2017 Graduate: Ball State University and TCM

Earlier this year I took part in my first on-line film class, and my first on-line class ever: a history and discussion of director Alfred Hitchcock and his six decades of filmmaking, presented by Turner Classic Movies and Ball State University, and taught by Richard L. Edwards, a professor at BSU in Muncie, Indiana.

This free 6-week course covered Hitchcock films ranging from his silent period of the 1920s to his final output of modern films in the 1970s, and featured lecture videos, learning modules, games, and quizzes. It ran from June to August, and students had the option of taking part in all six weeks of daily courses, or stopping by any day or time they wanted. I had an incentive for wanting to forge my way through the entire course: a Ball State/TCM ‘certificate of completion’, given to everyone who attended every class, and passed every test:

So even though it’s unofficial, and not truly a Ball State diploma, I still feel a bit proud of my accomplishment. I only wish I’d taken the film noir course they’d offered two years ago, which I’d found out about too late and missed. Hopefully next year, they’ll offer a course in cheesy horror and science fiction films of the 1950s, which you can bet I’ll be signing up for.