Online Learning Update

Elizabeth Redden, Inside Higher Ed

Many colleges started using remote third-party proctoring services after the shift to remote teaching forced by the pandemic last spring. Not the University of Michigan Dearborn, which took the option of remote proctoring off the table. Proponents of eproctoring technologies see them as important tools for deterring cheating in an online-only education environment. Opponents of their use raise concerns about costs, student privacy and the implications of asking students to submit to remote surveillance.

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2021/04/14/um-dearborn-closed-door-remote-proctoring

Teresa Anania, eCampus News

The proportion of students who were highly satisfied with their learning experience fell from 51 percent pre-COVID to 19 percent post-COVID, and 60 percent of instructors said they struggled to keep students engaged. To improve student success, institutions can apply learnings from the past 12 months to provide a higher-quality remote learning experience. Schools with better IT infrastructure and a higher IT support staff ratio will distinguish themselves from the pack. For example, investing in a chatbot can help students and parents find the information they need faster so they can focus on learning and not on troubleshooting. It can also free up administrators and IT support staff to answer more sensitive or complex needs, instead of handling simple or common questions.

https://www.ecampusnews.com/2021/04/13/3-lessons-from-1-year-of-remote-learning/

Nikos Vaggalis, i-programmer

There’s a free new Google course on Coursera for learning to program with Python.No previous exposure to programming required. There are many Python courses out there, but when you get notified that Google is offering one then you just have to take it. I’ve been exposed to several courses planned by Google and administered by third parties such as Udacity; the Udacity Android Developer Nanodegree and Java Web Developer for example. The quality was always top class with regards to personnel, material and syllabus. This class is one more of the same. Addressed to total beginners who want to jump into coding, and do that with Python, the language used universally and in all IT roles, be it a hardcore dev or support personnel.

https://www.i-programmer.info/news/150-training-a-education/14493-a-crash-course-on-python-by-google.html

Alisha Haridasani Gupta, NY Times
In a new study, women reported higher levels of fatigue associated with video calls than men. The solution, though, isn’t as simple as not having video calls. Now, research from Stanford University published on Tuesday found that women experience significantly more Zoom fatigue than men. The research, which hasn’t been peer-reviewed, suggests that video calls simply amplify the longstanding gender dynamics in group settings and exacerbate an already wide gender stress gap, with women consistently reporting more stress and stress-related health conditions than men, according to the American Psychological Association.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/13/us/zoom-fatigue-burn-out-gender.html

Associated Press

Coursera partners with 200 leading university and industry educators to offer thousands of courses across business, technology and data science. Tennessee labor officials are continuing to offer free online courses to help people without work during the COVID-19 pandemic advance their skills. The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development says the Coursera Workforce Recovery Initiative will run through the end of 2021. The department says thousands of Tennesseans took advantage of the program last year.

https://www.wvlt.tv/2021/04/12/tennessee-offering-free-online-courses-amid-pandemic/

by Susan Fourtané, Fierce Education

Higher Education is experiencing more changes than ever before. This acceleration is part of the transformation of a university education for the 21st century, also called Classroom 3.0. The development from Classroom 2.0 to Classroom 3.0 adds the driving force of 3D and 3D technology into the classroom for colleges and universities. Many educators argue that 3D is the natural way of learning, and the way of learning in the years to come. Immersive technologies such as Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), and 3D technologies such as holograms represent the next generation of learning.

https://www.fierceeducation.com/best-practices/classroom-3-0-instructors-leveraging-augmented-reality-holograms

Cyprien Lomas Amod Lele Kyle Dickson; EDUCAUSE
When the pandemic suspended most in-person learning, colleges and universities turned to video technologies as one of their primary strategies to maintain instructional continuity while faculty and students were confined to their homes. Instructors who had rarely or never used video for teaching began to, and those who had previously used video often expanded that use. Many lessons were learned about the tradeoffs of synchronous versus asynchronous video, and even as the pandemic fades and in-person classes resume, video will remain an element of learning for many faculty.

https://library.educause.edu/resources/2021/3/7-things-you-should-know-about-teaching-and-learning-with-video

By Rhea Kelly, Campus Technology
There’s a lot that faculty have done right teaching with technology during the COVID-19 pandemic — but there have also been times when technology use has been subpar. In a recent Educause survey, the majority of students reported that their instructors communicated and used technology effectively in their courses, whether learning took place online, face-to-face, synchronously, asynchronously or some combination thereof. At the same time, technology glitches and pedagogical misfires have at times led to more negative student experiences.

