Title: Future of Online Education in Higher Education
1Future of Online Educationin Higher Education
Schoolcraft College December 8, 2006 Michael
Wahl, MCCVLC
2In the future...
If were really successful, well work
ourselves right out of a job. Michael Wahl,
MCCVLC SHEEO White Paper on Online Learning
3Online Learning
- Just another modality for course delivery
- Nature of content or learning activity
- Preferred learning style of student
- NCA Best Practices Section 1-f"In its
articulation and transfer policies the
institution judges courses and programs on the
learning outcomes, and the resources brought to
bear for their achievement, not on their mode of
delivery."
4In the meantime...
- Both students and faculty need specific skills to
be successful online - Faculty need assistance to prepare quality online
courses and deliver them effectively - Technology and infrastructure issues are often
unique to online instruction - Policies and practices specific to online are
desirable or required
5Online Enrollments
- Fall 1999
- Provider colleges -- 17
- Courses available -- 133
- Total enrollments gt 1800
- Fall 2006
- Provider colleges -- 23
- Courses available -- 1068
- Total enrollments gt 39,000
6Online Enrollment Trends
- Rates of increase must begin to moderate
- Student demand for online courses will continue
to exceed supply - Limiting factors in enrollment growth
- Faculty to teach online sections
- Support services for online learners
- Programs of study available in online format
7Where will it end?
- If completely free to choose, how many students
would select online? - Experiments found over 50 choose online, with
the remainder split between traditional courses
and hybrid - Should we begin to consider online education a
core competency of community colleges?
8But, What about Persistence Rates?
- Nationally, persistence rates reported as low as
25 for online - VLC study for NCA Rates 5 10 below those in
traditional courses - Students who had taken 2 or more online courses
no significant difference - Yesterday online persistence rates both above
below traditional courses
9Persistence RatesPre-course Preparation
- Advising
- Caution with younger / traditional-age students
- More appropriate for mature, self-directed
learners - Inappropriate for developmental students
- Analysis of Learning Styles
- Orientation
10Persistence RatesCourse-related issues
- Course quality - rubric
- Learner Support Services
- Course Management System improvements
- Features provided by vendors
- Configuration by CMS administrators
- Help Desk
11Survey of Online Learners
- Statistically valid survey for state of Michigan
- sample size 400
- 95 sampling confidence
- Accurate to /- 5
- Online learners from 21 Michigancommunity
colleges - Telephone survey
- Attitudes
- Opinions
- Satisfaction
Student Survey
12Educational Objectives
- 79 - to Satisfy requirements of degree or
certificate program - 15 - personal enrichment
- 13 - improve job skills
Student Survey
13Why Online?
- 34 - Online fit schedule flexibility
- 17 - work full time too busy for classes
- 14 - personal or health-related reasons
- 11 - could set own pace
- 11 - college too far away
Student Survey
14If not Online?
- 74 - would have taken the course anyway in a
traditional classroom - 23 would not have enrolled in this course had
it not been available online
Student Survey
15Completion Rates
- 85 - completed most recent online course
- 5 - are currently completingmost recent online
course - 10 - failed to completemost recent online
course - 70 - self-report learningas much as traditional
course
Student Survey
16Critiquing Online CoursesAdvantages
- 45 - Flexibility of schedule
- 41 - work at own pace study at convenient
times - 12 - Avoid travel to college
Student Survey
17Critiquing Online CoursesDisadvantages
- 14 - Not enough interaction andone-on-one with
instructor - 12 - Hard to reach theinstructor with
questions- either it took too longor questions
werent answered at all
Student Survey
18Critiquing Online CoursesInteraction
- 91 - Adequate opportunity tointeract online
with theinstructor - 9 - Very unhappy
- 88 - Adequate levelof interaction with
otherstudents
Student Survey
19Online Enrollment Plans
- 79 - will enroll in another online course in the
future - 3 - already enrolled
- 8 - will NOT enrollin another online course
- 11 - undecided
Student Survey
20Online Enrollment Plans Why not enroll again?
- Bad experience with instructor
- Need more interaction with instructor
- Classes needed are notavailable online
- Not self-disciplined orself-motivated enough
- Learn better in classroom
Student Survey
21Online Enrollment Plans -Subjects of Interest
- Business
- Computer Science
- English / writing
- Math
- Science / allied health
- Psychology
- Accounting
Student Survey
22Online Enrollment Plans Considerations
- 87 - transferability of credits
- 61 - accreditation
- 58 - reputation of college
- 52 - cost of tuition
Student Survey
23Looking to the Future
- Ubiquitous Broadband connectivity
- Increased usage of video and audio
- Out-sourced services
- networks
- course management system
- media servers
- Out-sourced content / courses?
24Next-generation Online Courses
- More interactive learning activities
- Animation
- Video streamed or from DVDs
- Simulations
- Experiential learning participate reflect
- give a speech
- visit a local museum or landmark
- participate in an off-campus activity (service
learning?)
25Next-generation Online Courses
- Learning activities based on individual student
preferred learning style - Audio for bad readers
- Simulations for experiential learners
- Video for visual learners
- Learning activities based on gaming
- Sim city
- Success in game equates to meeting course
objectives - Think telecourse distributed on game cartridge
26Next-generation Online Courses
- Courses may utilize alternative devices
- Cell phone text messaging
- Ipod podcast of content
- Gaming devices course activities on Nintendo?
