This course is meant to provide students with an opportunity to explore significant themes in instructional technology - this semester we will focus specifically in the area of online and distributed learning. We will explore both the theoretical underpinnings as well as various perspectives on the nature of "learning at a distance" with an emphasis on higher education contexts.
Why is this a topic that might be of interest? There are several reasons I think. For example, currently more than 6 million college students are, like you, studying in fully online courses. That is one in three of every college student in the US! And this mode of learning is growing outside of higher education as well, with many states now creating virtual schools in the k-12 sector.
Additionally the online education world is rapidly changing. For example, recently, MIT, Harvard, Stanford and other elite institutions have also made headlines with big online education initiatives. Harvard, MIT and Berkeley are working together on the not-for profit "edX". Stanford and more than a dozen other colleges are collaborating on what will be a for-profit initiative "Coursera".
These projects aim to provide free access to college courses offered by these institutions, albeit not for college credit. Stanford has offered such massive open online courses (MOOCs) recently with enrollments in single course in the hundreds of thousands. These developments makes for big headlines, but what are the roots of all this recent activity?
Students in this course will read and reflect upon the literature that frames the practice of online teaching and learning as well as critically review research in this arena. The goal here is to build awareness about the long history and significant research base for distance education and its more recent incarnation, online learning.
But beyond research we will also engage in practice. Students will review and "try out" new technologies for online and distributed learning with the aim of becoming conceptually (and practically) more knowledgeable.
It is my hope and expectation that you will come to the course with some specific experiences or interests that help you to apply and "personalize" the concepts and principles that we discuss - and allow you to work on issues, ideas or projects that are personally meaningful. I really want you to have a powerful learning experience here and your active participation in the course will help make this a reality.