Watch Mr. Software

We describe a distance-learning (DL) experiment to test whether interaction between the instructor and a student in the recording studio can improve the learning of remote students who do not have the opportunity to interact with the instructor during the lecture. The experiment was conducted for two software engineering continuing education courses. The in-studio students were students who had enrolled in the DL course and who also happened to work near our campus. We measured results by comparing the students’ end-of-course surveys and by comparing the students’ assessment scores. Our results of this initial experiment do not support the hypothesis, though we continue to investigate the question.