I have used the internet in teaching to monitor what my students were doing.
I had a web page which only they could access. It had several functions or "departments" they could click on that took them to a place where they could do various things: a place to post papers or comments, some only viewable by me, some viewable by their fellow students in the class too.
There was a section which contained copies of reading material (like a class mini library) and they could go there and read the articles and instructions any time.
I could have, but did not, ask them to sign in for days they attended (or missed) classes, but that was not important to me (they got their work done and it showed from the postings they did and I could see the dates they did it and who was not getting it done or doing at last minute and then could look at the quality of the work).
The basic webpage and how it worked was provided free by a seller of instructional and research materails/services; but the above manner which I created and set up was done all by me (they gave me the tools and foundational web page, I did the rest).
I was the first to do this at the college where I did it (in 2000) but numerous other professors learned of it and asked me to tell them how to set it up and started doing it too.
Good luck. Rob
