Category: Student Life

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Student Life

Being Irish – bedrock of Quebecois culture

This coming Sunday, some of us might be hitting our favorite bars early, perhaps catch a raucous parade down St. Catherine street, don a clover leaf, and be Irish for a day.
It’s fun being honorary Irishmen from time to time; it’s one of the rare occasions when it’s socially acceptable to wear green, it’s a great excuse to drink thick beers that are meals in themselves. We can believe in the mystical powers of green leaves, funny looking little men and pots of gold. What other time of the year is it OK to be stupid-drunk in broad daylight on the Lord’s Day?
But is that all there is to the Irish? Michael Kenneally hopes not. This Irish-born doctor of English literature heads a foundation for Canadian/Irish Studies that he hopes will soon become a minor program at Concordia University.
“It appeals to people on different levels; it evokes a world that is familiar, but not quite the same. The issues that are often raised in relation to Ireland are issues that many others are concerned with.”
Many of Ireland’s facets are now being studied at Concordia, from its language, to its prolific literature, to its art, culture and music, all the way to its geography and economy. The Canadian/Irish studies cluster is one of Concordia’s most cross-departmental.
Leslye Lang is a mature student taking a film studies class that concentrates on Irish films and the Irish conflict. Lang visited and studied in Ireland five years ago, and said she took this class “for the sheer pleasure and interest of it.” Lang said what initially drew her to the Irish culture is the incredible story of its struggle. “[The Irish] are a very mystical, romantic, close-to-nature personality. But in today’s society, [it’s also] survival oriented; it’s tragic, it’s doomed.”
Lang added that, “[Irish culture] is one of the bedrocks of our culture. A lot of people don’t know their story. It’s important for people to know about the Irish support in the history of Canada.”
Green coursing through our veins
There are many reasons for Quebecers to take interest in the Irish, mainly because they are very present in Quebec. According to Kenneally, almost half of French-speaking Quebecers can trace some Irish ancestry. The Irish were the second largest ethnic group in the 19th century. The shamrock is even one of four symbols on the Montreal flag.
Many figures in Canadian history were of Irish descent: Thomas D’Arcy McGee, George Vanier, David Ross McCord, and former Quebec premier Daniel Johnson. Irish names and descendants are still prevalent in today’s politics: Brian Mulroney, Paul Martin, Jean Charest, and Louise Beaudoin among others.
Kenneally says Quebec has often felt akin to Ireland, sharing more than a few key causes. Both have strong Catholic contingencies surrounded by a sea of Protestantism. Both peoples have struggled to preserve their language and culture. They have fought hard to define their identity and right to nationhood.
Among other accomplishments across the country, Irishmen are credited for having helped build such Montreal monuments as the Victoria Bridge, the Lachine Canal, the Notre-Dame Cathedral, and Loyola College. The Irish were also brokers and negotiators between the English and the French in Canada’s infancy.
The Irish story of emigration to Canada is about more than just orphans and refugees from potato famines and plagues. According to Kenneally, there has been a constant flow of Irish into Canada. Many Irish soldiers came over as hired guns for the French, but changed their names to hide from the British after the Seven-Year War.
In the past, the plethora of Irish immigrants made them an easy labour source for menial jobs, giving them a diminutive stance in North American society. Kenneally adds there were decent, well-meaning families who just wanted a new start. Since they wanted to be successful, many hid their names and culture. This led to the “frenchification” of some Irish names. Now there are common French family names in Quebec of which there are no trace in France.
More recently a new generation of Irish immigrants have come over, escaping tensions and poor economy in their homeland.
“Around the world, the Irish diaspora have come of age,” said Kenneally. “There’s kind of a buzz about the Irish and all things to do with their culture.”
The “Celtic Tiger”
According to Kenneally, Ireland is now a booming and flourishing country. This comes after centuries of poverty and being at the bottom of the European totem pole.
Kenneally says that as a young, up and coming country, and with some help from the European Union, Ireland has been able to turn itself around. In the span of two decades, Ireland has gone from being comparable to a Third World country, to currently enjoying an economic boom and acting as model for other struggling nations. Also, free post-secondary education has made native Irish highly employable.
“You can’t believe what’s going on there, Dublin is like a forest of cranes. You can’t get Irish workers cause they’re in the high-tech business. Many of my students go over right after graduating and get hired over the Net.”
There’s also been a “renaissance” in Irish culture and arts in the past few decades, Kenneally says, as the country is finding its own distinct voice. “For such a small country, it’s been extraordinarily expressive and active.”
Celtic art and themes have been on the rise in North American pop-culture. Kenneally admits there is an americanized generalization of the Irish, but feels people are starting to move beyond the preconceptions, mentioning that the Irish are one of the lowest per-capita drinkers in the world. “People know there’s more dimension of Irishness, not just social drinkers.”
Lynn Doyle is a Canadian who’s rediscovered her Irish roots and is the Chairman of the St. Patrick’s Society. Doyle feels growing interest in the Celtic culture is exciting and long-overdue, though she agrees that some erroneous generalizations still remain in North American pop-culture. “I think it’s a shame, but I think it’s going to change.”
Some within the local Irish community feel Ireland still has a way to go, both socially and structurally. There are still strong social rifts within the country, and the usually closed and introverted island is weathering one of the side-effects of the EU, injection of migrant workers from different countries.
Tim Fagan is a Communications student and a second generation Irish-Canadian who regularly returns to Ireland with his father. “To solve the problems there, in order to have peace, you have to create a culture towards peace.”
Four-leaf classrooms
It has been a slow but steady process for Kenneally over the past decade. With a lot of fund-raising and promotion, he’s built up from preliminary classes offered in 1990, to the creation of the Irish Studies cluster in 1995, and finally the formal recognition of the Irish studies program in January.
Kenneally has petitioned numerous organizations to help with the creation of his program, including the Irish government. Kenneally even raised about $25,000 to build an Irish studies collection at Concordia’s libraries.
The Board of Directors of the Canadian-Irish Studies Foundation consists of members from across Canada, and an academic journal on the topic is now printed at the school. Kenneally says he has a lot of fire in the oven to promote the proposed minor, but “it’s really day one for us. Now that we’re established formally within the university, we have to get the word out.”
Kenneally will be competing with two already established and renowned Celtic studies programs at the University of Toronto and St. Mary’s University. But he says his minor will concentrate more on the role of the Irish in Canada and present-day Ireland. Kenneally says the program will be useful within the school, not only as relevant to today’s society in Quebec, but also as furthering tradition at the Loyola campus.
Although there are many Irish related classes that are popular, there are only around 24 students enrolled in the Irish-Canadian cluster. Kenneally hopes with more publicity, this number will raise and hopes to be able to offer a minor in Irish-Canadian studies in a year or two.
Kenneally has already been actively promoting Irish-Canadian lectures and events, like Synigale, a recurring Irish film fest organized by Doyle. This is the first year that the films have been shown in conjunction with a Communications class taught by Father Marc Gervais, who studies different film genres from semester to semester.
Fagan is in the class taught by Father Gervais. “Their culture is really vibrant and has a lot to offer, part of a culture that we don’t often see. Usually we get a lot of Hollywood culture and the Canadian government throwing Canadian content at us.”
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Student Life

