Teaching Online: A Theory-based Approach to Student Success

Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration, 2010

Over the past ten years, a significant increase in courses and programs taught through distance education technologies has occurred both in non-for-profit and for-profit colleges and universities. During this time, there have been many successes and failures. The researchers hypothesize that the marginal success and/or failure occurs due to program planner(s) not viewing the design, implementation, evaluation, and sustainability of distance learning courses and programs in the context within which the distance learning will occur. The purpose of this manuscript is to provide five basic interrelated assumptions for distance learning program planners to consider when designing distance learning courses and programs in college and university settings. These assumptions are offered based on the observation, successes and failures of the authors in their collective 57 years of designing such programs for six different universities across the US, as well as evidence from related literature.

2007

Online courses are growing in popularity, providing opportunities for individuals to complete their education while overcoming time and distance constraints. Innovations in distance education allow for the design and development of online courses that adapt to meet the specific needs and/or learning styles of the students enrolled, and reflect the unique teaching style and personality of the instructor. The purpose of this descriptive case study is to share three perspectives and three approaches of three faculty members who teach a range of graduate level educational technology courses at a university located in northeast Texas. Tips, techniques, lessons learned, and examples of proven interaction activities while meeting course objectives and addressing specific needs of students will be discussed.

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 2009

Population growth (Broad, 1997), institutional competition (Daniel & Cox, 2002), and changing learner needs (Willis, Tucker, & Gunn, 2003) are among the issues influencing the increase in online teaching and learning. Related to this, emergent and expanding distance learning technologies have subsequently pitted "brick and mortar" against "online" paradigms. This has resulted in a need for research to clarify the relevance, effectiveness, restrictive and facilitative dimensions of online courses. For example, faculty are increasingly expected and encouraged to develop and teach online courses often with misperceptions about required pedagogical skills and without adequate support and preparation (Choi & Park, 2006). This qualitative study is therefore, aimed at sharing the experiences and perspectives of two novice online instructors' operating within two colleges in the eastern US. These instructors initially shared that a key motivation for the teaching of their online courses was fear of becoming professionally out of date and of 'giving in' to technophobia. This paper reports on the background to-and different approaches adopted towards-developing two online courses as well as providing student perceptions of their on-line learning experience. Findings and recommendations from this research are aimed at providing an insight into some of the fundamental issues that other novice 'online' instructors will need to consider in developing their own technology mediated courses.

Handbook of Open, Distance and Digital Education, 2022

Online instructors draw upon a complex set of skills, activities, and values to meet the needs of students who are separated from them by time and/or space, but united with them through digital technologies. Berge (1995) introduced the idea that the instructor’s job could be represented through four interrelated roles: pedagogical, managerial, social, and technological. Instructors who develop expertise in all four of these dimensions are well-situated for supporting online students, who similarly must navigate these dimensions. This chapter explores each of these roles and their relationship to online learning. Two additional areas of concern for online instructors, the ethical dimension and the networked dimension, are also discussed.

Association Supporting Computer Users in Education (ASCUE) 2017 Proceedings, 2017

As distance education continues to be utilized by higher learning institutions, many struggle in knowing how to effectively utilize tools for the benefit of the students, faculty and staff facilitating online courses, distance education departments, and the university as a whole. This paper will highlight survey and interview results from students, professors, and instructional technologists from four public southeastern United States universities centered on how online learning affects the varying levels of a specific university located in the southeastern United States. Current and future issues that and potential solutions to counteract these obstacles will also be provided. Moreover, strategies will be proposed regarding improving the institutional effectiveness of distance education by specifically tailoring approaches to the culture and the strategic direction of the institution. In order to provide a first-person narrative from a student’s perspective, these results and recommendations are discussed through the lens of an undergraduate student.

Review of Educational Research, 2006

This literature review summarizes research on online teaching and learning. It is organized into four topics: course environment, learners’ outcomes, learners’ characteristics, and institutional and administrative factors. The authors found little consistency of terminology, discovered some conclusive guidelines, and identified developing lines of inquiry. The conclusions overall suggest that most of the studies reviewed were descriptive and exploratory, that most online students are nontraditional and Anglo American, and that few universities have written policies, guidelines, or technical support for faculty members or students. Asynchronous communication seemed to facilitate in-depth communication (but not more than in traditional classes), students liked to move at their own pace, learning outcomes appeared to be the same as in traditional courses, and students with prior training in computers were more satisfied with online courses. Continued research is needed to inform learne...

2000

Although many online instructors have varying degrees of classroom experience, limited experience with the online environment makes them novices in this teaching and learning context. This paper, which is aimed at the novice online educator, articulates a unified online learning framework that: describes the higher education online instructional environment in terms of student inputs, institutional influences, and student outcomes; describes

Distance Education, 2008

To better understand their perceptions of optimal tools and strategies for success, this research analyzed the experiences of learners and instructors in an online distance education environment. A qualitative constant comparative analysis methodology supported by an appropriate conceptual framework guided the study. Data were collected over multiple years and from multiple stakeholders. The study identified the following significant conclusions: the availability of multiple tools added flexibility to the learning environment; technology tools should appeal to multiple learning styles; collaboration, reflection, and building a learning community were important strategies supported by multiple tools; and participant satisfaction, appropriate prerequisite skills, and faculty and administrative involvement ensured programmatic success. According to this study, optimal distance education environments should address factors identified in the conceptual framework.