E-LearningMyth-busters

Is Conventional Wisdom Wrong?

Lake Superior CollegeDuluth, Minnesota

Vital Stats• Approx.2,000 students take at least one

online course each semester at LSC.

• 141 sections of online courses were taught during spring semester 2008.

• 89% of all available seats are taken.

• Approx. 65 faculty members teach at least one online course per year at LSC.

3

4

ITC - North Central States

What is your experience with online education?

32%

19%

28%

21% 1. Taught an online class.2. Taken online class.3. Both 1 & 2 above.4. Neither 1 nor 2 above.

Famous Quotes #1• George Washington once said (re: the

cherry tree incident):

• "I can't tell a lie, Pa; you know I can't tell a lie. I did cut it with my hatchet.“

• (Or did he?)

Famous Quotes #2• Al Gore once said:

• “I invented the Internet.”

• (Or did he?)

Famous Quotes #3• George W. Bush once said:

• “Too many OB-GYNs aren’t able to practice their love with women all across this country.”

• (Or did he?)

Choose the accurate quote.

12%14%

25%26%

23%

1. George Washington2. Al Gore3. George W. Bush4. All of the above are

true5. All of the above are

false

Against USC, the Buckeyes …

62%

18%

12%

4%

20% 1. Got jobbed by the refs2. Were looking ahead to game with Troy U.3. Were suffering from jet lag4. Were distracted by California girls5. None of the above

E-LearningMyth-busters

Point of View: The Student Perspective

Student Perspective: Questions 1-3

1.E-Learning students believe that a sense of community is important

2.Online students plagiarize more than “traditional” students

3.e-Learning enables anytime, anywhere learning

E-Learning students believe that a sense

of community (in their e-learning) is

important

Reality M

yth

44%

56%

1.Reality2.Myth

Online students plagiarize more

than “traditional” students

Reality M

yth

74%

26%

1.Reality2.Myth

e-Learning enables anytime,

anywhere learning

Reality M

yth

30%

70%

1.Reality2.Myth

Student Perspective: Questions 4-6

4.Digital natives are well prepared for e-Learning

5.Cheating is rampant among online students

6.Online students are less satisfied with their college experience than F-2-F students

Digital natives are well prepared for

e-Learning

Reality M

yth

74%

26%

1.Reality2.Myth

Cheating is rampant among online students

Reality M

yth

57%

43%

1.Reality2.Myth

Online students are less satisfied with their

college experience than F-2-F students

Reality M

yth

64%

36%

1.Reality2.Myth

4

4.5

5

5.5

6

6.5

7

Importance Scale - PSOL

Online Students Plagiarize More

• Really? Prove it!• Could it be that online students

get caught more?• Do you really think that on-ground

students don’t use mainly the same tools to write their papers?

How Important is AAL?• From Birmingham Grid for Learni

ng:

•AAL – Potentially the single most significant educational initiative in decades

Anytime, Anywhere Learning

•Anyone can learn anytime and anywhere.

•Ummm, no, they can’t!•This rarely applies to

individual students.

Net Generation

Next Generation

Nexters

Generation Y

Generation Why

Millennials

Digital Natives

Generation Now

iGeneration

Echo Boomers

GoogleGeneration

NintendoGeneration

Screenagers

That’s Crazy talk.Let’s consolidate.

DigitalNet Gennials

“Digital Net-gennials” Get It• Um, no, they don’t!!• They get MySpace and FaceBook.• They get IM and text messaging.• They have very few technology skills that

we expect them to use in e-Learning.

• Is that their problem, or ours?

Cheating is Rampant• Really? Prove it!!• Stanford dorm residen

t?• Troy University –

Big Brother device• Lucky for us, Congress is ready to save us from the cheaters.

Student Satisfaction Ratings

E-LearningMyth-busters

Point of View: The Faculty Perspective

Faculty Perspective: Questions 7-9

7.Faculty are embracing the concept of shared electronic learning objects

8.Online faculty work harder9.I don’t have the time to

learn any of this new stuff

Faculty are embracing the concept of shared

electronic learning objects

Reality M

yth

50%50%

1.Reality2.Myth

Online faculty work harder

Reality M

yth

55%

45%

1.Reality2.Myth

I don’t have time to learn any of this

new stuff

Reality M

yth

46%

54%

1.Reality2.Myth

Faculty Perspective: Questions 10-12

10. Web accessibility is NOT my job!

11. Entertaining students is NOT my job!

12. Highly interactive online courses are better than courses with little interaction.

Faculty: Web accessibility

is NOT my job!

Reality M

yth

64%

36%

1.Reality2.Myth

Faculty: Entertaining students

is NOT my job!

Reality M

yth

56%

44%

1.Reality2.Myth

Highly interactive courses are better than courses with little interaction

Reality M

yth

0%

100%

1.Reality2.Myth

Learning Objects?• Define SCORM.• What is a SCO?• Name 3 different ways that

an LOR can be used effectively.

