There is a significant amount of legislative and policy activity here in Virginia to try to centralize, to varying degrees, post-secondary online learning. That’s a bit of an oversimplification, so let me offer some history and context as I know it1. In the 2015 legislative session, House Bill 1400 (Chapter 665), added/included the following language… Continue reading Virginia Online U?
As a lawyer dude who lives in the world of online learning, the news about a complaint filed by a class of students at George Washington University has me intrigued. According to Inside Higher Education, Four graduates of the university’s online master’s degree program in security and safety leadership last week filed a class-action lawsuit … [Read more…] Continue reading The rules of engagement for online learning
Here’s a dilemma that I’m certain is not unique to my institution, but that raises complex questions for me: VCU ALTLab’s very own Lisa Phipps is teaching a (open, online) course this summer about complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). She’s uniquely qualified to teach this course as a pharmacist with about 17 doctoral degrees. She’s … [Read more…] Continue reading Nurturing curiosity through course selection/registration
Thanks to David Croteau, a sociology professor and member of the ALT Lab at Virginia Commonwealth University for annotating and sharing this article from Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration, Volume XIX, Number 1, Spring 2016 about effective professional development for teaching online. It is really a blueprint for making ALL professional development more effective with recommendations for … Continue reading Best Practices for Professional Development → Continue reading Best Practices for Professional Development
In my (simple) mind, one overarching theme of VCU ALTLab‘s online learning faculty development initiative, the Online Learning Experience (OLE), is exploring the affordances of the modern Web for teaching and learning. In recent days, I have said on multiple occasions that I think this is an amazing time to be a learner and an … [Read more…] Continue reading A meta #onlinelearning faculty development activity
Being asked what good #onlinelearning looks like is akin to being asked what a good meal looks like. — Jon Becker (@jonbecker) February 23, 2016 I remember being asked recently what good online learning looks like. That wasn’t the exact question, but it was something to that effect. I also remember not being satisfied … [Read more…] Continue reading The possibilities of/for #onlinelearning
For our newest cohort of faculty participants, it’s now the end of the first week of the Online Learning Experience (OLE), our intensive online learning faculty development program. Week one was about getting folks situated and getting them equipped with the digital toolbelt they’ll need to participate in the course. Some got started early in … [Read more…] Continue reading The rhythm and pace of online learning
The latest and greatest cohort of our intensive online learning faculty development program, the Online Learning Experience (OLE), begins this week. We’ve got 32 faculty members from all corners of the university signed up and ready to dive into an 8-week open, online course on online learning. I am writing this post knowing that it … [Read more…] Continue reading Tensions
How many students are currently taking online courses? How many online programs does the university offer? How many students are enrolled in online programs? These are the kinds of questions those of us in the world of online learning are asked regularly. They seem like innocuous and straightforward questions. They’re not though. Answering these questions … [Read more…] Continue reading The fuzzy math of online learning enrollments
There has, as you can imagine, been lots of talk about snow days here in the Commonwealth. Jon Becker mused about how odd it seemed to have a university close despite widespread connectivity. He asked a powerful question: “Are we not supposed to work?” The comments provided examples of both K-12 and higher education organizations that managed … Continue reading Learning, Education and Snow Days → Continue reading Learning, Education and Snow Days
