Online, or distance, learning is affecting many institutitions of higher education across the nation as well as globally. Whether it is a small community college, a mid-sized regional liberal arts college, a large research university, a for-profit institution or a strictly online institution, the opportunities and disadvantages of this type of learning are being addressed in greater depth. The use of online learning programs is not limited to only higher education institutions. Virtual K-12 programs currently exist as well as do online training utilized by the business and military sectors.
Distance learning actually began in the mid-nineteenth century using the mail service. Correspondence courses, as they were referred to, offered educational opportunities to those unable to attend a school due to a variety of reasons including living in a remote location, gender, and full-time employment. The introduction of radio and television technologies opened additional learning communication methods in which educationally based programming could be broadcast to hundreds of thousands. The advancements of telecommunications technology in the 1980s allowed teleconferencing systems to be utilized to teach courses. Computer networking in the 1980s and 1990s as well as an increased access to computers took teleconferencing systems up a notch to where students were able to access network conferencing. By far the greatest technology advancement for distance learning has been the internet. This technology has changed the face of distance learning so much that the term distance is rarely used and is instead referred to as online learning.
What are the opportunities of online learning programs for institutions of higher education? On the surface administrators see increased enrollment, increased access, and lower costs. In today’s looming higher education budget crisis, many institutions are moving towards more online course and degree offerings with the hope that enrollments will climb and costs will be lowered in order to see a positive effect on revenues. However, is this clearly the case? Is this actually a quick fix for a short-term payoff? On the other hand, will how education is delivered forever change?
What are the disadvantages of online learning programs? Again, on the surface issues such as student assessment, effectiveness, and higher technology costs can be seen. Is today’s budget crisis causing institutions to navigate the direction of online learning without institutions realistically reviewing the disadvantages of such programs in order to determine if the opportunities outweigh the disadvantages?
While contemplating what knowledge I have and do not have regarding online learning programs; I compiled a list of potential issues to be considered during the blogging process. The list is as follows:
· Institutional Costs – These costs may include equipment (servers, network capabilities, learning management software systems, etc.), personnel (information technology staff, online learning staff, faculty, etc.), and training (education for faculty and staff regarding the utililization of the learning management software system). Are online courses lower, equal to or higher in costs than the traditional classroom offerings?
· Enrollment – How does increasing the offerings of online courses impact enrollment? Do online offerings increase or decrease enrollments of certain programs?
· Access – What are the demographics of online course enrollees? Are they local students, in-state students, international students? Are online course offerings truly affecting access?
· Student Success Rates – What are the successful completion rates of online learners compared to traditional classroom learners? Where do hybrid classes fit into this comparison?
· Effectiveness/Assessment – Are online courses less effective, equal to or more effective than traditional courses? What types of measurements show this, if any? Generally speaking, how are online courses assessed by the institution? Are student success rates the primary assessment? Are enrollments the determining factor of effectiveness? What outcomes are being accessed?
· Learning Styles – How are multiple learning styles addressed in the development of online courses? Can every student effectively learn and successfully complete an online course? How is peer learning affected?
· Teaching Styles – What adjustments are made by faculty members in order to develop and teach an online course?
· Online Student Demographics – Are online courses marketed towards the increasingly technology savvy traditional student aged 18-24? Are adult learners who may not be comfortable with technology being forgotten?
· Student Financial Aid Implications – What are the cautions related to financial aid? How can institutions ensure that enrolled students are who they say they are? What are potential student abuses of the financial aid system regarding online courses?
· Online Student Services – If online course offerings and enrollments continue to rise, what implications does that have on student service programs? Will student services become online as well? What does an online student services program look like?
· Faculty Compensation – Are faculty members who teach online courses compensated the same as those teaching traditional courses?
· Course Curriculum – What classes invite online learning and what classes do not? Can a complete program effectively be taught using online courses?
· Vocational Skills – How do vocational courses and degrees that require hands on training lend themselves to online learning? Can “soft skills” i.e. customer service, bedside health skills, etc. be taught via an online course?
· Remedial/Developmental Education – With the large percentage of students who are enrolling in higher education institutions underprepared to complete successfully a college level course, what considerations are being made for these students? Are online courses effective for these students? Are these same students prepared to learn in an online environment?
