Integrating eLearning into the Liberal Arts Tradition

1. Integrating eLearning into the Liberal Arts Tradition Amber Dailey Emily Donnelli

2. Our Agenda • Review key terms, research, and best practices in eLearning; • Engage a discussion of eLearning models and approaches in light of a liberal arts mission; • Offer our experiences as online administrators, content developers, and faculty.

3. Your Needs • To what extent is eLearning technology currently being used on your campus? • What are your goals for integrating eLearning at William Jewell? • What would you like to gain from today’s discussion?

4. Understanding eLearning “The 'e' in e-learning stands for experience.” Elliott Masie, Masie Center

5. Prevailing Modelswhat do we mean by eLearning? Face-to-Face Hybrid Online (Internet-assisted)

6. Online Learning Myths • Solitary, self-paced, high-tech correspondence courses • Text-based content • Less rigorous than f2f learning and teaching • Instructors = content developers, graders • Students = technologically-adept, “non-traditional,” skills-oriented

7. Online Learning Realities • Highly interactive, with structured asynchronous and synchronous interaction • Multi-medial • Often more time-consuming and rigorous than f2f learning and teaching • Instructors = facilitators, not simply graders • Students = increasingly “traditional”

8. Tour of Online Course Material http://www.park.edu/online/demo.aspx

9. Implementing the 7 Principles:Technology as Lever( • Frequent faculty-student contact • Reciprocity and cooperation among students • Active learning techniques • Prompt feedback • Emphasize time on task • Communicate high expectations • Respect diverse talents and ways of learning (Chickering and Ehrmann, 1996)

10. Shifting Paradigms “The illiterate of the 21st century [are not] those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn.” Alvin Toffler

11. eLearning in a Liberal Arts Context “…as a long line of philosophers from Socrates to Marshall McLuhan have told us, [technology] inevitably changes consciousness, and [such] changes always entail loss. But they always entail gains as well. The really useful discussions are about how we will adapt, not whether we should…” Blakenship (2006)

12. eLearning’s Resonance with a Liberal Arts Education • Engagement • Integrative learning • Information literacy/critical thinking • Communication • Access

13. Infusing Online Curricula with a Liberal Arts Focus: Ensuring Consistency • Common academic oversight processes • Content development by full faculty • Common learning outcomes • Common assessments • Shared learning objects

14. Moving Forward • Mission: What are the core values implicit in the WJC mission? How can those values be made prominent in the implementation of eLearning? • Core Curriculum: What are the mainstays of the WJC curriculum? Can they transfer to an online learning environment? • Integration: How will eLearning become a part of the learning experience at WJC, regardless of learner demographic?

15. Moving Forward • Faculty: How will you secure faculty buy-in and support? • Infrastructure: What existing resources can be built upon? How do existing structures for curriculum approval and faculty evaluation need to change? • Presentation: How can eLearning be presented and promoted as consonant with the tradition of WJC?

16. www.park.edu/cetl