Sparing the life of your piggy bank

Many people are missing that feeling of reaching deep down into their jean pockets and pulling out some cash. Instead, your hands feel something lingering in your pockets but what you disappointedly pull out is a ‘god knows’ how old dirty ball of lint.
It seems the common phrase for many students these days is “sorry, can’t go out, I’m broke.” Our colored paper is slowly disappearing, if we were lucky enough to have some color to our cash flow in the first place. But where does it all go?
It’s once you take the time to figure this out that you can start trying to save.
Professor Perrakis, of Concordia’s finance department, says “planning your finances must start with budgeting: how much do you get every month and how much do you need to spend as a minimum, to keep yourself healthy and in good standing as a student?”
As you sit down on your bed and prepare to make a budget, you keep telling yourself “this year I will stay on budget.” These seem to be the hardest words to stick to, because you think you have it all planned out but in the end you
don’t have enough money.
As you pull out a clean piece of paper, the white sheet glistens under your fingers, you gently touch the tip of your freshly sharpened pencil and begin to write what expenses you plan on consuming for the week, the month.
As the expenses of rent, tuition, food, car, bus, telephone and other amenities, slowly begin to pile up on your list, you start to wonder if your cash flow will be enough to survive the year. Writing down all your expenses might seem like a hassle but it’s worth taking a few minutes to figure out how you’re going to get from here to there without an empty bank account.
Even if you do set out a budget for yourself, the problem might be that you underestimated your spending habits. But, regardless of where your money comes from, you probably haven’t given much thought to how it will all be spent.
Assuming that there will be enough to meet all your needs is a big mistake.
The steps to budgeting are simplified in four steps: (1) identify income sources, (2) list fixed (rent, tuition) and variable (entertainment, clothing) expenses, (3) find your discretionary income by subtracting your total expense from your total net income, (4) review and modify the plan in order to reduce
expenditures.
Students should develop the right spending habits and give their expenses good thought so students won’t have to take a loan from the bank or from Mom and Dad.
Concordia offers a variety of loans, which are available through the Financial Aids and Awards office.
Budgeting and spending your money wisely does not mean working yourself down to the last pint of blood – it is a matter of setting goals for where most of your money will be spent.
Some important factors to consider when doing a budget is to be honest. This means committing to record every expense. Be thorough in evaluating your income and your expenses.
Professor Perrakis suggests the best way not to go broke is to follow Micawber’s equation: spending less than you get from your various sources of income equals happiness.
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Learning life’s simple skills

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Student Life

Thou shalt not commit adultery…Right?

