When the University's Darden School completed its new facilities with 14 wired classrooms in 1996, it was one of the first schools in the nation where nearly all classrooms had Internet access.
Now Darden is one of the schools leading a new trend: restricting Internet access.
The business school has installed a system that prevents students from accessing the Internet during class time. Professors can flip a switch and override the system if they want to use the Internet for a demonstration.
Although the undergraduate schools at the University maintain around 200 computer classrooms on grounds, they do not restrict Internet access and have no plans to do so, said Derek Leach, IT specialist with Information Technology and Communication.
"We do not restrict content. Instead we restrict access to browsers and prevent users from monkeying with the local settings," Leach said. So far, students abusing Internet privileges has "not been a problem for us," he said.
Darden designed its classrooms to integrate computers into the curriculum. Each classroom has 65 Internet ports, one for each chair. In each room a closet contains three network switches that regulate Internet access to the ports. A single AC outlet powers the switches. If the power to the switches is cut, so is Internet access at the ports.
Although readily available Internet access helped business students prepare for the workforce, administrators, professors and students soon became aware of the drawbacks.
Students would send e-mail and surf the Internet, said Elliott Weiss, associate dean for M.B.A. education at Darden. "Although I never saw anyone day trade," he quipped.
In 1998, Darden's Academic Support Policy Committee decided Internet restriction technology was necessary. In the summer of 1998 technicians installed a system using a fire alarm control panel to regulate Internet access. These panels normally are used to stop electricity and start sprinkler systems in case of a fire.
Darden used the fire alarm-based system to shut off Internet access because "fire alarms don't fail," Dowlin said. "We wanted to make the system as foolproof as possible."
They also looked at using a software system to cut Internet access, but scuttled the idea because software systems are less reliable. The fire alarm control panel is connected to a master clock synchronized to the clocks in each classroom at Darden. "It was very complicated," Dowlin said of synchronizing the clocks.
At the beginning of each semester, technicians program the course schedule for each classroom into the control panel. Whenever a class is scheduled, the panel cuts off power to the switch closet for that classroom. The power is restored as soon as class ends.
The network switches were not designed to be turned on and off many times, so technicians tested the system by turning on and off the switches rapidly for two weeks straight, mimicking two years of regular use.
"Everyone is surprised we are able to do this" power cycling, Dowlin said. "But so far there are no problems ... We haven't had a single failure."
In front of every classroom is a second closet with a big red button resembling the "do not touch" buttons in James Bond films. If the professor presses the button, power is restored to the switches and students have Internet access. In the back of each class near the clock, technicians installed an indicator light-red means the Internet is off, green means it is on.
Most faculty and students believe the system is a good thing. "We choose to have a system like this in the classroom... Darden classes are case-based, so they are very participatory and the Internet detracts from that," first-year Darden student Elio Mariani said.
"It's not that we're ignoring the professor when the Internet is on, but [turning off the Internet] eliminates that possibility," first-year Darden student Julien Lataillade said. "We have enough to concentrate on, we don't need more distractions."
"There were some individuals opposed to the system who thought adults should be able to focus on what they choose," Weiss said. "We would say that we are trying to simulate a business meeting... so students should focus on class."
Darden phased in the new system to make the transition as easy as possible, Dowlin said. In the first year the system was implemented, second-year students in the two-year program still had Internet access during class, while first-years did not.
The Law School does not employ restriction technology because it cannot. It has wireless Internet connections which cannot be turned on in one classroom and off in another. Wireless LAN networks broadcast signals to all computers, including laptops and Palm Pilots within a given radius. If one person at the Law School has access to the Internet, then everyone must.
Darden's system effectively restricts Internet access now, but wireless technology might help students circumvent the system. "We can't stop a student from bringing a cell phone into class," Dowlin said. "Like with all technology, [a wireless network] has the potential to be disruptive and become more powerful than the rules."
Despite the obstacles, Darden will try to make sure its students aren't distracted by the Internet in class.
"Computers should aid learning and not detract from it. That's what we are trying to accomplish," Weiss said.
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