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2021/04/05/15-mistakes-instructors-have-made-teaching-with-technology-in-the-pandemic.aspx

Annie Prud’homme-Généreux, Faculty Focus

In this five-part article series, we look at ideas for structuring an online discussion. These inspirations were chosen because they address concerns that discussion forums need to give learners options in the way they participate, in the way they give each learner the opportunity to contribute something unique that is worth reading (i.e. the responses are not repetitive), and learners have an opportunity to express themselves and form communities (Schultz et al., 2020).

https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/online-education/online-student-engagement/21-ways-to-structure-an-online-discussion-part-three/

Kristen Mitchell, eCampus News

Non-degree credentials have been looked at as a potential lifeboat for displaced workers in the hospitality and restaurant industries that have been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, said Kyle Albert, assistant research professor and co-author of the report. Research shows, however, that not all programs are created equal and market value fluctuates between fields. “On average non-degree credentials seem to be associated with higher earnings for those who do get them,” he said. “But there are some patterns of inequality around who earns credentials and who benefits from them that are concerning.” Researchers need better access to data about non-degree credentials, Dr. Albert said. Better access to data would enable researchers to build tools and platforms to help individuals connect with non-degree credentials that will optimize career mobility.

https://www.ecampusnews.com/2021/04/07/what-impact-do-non-degree-credentials-have/

Hosni Zaouali, eCampus News

Artificial intelligence will accelerate the evolution of teaching and learning. Overall, AI should allow students to get personalized instruction and teachers to have more free time to prepare classes and update their information. While it’s still too early to evaluate the extent of the change in the quality and scope of instruction that AI might achieve, what is certain is that it will cause a revolution. That is because educational systems around the world remain rooted in the foundations established in the 1800s. Most of all, AI will crush the idea that all students must learn in the same place, in the same way, and at the same speed.

https://www.ecampusnews.com/2021/04/08/ai-is-revolutionizing-education/

University World News

The United States government is converging on a long-awaited set of rules designed to protect American science from theft by foreign spies. A series of announcements this year describe steps that US universities and researchers must take when reporting foreign financing and collaborations to US science funders. But university groups say they need more clarity on how to implement the rules. And the guidelines do not spell out how institutions can address concerns of racial profiling sparked by the US government’s crackdown on foreign interference in recent years, writes Nidhi Subbaraman for Nature.

https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=2021041013054818

Sanjit Sethi and Elliot Felix, University World News

We call these assumptions the six fallacies of higher education:

• There is a ‘traditional student’.
• Learning happens Monday through Friday, 9 to 5, in autumn and spring.
• The campus is for classes.
• We measure student success solely academically.
• Costs can increase faster than quality.
• Accreditation ensures excellence.

https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=20210405080338394

Ray Schroeder, Inisde Higher Ed

Learning before the 21st century was mostly about accessing and retaining theories, facts and figures; now it is mostly about applying theories, facts and figures in creative and critical ways to solve problems and advance society. Increasingly, higher education is less about memorization and more about problem solving. Over all, many students seem to do better in classes where the textbooks are open. It may not be that the OER materials are superior — rather it may be that when the class materials are free, students actually obtain and use them.  C. Edward Watson, CIO and associate vice president for curricular and pedagogical innovation at the Association of American Colleges and Universities, and co-author Barbara Illowsky describe their “epiphany” in discovering the meaningfulness and impact on equity and affordability of using OER. “Yet one of the best-kept secrets for improving student equity and college affordability is within the hands of faculty: using Open Educational Resources (OER) in their courses instead of commercial textbooks and paid electronic materials.”