Melanie Rose felt something was up when the new gold chain her boyfriend gave her for Valentine’s Day disappeared. Not wanting to jump to conclusions, and without confronting him directly, she tried by stealth to discover its whereabouts. He became immediately defensive and put the words right into her mouth.
“What, do you think I’m having an affair or something?”
Well, if she hadn’t thought it beforehand, she sure did then.

It was over. Forget the three happy years. Forget all the future plans. That was it.
At least until the petite 26-year-old brunette walked into a bar they used to visit together and saw, dangling between the ample cleavage of the buxom blonde bartender, her gold necklace. Without thinking, she wrenched it from the woman’s neck, spun around and rammed right into Him.
“You should have seen little Mel, five foot nothing, giving it to this 250-pound hockey player. He was so stunned he just stood there and took it. The bouncer had to pull her off!” said Rose’s friend Heidi Haltrich.
Of course, not everyone reacts to infidelity with such violence and hostility. Nor is it only men who cheat.
Joe McInerney is a a victim of an unfaithful girlfriend. He recalls merely freezing on the spot when he came home early from a business trip to find his girlfriend passionately engaged with his roommate. Between expletives, he explained it was effectively the end of both the relationship and the living arrangement.
However, not everyone is ready to end a long-term love so easily despite such transgressions. Many may choose to work it out either on their own or through counseling. There are almost countless resources available to couples in need, through private therapy, group counseling and even online counseling over the Web.
One such Internet site is that of Dr. Don-David Lusterman, a clinical psychologist specializing in marital and family therapy in New York and author of “Infidelity: A Survivor’s Guide.”
He says that the key to surviving an episode of infidelity is to avoid placing blame on either party and to, above all, talk it through. Yeah, ’cause guys just love to talk.
“Look at how your behaviours contributed to a situation where an affair was possible but don’t blame yourself,” said Lusterman.
What? Like it’s your fault they cheated. I don’t think so!

Another site where couples may find a wealth of information to help them sort through the aftermath of an affair is www.marriagebuilders.com, a site written and managed by Dr. Willard F. Harley, Jr., a marital and family psychologist. Through the site he offers several formulas to help “couples in conflict.”
One of the most helpful is his explanation of why affairs start in a marriage or other romantic relationship. Harley agrees with Lusterman that the recipe for a happy relationship is talking honestly, and often, with each other, explaining that affairs begin where conversation ends.
Couples loose touch with each other’s need and emotions and seek to fill the void elsewhere. This pattern is particularly true for women who have affairs, but is not untrue for men. What they are seeking is intimacy, a feeling of belonging and of being cherished. Contrary to popular belief what they are not necessarily seeking is sex. Really?
“Sex is actually not the driving force in most affairs – it is conversation and affection. In fact, most people who have affairs regard the sex as a minor player. What they appreciate the most about the relationship is the love and acceptance that is communicated in their conversation,” said Harley.
So why then does the physical intimacy gain the most attention, and produce the most hurt?
According to Peggy Vaughan, author of the renowned self-help guide, “The Monogamy Myth: A Handbook for Recovering from Affairs,” it comes from the Judaeo-Christian tradition in which monogamy is emphasized as a social norm.
She writes that the effects of this belief force individuals to view infidelity as personal failures of those involved, which leads to “personal blame, personal shame, wounded pride, and almost universal feelings of devastation.”
She continues to explain that it is an unfounded norm in contemporary North American society where estimates show almost 60 percent of men and 40 percent of women will cheat on their lovers.
“These figures are even more significant when we consider the total number of marriages involved, since it’s unlikely that all the men and women having affairs happen to be married to each other,” Vaughan explains.
In her view, it is unrealistic to expect a relationship to be completely monogamous as the result. OK. So it may be hard, but not impossible! Come on!
Monogamy has not always been a social norm. While anthropologists agree that pair bonding, that is the union of a man and woman, dates back to our hunter-gather ancestors, it cannot be assumed that they maintained intimate relations with only one partner. The union was merely a matter of convenience, an assurance for the male that if he was unsuccessful in the hunt he would have some nourishment at the end of the day.
For the female, it meant a guarantee of a share in a successful hunt as well as the protection of her young by a male. Throughout human history pair bonding arrangements have persisted but it was not until modern times that these agreements came with exclusivity contracts.
Vaughan suggests monogamy is not even a healthy ideal, indicating that for some individuals it may be impossible. After all, in the famous words of William Cowper: “Variety’s the spice of life. That gives all its flavour.”
Whether or not he was referring to relationships is up for grabs, there is one thing that not only experts, but most people, agree on. Eleanor Roosevelt said it best, and although she was speaking of marriages, it applies to all intimate relationships:
“The key to a good marriage is conversation. After all, over time you may loose interest in other things, but you will never give up talking.”
Or if you don’t like this philosophy adopt the view of Simone de Beauvoir : why stick to one lover when you can have one for every day of the week?

