a retrospective of 25 years teaching online: secrets, the future and advice dr. diane finley, prince...

A Retrospective of 25 Years Teaching Online: Secrets, the Future and Advice

Dr. Diane Finley, Prince George’s Community CollegeAnnual Conference on Teaching, Society for the Teaching of PsychologyAtlanta GA October 16-17, 2015

QUICK OVERVIEW OF ONLINE EDUCATION

“Online education is possibly the biggest event in American intellectual life in the past 40 years. What’s happened is that a critical mass of intellectual capital in the country has moved outside the academy.”

Dr. Gerald Heeger (Baltimore Sun, 8/17/2003; http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2003-08-17/news/0308170133_1_distance-education-higher-education-maryland-colleges/3)

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2003-08-17/news/0308170133_1_distance-education-higher-education-maryland-colleges/3

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2003-08-17/news/0308170133_1_distance-education-higher-education-maryland-colleges/3

History of Distance Education

• 1728 – first course advertised• 1833 – Swedish distance education course• 1840 – Isaac Pittman in England

gives shorthand at a distance• 1874 – Illinois Wesleyan University – degrees at a distance• 1883 – Correspondence University of Ithaca NY founded• 1878 - Chautauqua Movement founded• 1892 – University of Wisconsin – appears in catalog• 1896 – William Rainey Harper found University of Chicago; university level

correspondence courses• 1920 – educational radio• 1962 – Telstar launched; advent of telecourses

History of Online

• 1960s – computer based instruction sets the way for online learning• 1981 – Open University (England) uses rudimentary whiteboard system;

Bitnet founded• 1984/85 – various institutions network and deliver courses• 1990/91 – world wide web protocol developed• 1995/96 – first LMS developed• 1998- Distance Education Demonstration Project authorized• 2006 – federal financial aid rules changed

Factoids

• In 2012, 21 million students took online courses (Title IV schools)

• Growth rate was 20%• More common in 2-year and for-profit schools• Asynchronous online delivery is most common• Older students and those with mobility issues more likely to

enroll online• In 2009-2010, 1.3 million K-12 students took online courses

http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=80http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=79http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2012154

http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=80

http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=79

http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2012154

MY JOURNEY & “SECRETS”

My Journey as an Onliner

• Accidental – Baseball• Early Training – Barebones• Departmental Needs• Workshops, workshops, workshops• Quality Matters

“Secrets” About Online

• Technology does not make everything easier.• Teaching online requires instructors to be tech savvy• Teaching online requires more than posting lectures• Online class dynamics can be very different from F2F

– Participation– Relationship– Informality

• Online does allow more mobility and flexibility• Online challenges my creativity

Not-So Secrets about Online

• Greater time is required for teaching• Course creation is very time-intensive• Technology is always changing• Students have many misconceptions about online

learning

Most Important Lessons I Have Learned

Based on the Chickering and Gamson PrinciplesChickering, A. W. & Gamson, Z.F. (March, 1987) Seven principles for good practice in undergraduate education. AAHE Bulletin, pp. 3-7.

Principle One Student-Faculty Contact

• Contact is the most important factor in student motivation and involvement in the discipline and school

• Online courses promote interaction through easier access, discussions, space for interaction to occur, attenuation of perceived barriers

• As an instructor, you MUST be present in the discussions and questions conferences. Quick response is critical.

Diane Finley

The faculty member online may actually find that you have to set limits on the contact and that you have to structure it so students do not assume they are Instant messaging you. I find that I have much more contact with more students. It is much harder for a student to "hide" online. Also, it is possible to structure the course so that interaction is integral.Encouraging email for specific concerns and posting of questions in some sort of questions conference are important. Setting response times is critical. Response should be prompt - not instananeous but reasonably. Answering within 48 hours seems reasonable. Letting students know when the instructor will be offline is also important.

Principle TwoEncourages Cooperation

• Learning is enhanced when there is a team effort and it is collaborative.

• Online courses facilitate student to student contact through a ready space for communication and the reduction of time and space obstacles. Tools such as Google Hangout facilitate that cooperation.

• The instructor must require interaction

Diane Finley

It is important to set things up so that the isolation of the online environment is dissipated. Encouraging introductions the first week of class is helpful.Setting up assignments that require cooperation and response to other students also helps.Working with groups can be more challenging online but it is very possible. Student contact can be encouraged both formally and informally. Formally you can require students to post and respond. Informally you can create a cybercafe or student lounge. Because they can work at any time of day or night, the traditional problems of finding a common time or space to meet is attenuated.Setting up a cybercafe or chatting lounge can also help.

Principle Three Active Learning

• Active learning promotes thinking skills and touches on multiple learning styles.

• Online courses are tailored for active learning• The instructor must create activities that require

interaction with content, instructor and other students.

Diane Finley

Online courses can be active learning experiences. a good online course should not just be a correspondence course in which students read a text and take tests. A good online courses requires interaction, on a weekly basis, and demands that students interact with the instructor and each other. There are mayn wasy to interject active learning into the online environment. There are simple ways and there are ways that take advantage of the interactivity of the internet.Some active learning techniques include Peer TeachingCooperative Learning Groups – jigsawCase StudiesSimulationsOut of Class exerciseWritten exercises

Principle Four Immediate Feedback

• Prompt feedback is essential.

• The online environment enables the instructor to give almost immediate feedback. There is no need to wait for the next class.

• Most CMS (course management systems) have gradebooks that enable the student to see grades without any Buckley worries.