https://www.insidehighered.com/digital-learning/blogs/online-trending-now/it%E2%80%99s-time-open-educational-resources

Patti P. Phillips, Jack J. Phillips, Chief Learning Officer

With much of learning and development converted to a virtual format these days, a critical question is being raised. Is virtual learning working? This question is being asked by executives in organizations, and when they ask it, they are not concerned about whether the participants are actually learning. Rather, they are concerned about participants using what they’ve learned and whether it is having an impact in the organization. Executives want virtual learning to drive impact, as demonstrated by specific business measures. Almost a decade ago, in his book, “Learning Everywhere: How Mobile Content Strategies are Transforming Training,” Chad Udel suggested that virtual learning should drive high-level business results.

https://www.chieflearningofficer.com/2021/04/09/designing-virtual-learning-to-deliver-application-and-impact-20-powerful-techniques/

Greg Iacurci, CNBC
President Joe Biden is seeking an additional $3 billion in Department of Education funding for federal Pell grants, which are for families who demonstrate exceptional financial need. The budget proposal would offer students an extra $400 a year in grant funds. It would be the biggest annual increase since 2009, according to the administration. The request would also make Pell grants available to undocumented immigrants known as Dreamers.

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/04/09/biden-seeks-extra-pell-grant-money-for-college-and-expand-aid-to-dreamers.html

C. Edward Watson & Barbara Illowsky, AAU&P Liberal Ed Blog

As your institution looks to the 2021–22 academic year, what can you, your colleagues, and your institution do to further the goals of student equity and college affordability? How might you launch or accelerate efforts associated with OER? Now is an excellent time to learn more, plan for the future, become an OER advocate, and examine how you and your institution might add OER to your portfolio of student success and equity initiatives.

https://www.aacu.org/blog/our-oer-epiphany-advocating-open-educational-resources-tools-affordability-and-equity

By Dian Schaffhauser, Campus Technology
Almost three in five students (59 percent) in a recent survey complained that they are doing more assignments online than they ever did in their in-person classes, and nearly as many (55 percent) protested that much of it felt like “busy work.” The survey, sponsored by education publisher Wiley, was done by 1,046 business majors attending four-year colleges and universities as undergraduate or graduate students in the United States.

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2021/04/09/students-complain-too-much-busy-work-in-online-classes.aspx

Hallie Busta, HigherEd Dive

Employers remain confident in the value of higher education but continue to think new graduates lack the skills needed to succeed in the workplace, according to a survey of nearly 500 executives and hiring managers. It is the Association of American Colleges and Universities’ seventh survey of employers, and past iterations showed a similar disconnect between companies and colleges. However, the latest findings show graduates are getting better at communicating their skills and that employers’ views vary by age.

https://www.highereddive.com/news/employers-say-college-grads-lack-needed-skills-but-that-could-be-changing/597821/

University of Wisconsin

The University of Wisconsin System is planning to expand its online education platform, especially for adult learners. The program will target about 815,000 adults in Wisconsin who have some college credit experience, but no degree, according to the UW System. Leaders say adult learners prefer to earn their education through an online platform. It also plans to communicate with employers to decide which career-ready programs to develop.

https://www.news8000.com/uw-system-planning-to-expand-its-online-learning-platform-targeting-adults/

Abigail Johnson Hess, CNBC

“The growth has been pretty staggering,” says Anant Agarwal, founder and CEO of online learning platform edX. “We saw a 15-fold, not 15%, a 15-fold increase in the number of new learners registering on edX during the month of April 2020. And in fact, for the year through November 2020, compared to the year through November 2019, the number of new registrations on edX went up by 161%.” Agarwal credits the increase not only to the number of workers who became unemployed during the pandemic and began taking online classes during their job search but also to the many workers who became increasingly concerned about up-skilling.

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/26/online-learning-boomed-during-the-pandemic-but-soon-students-return-to-school.html