Online Learning Update

By Keith O’Brien, Boston Globe

Across the country, there is growing evidence that final exams — once considered so important that universities named a week after them — are being abandoned or diminished, replaced by take-home tests, papers, projects, or group presentations. Anecdotally, longtime professors say they have been noticing the trend for years. And now, thanks to a recent discussion at Harvard University, there are statistics that make clear just how much the landscape has changed. In the spring term at Harvard last year, only 259 of the 1,137 undergraduate courses had a scheduled final exam, the lowest number since 2002, according to Jay M. Harris, the dean of undergraduate education.

http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2010/10/03/the_test_has_been_canceled?mode=PF

By Tanya Roscorla, Converge

California state universities are facing a budget crunch and no longer want to invest in student e-mail, said Amir Dabirian, vice president for information technology and chief technology officer at California State University, Fullerton (CSUF). And many students don’t use campus e-mail — they use Gmail on their own. But e-mail is still one of the top ways that universities communicate with students, he said. With an education e-mail address, universities can easily communicate with students and give them access to information they couldn’t obtain with their personal Gmail account, such as research journals. By moving to Google Apps, universities offer more storage and features with an education address than they could on their own. And they’re saving time and money too.

http://www.convergemag.com/policy/California-State-Universities-Move-to-Google-Apps.html

By Paige Chapman, Chronicle of Higher Ed

The report comes as other researchers are discovering that Twitter can have classroom benefits. Reynol Junco, who studies social media as an associate professor of academic development and counseling at Lock Haven University, has found that the microblogging platform can improve student engagement. For example, students are more likely to continue discussion outside the classroom, he says, because they can log on to Twitter from their dorm rooms. With a growing number of academics on the site, he adds, students can use the network to seek their expertise. Mr. Junco doesn’t find the study’s results discouraging. Professors, he says, have an easier time seeing how Twitter can be a useful teaching tool once they start using it to share information with peers.

http://chronicle.com/blogPost/More-Professors-Are-Using/27354/

by US Teacher

E-learning has a long and storied history which seems to have culminated in online homeschooling technology. It remains to be seen where e-learning technology can take us, but it’s sure to be a logical progression from the traditional public school learning experience. Perhaps the primary advantage of online homeschooling is its ability to deliver content asynchronously. This means that students of all learning styles and speeds are able to learn at their own pace. The first e-learning system was called the PLATO System. By 2003, over 1.0 million students were enrolled in online learning programs in colleges alone. Nearly all public universities offer online correspondence courses. About half of private higher learning institutions offer similar online learning opportunities.

http://usteacher.biz/2010/10/online-learning-the-history-of-e-learning/

by Dreamboxvault

Online learning is becoming common in school education. It has some clear advantages for educators, and studies suggest that blended learning – a carefully judged mix of traditional classroom teaching and online tutoring – is more effective than either one alone. There is also some evidence to suggest that a significant proportion of college students prefer online tutoring services and one-to-one interactions with tutors online. But what do kids think about online study? A 2008 NACOL symposium investigated the growing number of school students who opt to take all of their classes online. They cited a variety of reasons for this choice.

http://www.dreamboxvault.com/do-kids-prefer-online-learning/

by Bobby Coles, Helium

The increase in popularity amongst distance learning has made it much more accessible for increasing your career opportunities. Distance learning is the terminology for being able to take course online, without having to be housed inside of the ivy walls of an educational institution. As the technological word continues to envelop our daily lives, it stands to reason that distance learning is the wave of the academic future. If you are already settled into your chosen career, or if you are looking to branch out in a different direction, then distance learning is the best avenue for you to travel.

http://www.helium.com/items/1971386-how-distance-learning-can-increase-your-career-opportunities-why-take-distance-learning-for-work

by the Sloan Consortium

The Sloan Consortium announces its inaugural class of Sloan-C Fellows. Recognizing unusual professional distinction in online learning, the Sloan-C Board of Directors confers the distinction upon individual members of the Sloan Consortium who have:

• outstanding and extraordinary qualifications in the field of online learning;
• significant experience in online learning or an allied field;
• a record of distinguished service to Sloan-C or the field;
• extraordinary contributions or leadership in the field of online learning.

