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Issue Contents
How Do We Assess the Effectiveness of New Technologies and Learning Environments? Philip Ice
How many conferences have you attended where you saw a great new technology showcased in either a presentation or by an exhibitor? When was the last time you were browsing through a journal and saw a case study related to a promising new learning environment? Have you recently visited a forum in which participants were discussing potential methods for creating personalized learning environments using a suite of tools you haven't heard of? How often have you responded to one of the above scenarios by saying, "This sounds great, but how do I know if it will work, and is it worth the time involved with the learning curve?" From the perspective of instructional designers and instructors, the decision to adopt a new technology can be exceedingly difficult. On the one hand, we all want to create the best possible learning environment for our students. On the other, there is the persistent fear that integrating a new technology will be onerous in terms of integration and only marginal in terms of impact, or worse, it may have a negative impact. From a research perspective, assessing the effectiveness of new technologies is problematic in that there are few if any universal standards by which to assess how these technologies impact the interactions in online learning environments. A possible solution to the above problems may be found in applying the Community of Inquiry Framework (CoI) as an analysis of courses in which new technologies are utilized. Originally developed by Garrison, Anderson and Archer (2000), the CoI Framwork is a theoretical model that seeks to explain the online learning experience in terms of three overlapping presences: teaching, social and cognitive. In 2007, Arbaugh, Cleveland-Innes, Diaz, Garrison, Ice, Richardson, Shea and Swan collaborated on the development of a unified survey instrument and validated the model through multi-institutional data collection and confirmatory factor analysis. Two recent works that support the application of the CoI in assessing new technologies and emerging learning environments illustrate potential methodologies. As part of "Back to the future: what's next for the online community of inquiry model?," a presentation at the 13th Sloan-C International Conference on Online Learning, survey data from courses in which asynchronous audio feedback was used were compared to courses in which text-based feedback was used. The findings revealed significant, positive differences with respect to several elements of teaching, social and cognitive presence. In "Community of Inquiry and immersive learning environments," McKerlich and Anderson (JALN, December 2007) report on an exploratory study that examined the usefulness of using CoI indicators to assess the effectiveness of multi-user virtual environments. The authors concluded that the core construct of the CoI is useful in assessing learning interactions; however, additional indicators may be needed to fully assess participant experiences. Further research utilizing the CoI as an exploratory instrument for assessing the impact of new technologies and learning environments will be exceedingly useful in two ways. First, it would confirm if there are instances in which the CoI fails to capture positive or negative aspects of certain types of interactions. Second, and perhaps most important for researchers, designers and instructors, if the CoI is indeed useful in the manner proposed, it would provide a universal standard by which to assess the utility of pedagogical and technical advancements in online environments.
The Community College Commitment to Quality Online Learning Matthew Olson, Ed.D.
Even though the majority of online learning in higher education today takes place in the community college, comparatively little attention in the research literature has been paid to the special needs of community college students in regard to effective instruction and quality programming. Over the past decade there has been much discussion of the impact of the digital divide in education, the rift between those who have access to online technologies and those who do not. However defined, the clear separation of haves and have-nots regarding online access has underscored the role of community colleges in providing high quality online education, since community college students: are most likely to have academic, financial and personal challenges. Twenty-nine percent of community college students have annual household incomes of less than $20,000. Forty-one percent of community college students are first-generation college students. Community colleges enroll 47 percent of African American undergraduate students, 56 percent of Hispanic undergraduate students and 57 percent of Native American undergraduate students. [1] Many community college students are adults who are returning to college with special requirements and preferences for their learning experiences, and online learning provides these non-traditional students with opportunities to participate in a community of learners, which is especially valuable because it strengthens the students' relationship to the school [2]. Because many community college students have not proved successful in prior educational experiences, it is critical for community college instruction to employ a variety of instructional strategies [3, 4, 5, 6 ]. The online environment is well suited to modern pedagogical approaches which emphasize student collaboration in practical application of course content. These approaches have the important benefits of increasing both student motivation and comfort with online communication tools. While increased student motivation may have a positive effect on retention and successful completion of courses and programs, developing skills using online collaboration tools may prove to be an even more important factor for students' ensuing success. It has been well noted that the increasing global nature of our economy will require workers at all levels to use online technologies to communicate and collaborate. As 2 and 4-year colleges change from concepts of "distance learning" toward more inclusive "distributed learning," online learning is becoming part and parcel of the practice of on-campus education [7,8]. Given this trend combined with the sensitive nature of the community college population the need to investigate and assure the quality of instruction and institutional supports in these programs is of paramount importance. (Join Matthew Olson, Middlesex Community College, Candy Center, Massasoit Community College & Bill Sakamoto, Bunker Hill Community College in the Sloan-C online workshop, Accreditation: Community College Case Studies Point the Way, March 12th - 21st.)
1. American Association of Community Colleges. Achieving the Dream: Community Colleges Count. Fact Sheet. July, 2005. http://www.aacc.nche.edu/Content/NavigationMenu/ResourceCenter/Projects_Partnerships/Current/ Achieving_the_Dream/Characteristics_and_Challenges_of_CCs_fact_sheet.pdf
Learn From the Experts - The Sloan-C 2008 Workshop Series The workshop, "Finding Evidence of Quality in Distance Education: Community College Exemplars", has been changed to "Accreditation: Community College Case Studies Point the Way" and has been moved to March 12 - March 21. Technology Bootcamp - February 6 - March 7 Technology Bootcamp is a 4-week crash course for new cadets who seek to acquire new skills, or perhaps brush-up on old ones prior to the conference. As online educators, mastery of new technologies can help you stay ahead of the curve. Through hands-on technology demonstrations, you will obtain clear new ideas on how technology can improve you online classroom. Click here for details and registration. Using the Quality Matters Rubric to Improve Your Online Course - February 20 - March 14 Recognizing quality is much like recognizing art - you know it when you see it, but everybody sees something different. And when it comes to online courses, your students, faculty, administrators, peers, and accrediting bodies may certainly not see what you do. In fact, they might not even know what to look for in assessing quality. Sloan-C announces an interactive online workshop focused on learning how to improve your online course(s). Learn how to use the rubric tool developed by the nationally recognized, FIPSE-funded Quality Matters (QM) project. The QM rubric provides a research-supported framework with annotations and examples for applying quality practices to specific course design standards. Affirm the strong areas in your course(s) and generate specific ideas for improvements. The QM rubric is the centerpiece of the QM process. Additionally, this course serves as a stepping stone for faculty interested in becoming certified course peer reviewers. Click here for details and registration. Dynamic Collaboration, Discussion and Facilitation Practices - February 27 - March 7 In the online classroom, interaction prompts more interaction by stimulating more perspectives, points of view, ideas, questions, and disagreements. Through collaboration and discussion, both facilitators and students help each other in the learning process. This workshop examines how facilitators can increase and provide quality engagement in an online academic environment. Click here for details and registration. |
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