Internet on the Dream for education sites/videos like Blackboard

[bigAWL]

Sailing in March on the Dream, and my university student will need access to Blackboard for classwork and reviewing lecture videos. Anyone know if that would work with the Basic Surf or Premium packages, and how well?

 

[MomOTwins]

Wish I had a better report but we found the internet not good at all. Wasn’t even able to use it for work email effectively.

 

[RedHead0186]

I would definitely get the higher/highest tier (can't remember the names, it's the one that specifically says it's faster). It's pretty slow/laggy, so the highest tier will give the best chance for a good experience.

I used Blackboard on a cruise in 2018. I only used it for discussion posts/uploading assignments, not video lectures, so I can only speak to half of it. It was slow, but if I was patient I was able to get done what I needed to. That was the 'old' internet packages though so not 100% sure how they compare . . .

 

[NEGeekymama]

Sounds like your student's professor/instructor needs a good smack upside the head and a lesson in lenience. Yeesh. We're almost three years into a whole new way of learning, and it just astounds me when some profs just don't freaking get it yet.

 

[sadiecatie]

Sounds like your student's professor/instructor needs a good smack upside the head and a lesson in lenience. Yeesh. We're almost three years into a whole new way of learning, and it just astounds me when some profs just don't freaking get it yet.

I can only speak to my university (college professor here), but we’re fully in person. I don’t know the specifics of this case, but if one of my students said they couldn’t submit assignments because they’re going to be on a cruise with their family, I’d say “Huh, well you’ll need to figure out turning your work in ahead of time.” When school is in session, students are expected to be there.

 

[RedHead0186]

Sounds like your student's professor/instructor needs a good smack upside the head and a lesson in lenience. Yeesh. We're almost three years into a whole new way of learning, and it just astounds me when some profs just don't freaking get it yet.

Considering they're asking about access to an online platform, this actually does sound in-line with the new way of learning. It isn't clear from the original post if this class is always online/virtual, or if this is an in-person class the instructor is making accommodations for so the student can participate while out.

 

[NEGeekymama]

I can only speak to my university (college professor here), but we’re fully in person. I don’t know the specifics of this case, but if one of my students said they couldn’t submit assignments because they’re going to be on a cruise with their family, I’d say “Huh, well you’ll need to figure out turning your work in ahead of time.” When school is in session, students are expected to be there.

Gonna go out on a limb here and guess that you also grade attendance and participation, too.

 

[NEGeekymama]

Considering they're asking about access to an online platform, this actually does sound in-line with the new way of learning. It isn't clear from the original post if this class is always online/virtual, or if this is an in-person class the instructor is making accommodations for so the student can participate while out.

My comment was meant to be more along the line of calling out the ridiculousness of making a student do work while on a family trip.

If one of my stats lab students had to miss class, I never required a reason, and didn't make them do the lab until they were back.

 

[sadiecatie]

Gonna go out on a limb here and guess that you also grade attendance and participation, too.

Yup.

 

[NEGeekymama]

Yup.

Just gonna leave this here for you.

 

[MomOTwins]

My comment was meant to be more along the line of calling out the ridiculousness of making a student do work while on a family trip.

If one of my stats lab students had to miss class, I never required a reason, and didn't make them do the lab until they were back.

I’m not sure I see that being ridiculous at the university/college level. Sure, at grade school, or even high school, a child can’t control their parents vacation schedule. But a college student is an adult who chooses for themselves whether to go on a vacation with their family or not. I don’t see why it’s crazy to hold them accountable to keeping up with course work during an unexcused absence.

 

[NEGeekymama]

I’m not sure I see that being ridiculous at the university/college level. Sure, at grade school, or even high school, a child can’t control their parents vacation schedule. But a college student is an adult who chooses for themselves whether to go on a vacation with their family or not. I don’t see why it’s crazy to hold them accountable to keeping up with course work during an unexcused absence.

Because life happens, and there should be a level of understanding and empathy that college students all have lives outside the classroom. Be it having to miss class for an illness, or for a job interview, or to take care of a family member, or even a mental health day....the whole notion of "excused" or "unexcused" absence is incredibly outdated and a perfect example of what's wrong with the American education system as a whole.

Everyone on this thread could benefit from reading some bell hooks.

 

[tvguy]

Because life happens, and there should be a level of understanding and empathy that college students all have lives outside the classroom. Be it having to miss class for an illness, or for a job interview, or to take care of a family member, or even a mental health day....the whole notion of "excused" or "unexcused" absence is incredibly outdated and a perfect example of what's wrong with the American education system as a whole.

Everyone on this thread could benefit from reading some bell hooks.

I disagree. A responsible person makes sure they can fulfill their obligations before booking a vacation.

 

[sadiecatie]

It is possible for accountability and empathy to coexist in a student-teacher relationship. Anyways, this is completely hijacking this thread - the OP should just expect that their child will need to make arrangements ahead of time as they may not be able to depend on the on-board WiFi.

 

[bigAWL]

Thanks for the replies and healthy debate. This is a case of missing class time to take a family vacation. There was no time that all of our spring breaks lined up, and after cancelling two cruises in the past two years, we decided to risk a slight fall-behind. She will work with professors to turn in work ahead of time if necessary or to get extensions. It's flexible, but she wants to keep up as much as the ship internet will allow.

 

[DCLCruiseFan09]

Thanks for the replies and healthy debate. This is a case of missing class time to take a family vacation. There was no time that all of our spring breaks lined up, and after cancelling two cruises in the past two years, we decided to risk a slight fall-behind. She will work with professors to turn in work ahead of time if necessary or to get extensions. It's flexible, but she wants to keep up as much as the ship internet will allow.

Something to also consider is if there is a Dropbox or something that her teachers could put the videos in for her. Not sure if Blackboard will allow you to download videos from the website but it might be better to set something to download while you are out of the room and then she can watch it when she gets back instead of trying to stream since that takes up more bandwidth.

Additionally, the ship's wifi is throttled throughout the day depending on how many people are using it so she may be better off using the internet for studies outside of major traffic hours (10/11 PM - 6/7 AM).

Have you looked at any alternate options for internet while on the cruise through your cell phone service provider? You could use your phone as a mobile wifi hotspot if its more cost effective or included in your current plan.

 

[RedHead0186]

Thanks for the replies and healthy debate. This is a case of missing class time to take a family vacation. There was no time that all of our spring breaks lined up, and after cancelling two cruises in the past two years, we decided to risk a slight fall-behind. She will work with professors to turn in work ahead of time if necessary or to get extensions. It's flexible, but she wants to keep up as much as the ship internet will allow.

Happy to hear her professors are giving her a bit of leniency.

I had a similar situation when I cruised in 2018. I would miss a week of class, so I communicated with my professor to work ahead to minimize classwork done on the ship. I still had to do a couple of discussion postings and finalize my assignment, but working ahead ensured I could still have a ton of fun on the cruise while keeping up with my obligations.

 

[RedHead0186]

I disagree. A responsible person makes sure they can fulfill their obligations before booking a vacation.

Agreed, and a planned vacation is very different from an emergency (illness, accident, family member death, etc.)