Sections Analysis Of Online Education

SECTIONS Analysis of Online Education – South East Cornerstone School Division S – Students Student characteristics must be assessed when considering education using technology. Student Demographics The students taking part in online education offerings are in grades 10, 11 or 12. For many, it is their first experience at online education. Few may have already taken a class by Interactive Televised Instruction, Print-based Correspondence or Online delivery. The technological background of the students is varied. Those at the grade 10 level (and many at the grade 11 and 12 levels) have little experience with file management, proper formatting technique, spreadsheets, collaboration through technology, or content management systems and they have weak technological literacy. They are not accustomed to the responsibility and independence that is required in a distance education setting. These students require a variety of teaching approaches and a great deal of support. An evaluation of their computer skills is necessary to provide individualized support. Online offerings that provide well-trained educators, well-designed learning environments, and receiving-end support are needed for these students. Access “Of all the criteria in determining choice of technology, access is perhaps the most discriminating. No matter how powerful in educational terms a particular technology may be, if students cannot access it in a convenient and affordable manner they cannot learn from it.” (Bates & Poole, 2003) Students who have weak and varied technological backgrounds find it difficult to troubleshoot difficulties in access. They are easily frustrated and unwilling to persevere. It is critical that online offerings are based in sound infrastructure with knowledgeable educators and support personnel. Students need access to the technology at the school. While many have high-speed internet connections at their homes, not all have access. Many families in our division do not have the quality of connection (especially rural students) or hardware necessary to afford access to their courses from home. Student Differences with Respect to Learning with Technologies The design of online learning environments must cater to the varied preferences of technological instruction. Students require well-designed learning environments that afford a variety of learning experiences and assessments. The students also require knowledgeable educators and support personnel who understand and can provide information through varied media, a variety of learner activities, varied assessment opportunities and feedback. E – Ease of Use Students should use their skills in technology to aid their completion of the course at hand. The course should not focus on the teaching of these skills (unless they are part of the course objectives).

Computer and Information Literacy Students in South East Cornerstone accessing online instruction generally have basic literacy skills. They are able to read, write, use a keyboard and a mouse, use a word processor and navigate the internet. Orientation If more advanced applications are being used in a course, time must be provided to orientate students to that particular software. All students should be orientated to Blackboard and E-mail at the beginning of their course. Interface Design South East Cornerstone will have their own application of Blackboard to maintain. The interface will be pre-designed with little freedom for change. Reliability The reliability of the technology is critical to the success of the instructor and learner. Support personnel and adequate funding are critical to this success. C – Cost Decisions about the use of technology in education cannot be made without understanding and analyzing the costs associated with such use. Items of Expenditure Infrastructure, hardware, software and licensing are major factors in the cost of using technology. These costs are not unique to courses delivered via the internet and can be shared with schools and other division initiatives. Upgrades and maintenance are also factors. The cost of copyright clearance and permissions can be balanced with costs associated to teacher preparation time. Allowing teachers extra time would enable the development of copyright-free learning objects. The largest cost associated with online delivery should be the time of the teacher. Developing online material and teaching online is more work than teaching face-to-face. Teachers tend to put in this extra time without any additional compensation, but it does come at a cost to the teacher, which may develop into a cost for the school and/or division. Drivers of Cost The primary factors that drive costs are production and delivery of materials, and the number of students. The cost of producing a course is not dependent on the number of students that enroll in the course. The cost of delivery may or may not be a factor depending on technology available to schools and mode of design and delivery. Bates and Poole suggest that online courses are relatively cost-effective for enrollments of 20 to 100 children. Online courses developed for less than twenty children are more expensive than face to face delivery. It should also be noted that if student-teacher interaction is to be manageable, the teacherstudent ratio needs to be kept relatively low; one to twenty-five students. This is the reason that increases in student numbers will increase the costs of online education.

T – Teaching and Learning It is difficult to base decisions about use of technology on teaching and learning, but it is a very important consideration. There are teaching and learning advantages to some forms of technology over others. Epistemology and Selection of Technology The curriculum requirements of a course and the teaching philosophies of the instructors will influence the technology that will be used. It is important that online courses are taught by teachers who have a strong knowledge base in both the content area and in the affordances of technology. Content and Skills Again, knowledgeable and well-trained educators are needed to provide students with learning that involves acquiring content and developing skills. Student Assessment Strategies In an online environment, assessment and feedback must be included in the design. The varied forms of assessment must match the desired learning outcome. South East Cornerstone provides support for student assessment and feedback through use of the content management system, Blackboard. I – Interaction and Interactivity For learning to be effective, it needs to be active. Interaction Between Learners and Learning Materials Effective online instruction involves designing opportunities for interaction with learning material. Well-trained instructors are needed to develop effective learning objects. Learning as a Social Activity Students need opportunity to discuss, reflect, collaborate, defend and critique. Instructional design must afford interaction between learners and interaction between learners and instructors. Online education also affords interaction between learners and experts. The Quality of Interaction South East Cornerstone’s use of Blackboard will facilitate interaction between learners and instructors. Many internet-based applications facilitate varied interactions as well. It is important that the instructors are familiar with a variety of technologies that can be used to provide quality interaction. O – Organizational Issues South East Cornerstone provides organizational support for a variety of technologies. N – Novelty Novelty is not an important consideration for South East Cornerstone at this time. S – Speed Advance preparation will facilitate speed of implementation and flexibility.