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Student Life

Swinging your partner round and round

As I entered the room to embark on a new journey, I felt nervous and excited, because this was an all new experience for me.
The swing craze made its revival back in the mid-90s but I never took to it. So it was about time to try it out and get some rhythm. I decided that it wouldn’t hurt to try something new, even if it probably meant making a fool of myself.
I’ve seen and heard about the whole swing scene but I still didn’t know what to expect. To my content, the Concordia Swing Society put on a fine show. A combination of good hospitality and dance made it a festive night.
The Concordia Swing Society has held ‘swing night’ every Monday since September 1999. It is totally funded by the CSU and hopes to attract more participants every week. The lessons, food and fun are completely free.
Another reason to go is to check out the avid dancers, those who go to practice their moves and show off their fancy footwork. Thomas and Sandy, the couple I glimpsed dancing in the distance, said that “they go to the swing night because they can practice their moves.” They also explained to me, the first-time swing
dancer, the different styles and music to check out.
Swing dancing came to life in the 1920’s, but became popular between 1930 and 1950. The origin of swing dancing comes about from the roots of the music of the same name. It was in the 1920’s, when people were dancing the Charleston on the dance floor, that a new style of dance was created. The roots of swing dancing
evolved from the neighborhoods of Harlem, New York.
It used to be the Fox Trot, the Charleston and the Boogie Woogie. Now, the swinging styles of the Jitterbug, the Ballroom Jive and the East Coast Swing have made a name for themselves in Montreal dance clubs. There are many different forms of swing dancing but the first to emerge was the Hop. The Hop was eventually coined the ‘Lindy Hop’- it was a mix of many influences and improvisation.
Gradually, other styles began to emerge with all different music counts, such as six counts or eight counts, and many diversified moves came into play.
The art of swing dancing isn’t just about moving around – it is about a lot more, which is really hard to describe. I had this impression of the people and the style of dance when I first walked in, but my attitude changed when I walked out. In that, I appreciate this form of dance and the talented people who use
this sort of dance as an expression and as a type of activity.
The night began at 8 pm when the girls and guys were separated into their own lines just like we had to do in elementary school. Then the dance lessons began.
As the group was shown the basic steps you could see the smiles and hear the laughter as one person got it right and nailed the move. But then you’d hear the stomping of feet and a grunt, knowing that another person messed up or couldn’t get it right. I was one of those people till I was taken aside and given a
mini-lesson to put me back on track.
As I was continuously practicing my “rock side, side, step back” to try to get it down pat, I caught a couple dancing in the corner of my eye. I watched in awe as these talented individuals moved to the music and witnessed the
graciousness of it all as the girl was flipped over the guy’s back.

I had no idea how many people were going to show up, especially since publicity
has only begun to become bigger this semester. To my astonishment, there was a huge turnout and I wasn’t the only person surprised by it.
Anthony Pappada, the swing-dancing organizer said that they “usually don’t get this many people, normally we get eight at the most, one night.”
Another huge surprise for Pappada was that “for the first time there are more girls than guys, usually it’s vice versa.”
When Pappada told me this, I was shocked, but this time the girls outnumbered the guys which made it more challenging because you got to change partners every so often. The only problem with this was trying to dance a new beat with a bunch of guys you’d never seen or danced with before.
This was a whole new experience for me as I was twisted and turned in many different ways. I got to learn the basic steps but I still need a little more lessons before I head out to a swing club- I don’t want to torture some guy by
tripping over his feet.
As the night went on, I got a bit better but it didn’t really matter to me because the music made me dance in all different ways. It didn’t matter what I looked like at this point. The objective for me was to learn something new and
have a good time. I did.
So, if you are willing to test ou your dancing shoes, try a little swing dancing. Don’t worry about making a fool of yourself, if anything goes wrong there are many people there who do know what they’re doing. On the other hand,
if you are ready for the bigger scene, Montreal has a list of dances clubs dedicated to swing dancing.
The Concordia Swing Society holds free lessons every Monday night from 8 to 10 pm in H-721.
Clothing photos courtesy of www.daddyos.com and www.swingwear.com

Just a few tips
-Wear shoes with a smooth sole. There’s nothing worse than being in mid-turn and almost falling over because your shoes gripped the floor.
-Wear light clothes. You’ll get hot fast.
-Deodorant! I can’t stress this enough… A partner who’s afraid to breathe won’t be a very enthusiastic one.

