[Air-l] online education effectiveness

[Dr. T. Michael Roberts]

The argument I buy about the cost and time
effectiveness of DL courses as opposed to traditional
classroom courses is about what the time and money
invested are being invested in. Students can spend
time studying that would be spend driving to a campus
and end up investing about the same total time but
learning more. They can also use any scrap of time in
their schedule to do their work. Many students can
find enough scraps of time during the week to do one
course whose schedules would make it very difficult to
fit that same one course in with regular meeting times
in a traditional classroom.

I have never seen any research on this but I would bet
that the percentage of the total cost spent per
student that goes to paying people to teach or design
instructional materials is much higher in DL classes
than in traditional classroom courses. So much of the
money spent on “education” goes to building parking
lots and other such that have little to do with
actually learning anything that my strong hunch is
that DL is a more economical way to learn whether we
are speaking of an investment of time or of money. 
TMike  


--- Caroline Haythornthwaite <haythorn at uiuc.edu>
wrote:

> As with most applications of CMC, the question is
> not really whether programs 
> are effective or cost effective, but how to do it
> best anyway. Sloan-C supported 
> a lot of work in the US with the aim of proving that
> teaching and learning was 
> possible via asynchronous learning (ALN for
> asynchronous learning networks), 
> and then to see about cost effectiveness. In
> general, most would agree about 
> the former, but also that it is not (yet?) a cost
> saving. Indeed, many wonder why 
> educational institutions should be trying to make a
> cheaper model of education. 
> The flip side is why should educational institutions
> be so expensive and thus 
> exclude others.
> 
> Research -- lots of journals, from the Journal of
> Asynchronous Learning 
> Networks to many Education journals, and work in CMC
> journals. Plus, Sloan-C 
> reports, National School Board and department of
> education reports.
> 
> Main effectiveness reference is the No Significant
> Difference work (http://
> www.nosignificantdifference.org/) showing no
> difference in learning outcomes 
> online vs off. Hence it is 'as good as' ftf/offline.
> 
> More subtle effectiveness work points out the
> greater reach of online, 
> advantages for those with different learning styles
> (e.g., the reflexivity possible 
> in online venues, and ability to review materials),
> opportunities to be embedded 
> in local work and community, and the variety of
> mediated options that increase 
> variety of educational means.
> 
> There are several notable large scale failures of
> programs at the university level 
> (e.g., UK eU), but many success stories at the
> program/degree level.
> 
> UIUC is currently proposing a 'Global Campus' --
> we're waiting to see if the 
> board approves the money. 
> 
> /Caroline
> 
> 
> ---- Original message ----
> >Date: Mon, 11 Sep 2006 18:23:45 +0100 (BST)
> >From: Heidi Campbell <hcampbe1 at yahoo.co.uk>  
> >Subject: Re: [Air-l] online education effectiveness
>  
> >To: air-l at listserv.aoir.org
> >
> >Hi All.  
> >   
> >  Does anyone know any good research reports or
> review articles that deal with 
> the effectiveness of online education tools or
> initiatives? For instance, friend told 
> me the The University of Illinois just invested $20
> million in just trying to assess 
> feasibility of its online education program.  
> >   
> >  So what evidence is out there right now as to
> whether online education tools/
> programs are effective or cost effective?
> >   
> >  Cheers-
> >   
> >  Heidi
> >
> > 		
> >---------------------------------
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> ----------------------------------------
> Caroline Haythornthwaite
> Associate Professor
> Graduate School of Library and Information Science,
> University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
> 501 East Daniel St., Champaign IL 61820
> 
> 
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“In so far as literature turns back on itself and examines parodies or treats ironically its own signifying procedures, it becomes the most complex account of signification we possess.” – John Deely

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