Discussion of ROI - Jeffrey Scott

Cal State Chico’s Rubric for Online Instruction provides a concise and effective guide to designing an online course.

Learner Support and Resources

This is a feature that is often lacking in online course design. Perhaps it is because designers assume that by now everyone is familiar with the new technologies used now for online learning. They are not. I can speak from experience when I say that as a student returning to graduate school 20 years after receiving my BA, I was unaware of the advances of the past decades and found the online environment confusing and frustrating. Even though I am a campus student, enough of the new technology creeps in to be noticeable. The non-linear organization of course materials online and the lack of paper really take some getting used to. Eventually everyone on the planet will have been brought up through their schooling with exposure to these learning environments, but as long as there are dinosaurs like me left we need a little help getting used to it. To the veteran, it may seem as ridiculous as instuructions in a book about “how to read this book” but really it would be useful. This video illustrates the concept with another “new technology” that today is not so new: click here to view video

Online Organization and Design

This is another area of online course design that is often overlooked. In the F2F learning environment, no one expects the textbook to match the powerpoint slides and the whiteboard, etc., and there is no need for that because the material is presented to the student passively. The student does not have to navigate the materials. Online, however, it is important that pages have a consistent look and consistent navigation system. Otherwise the site is distracting and difficult to navigate, resulting in frustration.

Instructional Design and Delivery

These tips are good to remember, but are basic ID and apply equally to F2F and online environments.

Assessment and Evaluation of Student Learning

Same as above.

Innovative Teaching with Technology

I was a little leery of this topic because of the temptation to use hot, slick, new technology just for the sake of the technology. I would rewrite the rubric items to stress the following parts:

A. Course uses a variety of technology tools to APPROPRIATELY FACILITATE COMMUNICATION AND LEARNING.

B. New teaching methods are applied and innovatively ENHANCE STUDENT LEARNING and interactively ENGAGE STUDENTS.

C. A variety of multimedia elements a/o learning objects are used and ARE RELEVANT to accommodate different learning styles…

D. Course optimizes Internet access and EFFECTIVELY ENGAGES STUDENTS IN THE LEARNING PROCESS …

Bottom line: the use of technology must be appropriate, must enhance student learning, must engage students, and must be relevant. Otherwise it should be left out no matter how snazzy it is.

Faculty Use of Student Feedback

Again, a basic principle of ID common to F2F and eLearning but good to keep in mind.