Swingin’ clubs
Club 48 – 4848 St.Laurent (below St. Joseph. Home of the Saturday night ‘Swing
Ring’. Thursday’s is Lindy hop night.
Jello Bar – 15 Ontario (two blocks east of St. Laurent).
Monday nights is 40s/50s night with live bands and a free jive lesson is usually given.
Le Swimming – 3643 St. Laurent. Usually on Saturday nights, but it’s not a regular event. Check the paper first.
And don’t freak out if you don’t have a partner, just find one there. Everyone
is there for the same reason.
Links
Everything you ever wanted to know about Montreal’s swing scene – where to
learn, how to dress, what to drink…
-www.swinginmontreal.com
-www.jiving.com
-www.catscorner.ca

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Student Life

Displaying the power of human emotion

Wearing a tight, black body suit, her strong and muscular thighs swathed in a long, green skirt, acclaimed dancer Margie Gillis took the floor of Concordia’s Hall building last week to address dance as a medium and message concerning
AIDS.
Gillis spoke passionately during a lecture organized by the Concordia University HIV/ AIDS Curriculum project.
“I just want to share with you my feelings when dealing with politically charged subjects,” she said, as she brushed aside strands of red hair from her angular cheeks.
When Gillis’ brother died a few years ago from the HIV illness, she lost more than just a family member. Gone was her mentor, her dance partner, someone who she described as ‘her hero’.
Gillis, whose work has taken her around the world and gained her the title of Cultural Ambassador of Quebec and Canada, has been dancing solo for 29 years.
Her own work is troubled and serene, dark and humorous. She engages in human emotion and expresses its different, and often painful sentiments through her dance.
“As a performer, you can engage the audience in your experience. If they feel your injustice and your indignation, they will be ympathetic,” she told the 250 or so mesmerized onlookers.
Showing a few dance clips seemed to better explain her grief than mere words.
‘Iccarus at night’ is the portrayal of a man who discovers he is HIV positive and how he copes with it. It is sad but powerful, as strong, half-naked male bodies dance either in unison or in isolation.
“It’s about the support of the other men,” explained Gillis. She added that some of the men turn away from each other because they don’t understand (the disease), yet they want to reach out and give their friend comfort, explaining the more intimate dancing.
The piece was created for the Paul Taylor Company by Chris Gillis, her late brother, after finding out about his illness. Gillis pointed out that he was also dealing with complexities within the community, such as addressing one’s past lovers to discover how the virus may have been contracted.
In ‘Landscape’, a piece that was created specifically for her by Chris, Gillis dances the tragedy of AIDS with a dead tree branch, the haunting music of Norwegian composer and pianist Edvard Hagerup Grieg crying softly in the background. Adding that the branch represents both the skeleton and the end of
life, she said peacefully that through art, and with her brother’s help, she is able to face death without being frightened of it.

“There’s a lot of strength and courage in sharing,” she smiled at her audience.
For her, AIDS is an atrocity that has brought great darkness, completely changing humanity’s sexual consciousness.
“This is an outrage. It is our outrage, as a community. Not just for AIDS, but for any injustice,” she declared, emphasizing her last point.
It is the reason why art and dance are such powerful ingredients for this highly active spokesperson, who dedicates her energies to various AIDS organizations, as well as Oxfam and the Planned Parenthood Foundation.
“Go out and share your passion but don’t punch the converted in the face,” was Gillis’ message. In a piece she showed from the TV special ‘Dances for Life’, she gave the audience clarification.
Running in a long, black dress, shedding items of clothing to a Sinead O’Conner tune, her pain and frustration could be felt. She pulled it up through the billowing dress, tore it out with strong arm movements, and pulled it up from
her stomach and through her heart.
Gillis believes that the public will learn from performances such as these, rather than turn their backs on them, if they feel the artist’s indignation.
“I become a manifestation of their outrage, which is my outrage,” she nodded to the crowd.
Throughout the hour-long lecture, whose aim was to raise awareness towards the challenges faced by those who are living with, or with someone with HIV/AIDS, Gillis was adamant that political activism can be clearly and strongly voiced through art.
“Remembering this will change your way of creating,” she said, adding that education and knowledge concerning AIDS can be furthered if passion and energy are channeled correctly.
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Student Life

