Online Learning Update

Alan Jones, Suzan Harkness and Nathan Mondragon, EDUCAUSE Review

The increased growth of emerging technologies and AI interviewing provides a multifaceted approach to candidate profiling and screening.  Competency and personality-trait profiles can be created with AI-trained algorithms to identify and score behaviors and responses during the recorded interviews. The AI-based profiles can then be mitigated for bias (which, if successful, could increase the diversity of candidate pools). The resulting profiles would then be used to screen and select candidates to move forward in the process, thereby significantly improving the efficiencies of the hiring process.

https://er.educause.edu/articles/2020/6/acts-of-meaning-how-ai-based-interviewing-will-transform-career-preparation-in-higher-education

BY LAURA ASCIONE, eCampus News

Sixty-two percent of recruiters are very confident that job candidates have the skills to succeed, while 40 percent find communication skills lacking in job candidates. What’s more, when it comes to communication, 56 percent of students are actively seeking this skill. Thirty percent of recruiters find critical thinking skills lacking in job candidates, and 55 percent of students are working to develop critical thinking skills.

https://www.ecampusnews.com/2019/05/07/gen-z-workforce-preparation/

by Joshua Steele and Angela Gunder, Evolllution

After careful considerations and observations of our first incoming cohort, we elected to create a low-stakes, open learning environment that allows the student to engage as much as they feel is necessary prior to the beginning of classes, with access granted three weeks prior to the start of the semester to provide substantive opportunity to learn. To symbolize the journey that students undertake in beginning a degree program, this space was entitled “Launch Pad.”

http://evolllution.com/attracting-students/retention/ready-to-launch-re-envisioning-the-preparation-of-students-for-online-learning/

By HANNAH SMATI, Harvard Crimson

EdX, a massive open online course platform founded by Harvard and MIT in 2012, will launch seven courses on programming and cloud technologies in collaboration with Microsoft. A motivation behind the partnership might have been to reach edX’s student audience, according to Ray Schroeder, associate vice chancellor for online learning at the University of Illinois Springfield. Schroeder said there is an increasing number of employers looking for students that have specific technical skills for entry-level jobs, and so collaborating with edX would be a good way to target potential employees.

http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2015/3/24/edx-microsoft-smithsonian-collaboration/

by Anya Kamenetz, The Hechinger Report

Last week, the Massive Open Online Course platform Coursera announced a new partnership with 10 major state flagships and state university systems. While Coursera’s existing university partnerships focus on professors at elite institutions producing and sharing online versions of their courses, these partnerships are different. The focus is on incorporating existing MOOCs and newly created MOOCs—covering basic intro level and general education requirements—into the universities’ offerings, flipping the classrooms at public institutions, using MOOCs as a catalyst for collaboration on teaching and learning, and enhancing access to credit-bearing programs. One area of innovation that Coursera co-founder Daphne Koller cited is the use of MOOCs for high school dual enrollment programs. “I’m really excited about it,” she said. “There are so many studies that demonstrate the benefit to students in high school in having access to college-level material. It encourages them to go to college and complete college. But that opportunity has largely been available to the most advanced students at highly endowed school districts that have teachers that can teach college-level subjects. It’s been a very inequitable offering.”

http://diverseeducation.com/article/53683/#

by Robin Chiero & Paul Beare, JOLT

Preparing teachers who can effectively meet the needs of today’s schools is a challenging task. This study compared an innovative online-supported teacher preparation program with more traditional campus-based programs in a large state university system. The study analyzed data from 2003 through 2009 annual systemwide evaluations of teacher preparation programs. Participants were program graduates who had completed one year of professional teaching and their employment supervisors. Ratings were consistently higher for the online program than for a selected campus-based program and for the system as a whole. Characteristics identified in the literature on effective online learning and on effective teacher preparation provided the framework for describing the advantages of the online program over more traditional pathways. Results contribute to the knowledge base on innovative online teaching and learning practices by investigating an entire program rather than an individual course, by using a large population of participants over a period of years, and by suggesting key characteristics that might be particularly critical in the design of an effective online teacher preparation program.

