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    Active Learning Weekend Classes

    AnnAnn Posts: 6
    in HES Course-Specific Reviews and Discussions
    I officially enrolled into my first Active Learning Weekend class for Spring 2016, MGMT 5425 Design Thinking.

    The ALW is a fairly new format to this school year (correct me if I'm wrong) where most of them seem to be offered in the Spring. As a handful of the ALW classes were scheduled for and have already occurred this Fall, I'd like to know, from those who have taken it how it worked out? Any comments? Suggestions?

    I imagine it would operate similarly to the on-campus weekend for the hybrid classes (I miss that name by the way), but would to hear about your experiences.

    Comments

    • GratGrat Posts: 293
      It looks like a great course, especially for entrepreneurs. Is there any notable difference between the ALW and the on-campus weekend hybrid courses?
    • AnnAnn Posts: 6
      From what I gather, it looks and feels like the weekend component of a Hybrid class, but only that. There is also research paper due some time after the ALW. It only counts has 2 credits as opposed to 4. I may end up taking a 2nd ALW class to balance out the credits.
    • GratGrat Posts: 293
      It seems like there are more 2 credit courses getting sprinkled into HES' offerings. I don't remember there being those before this year.
    • bejacksonbejackson Posts: 31
      Does an ALW course count toward the residency requirement?
    • AnnAnn Posts: 6
      Grat said:

      It seems like there are more 2 credit courses getting sprinkled into HES' offerings. I don't remember there being those before this year.

      Yes, I spoke to my advisor and they are trying to make it a more prevalent format. But since it is basically the first year that they're actively trying to create more ALW classes, it sort of serves as an experiment to determine the success of the format. If it doesn't work out, they may scale it back or keep the offerings limited.
      bejackson said:

      Does an ALW course count toward the residency requirement?

      Yes it certainly does. Be aware that these requirements are based on the number of credits completed. For me, I have a minimum of 16 residency credits that I need to fulfill. That translates to 4 graduate classes I need to take with an on-campus component. Since ALW classes are only 2 credits, I would have to take another ALW class to make up the difference.

      This works the same for the degree requirements as well. If I have a 4 credit requirement on a "Management" class (basically 1 graduate class) and take an ALW class that fulfills said requirement, it only completes 2 credits worth of the requirement. In that case, I will have to take another ALW that also fills that "Management" requirement for a total of 4 or an entire whole class that fulfills it, bringing my total over to 6 credits. That makes the ALWs a little less desirable, but I can see the rationale behind it.


    • bejacksonbejackson Posts: 31
      Great news -- thank you @Ann!
    • tracietracie Posts: 2
      I've taken a few Active weekend courses and enjoy them. They are a great way to visit campus and make great friends. Typically they are fairly intensive, sometime stressful, but in the end enjoyable.
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