Diane Finley

Most systems allow for self-grading quizzes which provide instant feedback. With the randmozing function, it also eliminates some of the concenr about cheating. Newer CMS versions also allow the instructor to give more instant feedback on essays and longer assignments in a protected environment.Additionally, the instructor can randomly give feedback on weekly discussion assignments as well as posting closing thoughts on such assignments.

Principle Five Time on Task

• Emphasis on time-on-task is critical

• Online courses can make time on task more efficient.

• Online courses makes it easier for the instructor to track student time on task and to remediate when necessary.

• Online courses record all participation so students (and instructors) can see what they are doing.

Diane Finley

Technology can give fairly immediate access to all sorts of study resources. Publisher websites have self-graded quizzes and other such materials. Tracking functions allow the instructor to see who has accessed (not necessarily read but if they don't access, they won't read!) materials. You can also, on some functions, see how long they spend on some tasks. This allows you to remediate or at least try to intervene earlier.

Principle Six High Expectations

• Good practice communicates high expectations

• Online courses can more easily post expectations in terms of objectives, etc.

• Online courses make it easier for an instructor to highlight good work, thus giving other students examples of work that meets expectations.

• The same high expectations held for face-to-face students must be maintained for online students.

Diane Finley

Online does not mean easy, contrary to the expectations of some students (and some faculty!). It is critical that no differences are found in f2f and online courses. The same objectives and requirements need to be maintained. Online delivery is merely another delivery system. It is very possible to expect the same effort and performance.

Principle Seven Respect Diverse Strengths

• Good practice respects diverse talents and ways of learning

• Different students have different learning preferences and talents.

• The online environment allows the instructor to tap into all of these. While online is primarily a text based format, it is very easy to include media and out of class experiential assignment.

Diane Finley

It might seem as though this would be a difficult principle in the online environment. It actually is not. For one, it is possible for diverse students to participate without fear of embarassment since no one really know who anyone is in terms of gender, ethnicity, etc. unless someone self-discloses. In terms of learning styles, assignments can be constructed that tap into various styles. Students can even do activities that touch on the kinesthetic learning style. Auditory learners can read material out loud at home without a problem.

FUTURE PROMISES OF THE ONLINE CLASSROOM

Future Directions

• Accessibility• Alternate Formats and Timing• New Paradigm for teaching

Current Research Findings

• Learning is affected by the quality of design AND good implementation

• Need for learner focused designstudent feelings and reactions are important

• Learning communities can help isolation• Need for continuous training of students and faculty• Need for better tech support

Future Research Questions

• Need for more randomized, controlled studied• Need larger samples• Need to examine total programs not just individual

courses• Need longitudinal data

Other Issues To Consider

• Faculty selection & training• Time demands - compensation• Equipment needs – both faculty and student• Technology literacy and competency requirements (faculty

and students)• Student expectations & student support servives• Enrollment limits• Intellectual property rights

Advice for New (and Experienced) Onliners

• Chickering & Gamson Seven Principles• Administrator Misconceptions• Flexibility – to a degree!• Tolerance for Unexpected• Technology literacy• Motives and beliefs (misconceptions) about online

Online Resources

• MERLOT – http://www.merlot.orga free and open resource

• Quality Matters – course design issueshttp://www.qualitymatters.org

• Online Learning Consortium (formerly Sloan Consortium) http://onlinelearningconsortium.org/

• Tips from the U. Michiganhttp://www.crlt.umich.edu/tstrategies/tsot.php

• Journal of Teaching and Learning with Technology http://jotlt.indiana.edu/

http://www.merlot.org/

http://www.qualitymatters.org/

http://onlinelearningconsortium.org/

http://www.crlt.umich.edu/tstrategies/tsot.php

http://jotlt.indiana.edu/

References and Resources

• Duffy, T. M., & Kirley, J. R. (Eds.). (2004). Learner-centered theory and practice in distance education. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

• Ko, S & Rossen. S (2004). Teaching online: A practical guide. College teaching series. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

• Major, C.H. (2015). Teaching online: A guide to theory, research, and practice. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press.

• McKeachie, W.J. & Hofer, B. (2001). McKeachie’s Teaching Tips: Strategies, Research and Theory for College and University Teachers, 11th ed.. Lexington, MA: D.C. Heath & Co.

• U.S. Department of Education. (2009). Evaluation of Evidence-Based Practices in Online Learning: A Meta-Analysis and Review of Online Learning Studies. Retrieved from

http://www.ed.gove/about/offices/list/opeed/ppss/reports.html

http://www.ed.gove/about/offices/list/opeed/ppss/reports.html

References cont.

• Baran, E. & Correia, A. (Sept/Oct. 2014). A professional development framework for online teaching. Tech Trends. 58(5), pp.96-102.

• Clay, R.A. (June, 2012). APA does not accredit fully online programs in professional psychology. Here’s why. Monitor on Psychology, 43-46.

• Major, C. H. (2015). Teaching online: A guide to theory, research, and practice. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press.

• Shelton, K, & Saltsman, G. (October, 2004). Tips and tricks for teaching online: How to teach like a pro. International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning. Retrieved 8/17/2015 http://itdl.org/journal/oct_04/article04.htm

• Tallent-Rounds, M.K., Thomas, J.A., Lan,W.Y., Cooper, S.,Ahern, T.C., Shaw, S.M., & Liu, X. (2006). Teaching courses online: A review of the research. Review of Educational Research, 76(1), 93-135. doi: 10.3102/00346543076001093

Contact Information

Dr. Diane FinleyDepartment of PsychologyPrince George’s Community College301 Largo Road

Largo MD [email protected]

a retrospective of 25 years teaching online: secrets, the future and advice dr. diane finley, prince...

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