• Huh? What’s an LOR?

Faculty Effort• Work harder?

– Really? All of them?

• Highly interactive, highly engaged faculty work very hard – regardless of the delivery method.

I Don’t Have the Time• Since when is it okay for a teacher

to stop learning?• Are you sure that all the things

you do now are more valuable that learning new things?

• What if the new things make you better, or more efficient, or more effective?

Web Accessibility is Not MY Job

• Um, yes, it is!!• If you truly believe that, then

STOP teaching on the web.•See how frustrating this is?

Don’t do this to your students!!

Entertaining Students is Not MY Job

• Um, yes, it is!!• If you truly believe that, then STOP

teaching on the web (and everywhere else for that matter).

• Have you ever listened to an incredibly boring keynote address?

Interaction• Interaction is good (we think) – but

what exactly is it?• How does one interact with static

content?• “Interactive” is the most overused

and abused term in e-Learning today.

E-LearningMyth-busters

Point of View: The Broader Perspective

Questions 13-1513. A VLE is an important component of

e-Learning14. Second Life will be the Second

Coming for teaching and learning.15. Through web analytics reporting,

we are learning a tremendous amount of useful information about the behavior and activities of our online students.

A Virtual Learning Environment (or LMS) is an important component of e-Learning

6%

10%

16%

38%

30% 1. Absolutely Essential2. Very Important3. Important4. Slightly Important5. Not Really Necessary

Second Life will be the Second Coming

for teaching and learning.

Reality M

yth

76%

24%

1.Reality2.Myth

Through web analytics reporting, we are learning a

tremendous amount of useful information about

the behavior and activities of our online students.

Reality M

yth

0%

100%

1.Reality2.Myth

Questions 16-1816.Through the use of rubrics and standards

related to the quality of online courses (i.e. Quality Matters™), we are sufficiently addressing the questions about e-learning quality.

17.The cost to the institution and the price (tuition) to the student should be lower for e-Learning than traditional bricks-and-mortar education.

18.Online learning is plagued by a huge number of fictitious students.

Through the use of rubrics and standards related to the quality

of online courses (i.e. Quality Matters™), we are sufficiently

addressing the questions about e-learning quality

Reality M

yth

63%

37%

1.Reality2.Myth

The cost to the institution and the price (tuition) to

the student should be lower for e-Learning than

traditional bricks-and-mortar education.

1.Reality2.Myth

Online learning is plagued with a

huge number of fictitious students

Reality M

yth

100%

0%1.Reality2.Myth

VLE or PLE?• Virtual learning environments need

to become more open, more flexible, more creative and less reactive.

• Embracing Web 2.0 concepts in a more open, more personalized learning environment is the future.

Second Life in Education

Web Analytics• The amount of

information available about our students is mind boggling.

• However, we are not mining it and using it.

QualityMatters is Sufficient

• QualityMatters looks at the quality of course design.

Learning

QualityConcerns

DesignTeaching

• That’s good, but it’s only one leg holding up the stool.

• Um, no, it isn’t!!

Learning LevelIs High

Teaching LevelIs High

Course DesignMeets Standards

Learning Assessment

Perform

ance Eval Q

ualit

yMat

ters

®

Learning LevelIs Low

Teaching LevelIs High

Course DesignMeets Standards

Learning Assessment

Perform

ance Eval Q

ualit

yMat

ters

®

Learning LevelIs High

Teaching LevelIs High

Course DesignBelow Standard

Learning Assessment

Perform

ance Eval Q

ualit

yMat

ters

®

Learning LevelIs High

Teaching LevelIs Low

Course DesignMeets Standards

Learning Assessment

Perform

ance Eval Q

ualit

yMat

ters

®

Learning LevelIs Low

Teaching LevelIs Low

Course DesignMeets Standards

Learning Assessment

Perform

ance Eval Q

ualit

yMat

ters

®

Learning LevelIs Low

Teaching LevelIs High

Course DesignBelow Standard

Learning Assessment

Perform

ance Eval Q

ualit

yMat

ters

®

Learning LevelIs Low

Teaching LevelIs Low

Course DesignBelow Standard

Learning Assessment

Perform

ance Eval Q

ualit

yMat

ters

®

Lower Cost for Online?• Why tuition differentials?• Just because we can?• Or because online learning has

been an add-on at all campuses with new and additional costs incurred?

Fictitious Students?• This has been the #1 fear since

online learning began.• To this date, there is no credible

evidence that I am aware of that indicates that this is a real problem.

Other Myths or Realities?• I have 35 items on the list so

far.•Send me your ideas to add to

the list.

b.dahl@lsc.edu

More about e-Learning Myths at:

Desire2blog.blogspot.com