Distance education is the wave of the future, yet the current perception by many people is that it is not as valuable as education conducted in an actual university classroom. The responses I received from interviewing three other people about distance education was that it is good enough, but that classroom education is more effective. Two out of three of them had received an online master’s degree and still felt that it wasn’t as effective. Despite their attitudes, it is my belief that as more programs are offered in an online format, and as more universities begin to adopt these programs, this perception will improve. “If we look at past patterns in educational technology, we can expect exponential growth of distance education to continue” (Simonson, 2010). Because the technology is becoming more readily available and programs are becoming better, it seems as though the sky’s the limit when it comes to online learning.
In 5-10 years, we will see more and more universities adopting an online version of their programs. “The growing prominence of networked technologies for formal and informal learning suggests substantial pressures for education institutions to adapt their models to better suit the interests and digital literacy skills of a growing percentage of the learner population” (Siemens, 2008). As more non-traditional students enter the workforce, they will demand programs, which allow them to work around the demands of family and life in general. Online programs allow students to work when they have time without requiring them to show up to a traditional class. Also, more hybrid models will be adopted for programs that require hands-on training, such as nursing or speech therapy. More people will begin to perceive these models as valuable, but there will probably still be some prejudice towards them.
There should be a large shift in the perceptions of distance education in 10-20 years. It takes time for any new way of doing things to be accepted, and there will still be some people that will never accept distance learning, but the majority will acknowledge that it is valuable and most universities will have an online component of some sort. The true test will be in the acceptance of online education for K-12 students. In his video on higher education and K-12 distance education, Dr. Simonson states that higher education will start to adopt distance education but will not abandon traditional classrooms. He believes that a hybrid model will be used instead. Many high schools are already using online education for independent study, and many charter schools have adopted a hybrid model that gives the students some classroom time. Future classrooms will expand that even future and will incorporate the use of this into classrooms. This will allow individual teachers to spend more time with groups of students and will allow them to each work at their own ability level. The reason I feel that this will take 10-20 years is because of a lack of technology and money in many schools and because of the difficulty it takes to make large changes in public education.
As an instructional designer, it will be my job to change societal perceptions of distance education. One way I can do this is by designing quality online programs and incorporating them in a way that shows their value. I would start by creating an independent study program for the school district in which I teach. Our district loses many students to charter schools because we don’t have enough teachers to teach independent study. It is an hourly stipend position, and each teacher services 1-3 students. The creation of an online program would allow one teacher to service 30 students instead and would retain the students in our district. “Distance education is becoming a good way to acquire knowledge separate from the traditional method of attending the classroom” (Schmidt, 2001). Showing the district administrators that distance education is an excellent alternative to independent study would improve our enrollment and would help to change perceptions of the value of this type of learning.
In order to be a positive force for distance education, I must take every opportunity that I can to incorporate it into the learning of my students and my fellow teachers. I will sing its praises and present convincing evidence of its merits to any critics. George Siemens states, “Growing acceptance of distance education is fueled by the increase in online communication, practical experience with new tools, growing comfort with online discourse, and the ability to communicate with diverse and global groups” (Siemens, 2010). By designing courses in my district and giving people the opportunity to participate in this new technology, I will become a positive force. It only takes one person to make a difference, and as an instructional designer, I have been given the opportunity to do just that.
Schmidt, E., & Gallegos, A. (2001). Distance learning: Issues and concerns of distance
learners. Journal of Industrial Technology, 17(3). Retrieved from
http://atmae.org/jit/Articles/schmidt041801.pdf
Siemens, G. (2010): The future of distance education [Video]. Laureate Education, Inc.
Siemens, G. (2008). Learning and knowing in networks: Changing roles for educators
and designers. ITForum. Retrieved from
http://it.coe.uga.edu/itforum/Paper105/Siemens.pdf
Simonson, M. (2010): Distance Education [Video]. Laureate Education, Inc.
Simonson, M. (2010): Distance Education: Higher Education, K–12, and the Corporate
World [Video]. Laureate Education, Inc.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Monday, February 21, 2011
Converting to Hybrid
In my application assignment I give "Joe Trainer" tips on how he should convert his current face-to-face training program to a hybrid course. My recommendation is that most of his reading, discussions, and virtual practice take place online. The only face-to-face training should be in a hands-on situation where the employees are learning the skills on the job. I used a scenario where the employees are office personnel is a medical office where they are being trained in better customer service and medical charts. The advantage to completing most of this online is that it wouldn't take employees away from work, and they would be able to work on the classwork in their free time.
