– By Pushpa Sathish, Staff Writer

Come the spring term of 2008, and a few students of the University System of Maryland will find themselves walking into virtual classrooms rather than brick-and-mortar lecture halls. The university is in the process of revamping at least three of its courses in order to comply with space and cost constraints. Accordingly, Social Psychology, Introduction to African-American Literature, and Approaches to Cultural Materials in the Hispanic World will incorporate more online assignments and support study materials. Social Psychology may even go completely online, according to Donna Hamilton, dean of undergraduate studies.

With this pilot program, the institution is hoping to free up large lecture halls that are fully occupied when a course is popular and the number of enrollments large. It also seeks to address the issue of students not getting enough out of the course because of the sheer number of enrollees, and dropping out as a result. 

As many as 11 schools of the 13 public universities that belong to the University system will take part in this first-of-its-kind attempt in the United States, said officials. The courses are being redesigned with help from the National Center for Academic Transformation, which has been retained under a three-year, $100,000 per year, contract.

Student and faculty response will be used to gauge the relative success or failure of this endeavor; the first six months should offer a reasonably clear picture of the way the land lies, according to Donald Spicer, system spokesman.