In many distance learning programs, teaching has tended to follow the information transmission model. This is where the instructor simply selects the material to be learned, organizes it into a course package, and transmits it to students in a one way flow of communication from the lecturer to the student (Brown, 1997). Unfortunately, this method promotes passive learning and rote memorization (Brown, 1997). In many online courses, the format tends to be characterized by long pages of text presented in a linear format, with minimal amounts of interaction. Continue reading ‘Online Education in Museums: Cognitive Theories and Technology Issues’
Archive for November, 2003
The MIT OpenCourseWare program is, conceptually, the stuff of a Nobel Peace Prize. Scratch the surface, however, and a nagging “emperor’s new clothes” or “grifted” feeling starts sneaking in. In theory, the course content from 2,000 classes at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is made available free of charge to the whole world, in the spirit of shared intellectual pursuit and human development. The joyous hype erroneously presupposes that currently professors and universities are too greedy or concerned with intellectual property rights to share. This is not the case, although there are some moves toward stricter protection of intellectual property rights and an inability to provide free content without some sort of supporting revenue flow. Continue reading ‘MIT OpenCourseWare Revisited’
The course development process had not been pretty, but at least it was over. My course was uploaded onto Blackboard, and I was ready to “go live” with the 52 students who had enrolled in my “Road Trip of the Mind” creative writing course. I went into it jazzed to do a great job. I was blind to my own greed, narcissism, and perverse arrogance. But, hey, isn’t that the essence of hubris? Continue reading ‘Rips and Tears in the “Best Practices” Safety Net: One Instructor’s Saga’
I read the student’s e-mail with a sense of impending doom. “I have never heard from my professor. I can’t log onto The Blackboard. How do I get started?” How do I tell the student that the 8-week course is already over? That’s going to be an ugly wake-up call. Who to blame? The professor for this class had successfully shepherded about half of her class through our new combination of Blackboard and department-developed course content website. But still we had problems. Clearly there were some serious flaws. I didn’t want to be the one to break the news to the higher-ups, though. Continue reading ‘Lost in Cyberspace? Student Challenges in Online Courses’
“You’ve changed the entire meaning and intent of my course!” I blurted out the words and then regreted it as Kendra, the instructional designer looked at me in shock. It was now my turn to experience what some of my friends and colleagues described as “ID hijacking.” I had managed to avoid conflict in the past by building all my own courses and putting them up in WebCT or Blackboard. But, this time, the department had decided to standardize the core courses, and they wanted to build a survey course — a “generic car any qualified driver can drive.” Continue reading ‘Course Development Wars: A Content Expert’s Cry for Help’
Over the last few years, two different approaches to course development and management have emerged. I don’t want to give the impression that these are the “last word” on these two philosophies, but the observations I’ve gathered are food for thought, as well as a point of departure. Later in this article, I’ll go over what I’ve noticed are key elements in successful program development (building on a previous article). Keep in mind that the situation is different for every institution and unit — but, a few common concerns unite all of us. That’s a scary realization, particularly considering how easily we become defensive, pompous, know-it-all-ish, and frustrated. But, why focus on the negative? In general, teams and individuals work very well together, and if online courses and programs are viewed as a great opportunity for growth and security, all the better. Continue reading ‘Rival Approaches: Faculty-led? Institution-led? Keys to success.’
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