The members of the inaugural class of Fellows have contributed to advancing quality, scale and breadth in online and blended education in areas represented by the Sloan-C Pillars of learning effectiveness, access, faculty and student satisfaction and scale. Fellows will be recognized during a banquet on Nov. 3 at the 16th Annual Sloan-C International Conference on Online Learning in Orlando, Florida.

http://sloanconsortium.org/sites/default/files/pages/2010fellow_pr_0.pdf

By Asa Aarons, NY1

How do you check to make sure the online university is really all it claims to be? Also, how do you make sure it is properly accredited and not just a diploma mill churning out empty credits? The term “accredited” is used freely by some institutions, so be careful. All learning institutions should openly provide their accreditation and give the accrediting agency.

http://statenisland.ny1.com/content/ny1_living/employment/126396/ask-asa–how-to-tell-if-an-online-university-is-properly-accredited

By Cynthia, Lon’s Article Directory

There’re number of online universities providing a degree in different subjects such as bachelor of business management, electrical engineering degree and online software engineering. If the university isn’t qualified with state government then it is a scam. Students spend their valuable time and hard earn money to follow courses. You could go for higher learning for example master, connected and PhD. degrees just after obtaining an accredited bachelors degree. Students might locate qualified online programs someway expensive nonetheless it is worth spending on accredited one.

http://www.lonad.com/2010/10/01/are-you-pursuing-a-bachelors-degree-read-this/

by Kevin RoseD, Lon’s Article Directory

As of late you may find various colleges giving online degree classes to assist the potential prospects perform their education alongside with their part-time or full time work in which they are involved. A fear and anxiety may exist in the minds of the young people that their online degrees hold little worth in the reasonably competitive job market. Aside this, there is certainly also many frauds connected with these online training. Here in this article we’ve debunked a few of the most typical myths about the online training.

http://www.lonad.com/2010/10/01/the-real-truth-about-online-education/

By Sevil Omer, msnbc.com

Lyndsey Fry has a message about kids who attend school online: “We’re not slackers.” The 17-year-old hockey phenom from Arizona moved from online high school diploma to Harvard. Now her younger brother Wesley seeks a similar goal — to graduate from the same virtual high school. “It will be a whole new experience,” said Wesley, 15, who forayed into virtual learning this fall. “I’ll miss my friends, my school. But I won’t miss getting up early, especially to catch the 6:30 a.m. bus.” Online education, or remote learning, offers greater flexibility for students with extracurricular demands, like elite athletes, child actors, children with disabilities or illnesses.

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/38229792/ns/today-parenting/

By Noel Brown, GPB News

Professors at Kennesaw State’s Coles College of Business are trying to figure ways to keep students from dropping out of online courses. (Photo Courtesy: Lizzardo)Some professors at Kennesaw State University were troubled by the rate their students were dropping out of online courses. So they decided to conduct a study to figure out the best strategies for keeping online students engaged and enrolled. That included everything from personal phone calls to getting students to sign contracts promising to stay on top of course work.

The conclusion: nothing worked.

[ed note: see my response in the Chronicle Wired blog:

http://chronicle.com/blogPost/Preventing-Online-Dropouts-/27108/  ]

http://www.gpb.org/news/2010/09/30/researchers-work-to-keep-students-in-online-classes

by Barba Aldis PATTON and Teresa LESAGE, TOJDE

Students participating in web-based courses have different cognitive learning styles and individual differences. Although one or more learning and thinking styles may be suited for electronically delivered content, others may actually hinder learning in an electronic environment. Some students in web-based courses may have characteristic primary personality preferences that are better suited for the electronic learning environment, thus requiring no learning style adaptations and those students who do not have a natural tendency to learn in the electronic learning environment will be at a disadvantage. (Authors 2008) With this is mind it is upmost important that instructors be apprized of needs and desires of their students, both online and face to face. The online instructor begins with several distinct disadvantages however. Online instructors do not have the benefit of body language and voice tones, opportunities for spur of the moment communications, etc. With this in mind it is more important and ever that in order to be an effective and successful instructor, one must be aware of his/her students.

http://tojde.anadolu.edu.tr/tojde40/articles/article_12.htm

by Pramela KRISH, TOJDE

The term online forums need to be clearly explained as the article mainly focuses on participation of learners in the online forum. The term online forums refer to discussion forums or threaded discussions. This is a commonly used tool in online teaching. Online forums provide the ability for asynchronous discussion to occur over a period of time designated by the instructors. Online forums are also known as web forums, online discussion and bulletin board. As online learning which comes under the umbrella of distance learning is quite a recent phenomenon in many parts of the world, research in the area of facilitating learner control in an online environment is still limited. Virtual worlds of learning are imaginary environments in which people enter to engage in text-based social interactions for the purpose of learning.