http://jolt.merlot.org/vol6no4/chiero_1210.htm

by Robin Chiero & Paul Beare, JOLT

Preparing teachers who can effectively meet the needs of today’s schools is a challenging task. This study compared an innovative online-supported teacher preparation program with more traditional campus-based programs in a large state university system. The study analyzed data from 2003 through 2009 annual systemwide evaluations of teacher preparation programs. Participants were program graduates who had completed one year of professional teaching and their employment supervisors. Ratings were consistently higher for the online program than for a selected campus-based program and for the system as a whole. Characteristics identified in the literature on effective online learning and on effective teacher preparation provided the framework for describing the advantages of the online program over more traditional pathways. Results contribute to the knowledge base on innovative online teaching and learning practices by investigating an entire program rather than an individual course, by using a large population of participants over a period of years, and by suggesting key characteristics that might be particularly critical in the design of an effective online teacher preparation program.

http://jolt.merlot.org/vol6no4/chiero_1210.htm

by Antonín Jancarík and Katerina Jancaríková, EJEL

Wiki tools, which became known mainly thanks to the Wikipedia encyclopedia, represent quite a new phenomenon on the Internet. The work presented here deals with three areas connected to a possible use of wiki tools for the preparation of an e-learning course. To what extent does Wikipedia.com contain terms necessary for scientific lectures at the university level and to what extent are they localised into other languages? The second area covers the use of Wikipedia’s essays specialising in one theme as a knowledge base for e-learning study materials. Our experience with Enviwiki which originated within the E-V Learn project and its use in e-learning courses is presented. The third area aims at the use of wiki tools for building a knowledge base and sharing experience of the participants of an e-learning course.

http://www.ejel.org/Volume-8/v8-i2/v8-i2-art-8.htm

By Vanessa Hua, THE Journal

Needing every possible edge, students are looking to online solutions to get them ready for college admissions exams. Fortunately, as online learning tools are helping to drive up college applications, they are also helping students perform better on college entrance exams. Riley logged on to Grockit for up to two hours a day, and she credits the tool for raising her score by better than 100 points on each of the three sections of the SAT. Those scores, along with her volunteer social work, tutoring underclassmen, taking on leadership roles in extracurricular clubs, and performance in honors and AP classes, landed her at the University of the Pacific’s School of Pharmacy in Stockton, CA.

http://thejournal.com/Articles/2010/08/01/Its-All-in-the-Preparation.aspx

Daphne Kis, World Economic Forum

COVID-19 led to the largest boost in online learning participation. As nearly 100% of new graduates entering the job market this year completed their degree at least partially online, traditional candidate evaluation criteria must be revisited. Online learning can offer better preparation for the new work-life normal, including “soft” skills and “cross-functional” skills.

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/06/covid-19-is-ending-the-stigma-of-online-learning-higher-education-workplace-candidate-evaluation-future-of-work/

George Lorenzo, Workforce Monitor

NSF’s largest investment to cultivate the STW is with the Advanced Technological Education (ATE) program, viewable online at ATE Central. NSF provides $60-$65 million annually in grants to America’s public undergraduate and secondary schools, and to the U.S. workforce. ATE “promotes innovation in workforce and technician preparation through a diverse set of national, regional, and local projects and centers based primarily at two-year institutions.” Since it was officially launched in 1993, ATE has invested $1.24 billion in 1,446 projects and 64 centers. Currently there are 352 active projects and 26 active centers.

https://wfmonitor.com/2021/05/24/the-mother-lode-and-unsung-heroes-of-americas-workforce-development-nsfs-advanced-technological-education-program/

Colleen Flaherty, Inside Higher Ed

AAC&U survey of employers shows liberal arts skills are valued and sought out in the workplace but raises questions about student preparation. First the good: employers generally have confidence in higher education and value the college degree. They believe that a liberal education — or preparation for more than a specific job — provides knowledge and skills that are important for career success. And increasingly, employers say, college graduates are more effective at explaining what they bring to the table. Now the not-so-great findings: employers see room for improvement in how colleges and universities prepare students for work.