- Wiki technology Wikipedia...
- Generic information resource
- Wiki technology adopted by communities in higher
education discipline-based?
27Next-generation Online Courses
- e-Portfolios
- Student benefit
- document achievement
- prepare for transfer / workplace (resume)
- College benefit
- authentic assessment methodology
- document student achievement (assessment)
28Next-generation Online Courses
- Learning Objects
- Module of instruction
- Issues
- Context (car crash video CJ / Law / Physics)
- Assessment
- Technology / browser plug-ins
- Repositories / Referatories
- How will colleges use repositories?
29Courseware Repositories
- Rice connexions - link
- Merlot - link
- MIT open courseware - link
- Monterey Institute for Technology and Education -
link
30Next-generationAdministrative Issues
- Managing use of acquired/shared content
- New business models
- variable section sizes
- variable tuition / fees
- quality learning experience
- Revised models of curriculum development /
delivery utilizing technology - curriculum development and integration
- course design / development / delivery
- assessment
31Traditional Student Services
Self-service (brochures)
Help from generalist (receptionist)
Help from specialist (Financial Aid Specialist)
32Student-centered Services
Self-service (Brochures, web site)
Self-service (brochures)
Help from generalist (Cross-trained staff)
Help from generalist (receptionist)
Help from Specialist
Help from specialist (Financial Aid Specialist)
33Public Policy Issues
Do public policy-makers understand the unique
characteristics of online learning?
- Cherry Commission on Higher Education
objective double number of college graduates - Community college role
- Role of online courses and programs
34Public Policy Issues
Do public policy-makers understand the unique
characteristics of online learning?
- Relationship between higher education and
prosperity in the state or region - Economic Development
- Workforce Development
- High school graduation requirement for online
learning experience
35Online Learning Requirement
- Meaningful online learning experience
- For credit
- Not for credit
- School districts must make onlineopportunities
availablein 2007-08 year - Legislation does notprohibit dual enrollment
- Online courses from your college
- VLC online courses
High School Graduation
36Lets Talk...
- Questions?
- Comments?
- Suggestions...
37Future of Online Educationin Higher Education
Schoolcraft College December 8, 2006 Michael
Wahl, MCCVLC
38MCCVLC Course Quality Assurance Project
- modeled after Quality Matters a FIPSE-funded
project in Maryland - inter-institutional peer review
- utilizes course rubric
- entirely voluntary
- colleges need to provide 3 reviewers for each
course to be reviewed
39Public Policy
- Relationship between higher education and
prosperity in the state or region - Talk is cheap policy makers need to adequately
fund higher education - Educators need to inform policy makers of
potential of online learning
40MCCVLC - What its about
A project which allows students from anywhere in
Michigan to take any one of the 1000 courses
from the on-line catalog courses which may be
offered by one of the 24 Provider community
collegeswith the support of their Home
college.
41Provider college / Home College
- Instruction from provider college
- Online courses
- Telecourses with on-line interactivity
- Students enrolling in online coursesmaintain
strong associationwith the home college - Student support services
- Library resources
- Test proctoring
- Maintain student transcript
- Financial Aid
The Model
42NCA Best PracticesSection 1-f.
- "In its articulation and transfer policies the
institution judges courses and programs on the
learning outcomes, and the resources brought to
bear for their achievement, not on their mode of
delivery."
43NCA Best Practices for Electronically-delivered
Degrees
- Recognizes changing environment
- Encourage responsible innovation
- Distance Learning
- Settled definitions and procedures are neither
possible nor even desirable - Strike a balance between innovation and
accountability - Sound departures from traditional formulas will
be validated those falling short will not
44Quality Matters
- Online course guidelines and rubric quality
workshops - link - Flat-earth geography curriculum
- Course accessibility guidelines and workshops
- Program guidelines and rubric - link
- Professional development-link
Advantage Collaboration
45VLC advantages for Students
- Online course catalog - link
- Course equivalencies / articulation
- Common tuition
- Financial Aid ConsortiumAgreement
- Learner support services- link
Advantage Collaboration
46VLC advantages for College
- Retain online students
- Provide community w/ specialtyniche programs
of study - Tuition revenue sharing
- Professional development
- Collaborative Accreditation
Advantage Collaboration
47MCCVLC Initiatives
- Professional development program
- Using Learning Objects
- Building Quality into Online Courses
- FIPSE grant learner support services
- Developed collaboratively / available to all
Michigan community colleges - Online programs of study particularly
occupational programs
48Business Models
- VLC tuition clients will pay premium for
convenient product (120/credit in-district,
175/credit out-district) - Current business model based on obsolete
conditions - level of funding by state
- assumption that educated citizens are a pubic
good vs. current assumption that education is a
private good - student options restricted by geography
49Business Models
- Alternate business models
- differential tuiton
- differential class sizes based on Blooms
Taxonomy - knowledge
- comprehension
- application
- analysis
- synthesis
- evaluation
50D/L Admin Workshop
51A small step forward...
- Second Higher Education Extension Act of 2006
- 50 rule eliminated
52- hybrid programs
- grant proposal