Peter Greening, 11233041
Can online learning replace the traditional face to face method of teaching tertiary students?
Abstract
Online learning has the potential to bring tertiary education to the masses, it could mean anyone could study any course from any place on the planet. However this powerful tool is currently being misused all over the world, many students disappointed with the quality of education they recieve online. [Sleeman, 1999] This essay examines the powers of the internet as an educational medium, it also looks at the disadvantages of online learning and presents strategies for overcoming them. This essay finds that with the right balance of technical work done by teacher and student and academic study can produce a level of knowlege equal or better than that offered by a full time face-to-face tertiary course.
Introduction
Online Learning is now a big thing in tertiary institutions throughout Australia and the world. It allows one lecturer to teach more students for a cheaper price. It allows students to proceed through the work at their own pace and they can easily revisit topics. The downsides of this new learning approach is that it limits the face-to-face interaction between student and teacher and it doesn't allow students to go into more detail with the work. This essay will attempt to highlight the advantages and discuss straegies for eliminating the downsides of this powerful new teaching technology.
Body
Online learning was trialed as early as 1987 by several American universities, but it didn't become widespread until more recently. Over the years universities have refined the methods they use to teach their students, making it easier and more accessable to students over a wide range of courses. There are even universities that are entirely internet driven, able to offer fully accredited courses without its students ever having to set foot in a classroom. This could be the way of the future if the technology and mehods used to deliver the learning can be refined to a fine art.
The internet is an effective medium for distributing information, if it can be used effectively then online learning can be a powerful educational tool. The internet can use hyperlinks to link students to associated material and real-world examples that realte to the topics they are discussing. Hyperlinks can make any online experience much more detailed and fulfilling, their effective use in online learning could make online learning an effective educational method to replace the traditional face-to-face teaching style.
Many universities are now offering online support for classroom subjects, CSU being one such university. Subjects have online forums where students can communicate with lecturers and students from other campuses. Some subjects have learning resources online such as lecture notes, past exam papers and assignment details. This abundance of online information makes it easier to study more indepth into a subject and revise over notes and topics covered in the face-to-face lectures. Online frums and other resources make online learning a powerful educational tool.
Many people are critics of the online method of course delivery becasue it is a very inflexible method of learning. "Computers make poor teachers, but they can be effective in supporting learning." [Phillips, 2000] An online class of people will probably come from a diverse social, cultural, educationaland cultural background. These students will all have different levels of prior knowlege, they will want to learn at different rates and they will want to work through problems in different ways. A face-to-face style of class will allow the lecturer to recognise student's problems easier and will be able to adjust accordingly. An online student has little or no interaction with the teacher, so it will be very difficult to adjust the program for the student. This weakness means that a student doing a course online will have a reduced understanding compared to a student who underwent the course in a face-to-face fashion. [Sleeman, 1999]
The inflexability of online education can be eliminated or reduced by a few strategies. The lecturer can take the time to read the forums, where some students will be sharing their views on how the subject is, this information can be used to improve the subject mid-semester and keep the students learning. The students can also send e-mails to the lecturer about their past educational experience so that he can have an idea of what sort of students he will be teaching. The final solution to give flexability to online education is for constant communication through an online instant messaging program such as ICQ. This program has been implemented by several US colleges offering online subjects with great success. [Phillips, 2000]
Online learning is generally a poor way of teaching a topic because the assessment method is so limited. Assessment must come from assignments and other work that is done over a long period of time, the option of a sit-down test is not practical. This means that the students knowlege is only tested in a limited capacity. This method of testing lacks the ability to test the student away from their work resources and notes. [Shea-Shultz & Fogarty, 2003] Online testing also has no ability to control plagarism and collusion between students, giving any assessment the possibility of being an untrue representation of the student's knowlege and ability.
The assessment method for online education can be improved in two ways. The testing could be made more like a traditional sit-down test if the students were to use webcams while filling out an online form for a test. Such a test would have to be extensively trialed to ensure there is no errors and no way of cheating the system. [O'Malley, 1999] Another method for fixing the problems with existing assessment techniques is to have lots of small assessable items. Walker believes that many small assessments based on the learning done the previous week can give an accurate indication of student learning and also serve as a good revision tool.
Conclusion
The internet is a powerful tool. If used correctly it could revolutionise the way that tertiary education is taught throughout the world. Hyperlinks and the ability to combine media types with normal text makes it an invaluable tool for teaching. If combined with effective and efficient forums, personal messaging systems and a foolproof and accurate assessment system then the internet can deliver a learning experience that is as good, if not better, than a traditional face-to-face tertiary level lecture.
References
1. Duffy, P.L, Online Learning: Methodology and Effectiveness, Trinity College,
http://library.trinity.wa.edu.au/teaching/online.htm
2. O'Malley, J, 1999, Students Perceptions of Distance Learning, Online Learning and the
Traditional Classroom, Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration, Volume II, Number IV,
State University of West Georgia, Distance Education Center
3. Phillips, R, 2000, Submission from the Australian Society for Computers in Learning in
Tertiary Education, available: http://www.detya.gov.au/archive/highered/hereview/submissions/submissions/a/austsoccomplearn.htm
4. Singh G.; O'Donoghue J.; Betts C., 2002, A UK study into the potential effects of virtual education: does online learning spell an end for on-campus learning?, Behaviour and Information Technology, Vol 21, No 3, pp 223-229.
5. Sleeman, P, 1999, Assessing student perceptions of Internet-bases online learning environments, International Journal of Instructional Media, New York
6. Walker, S, 2001, Online Learning Environments Research, http://education.ollusa.edu/tcc2001/online_learning_environments_research_PAPER.htm