online or on campus? - tcc 2008

Online or On Campus?

John Thompson, PhD

Alexis Knavel, M.S.

Dina Ross, M.S.

John Thompson, PhD 2

Agenda

Two graduate courses are compared One course was a blended course over a 3-week

summer session Other course was online over a 14-week

semester

Research based on data from survey results of students enrolled in the courses


Definitions

Blended - "a hybrid of classroom and online learning that includes some of the conveniences of online courses without the complete loss of face-to-face contact” (Rovai and Jordan, 2004) 100% online 100% F2F

Online – 100% of course is delivered online, no F2F meetings


Description of Courses

Microcomputer in the Instructional Program (EDC 672) 3-week summer session blended course - online but met F2F two mornings a week

Computer Applications in Education Administration (EDC 707) 100% online with no F2F meetings over full semester One F2F orientation meeting before the semester

Both courses used SUNY Learning Network (SLN) for course management


Data Collection

Graduate students were all Educational Computing majors

18 students in EDC 672 & 22 in EDC 707 Students from both courses participated in an

online survey at www.freeonlinesurveys.com. Most of the questions asked students to express agreement or disagreement on a five-point Likert Scale (Strongly Agree, Agree, Disagree, Strongly Disagree, Not Applicable)


Figure 1. Results from survey question: I liked the flexibility and independence offered through this online course

0

20

40

60

80

StronglyAgree

Agree Disagree StronglyDisagree

N/A

EDC 672

EDC 707


Figure 2. Results from survey question: I prefer online classes over face-to-face classes.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

StronglyAgree


N/A

EDC 672

EDC 707


Figure 3. Results from survey question: Compared to meeting regularly in a classroom setting, completing coursework online is more convenient for me.

01020304050607080

StronglyAgree


N/A

EDC 672

EDC 707


Figure 4. Results from survey question: Compared to meeting regularly in a classroom setting, completing coursework online promotes greater student participation and interaction.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

StronglyAgree


N/A

EDC 672

EDC 707


Figure 5. Results from survey question: My course preference would be a blended approach, a combination of meeting in a classroom setting and completing coursework online.

0

10

20

30

40

50

StronglyAgree


N/A

EDC 672

EDC 707


From Blended Course – What did you like most about your course? I liked being able to do the assignments at own pace at home and knowing exactly when each assignment was due. I also

liked being able to have a chance to resubmit, if necessary. I learned a lot from this course. The fact that there was no textbook was a plus. The online discussions really allowed me to look at different opinions on a

topic. The combination of F2F was great given the short amount of time. Over a full semester this may not be necessary, but it certainly eased my worries over the course of the 3 weeks!

All the resources I gained from this class! In F2F meetings you can get a better idea of how well you're doing in class. It's easier to troubleshoot problems F2F. The number of online resources was incredible. It was very convenient for me. I like the break up of online and face to face learning. We were able to discuss any questions of concern in the F2F classes,

as opposed to posting them online. I think that the information given and the assignments were very useful, even though it was time consuming! Because we are educational computing majors, being online is "practicing what we preach." I like the setting, and the

resources that were supplied to use. There is a wealth of information on the Internet that a textbook cannot provide! Content & the chance to interact in discussions with other students. Having the opportunity to meet other students in the class. It helps me to put a face to the name. I also was able to ask

questions and share ideas that might not have come up online. I liked the resources. Now I feel my toolbox is complete! The assignments were not that difficult and were easily done in the time period that we had. I liked the combination of putting names with faces. I also like F2F for verification of what we are learning. That I could work at home on my own pace. The online work was great and the sites that were presented provided a lot of

information. We were able to work at our own pace, when we wanted. Yet we were able to see who we were talking to by having the F2F

class. Interesting material. The availability of many resources to videos, articles, stories, etc. was a great help to see how teachers around the country

use technology.

(all results shown)


From Blended Course - What did you like least about your course? The short amount of time we had! I feel that one more week or two would have been better with a little less

assignments and discussions each week. The last week was the most overwhelming to me to complete the discussions (which were a little almost like assignments themselves because of all the reading), assignments and course project! Because of so much work, I didn’t even get to start my course project until the last week! However this was still a great class and if it were somehow fixed, it would be a great improvement.