http://tojde.anadolu.edu.tr/tojde40/articles/article_11.htm

by Tina LIM, TJODE

“Any technology that is able to captivate so many students for so much time not only carries implications for how those students view the world but also offers an opportunity for educators to understand the elements of social networking that students find so compelling and to incorporate those elements into teaching and learning (Educause Learning Initiative, 2006, p. 2). This view is echoed by Jane Williams of Becta, the British government’s educational technology agency. She was of the opinion that “social networking sites can have a positive effect on motivation and attainment across the further education sector” (Coughlan, 2009).

http://tojde.anadolu.edu.tr/tojde40/articles/article_2.htm

By Cale Ottens, State Press

The Arizona Board of Regents is calling on ASU to expand its online program to reach 30,000 students by 2020. The expansions to ASU Online are part of the board’s 2020 Vision plan, which includes doubling the amount of bachelor’s degrees awarded in Arizona. The program has already seen significant growth. As of Sept. 1, ASU’s online program’s enrollment reached 3,015 students, a 70 percent increase from last year. The online program hopes to not only meet ABOR’s goal but exceed it, assistant vice president of ASU Online Kari Barlow said. NAU and UA both have goals of reaching 10,000 students by 2020 for their online programs.

http://www.statepress.com/2010/09/28/expansions-planned-for-asu-online/

Take up of online distance learning in the UK is set to explode over the next few years. Online courses offer students a cheaper way to get a degree and the flexibility to study when it suits them, and for many they deliver an improved learning experience. Online courses may also help universities meet recent government demands to cut costs. David Willetts, the universities minister, is keen on distance learning as a way of reducing students’ living expenses. With annual tuition fees alone rising to £3,290 next year for campus-based degrees at English universities, the £3,500 total price tag of some online degrees will look ever more tempting. There is also growing interest from students, owing partly to the wide-spread adoption of online technologies used in everyday life, as the HEFCE Online Learning Task Force pointed out in a report of March this year:

http://www.prweb.com/releases/online-degrees-set/to-soar-in-the-UK/prweb4551754.htm

by the University of South Dakota Volante

USD should use technology to simulate the classroom that Internet students have been missing. Currently relying on early Internet advances like e-mail, USD Internet classes have not stepped into 2010. Blogs and discussion posts nearly simulate a real classroom environment. But, instructors should make lectures available via video streaming through programs like “Elluminate” for all classes. Such would allow for quality feedback, usually ensured by classroom instruction and office hours. Billed as an adequate replacement for classes on campus, Internet classes are taking away from the experience of college life. Traditional university students can too easily elect to enroll in online classes seeing the Internet option as easier than real class. Too often, students opt for online classes simply to fulfi ll general requirements, which begs the question, “Are students spending valueless classtime?”

http://www.volanteonline.com/opinion/editorial-usd-online-classes-should-step-into-2010-1.2346542

By Reed Sheard, Campus Technology

What we’ve learned is that our staff and students want to do their computing on tablets and handheld mobile devices more than on notebook or desktop computers. To move aggressively into supporting handheld and tablet computing, it made even more sense to adopt cloud computing. So we’ve done multiple projects with Google, Postini, Cast Iron, and Salesforce–all well-financed, successful companies that are here to stay. We are leveraging their expertise in cloud computing to benefit the college. And the benefits are significant when you find applications that meet a real need for your users.

http://campustechnology.com/articles/2010/09/22/cloud-computing-in-education-a-practitioners-view.aspx

By Lauren Payne, KAIT Jonesboro, Arkansas

“Well I think the growth in online courses has occurred because people want accessibility,” said Chair of the Department of Educational Leadership, Curriculum, and Special Education, Dr. Mitch Holifield. Dr. Holifield says online learning allows people to further their education and credentials at their own convenience. “They’re out there working in schools everyday. They’re seeking more professional development, advanced degrees, other licensure areas,” said Dr. Holifield.

http://www.kait8.com/Global/story.asp?S=13227162

By Jennifer Patil, Atlanta Journal Constitution

Higher education is answering the needs of lower-skilled, lower-paid workers, working adults and retirees by offering online learning courses as well as night and weekend courses. Online learning programs give working adults and adults with increased demands and responsibilities an opportunity to excel and learn in a way that would not be possible otherwise. Programs are now also offering night and weekend courses for adults to attend after working hours. In spurring these changes to higher education, Americans are turning what has been a bleak and unfruitful few years for our economy into a satisfying, productive and engaging trend: the number of emerging adult online earners and increased programs and options for adults seeking more education to improve their career arcs.

http://www.ajc.com/opinion/recession-creates-new-students-640137.html