Online Learning Update

by eSchool News

Since their earliest memories, today’s “iGeneration” has been wired, Wi-Fied, mobile, virtually augmented and i-computed like no other generation before them. A recent “Beyond the Classroom” online survey of 13- to 17-year-old students commissioned by Aventa Learning™ revealed, not surprisingly, that these teens are turning to outside resources and technology to stay challenged and engaged. “Middle and high school students live in a world of customization, instant gratification and feedback, so real-time, one-on-one learning is what makes sense to them,” said Dr. Caprice Young, President and CEO of KC Distance Learning, which owns Aventa Learning, and former President of both the California Charter Schools Association and the Los Angeles Unified School District. “Our data shows that more than half of the students said that the easiest way for students to learn something new is by practicing and watching, which is one of several critical reasons why we need to re-wire our educational approach.”

http://bit.ly/bCsYHX

by Canadian Transportation and Logistics

CITT will be moving exclusively to e-learning for all the courses in its Program of Study effective Aug. 1, in time for the fall registration period. “CITT has offered an online learning course option for over a decade,” said CITT president Catherine Viglas. “We’ve watched our audience actively choose this option over traditional correspondence for some time and CITT will now move exclusively to an online format.” CITT will adopt a hybrid learning concept for its online courses, which combines the best elements of online and traditional learning, according to officials. “With hybrid learning, students will still receive a CITT textbook to assist them during their online studies,” Viglas said. “Textbooks give students an additional level of comfort and flexibility.”

http://www.ctl.ca/issues/story.aspx?aid=1000372929

by Rehana MASRUR

Among the emerging trends in the pedagogies computer aided teaching continues to expand. The main purpose of the use of computer technology as a pedagogical tool not only empowers the teachers, it also maximizes the student’s learning potential. The current pedagogical practices in higher education focus on multiple learning approaches. A degree of commonality can be achieved by integrating constructivism, Behaviorism, Developmental theory, etc. In addition to this, teachers whose pedagogy is grounded in constructivism, multiple intelligence theory or learning style will utilize the rich learning experiences provided by diverse material, collaborative learning where knowledge is inseparable from practice.

http://tojde.anadolu.edu.tr/tojde38/articles/article_6.htm

by Mary Burns, TOJDE

Research on all forms distance education—indeed on all forms of teacher professional development (Dimock et al, 2000; National Staff Development Council, 2002; Commonwealth of Learning, 2008; Gaible & Burns, 2007)—demonstrates that the presence or absence of ongoing face-to-face support can make or break a distance education program. Where distance education programs have resulted in high rates of attrition or failure, a lack of support has been the constant theme. In the radio-based teacher training program offered by Pakistan’s Allama Iqbal Open University, only 57 percent of teachers passed the course. Sulistyo-Basuki (2007) cites a lack of support for low levels of student persistence in courses and programs in Indonesia’s Open University. Studies of online learning programs in the United States reveal that when facilitator support is lacking, teachers leave such programs at very high rates, especially when this lack of support is compounded by technical problems (Center for Children and Technology, 2008). In contrast, where distance-education programs have had high rates of completion, they have been characterized by ongoing face-to-face support.

http://tojde.anadolu.edu.tr/tojde38/articles/article_5.htm

by MyFox 9

Test Drive College Online allows anyone to sign up for an online 5 week course. They take the tests for free and see if online college is a smart choice. Reality is many adult learners are looking to go back to school to help them get a better job and live a better life. They pay up to 2,000 dollars for a set of online classes and then realize it just won’t fit into their schedule. So test drive college online allows you to take Intro to Psycology or English Comp 1 and see how you do in the course.

http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/dpp/morning_news/Test-Drive-College-Online-for-a-Better-Life-may-24-2010

By Meredith Farkas, Information Wants to Be Free

This was another amazing semester teaching at San Jose State University. I had significantly more students in my class this semester than in the past (more than double), which at first made me nervous about the workload I’d have to take on. But it actually ended up leading to an even better class experience, IMHO. Just like with every social networking tool, the network effect was in evidence in my classroom — the conversations were more valuable and lively because there were more people involved in them. This semester I got a lot of comments from students about their engagement level in this class versus other online classes they’ve taken. I thought I’d share some of them here for those who might be trying to figure out how the can better design their own online class/program.

http://meredith.wolfwater.com/wordpress/2010/05/19/creating-community-in-online-learning/comment-page-1/

by BusinessWire

With Classroom Boredom and Distractions Topping the List of Daily Challenges, Schools Integrate Online Learning to Re-Engage High-Tech, High-Touch Students. Since their earliest memories, today’s “iGeneration” has been wired, Wi-Fied, mobile, virtually augmented and i-computed like no other generation before them. A recent “Beyond the Classroom” online survey of 13- to 17-year-old students commissioned by Aventa Learning™ revealed, not surprisingly, that these teens are turning to outside resources and technology to stay challenged and engaged.

http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/home/permalink/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20100526005427&newsLang=en

By Sara Israelsen-Hartley, Associated Press

The NCAA said Tuesday it no longer will allow teenagers to use online high school course credit from BYU to beef up their grades in key classes. The NCAA also announced it won’t recognize transcripts from the American School correspondence program in Illinois. The move is part of new NCAA rules that require “regular access and interaction” between teachers and students in the 16 core courses required to establish initial eligibility for new college athletes. The changes don’t affect NCAA Division II schools, but a panel representing them will reconsider the measure in June.

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700035133/NCAA-bars-BYU-online-credits-for-high-school-athletes.html