Picking life’s lessons from the jelly bean jar

Former United States president Ronald Reagan once said that you could tell a lot about a fellow’s character by his way of eating jelly beans. The jelly bean president stumbled off the catwalks of Hollywood and into the Oval Office, a jelly bean jar in tow.
By promoting the image of rainbow-coloured sugar beans, Reagan was able to capture the hearts and votes of American society with a food item that promoted taking pride in life’s simple choices.
Combining hope and pride within the framework of a capitalist market is a sometimes elusive vision, but as Canada’s health care system wanes, the national dream of a strong, inclusive social safety net is still alive in some Canadian microcosms, particularly at the community level and through the motif of food.
Proof of this can be found on the oft disregarded corner of Belgrave and Sherbrooke, where Chez mes Amis, a community kitchen in the erratic borough of N.D.G., serves up wholesome meals to those who are looking for simple cheer.
“We get the poor, the elderly, people with psychological difficulties and even students,” said the kitchen’s coordinator Jean-Marc Bergon.
At two dollars a pop, the organization offers meals at a symbolic price to those who have fallen down in life for whatever reason.
Beckoning community residents to come and eat nutritious food, the volunteer staff invites people in from the cold, to stuff them like children, into a warm amaut.
“By boosting morale you can come out of a depression,” said Bergon. He added that many of those who visit the kitchen have faced the effects of rejection and isolation that poverty can bring with it. They are young and old, zippy and frail. Unique individuals, some of whom are putting problems of alcohol and drug dependence behind them to begin life again, finding hope under a common roof at Chez mes Amis.
“Le seul r
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Student Life

Online education vs. bricks and mortar

It’s not easy balancing school and work, but Lisa Harris found a way to cut corners and save time in her busy schedule. Although she was enrolled in five courses at Concordia University last semester, she only had to be present for four. For her fifth class, Recreation and Leisure in Contemporary Societies, she attended classes whenever and however she pleased – in her pajamas, on lazy Sunday afternoons, in the comfort of her or her boyfriend’s home, whatever was convenient for her.

“You don’t have a set class time so you can do your work when it’s convenient for you,” said Harris, a third-year communications and journalism student.

Her entire course was offered over the Internet. She interacted with other students through discussion forums. She only met her teacher twice, but was in contact with him over e-mail and if she really needed to see him, he had office hours every week. She handed in her assignments, mid-terms and finals by clicking on the ‘save’ icon conveniently designed by her teacher. And if she ran into trouble in the middle of the night and she couldn’t get an answer right away, Harris could refer to her coursepack.

Harris is just one of thousands of Canadian students who are taking advantage of the flexibility and convenience of distance education, known as DE. One of the Canadian Association for Distance Education’s definitions of it is “planned learning that normally occurs in a different place from teaching and as a result requires special techniques of course design, special instructional techniques, special methods of communication by electronic and other technology, as well as a special organizational and administrative arrangements.”

But various professors have their personal definitions of DE and design their courses accordingly. Some believe that it’s communication through e-mail. Others design courses mixed with in-class sessions and online assignments. But more and more professors are designing their material, from assignments to finals, for the Net.

So far, many Canadian universities are experimenting with transferring some courses to the Internet. Athabasca University in Alberta is a rare example of a Canadian university that offers entire programs over the Net. The bug hasn’t bitten Canadians very hard yet, but when it does, what will be the quality and credibility of these courses and programs?

“You could have a whole bunch of bells and whistles going off, but no substance,” said Dr. Arshad Ahmad, a finance professor in Concordia University’s Commerce and Administration department, who developed an on-line personal finance course. He said that “just as there are poor quality on-campus courses,” there will probably be bad online courses, too; it all depends on the design of the course.

“Before people start saying that there’s a lack of quality in distance education, they must see the structure of the course first,” said Ahmad.

Concordia’s Provost and Vice-Rector Research, Dr. Jack Lightstone, has dabbled with the idea of DE and has certain elements of his religion course posted on the Internet. He said that online courses could provide the same quality in professional material, but he doesn’t believe it can give the same academic experience as an in-class course.

“Students need the structured context that a university provides,” said Lightstone. He sees online courses being more beneficial for students who already have a diploma and are coming back to update their skills. “They already have the discipline to be successful in the university,” he said.

Both Lightstone and Ahmad agree that distance learning is something that students want and need. Lightstone pointed out that 70% of Concordia’s full-time students work and 40% of the students are part-time, so they appreciate the flexibility of these courses.

“Our social mission is to make university more accessible. It’s a real contribution to education considering the demography of the students,” said Lightstone.

