The impact of information technology in the class room is being felt as never before at the Harvard Extension School. Leading the way with a record 196 student enrollments is CSCI E-50a Introduction to Computer Science Using C++, I. "I was expecting enrollments to be up a bit due to the explosive growth of the Internet in just the past year," comments Dr. Henry Leitner, Senior Lecturer on Computer Science and Director of Academic Computing for Harvard's Division of Continuing Education, "but quite frankly I did not anticipate how great the demand was going to be. One of the first questions I asked the students in my E-50a class was how many of them already had Internet access via modem or some other means. I was startled to see over two-thirds of the hands go up . . . and remember, this is an introductory course!" In order to obtain a sense of the audience, Dr. Leitner had his students answer some basic questions about their background and why they were taking his class. The results suggest a diverse audience, with a substantial fraction taking E-50a out of personal interest. Branislav Zivojinovich, who works as an acquisitions officer for the United States Air Force at Mitre Corporation, says: "I was a business finance major as an undergraduate, but for a long time I've had an interest in how programmers think and how programs get written. And as someone who is responsible for the spending of literally millions of taxpayer dollars for various hardware and software systems, I felt it important to learn more about these technologies." "I've met a number of people from various branches of the computer industry," remarks Chris Morrison, Dr. Leitner's longtime head teaching fellow. "We have database analysts, system administrators, someone from the MIT Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, technical writers, software support people, and people doing web development as a sideline part of their regular job. CSCI E-50a also has a good number of candidates seeking the Certificate in Applied Sciences (CAS) or the Certificate of Special Studies in Administration and Management (CSS). There are also plenty of folks contemplating a career change who seem to be 'testing the waters.'"

A student came to class quite upset a few weeks ago, fearing she would be arrested. Why? She was working on her homework assignment using the Netscape Navigator software the night before when her computer crashed and issued her an "illegal instruction" message!

Another course experiencing a major increase in enrollment is CSCI E-217 Programming Microsoft Windows[trademark] NT and 95 Using the Microsoft Foundation Classes, taught by David S. Platt. "I was kind of blown away by the number of students who showed up the first night. Last year a similar class I taught at the Extension School had 40-something students; my current class is taught in a Science Center lecture hall with seating for 135 students, and we ended up with some students sitting on the floor or standing in the aisle on opening night! But I'm actually not all that surprised by the high enrollment given the strong demand for Microsoft Windows[trademark] NT and 95 programmers." Theodore Pappadopoulos, who teaches CSCI E-253 Client/Server Computing, expresses a similar sentiment: "In general, the marketplace for technical data processing skills is booming, and I sense that many students are looking to expand or hone their skills and awareness of new technologies in order to take advantage of this demand."

Changes in the software and hardware industries are reflected in the Harvard Extension School's current course offerings. This fall several new courses, including CSCI E-17 Advanced Multimedia Design and Production, CSCI E-12 Introduction to World Wide Web Site Development, and CSCI E-90 Introduction to Java Programming, attracted significant numbers of students. "The World Wide Web course filled up in August, just a few days after registration for the fall semester began," notes Dr. Leitner, "and our advanced multimedia course followed shortly thereafter. Were it not for the fact that many of our students have access to their own computing facilities, our public labs at the Science Center would have been overwhelmed by the record number of students."

The impact of computing technology is being felt in courses other than those listed under computer science. An increasing number of courses are taking advantage of electronic mail for staying in touch with students and various types of commercially available software to enhance the teaching and learning processes. Lisa Klein, a research associate in marketing at the Harvard Business School, teaches CSS-103 Doing Business on the Internet, a new course that has attracted a number of students with interesting backgrounds, including an engineering professor and an economist at a local investment bank. Ms. Klein comments that the one thing many of her students have in common is a sense of being a bit overwhelmed by the new technologies. "My favorite quote is from an international student who came to class quite upset a few weeks ago, fearing she would be arrested. Why? She was working on her homework assignment using the Netscape Navigator software the night before when her computer crashed and issued her an 'illegal instruction' message!"