By snoadmin
Beachboard sucks. Has sucked. Always will suck.
This year especially, Beachboard has been up and down online, causing frustration for students just trying to download their syllabi.
The Beachboard shutdowns stem from problems with server issues at Desire2Learn, the company that runs Beachboard.
The shutdowns have made it difficult for professors to upload important documents that students are required to read before class. This has a negative effect on classes, setting back coursework a week in professors’ schedules.
As students, Beachboard has been the bane of our existence.
Newer students may not have noticed the annoyance yet; however, the more years you attend Cal State Long Beach, the more often Beachboard perturbs you.
Beachboard always seems to go down when you need it most, like when you try to access lecture notes after you were “sick” and couldn’t make it to class.
It is also frustrating that not all professors use Beachboard. Some professors elect not to because they don’t trust the site, which makes sense. However, in the times that Beachboard is up online, students should have access to all the classes they’re enrolled in, not just those classes with professors who elect to use Beachboard.
Why?
A lot of students use Beachboard to contact other students in class. This is not possible if the class does not show up on Beachboard.
Thank goodness MyCSULB has found a way to stay up in the weeks of registration. If MyCSULB was run the same way Beachboard is, students would be calling for the server name to be changed to Desire2MakeYourLifeALivingHell.
So yes, we have ranted about our frustrations with Beachboard. It feels good to get it out. But what should we do to move forward?
At the end of the day, students need a website like Beachboard in order to be successful in college. In this age, it shouldn’t be difficult to have a well-run website that is a proper extension of our college experience.
If Beachboard is the answer to CSULB’s online academics, it needs to step up. Also, all professors need to get behind it.
If not, CSULB should look to invest in a website that integrates the functions of CSULB email, MyCSULB and Beachboard into one uniform website. That way, everything would be in one place. No need for extra usernames and passwords.