But as more courses are being designed to fit students’ needs, the structure must be well thought out. Harris said that her professor had all of his exams over the Internet. He set out a specific day when they all had to do the exam, and they had an allotted time to finish it section by section. She explained that one could not really cheat because the time constraints were so limited that if you went over the allotment time, you couldn’t submit your exam for grading.

“If someone wants to cheat, they will cheat,” said Andrew McAusland, director of Concordia’s Academic Technology for Arts and Science. He said that there will always be an opportunity, but they’re trying to lessen the inclination to cheat.

One of the ways he tries to control cheating in the six on-line courses he designed, is through the structure of the grading scheme and requiring students to do finals in class. McAusland explained that it would be impossible for the student to pass the final if they didn’t know the material of the previous work. He doesn’t believe there’s any other way to have a legitimate exam.

“If it’s a credit-based environment, like a course for university credits, credibility is everything,” he said.

Although professors are trying their best to recreate the learning experience, there are some things, like the human element, that just can’t be replaced. Despite this, Harris appreciated not having to go into class.

The danger with getting hooked on such courses and programs is that it can weaken students’ people skills.

According to Gregg Blachford, director of McGill’s Career and Placement Services, ‘soft skills’ such as interpersonal, communication and teamwork skills, are still in big demand.

“More employers are still looking for soft skills because they can teach the technical skills,” said Blachford. “It’s harder to teach someone to talk.”

He also said that students’ employability is made of several elements, and if web literacy is one of them, it’s an asset to the student, especially to those in Arts and Science programs.

“Some employers have the impression that Arts and Science students are less computer literate than others,” said Blachford. “Taking distance learning courses help to prove they have skills.”

Ahmad said that corporations have started getting into the act. “Business is more clever in understanding technology. They may start offering their own degrees online because they think they can do it better.” He also foresees traditional education running into some trouble.

“Open universities are a threat to traditional education,” said Ahmad, because students will get the same education but on their own time and with richly designed material.

Lightstone, however, is not convinced that open universities will have such an impact . “I believe the drop out rates will be high,” said Lightstone. “Too many students wouldn’t have the discipline to finish the program.”

“Therefore, all factors considered, I believe that a mix of online and in-class courses will give our students the benefits of flexibility, a structured environment and the social interaction they need to complete their studies.”

As convenient and accommodating as distance learning may be, traditional education may be around for a while because there are some courses that can’t be easily transformed into digital form. As McAusland said, “Would you like a doctor who only took online courses to cut you open? I don’t think so.”

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Student Life

Click here for an education

As the Internet becomes a part of everyday life, more and more businesses and interest groups are discovering the advantages of using the World Wide Web. Concordia University is one such entity, putting educational services and courses online.

“From a student’s aspect, the Net is a fact of life, and it’s good that we give them something to do serious work and concentrate on, as opposed to just surfing,” said Dr. Peter Stoett, a political science professor.

Stoett has been teaching Contemporary Issues in Global Politics online for the past three years, with an enrollment of at least 120 students every semester. His class is so popular that whenever someone drops out, there’s usually another student ready to fill the position. Stoett, who worked with the distance learning program at the University of Guelph, said there are a lot of advantages in putting certain classes online. “It’s really designed to open up the accessibility of the course.”

According to Stoett, online courses are very interactive, which is a priority in his class. The advantage of class location is also two-fold. Since students can take the class from anywhere around the world, Stoett said it’s very interesting for a global politics class when students are physically out of the continent. Teaching a class online was also convenient for Stoett last semester when he taught for a month from Kenya.

But what the killer applications seem to be for online courses are the convenience and flexibility for students of staying at home and taking classes whenever they like. “A lot of them take the class so that they can do their homework at three in the morning,” said Stoett.

This proved useful for Melissa Duncan, a 3rd-year journalism student, who reduced her course load to part-time status for personal reasons last semester. One of the two courses she took over the Internet was Intro to Anthropology.

“I want to graduate. I didn’t want to fall behind. I wanted to stay in the mode of being in school,” Duncan said.

She also appreciated the convenience of being able to ‘take the class’ whenever she wished. “I didn’t feel alienated just because I was at home. In a way it’s setup better than a classroom cause you can always get in touch with somebody for help. Some classes you can manage passing without talking to anyone,” she said.

Dr. Arshad Ahmad is another Concordia instructor whose course is now provided online. “Our number one concern is access and convenience. You have to take into consideration the Concordia [student] community. A lot of them are working, may have children, and have busy schedules. [With online courses] they can learn at their own pace and own time,” professor Ahmad said.

