Dealing with independent studies courses—an effective methodology

Abstract

Independent studies courses can be an effective means of providing the flexibility for a serious student with a well-planned career path to tailor his or her curriculum to meet the special requirements of the career plan, and to permit the students to experience and learn about subjects for which there is insufficient demand or resources to offer a regular course. The potential for abuse of this course is high as we found at East Tennessee State University. In addressing this issue, we found that we were also able to strengthen the written and oral communications skills which are so important to today's computing professionals. This paper describes the experiences we have had and the solution we discovered.