Future of Online Education in Higher Education

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Future of Online Educationin Higher Education
Schoolcraft College December 8, 2006 Michael
Wahl, MCCVLC
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In the future...
If were really successful, well work
ourselves right out of a job. Michael Wahl,
MCCVLC SHEEO White Paper on Online Learning
3
Online 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."

4
In 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

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Online 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

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Online 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

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Where 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?

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But, 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

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Persistence 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

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Persistence RatesCourse-related issues

• Course quality - rubric
• Learner Support Services
• Course Management System improvements
• Features provided by vendors
• Configuration by CMS administrators
• Help Desk

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Survey 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
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Educational Objectives

• 79 - to Satisfy requirements of degree or
  certificate program
• 15 - personal enrichment
• 13 - improve job skills

Student Survey
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Why 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
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If 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
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Completion 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
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Critiquing Online CoursesAdvantages

• 45 - Flexibility of schedule
• 41 - work at own pace study at convenient
  times
• 12 - Avoid travel to college

Student Survey
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Critiquing 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
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Critiquing Online CoursesInteraction

• 91 - Adequate opportunity tointeract online
  with theinstructor
• 9 - Very unhappy
• 88 - Adequate levelof interaction with
  otherstudents

Student Survey
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Online 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
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Online 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
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Online Enrollment Plans -Subjects of Interest

• Business
• Computer Science
• English / writing
• Math
• Science / allied health
• Psychology
• Accounting

Student Survey
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Online Enrollment Plans Considerations

• 87 - transferability of credits
• 61 - accreditation
• 58 - reputation of college
• 52 - cost of tuition

Student Survey
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Looking 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?

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Next-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?)

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Next-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

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Next-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?

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Next-generation Online Courses

• e-Portfolios
• Student benefit
• document achievement
• prepare for transfer / workplace (resume)
• College benefit
• authentic assessment methodology
• document student achievement (assessment)

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Next-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?

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Courseware Repositories

• Rice connexions - link
• Merlot - link
• MIT open courseware - link
• Monterey Institute for Technology and Education -
  link

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Next-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

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Traditional Student Services
Self-service (brochures)
Help from generalist (receptionist)
Help from specialist (Financial Aid Specialist)
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Student-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)
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Public 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

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Public 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

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Online 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
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Lets Talk...

• Questions?
• Comments?
• Suggestions...

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Future of Online Educationin Higher Education
Schoolcraft College December 8, 2006 Michael
Wahl, MCCVLC
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MCCVLC 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

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Public 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

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MCCVLC - 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.
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Provider 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
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NCA 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."

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NCA 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

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Quality 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
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VLC advantages for Students

• Online course catalog - link
• Course equivalencies / articulation
• Common tuition
• Financial Aid ConsortiumAgreement
• Learner support services- link

Advantage Collaboration
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VLC advantages for College

• Retain online students
• Provide community w/ specialtyniche programs
  of study
• Tuition revenue sharing
• Professional development
• Collaborative Accreditation

Advantage Collaboration
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MCCVLC 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

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Business 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

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Business Models

• Alternate business models
• differential tuiton
• differential class sizes based on Blooms
  Taxonomy
• knowledge
• comprehension
• application
• analysis
• synthesis
• evaluation

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D/L Admin Workshop

• xxx

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A small step forward...

• Second Higher Education Extension Act of 2006
• 50 rule eliminated

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• hybrid programs
• grant proposal