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2021/04/06/aacu-survey-finds-employers-want-candidates-liberal-arts-skills-cite-preparedness

Casey Welch, eCampus News

Higher education leaders would do well to take COVID-induced changes into consideration when identifying new ways to meet students’ needs.  For example, career preparation has always been top of mind for college-bound teens. But more students now than ever before are beginning to realize the need to plan ahead. A recent survey found that 99 percent of Gen Z recognizes the value of making connections with employers, even when they don’t have jobs currently available.

https://www.ecampusnews.com/2021/02/09/how-higher-ed-can-start-2021-off-right/

Lauren Tucker, Faculty Focus

UDL focuses on proactively embedding multiple opportunities for students to learn material, engage with the course, and express their learning (CAST 2020). Keeping UDL at the forefront of my course design during the pandemic has provided much needed stability and consistency within my courses. I keep the following three guidelines in my course planning, and I have seen significant benefits within my courses.

https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/online-education/online-course-design-and-preparation/universally-designing-in-universal-chaos/

by Columbia CTL

Columbia University has released an open online course, Learning Success, to provide students everywhere with learning strategies to be successful in higher education courses. The self-paced course is free and open to all on edX.org with an optional paid verified certificate program. The course provides students with foundational study skills, strategies for more effective reading, writing, test preparation and time management, and proven tips for students taking STEM and other technical courses. It also covers metacognition—the awareness and understanding of one’s own thought processes—in relation to learning, as well as growth vs. fixed mindsets, to provide students with a better understanding of how they learn.

https://ctl.columbia.edu/announcements/online-course-learning-success/

DAN SPINDLE, KSL TV

“Our study shows that most students really believe that it’s preparation for the workplace, and so making sure that they are prepared as they leave college to get a job,” he said. The practical, real-world learning can translate to jobs and gainful employment. Canvas officials said they hope learning how to that effectively will be the big lesson from the pandemic.

https://ksltv.com/446104/canvas-official-says-online-learning-gives-students-real-world-tech-experience/

David Staley, EDUCAUSE Review

As artificial intelligence moves us to a world without work, what does that mean for higher education institutions and their mission in the new economy? But if predictions of a world without work come to pass, the link between higher education and job preparation will be torn apart.  As a result, higher education will become unnecessary for many. A small number of institutions of higher learning might remain, as places where students go to engage their minds, but many colleges and universities will be shuttered if a central core of their mission has been eliminated. Higher education would return to its pre–Morrill Act status as a leisure activity for the few.

https://er.educause.edu/articles/2020/8/interface-university-and-other-scenarios-for-the-ai-economy

Craig S. Smith, NY Times
Artificial intelligence is starting to take over repetitive tasks in classrooms, like grading, and is optimizing coursework and revolutionizing the preparation for college entrance exams. For years, people have tried to re-engineer learning with artificial intelligence, but it was not until the machine-learning revolution of the past seven years that real progress has been made. Slowly, algorithms are making their way into classrooms, taking over repetitive tasks like grading, optimizing coursework to fit individual student needs and revolutionizing the preparation for College Board exams like the SAT. A plethora of online courses and tutorials also have freed teachers from lecturing and allowed them to spend class time working on problem solving with students instead.

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/18/education/artificial-intelligence-tutors-teachers.html

Colleen Flaherty, Inside Higher Ed

Online conversation shines a spotlight on graduate programs that teach students how to teach — and those programs that don’t.   And of course many Ph.D.s do still want, and snag, part- or full-time professorships across a variety of institution types. Yet graduate education has historically treated this fact a kind of inconvenient truth, overlooking or flat out ignoring students’ need for pedagogical training. That’s explicit pedagogical training, not the sink-or-swim method adopted by so many programs that throw their graduate student instructors into teaching undergraduates with no real preparation.

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2019/12/13/online-conversation-shines-spotlight-graduate-programs-teach-students-how-teach

BY LAURA ASCIONE, eCampus News

“While the majority of recent college graduates believe that their education brought them value in obtaining employment, there remains a large minority that hold some reservations about the career preparation aspect,” says Dr. Larry Chiagouris, the report’s director. “If you consider that most companies would not be pleased to learn that more than a third of their customer base holds some form of negative perception, it’s clear that there is a path to improvement in this area.”

https://www.ecampusnews.com/2019/11/28/what-do-millennials-think-of-their-college-education/

Louise, Yamamoto, UH News

Instructional designers at Kapiʻolani Community College have won a top award from Campus Technology. The Teaching Online Preparation Program (TOPP) was recently recognized with a 2019 Campus Technology Impact Award. TOPP was a response to online students expressing frustration over the lack of consistency in design, navigation, interaction and use of technology across classes. The program allows faculty participants to experience, empathize with and become an online student while creating their own online or hybrid course.

https://www.hawaii.edu/news/2019/08/15/kapiolani-topp-award/