Evans Spears, Ph.D., CRC MRC Program Director
From Sloan Consortium and Managing Online Education surveys : Enrollment- at least one online course 1.6 million in Fall 2002 5.58 million in Fall 2009 Account for 29% of enrollment in education in US 94% of universities expect online enrollment to increase in next 3 years 44% of campuses report online programs profitable (http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/digital_tweed/mapping_the_terrain_of_online_education)
63% of survey participants agree Online education is critical to the long-term strategies of my institution Greatest threat is believed to be budget cuts, lack of key human resources, and faculty resistance http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/digital_tweed/mapping_the_terrain_of_online_educ ation
Face to Face Most common Traditional Butts in seats Commonly referred to as Brick and Mortar Online Many forms Classroom mirroring Correspondence Synchronous vs. Asynchronous
Blended Combination of brick and mortar and distance Common first step for universities entering into distance arena Gaining a lot of ground with traditional programs Lectures online Classroom activities
Literature Based General Areas Covers Multiple Facets Two Major Groupings Institutional Factors Student Factors
Resource Allocation and Planning Technology Infrastructure Marketing
Instructor Enthusiasm Pedagogy Comfort Student Interactions Communication Learning Styles Course Size Technology Support
Only one model Need to adapt models to: Program Teaching Style Content Concentrate on the 6 Factors
Some control at the program and faculty level Many areas determined at school or university level These factors are very resource intensive Key is to discover how best to operate with resources provided
Distance Education can be very expensive at the start Low # students in beginning High cost both financially and time/effort MRC Program 10 students and 1 professor at start Over 80 students and 4 professors presently
SOAHS very supportive Full IT Dept with TTUHSC School IT Dept Individual IT support for each program Materials Hardware (e.g., servers, computers) Software (e.g., LMS, Respondus)
Different Approaches Usually a much more focused marketing Must look at Target Market Often non-traditional students Go beyond school fairs Viral Marketing Can be very expensive Organizational Conferences
Can apply to both the individual students and the Program/Faculty Program and faculty have much more control over these sets of factors More concentration paid to these factors in this presentation
From Student Perspective Do they feel part of the university? Priority of Schooling? Individuals or members of a class? From Program/Faculty Perspective How do address these issues? How to increase student sense of worth of program?
Pedagogy Delivery methods Student interactions Encourage interaction with other members of class Enthusiasm in lectures How lectures are delivered Energy level Understanding of student limits Breaking up lectures
Approach as a classroom Set up as weekly sessions Adapt to needs of class New approaches to test-taking Forced interactions Multiple forms of delivery Moving beyond correspondence Lectures are not set to fill a certain amount of time
Probably the most important aspect Most powerful way to increase student belonging Play to strengths of students Re-educate that discussion of material can go beyond single class experience Striving to make online as interactive as brick and mortar, if not more so
Discussions are a key component Present information in multiple formats to adapt to student learning style Auditory Visual Mobility Asynchronous and synchronous Manageable course sizes Discussions of topic can go on for weeks as opposed to single class period
Be aware of technology knowledge base of students Be aware of wide breadth of ages and abilities SOAHS provides individual IT person for each program Support provided for both students and faculty Need to be aware of new technology
Distance teaching can be very different than a traditional classroom Know your own teaching style and adapt What can be done the same What needs adaptation What doesn t work
Don t wait to last minute More time necessary for prep Have to have time for conversion, posting, etc Night before lecture planning is dangerous Up-front work MRC needs to have semester done before it starts Solid planning can save time in long run Well planned courses can be re-used multiple times Focus shifts from prep to delivery
Change mindset for how courses are run No longer a 2 hour lecture Discussions can continue for weeks Course is always open Allows time to process material and still discuss Set boundaries to when you are on!