· Student Engagement – What does student engagement look like for online only students?
· Support Staff – What does additional online learning mean to support staff? With potentially fewer faculty members on campus, will support staff levels be decreased?
This list is far from comprehensive and class members are invited to add and comment in the spirit of learning. It may be interesting to compare online learning programs at the University of Northern Colorado and Aims Community College as these institutions are represented within our course membership.
Online learning programs are a definite part of the landscape of higher education but to what extent such programs will be undertaken is yet to be decided. As administrators and educators look to the future of teaching and learning, online program research findings will be an invaluable tool on which to base decisions. These decisions must always keep the needs of and outcomes for students in the forefront while balancing the overall health of the institution.
My opinion is that online learning is not going away and online course offerings will increase although not every course or every subject lends itself to being taught online. Not every student desires or is capable of learning online. Traditional classroom delivery will continue to be the foundation for course teaching and student learning. If institutions are truly student centered, the combination of face-to-face courses and online courses must be kept in balance in order to serve its population. Institution decision makers must remember that learning takes place outside of the classroom as well as within the classroom. Campus services and programs are intended to enhance student learning and are focused on the whole being of the student. Higher education cannot be fully experienced or appreciated without the combination of academics, campus programs and peer interaction.
References
http://www.cdlponline.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=whatis&pg=3
http://www.immagic.com/eLibrary/UNPROCESSED/Unprocessed%20eLibrary/COMPLETE/SEPP_Denver/distancelearning.pdf
http://chronicle.com/article/The-Next-Admissions-Challen/48625/
http://chronicle.com/article/Online-Scheme-Highlights-Fe/63517/
http://www.insidehighereducation.com/news/2009/12/07/online
Here are some questions about a hypothetical situation that maybe you can help me think about. I am a faculty member at a regional university. Every time I bump into my dean, she asks me when I am going to develop an on-line course and teach it. The dean believes there are 1000’s of potential students who live in the rural areas of the state and can’t attend college, but who would if it was simply offered on-line. The dean reminds me that there is a department on campus with experts who can help me design the course. Here are some of the problems I have with what the dean is requesting. First, I don’t have the time to design another course! When am I supposed to do this? She says I should do it over the summer but I am on a 9 month contract and don’t believe I should have to work if I am not being compensated.
ReplyDeleteSecond, I am worried that if I do develop a course and no one wants to take it, the dean will next ask me to go recruit the students! I know this may sound silly, but when other classes have been low-enrolled, the dean has told faculty to go find the students.
Third, I have spoken to my colleagues at other institutions who are teaching on-line classes. They all tell me that to do it well takes about 50% more time then teaching a traditional class. So again, I am being asked to do more work and not get compensated for it.
Finally, the institution has not given any of its employees a raise in two years but seems to be pumping lots of money into hiring more people to develop these on-line classes and buying the technology needed to offer these classes?
Am I thinking about these things too selfishly or is the institution not being respectful of its employees?
I took numerous correspondence courses while in the military. Mostly for service points rather than learning much. Though you could glean some information and I would use the books for reference in training, they could be a joke.
ReplyDeleteI did my master’s online through UNC when I lived in Grand Junction. I do not believe that I got as much out of the material as I would have in a face-to-face environment. Then when I started my PhD program face-to-face I found that I missed and really enjoyed the exchanges of information that takes place in the classroom. While I have used a discussion board and the courses that I TA for uses a discussion board, I am not really good at exchanging information in that medium.
I agree that online learning is here to stay, if for economics reasons only. Though you are also correct when you say that not everyone is comfortable in an online learning environment. As education shifts to more online, those that are not comfortable may be left behind. A “digital divide” is thus created between those that are comfortable with using technology and those that are not. I do not mean texting and listening to a mp3 or talking on an iPhone, but being able to use technology as a resource and learning tool. Digital equity is becoming more of an issue and will be an issue in the future.
Matt,
ReplyDeleteThose are some of the problems with online instruction. One of the nice things about developing your own content is that it will be easy to teach, rather than learning content to teach. It is my understanding at Aims CC, the first time an instructor teaches and develops an online course they are credited with 1.5* credits to compensate for the extra work. Can you ask for something like that. After teaching in K12 I have learned that summer is time to develop new content.