CHLOE KOWALYK
Managing Editor
Learning at SUNY Fredonia is going to look a little different next semester.
Currently, Fredonia students are using OnCourse, an online learning platform that is run on Moodle. Most other SUNY campuses run on Blackboard, while a few others use OnCourse or other similar platforms.
But now, SUNY is seeking to make a change. And it has been announced that all campuses will be switching to the same learning platform.
SUNY is calling this the “SUNY DLE” or “digital learning environment.”
The system itself is called “Brightspace” and is run by the company Desire To Learn (D2L).
Each SUNY school is calling the platform by the name it chooses. Fredonia will be calling it “FREDLearn.”
According to Lisa Melohusky, Fredonia’s director of Online Learning, this change is being presented to help keep everything in one place. For instance, if a student takes a course at Jamestown Community College (JCC), the course would show up on the same platform as their courses at Fredonia.
“SUNY is trying to make transferring easier,” Melohusky said.
This will create what she calls a “more seamless system” as students will not need to relearn a whole new system if they transfer universities or take summer or winter courses at other SUNY campuses.
Melohusky said that SUNY is attempting to be more supportive of the students in their system.
“The idea is more support for the students [and] less transition[al] chaos as you decide to take a course somewhere else,” she said.
Melohusky explained that this will be especially helpful for students transferring from community colleges to four-year campuses, as they will have access to all of their prior coursework.
Melohusky also said FREDLearn will have several new benefits. FREDLearn looks similar to OnCourse, and students still can use their Fredonia log-ins to access the platform.
The major difference is that some of the buttons have moved around a little.
On FREDLearn, different sections are organized into widgets. Students can still access their grades and instructor feedback and have the capability to pin the courses they use the most.
Much like with OnCourse, instructors can send announcements through FREDLearn, and students will also get an email notification with the professor’s announcement.
According to Melohusky, “Possibly, [FREDLearn is] a more updated version of an LMS [learning management system] than what we’re currently on.”
Additionally, FREDLearn will still allow students to download content in different formats, such as an audio version of an article.
The new platform will also feature improved audio and video recording capabilities, such as an updated recording limit of 30 minutes and automatic closed captions.
FREDLearn links to students’ Google Drives, allowing them to easily upload their content and assignments for classes.
FREDLearn can also be accessed through an app called “Pulse,” which allows users to view coursework on a mobile version of the website.
Students can use the app to sign up for text alerts about their courses and have the ability to opt-in or out of these alerts at any time.
Although the new system seems to have positive changes, many Fredonia students are hesitant to accept the looming switch to a new platform.
After polling 28 students on my personal Instagram account, I found that 86% of students did not agree with the new change, while only 14% did.
Students expressed that they like OnCourse now, and don’t want to learn a new system.
One user said, “I’ve heard complaints already from professors saying they don’t like the new layout. It’s a whole new system we’ll have to learn and get used to again.”
Another student said, “[As] the old saying goes, ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.’”
Melohusky said that with the new SUNY-wide change, there will be expanded hours to help students transition to FREDLearn.
“Students are going to have expanded help hours, not just when our help desk is open, but nights and weekends as well,” she said.
The help desk hours are from 7 a.m. – 12 p.m. Monday through Friday, Saturday 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. – 9 p.m. Melohusky also found that “Students aren’t finding it difficult to learn.”
The transition will start for students taking summer courses. According to Melohusky, at some point, after grades are due, OnCourse links will be replaced with FREDLearn.
Students are encouraged to move all material they have on OnCourse to a hard drive since the University will be losing access to OnCourse over the summer.
Students have until June to transfer their content.
Melohusky said that in the fall, there will likely be more information available to students about FREDLearn.