My recommendations involved pre-planning through the use of storyboards and the ADDIE model. Once the course was designed it should be tested and then implemented. I also discussed the importance of ensuring that guidelines are set through the use of a syllabus and that feedback is given through assessment and discussion responses.
The main concern was to improve discussion amongst students and with the instructor. I suggested a threaded discussion or blog that would require students to interact with one another and with the instructor as well. One of the improvements that online learning would make to this program would be that of allowing for virtual simulations of the skills that could then incorporate both assessment and discussion. If he follows my recommendations, then the program will succeed.
Here is my pdf.
Week 7 Application
Angela
My recommendations involved pre-planning through the use of storyboards and the ADDIE model. Once the course was designed it should be tested and then implemented. I also discussed the importance of ensuring that guidelines are set through the use of a syllabus and that feedback is given through assessment and discussion responses.
The main concern was to improve discussion amongst students and with the instructor. I suggested a threaded discussion or blog that would require students to interact with one another and with the instructor as well. One of the improvements that online learning would make to this program would be that of allowing for virtual simulations of the skills that could then incorporate both assessment and discussion. If he follows my recommendations, then the program will succeed.
Here is my pdf.
Week 7 Application
Angela
Friday, February 4, 2011
Open Source Learning
The Open Source website that I chose was the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Open Course: A free and open educational resource for educators, students, and self-learners around the world. http://ocw.mit.edu/index.html
Within the website, I looked at a few of the courses in the literature and theatre arts department but finally settle on a course titled, “Computer Games and Simulations for Investigation and Education.” What drew me to this course was the fact that not only am I a 6th grade teacher, but I am also the mother of a 6-year old video game addict. If he had his way, he would play his Wii or DS from morning to night. I try and counter this addiction by purchasing active games like Wii Fit and educational games like Learn to Spell. Naturally, he prefers any game with “Mario” in the title. So, the challenge becomes making the games he would rather play educational. That’s where this course comes in handy by offering tips and resources for doing just that.
The course seems to be carefully pre-planned and designed for a distance learning environment. The home page describes the course and includes links to the syllabus, resources, assignments, readings, and projects. All the materials are easy to access by clicking on a link to either go to a website or download a pdf file. The articles and video links that I looked at were interesting and fun to watch. I watched a YouTube video that discussed “Tangential Learning,” which was incorporating learning into fun video games with pop-up encyclopedias and wikipedia pop-ups. It was in cartoon format but very informative at the same time. “Taking the time to develop good visual media will enhance the quality of the learning experience” (Simonson, 2009). This definitely enhanced the content for me, and even though it wasn’t a video I was required to watch, I viewed the entire 7 minutes and 40 seconds. The only thing that was missing for me was the interaction component. I know that this is because of its solitary and independent nature. If it was offered at a cost, then a facilitator would be used and discussions could take place. As a free course though, this is not available.
Many of the recommendations for online instruction are followed in this course. The ones that are not being followed have to do with collaboration, which isn’t available because of the fact that the course is an independent study type course. The text gives several recommendations in chapter 5 on teaching an online course. One recommendation is to make sure that all materials are available before the course begins so that students don’t have to wait for them. This course has a readings tab and a related resources tab that provides all the materials. The second recommendation related to the communication framework and is irrelevant for this course. The only communication available is a feedback form about the quality of the course and not to offer support for the students. Recommendation number three relates to developing a calendar to let students know when assignments are due and rubrics to show students how grading will be conducted. The assignments are listed with the general timeline of the week that they are due and instructions for how to do them, but there aren’t any rubrics available. Finally, the instructor should advise students on setting aside specific times to complete assignments and should check in with them if the students are falling behind. Again, since this course is independent study, there isn’t any instructor interaction. There also aren’t any recommendations or guidelines for setting a pace and completing assignments. It just has a general timeline for assignment completion. I assume that if a student enrolled in the official “paid” course, these recommendations would be met.
The course designer definitely incorporated active course activities to maximize learning. The projects in the course have the students designing an educational board game from the planning stage to the final presentation and evaluation stage. “The key to active learning is to keep the learners involved in their own learning, not just keeping them busy” (Simonson, 2009). The learners doing the research, creating the game, deciding on a target audience for the game, and finally developing it, accomplish this. “Activities should provide ample opportunities for online learners to explore on their own” (Piskurich, ND). Because of the independent nature of the course and the activity, that is definitely achieved. The videos and resources are interesting and fun to read and watch. There are games and simulations students can access as examples, which helps to further assist them in creating their own games.
