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Migrating A Course to the Web. Web. By: Alan Escovitz, Ph.D. The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy. Catalyst. Diverse demographics of student population Evolving role of education Escalating costs for institution Escalating costs for student
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Migrating A Course to the Web Web By:Alan Escovitz, Ph.D. The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy
Catalyst • Diverse demographics of student population • Evolving role of education • Escalating costs for institution • Escalating costs for student • Professional, family, and other responsibilities
Emerging Issues • 55% of the US’ 2,215 campuses have off-site courses • Over 1 million students plugged into virtual classrooms compared to 13 million attending brick and mortar schools
Lure of Technology-EnhancedDistance Education • Offersready access • Flexible, equitable system • Cost effective • Conducive to continuous, life-long learning
Problems with Web-based course delivery • Limited body of experience in producing a coordinated, comprehensive Internet course • Computer as a support tool may not replace traditional educational approaches • Limited research available in identifying appropriate instructional tools for the Internet
Student Readiness--Are Online Courses Right for You? Do you like to work independently? Do you need convenience and an adjustable schedule? Are you comfortable asking for clarification and continuing to ask when you need more information? Are you comfortable working at a computer? Do you have experience surfing the World Wide Web? If most of your experience is through a provider such as America Online, then you'll probably need to investigate some other paths to the web before you take on a class through nontraditional system. Are you comfortable working primarily with a text-based medium? Would you be comfortable phoning or faxing your instructor if you had problems with anything in the course?
Student Readiness--How do I create the right study environment? Online learning might take place at home, work, in a library or on campus. Create the right environment to study. Have a place to study that is quiet and away from distractions such as the television. A study area needs to be comfortable, with adequate lighting and ventilation A computer desk should be large enough to handle the computer, monitor, printer and mouse pad and still give you room for a notebook. A copy holder is a good idea for reading text at eye level while typing. stretch every now and then!
Matching Web-based tools with learning outcomes • Create a list of the pedagogical strengths for the various WWW tools available for the course delivery • List the intended learning outcomes for the course • Develop a matrix which matches learning outcome with optimal instructional tool
Instructional tools available in an Internet-based environment • Instruction ToolDiscussion of uses • E-mail1. Stimulates student-instructor Q & A 2. Encourages cooperative learning for student-student participation • Chat room 1. Encourages cooperative learning by simulating classroom student- student interaction 2. Simulates classroom student-instructor interaction • Discussion forum Simulates classroom student- student/student instructor interaction
Instructional tools available in an Internet-based environment • Instruction ToolDiscussion of uses • Online notesConvey course content normally delivered by lecture or demonstration • Online presentation Convey course content normally delivered by demonstration • Home work and practice Provide avenue for constructive • sets, completed locally on learning environment through • the computer, using tem- supervised, hands-on activity • plates supplied with the • text, the submitted via • e-mail
Instructional tools available in an Internet-based environment • Instruction ToolDiscussion of uses • Links to outside sources, Provide references to external • including Web pages reference resources normally • developed by text publisher associated with campus library • Objective questions on Measure acquisition of learning • online exams objectives that are content oriented • Completion, short answer Measure acquisition of learning • and essay questions on exam outcomes that are process oriented
Instructional tools available in an Internet-based environment • Instruction ToolDiscussion of uses • Formal paper Measure acquisition of learning outcomes that are process oriented • Graded assignments Provide an avenue for constructive learning environments through supervised, hand-on activities
Learning theory for basis of planning process? Bloom’s Taxonomy (categorizing cognitive development) Knowledge Comprehension Application Analysis Synthesis Evaluation Web
Learning theory for basis of planning process? Constructivism Learning is an active process in which the student builds knowledge through the use of information than the passive reception of information Web
Internet enhances the leaner-centered process • Internet provides access to an array of information resources • No authoritative single sources for information • Students develop capacity to make decisions regarding source (decision-making/problem-solving) • Instructor assumes role of mentor rather than authority figure
Faculty Support • System Administrator • Webmaster/Web Designer • Instructional Designer • Technical Support Staff • GTAs • Student Interns
Planning your online course--First steps • School support in migrating to online environment • Knowledge of html • Selection of software package (Courseinfo, WebCT, Lotus Notes, etc) • Technical support • Faculty workload • Learn features of courseware package • Collaborative tools and active learning
Planning your online course-- • Articles that document Web-based learning paradigmsOn the Horizonhttp://www.horizon.unc.edu/TS/vision/1998-08.aspJournal of Asynchronous Learning Networkshttp://www.aln.org/alnweb/journal/issue2/assee.htm • Don’t let technology alone dictate how course is taught • Technology can fail • Be prepared to answer questions and refer to appropriate technical support
Converting course to online • Develop academic integrity policy • Verifying identity of students • Testing procedures (Proctored vs. Timed) • Develop syllabus • Develop “How to Use the Internet” manual • Asynchronous vs. Synchronous
Converting course to online-- Reducing isolation • Student communication • E-mail • Virtual Chat • Group and active learning activities • Require class participation • Design group activities and case studies • Post student biography sketches • Foster student-student networking • Schedule online office hours • Use multimedia to vary learning experience (Audio, video, animation)
Asynchronous Learning--Equating traditional activities to ALNsetting
File Sharing with E-mail and the Web • Software with built-in e-mail useful for those without e-mail accounts • E-mail permits private one-to-one communication • Online workgroups encourage collaboration on problem-oriented projects • File sharing allows users the ability to share various types of files (graphics, video, audio, other) • Users must have a programmable to “view” the particular file resident on their computer (e.g. Microsoft’s NetMeeting)
Asynchronous Conferencing-Anytime, Anyplace • Users post or respond to comments, messages, or files without having to logged on at the same time • Threaded discussions start with an posting on a topic • Replies to original responses are further indented • Use e-mail to alert students to discussion activity • Bulletin boards post “heads-up” information and housekeeping items related to course discussion
Synchronous Conferencing-real time (“live”) discussion • Use video camera connected to computers • Few products currently supporting multi-point, live video conferencing • Bandwidth consideration serious concern • Audio conferencing • Shared whiteboard-- a workspace to type and draw in real time--join sharing of controls • Text chat (chat) is text-based, real time conferencing
Features on the Horizon Features being integrated into collaborative software Synchronized browsing •Students browsers refresh to reflect the sites the instructor is visiting allowing for virtual “field trips” Streaming audio and video Web
Remember! Collaborative tools will continue to evolve As online virtual communities make use of tools, nature of online communication will continue to change Being in a virtual classroom will never be exactly like being in a traditional classroom--it may be better! Web
Web By:Alan Escovitz, Ph.D. escovitz.1@osu.edu http://www.pharmacy.ohio-state.edu/escovitz/escovitz.htm The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy