "While the normal academic mindset is all about delivery, here at Dubbo the focus is entirely on access."
Offering a menu of traditional lectures and tutorials might be efficient from a university point of view, but Hodgson says they don't always suit the student. At Dubbo the approach isn't so much a la carte as here's-the-food-there's-the-grill.
"There are lectures," he says. "You might even find yourself in a room here with a real person standing at the front. You can participate in a tutorial with a tutor here or at another location. Alternatively, the participants may be split between campuses or it might all take place in an internet chatroom.
"You can choose to use distance-education material and supplement it with online material. You might choose to come in for lectures some days and work from home on other days."
According to Hodgson, remote education doesn't necessarily mean lack of contact. He says a traditional lecture with 300 students is very much a one-way process. CSU limits online lectures to 20-30 people, often with two-way communications.
© 2003 Sydney Morning Herald
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