Some of the F2F time could have been used more effectively. I thought the F2F meetings would have been better spent previewing the upcoming assignments and advising

about potential problems that students in the past have had. The number of online discussions is cumbersome. Reducing the amount of responses would not take away from

the course. The F2F meeting could have been taken out because they were not beneficial. Too much work in a little amount of time. 40+ hours a week, plus meeting is a bit much. I that if you are going to do a F2F with this course, there should be only one F2F class. Once a week in the 3

week sessions. For fall or spring maybe 2 times a month for just an hour or 2. The f2f was not necessary! F2F time that was used to go over materials I could read myself. Sometimes I felt that the f2f could have been cut back to once a week. This so we could have more time to

complete assignments. The course project was a little too much for a three week class. It took time away from the discussions and

assignments. Too much work in too short a period of time. I thought that the F2F was not beneficial. It was just discussion about items we already discussed online. Needed to be more informative at F2F classes. Didn't learn much at them. Volume of material in such a short amount of time. Class time could have been utilized better. We spent a lot of time discussing topics that had already been

discussed in the other classes, covered online, etc.

(all results shown)


From 100% online course - What did you like the most? Being able to jump online to do assignments instead of coming to campus. Able to work at any time. I actually liked the deadlines in order to be able to re-do's. The flexibility of being able to work on assignments at my own pace. Flexibility and independence. More practical applications. Flexibility to work where and when I choose. Not having to travel to campus. The freedom of doing the work when it is convenient for you. The convenience of doing the work at your own pace. The convenience of it all. I liked having the flexibility of doing the assignments at my own convenience with this online course. I could do assignments at any time. I enjoyed instant feedback from the professor, the course assistants, and other students. Could do assignments when ever I wanted to - 4am or 11pm. I enjoyed the convenience of being able to complete work in my free time at any hour of the day and the fact that

no text book was required for this course. The flexibility of completing the assignments / readings, etc. The ability to work when I could. Not having to deal with parking. I could do the work at my own time. The variety of online resources made this course very valuable. Also, the ability to take the information I learned in

class and immediately apply it to my teaching situation makes the content very relevant. I also liked the flexibility of working on assignments on my own time, rather than a set schedule via face-to-face meetings.

(all results shown)


From 100% online course - What did you like the least? Besides the amount of work, it was a good class. Work load. Large number of discussion topics. I would prefer to be more

focused on fewer topics at a time. Difficult to have discussions through posting. I miss the face to face interactions that on campus classes offer. Time - It is hard to balance a full-time job, marriage, house, and

another grad class on top of this one. Too many assignments. The Redo/Resubmit deadline for assignments. I am thankful for the

opportunity to R/R anything, but I would have liked to see deadline coincide with the end of each module.

Assignments not counting for you when completed - only counting against you when not completed.

Some of the discussions did not relate to me because I don't have my own classroom.

(all results shown)


What suggestions do you have for any student taking a 100% online course? Prioritize your time so that you can complete assignments. Take your time. Be sure to organize yourself and PACE yourself. Work everyday. DO NOT wait until the last minute to complete the

work. Check the module daily. Set a schedule for yourself to complete work at a regular time otherwise it will be difficult to complete in a timely

manner. Time management is crucial. Stay up to date with assignments. Don't save the assignments to the last minute. Don't be a procrastinator. Do the work earlier in the week. Stay current with the work. Don't let it pile up. My suggestion would be to spread out the assignments over the module instead of waiting until last minute to do

all of them. Do not take it with this teacher if you expect the course to be the same as the outline. He changed his policy

throughout the year. Budget your time wisely! Read and respond as requested by the professor. Have good time management. Don't wait to do assignments. Take it slow, do a little each night until everything is done. Logon at least once a day to post 3 or 4 discussion

responses so that you do not lose any points. When in doubt ask the class or e-mail the instructor. Take it one assignment at a time...don't get overwhelmed. Also, learn the system before the class starts. Pace yourself, and stay on top of things! You have to be self motivated. Budget time wisely and get started right away. While having the freedom to work on

course work is nice, there is still a lot of work to be done, which can be stressful if trying to complete it all at once.


Summary

Online & blended learning in two graduate courses Student preference for online vs. blended courses

depends on various factors By being both students and course assistants for

these courses, the two student authors concluded biggest problem facing online courses is lack of intrinsic

motivation and self-discipline on the part of the students students who did the assignments on time and participated

in the class discussions were more successful


Presenter

John Thompson, PhDJohn Thompson, PhDAssociate ProfessorAssociate Professor

Educational Computing ProgramEducational Computing ProgramComputer Information Systems DepartmentComputer Information Systems Department

Chase 208Chase 208Buffalo State CollegeBuffalo State College

1300 Elmwood Avenue1300 Elmwood AvenueBuffalo, NY 14222Buffalo, NY 14222

[email protected]

http://www.buffalostate.edu/depts/edcomputing/