Ahmad has been teaching at Concordia since 1982. Last year when he put his Personal Finance course online and opened it to students from all faculties, enrollment jumped from 50 to 450 students. He said the only enrollment restriction to his class is how many students he’s willing to take. Apart from administrative duties, the online course and a similar online graduate level course now take up all his time. “My plate is so full with these, that I don’t have time to teach anything else.”

Putting his Personal Finance course online was part of Ahmad’s doctoral dissertation towards a PhD in education. It turned into an “enormous case study” for his investigation into how students learn.

He said he worked at break-neck speed with IITS to put his class online within a year, when the usual time required to design a course is two to three years. “I miss the interaction, the physical presence, but I didn’t see line-ups of students in front of my door [before I put my class online].”

Ahmad said his Web site has components that follow the three necessities for a good class, outside of teachers and textbooks. First, it includes interactive tools that allow students to get hands-on experience with what they’re learning, in this case personal finance material like tax returns and stock investments. Second, the site provides practice opportunities for students, such as mock-quizes,

case studies, and questions. Third, the Web site and course are designed so that students work together, since Dr. Ashad believes students learn better that way. Students are encouraged to work in teams and find expert sources from outside the school.

“The model is very different than where the instructor is the king and everyone picks from his expertise. I wanted to spread out the expertise. It’s better for the students if you have at your fingertips a way of getting six experts’ points of view,” Ahmad said.

Jay Lin was one of the test students in the first semester of Dr. Ashad’s online class. At the time, the 21-year-old economics major was taking four other classes and also working as a part-time computer consultant. What attracted him to the course were the convenience of studying in the comfort of his own home and travel time saved. However, his impressions of the online format are mixed.

Apart from finding the young course somewhat disorganized, he found the flexibility and lack of specific deadlines and class times slightly disorienting.

“The online class really got sort of tiring, cause there’s no [personal] interaction. You’re just looking at a screen or chapter in a textbook. And if you have a question, you have to e-mail it in. The answer you get back might not be what you wanted,” Lin said.

The Dean of the faculty of Arts and Science, Dr. Martin Singer, echoed a common opinion. He believes that online education is not intended to replace the classroom, nor does he believe that it soon will. Rather, he said the Net is intended to enhance and suppliment the university experience.

“They didn’t close The Bay when E-bay went online, we won’t have to close the university because a university is much more than classrooms. There are multiple parts– extracurricular activities and social interaction are also part of student life,” Singer said.

Ahmad said many instituitions have toyed with the idea of ‘virtual universities’, putting whole schools and programs online and that there are just as many failure stories as successful ones.

Concordia University has taken advantage of the Net for years, as a brochure, course calendar and personal student information menu. But more classes are also starting to have a Net component, even if they are still classroom-based. Singer’s History of China course was one of the first to provide online class notes, syllabuses and video clips of lectures to students who may have missed a class. Contrary to what some may think, attendance increased following the introduction of these tools and Dean Singer found that students were more free to pay attention and interact during class.

He also believes there is still room for expansion on the field, hoping to someday have guest lecturers and to teleconference job interviews over the Net. Singer already knows of a case where a Canadian student in a foreign country was able to learn more about that country online, and of another student, who jumped at a good job offer, who was still able to finish his degree online.

“Part of our mission is to be flexible, integrative, and responsible to our community,” Singer said.

The university recently received a $1.25 million grant from the McConnell Foundation that intends to further the use of technology for educational purposes. Once the case study at Concordia is completed, it is hoped that the results will be disseminated to universities across Canada.

Singer and public relations officer Derek Cassoff said the school has received accolades for putting courses from various programs online, as opposed to only traditional high-tech courses.

However, they also add that very few courses are translatable to the Internet, usually introductory information courses. Ahmad guessed that less than one per cent of his faculty’s courses are online. The decision to go online with a class is purely voluntary for the instructor, and Stoett believes that there are probably many teachers who are weary of the new technology.

Some concerns brought forward by teachers were that the administration will continue to use online education as a cost-saving measure. Also, the same question of quality must be raised with online classes as those offline, including course evaluations.

But the unanimous caution was directed towards students– online courses are not easy. Ahmad found that some students were really not prepared for the extra

requirements, expecting an easy time. “The onus of learning really shifts to the students, there’s a lot more responsibility and discipline required. Students procrastinate as much online as they do offline,” said Ahmad.

Duncan said that a student has to stay on-track. It’s very hard to slack and pass. She said she wouldn’t mind taking another online course, but this time she’d put more thought into the course she chose and not just take it for convenience sake.

“It’s not meant for someone who’s looking to take an easy class. It’s a lot harder cause it’s all upon the individual,” Duncan said.

In the end, Lin found the course of medium difficulty as well as an okay experience. “Be sure to have a lot of paper in sight, cause you’re going to print a lot. All you do is waste your ink and paper.”