In summary, this seems to be a very enjoyable and engaging course. Although it is solitary in nature and lacks the ability to interact with others, it would provide learners with great information and resources for improving learning by students in a classroom setting. As a 6th grade English/History teacher, I would gain a great deal of knowledge on how to improve the learning of my students with fun, interactive activities and educational games if I chose to take this course.
Piskurich, G. (ND): Planning and Designing Online Courses. Laureate Online Education. (Video)
Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S. (2009). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (4th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson.
Within the website, I looked at a few of the courses in the literature and theatre arts department but finally settle on a course titled, “Computer Games and Simulations for Investigation and Education.” What drew me to this course was the fact that not only am I a 6th grade teacher, but I am also the mother of a 6-year old video game addict. If he had his way, he would play his Wii or DS from morning to night. I try and counter this addiction by purchasing active games like Wii Fit and educational games like Learn to Spell. Naturally, he prefers any game with “Mario” in the title. So, the challenge becomes making the games he would rather play educational. That’s where this course comes in handy by offering tips and resources for doing just that.
The course seems to be carefully pre-planned and designed for a distance learning environment. The home page describes the course and includes links to the syllabus, resources, assignments, readings, and projects. All the materials are easy to access by clicking on a link to either go to a website or download a pdf file. The articles and video links that I looked at were interesting and fun to watch. I watched a YouTube video that discussed “Tangential Learning,” which was incorporating learning into fun video games with pop-up encyclopedias and wikipedia pop-ups. It was in cartoon format but very informative at the same time. “Taking the time to develop good visual media will enhance the quality of the learning experience” (Simonson, 2009). This definitely enhanced the content for me, and even though it wasn’t a video I was required to watch, I viewed the entire 7 minutes and 40 seconds. The only thing that was missing for me was the interaction component. I know that this is because of its solitary and independent nature. If it was offered at a cost, then a facilitator would be used and discussions could take place. As a free course though, this is not available.
Many of the recommendations for online instruction are followed in this course. The ones that are not being followed have to do with collaboration, which isn’t available because of the fact that the course is an independent study type course. The text gives several recommendations in chapter 5 on teaching an online course. One recommendation is to make sure that all materials are available before the course begins so that students don’t have to wait for them. This course has a readings tab and a related resources tab that provides all the materials. The second recommendation related to the communication framework and is irrelevant for this course. The only communication available is a feedback form about the quality of the course and not to offer support for the students. Recommendation number three relates to developing a calendar to let students know when assignments are due and rubrics to show students how grading will be conducted. The assignments are listed with the general timeline of the week that they are due and instructions for how to do them, but there aren’t any rubrics available. Finally, the instructor should advise students on setting aside specific times to complete assignments and should check in with them if the students are falling behind. Again, since this course is independent study, there isn’t any instructor interaction. There also aren’t any recommendations or guidelines for setting a pace and completing assignments. It just has a general timeline for assignment completion. I assume that if a student enrolled in the official “paid” course, these recommendations would be met.
The course designer definitely incorporated active course activities to maximize learning. The projects in the course have the students designing an educational board game from the planning stage to the final presentation and evaluation stage. “The key to active learning is to keep the learners involved in their own learning, not just keeping them busy” (Simonson, 2009). The learners doing the research, creating the game, deciding on a target audience for the game, and finally developing it, accomplish this. “Activities should provide ample opportunities for online learners to explore on their own” (Piskurich, ND). Because of the independent nature of the course and the activity, that is definitely achieved. The videos and resources are interesting and fun to read and watch. There are games and simulations students can access as examples, which helps to further assist them in creating their own games.
In summary, this seems to be a very enjoyable and engaging course. Although it is solitary in nature and lacks the ability to interact with others, it would provide learners with great information and resources for improving learning by students in a classroom setting. As a 6th grade English/History teacher, I would gain a great deal of knowledge on how to improve the learning of my students with fun, interactive activities and educational games if I chose to take this course.
Piskurich, G. (ND): Planning and Designing Online Courses. Laureate Online Education. (Video)
Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S. (2009). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (4th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson.
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