Online education is growing at a phenomenal rate. This growth in online education offers many opportunities to colleges and universities to reach students who may not have attended a traditional (brick and mortar) college or university. Online education also gives students more control over their education along with a more flexible schedule. As with every opportunity there comes a responsibility. For colleges and universities, this responsibility includes the need to effectively engage students in the online classroom to ensure learning. This paper will review the theories that can be used to foster online learning and education, as well as some of the best practices for effectively engaging the online student in the classroom. Don't despair -- these best practices do not require an investment in expensive technology or resources -- they just require the creativity and imagination of the instructor to redesign the learning experience and adapt it to the online platform. Authentic learning which includes the use of problems based on real world situations, scenarios and role playing exercises, case studies and problem based activities will be reviewed as one of the most effective ways to encourage engagement of the online student as well as their academic growth and development. As the paper discusses, these concepts can also be utilized with great success with the adult learner in the online classroom.
The online education growth has been phenomenal for several years. 62.4% of colleges offered online degree programs at the end of 2012 which is up significantly from 32.5% in 2002 (Sheehy, 2013). When universities experience this type of growth, one of the major questions that educators ask is what new strategies can be used to better engage these types of students? This paper will attempt to answer these questions.
The Theories Behind Online Learning
There are several theories that can be used for online learning and education. The best theory to use would be Kolb's Experiential Learning Theory (Kolb, 1984). Kolb defined this as "a process whereby concepts are derived from and continually modified by experience" (p. 28). Chan (2012) defined experiential learning as "learning by actual experience…it requires the learner to experience, reflect, think and act in a cyclic process in response to the learning situation and what is learned" (pp. 405-406).
Baasanjav (2013) described Kolb's theory with respect to e-learning. "The term experiential e-learning, or ee-learning, refers to the possibility of bringing together everyday experience and communication technologies" (Beard, Wilson, McCarter, 2007; Carver, King, Hannum, & Fowler, 2007; Murphey, 2010; Riedel, Endicott, Wasescha, & Gold-ston, 2007; Trevitte,& Eskow, 2007). He explained that Kolb actually used the theories of Lewin, Dewey, and Piaget concerning direct experience. Baasanjav (2013, p. 576) said, "Kolb (1984) asserts that for the learner to be effective in gaining knowledge or skill, he or she has to fully engage in four main stages: (
1) concrete experience; (
2) reflective observation; (
3) abstract conceptualization; and (
4) active experimentation" (p. 576). The research of Foote and Mixson-Brookshire (2014) confirmed the strategic use of Kolb's model to enhance student online learning.
Hence, this blend of experiential learning with e-learning brings together the best of the student's experiences with the use of technology. In an online classroom, there are no limits as to what can be learned from the experiential use of the technologies. It should be noted that students desire more control over their education along with a flexible schedule in the learning process which is a distinct advantage of online education (Carver, King, Hannum, & Fowler, 2007; Drake, Drake, & Ewing, 2010; Dunlap, Dobrovolny, & Young, 2008; Kennedy, 2004; Lalonde, 2011).
Adult Learners in an Online Environment
Malcom Knowles is the theorist who said that adults' learning is vastly different from children's learning. He said:
- Adults are motivated when they utilize their own interests in education.
- Their learning centers around life's experiences.
- Experience is the best source for adults; therefore, the core methodology of adult education is life's situations.
- Since adults are self-directed, the role of the teacher is to engage in a process of mutual inquiiy instead of knowledge transmission.
- Individual differences among people increase with age. Adult education must make optimal provision for differences in style, time, place, and pace of learning. (Knowles, Holton & Swanson, 2005, pp. 39-40)
Herbold's (2012) research found that adults like the strategies of using an "independent or online classroom study; a socially networked study; theoretical or applied activities; recorded discussions or lectures; discussion boards; selection of their own activities; and helping to build the course structure" (pp. 120 and 123). This researcher goes on to discuss the importance of using adult learning concepts when designing any online course as en effective strategy for this student type. Herbold also mentioned the importance of using adult learning theories when implementing a new course or redesigning and existing one.
Effective Online Student Engagement
No matter what the subject matter is for the online course, research has shown that students want to be engaged in an effective manner in the course. Dixson (2010) said that an online course must be as strong as a face to face class. Dixson (2010, p. 1) reviewed the research of Maki and Maki (2007) which found that "online students can and often do outperform traditional students since they are required to do more in online courses than in traditional courses. They also concluded that, to be effective, online instruction required strong methodology and opportunities for students to interact with each other and the instructor".
Dixson (2010) said that there must be cooperation and collaboration between the students and the instructor. Her research further demonstrated that there must be an effective instructor presence. Dixson specifically stated that "instructors need to be actively involved in the learning of their students (Gayton & McEwen, 2007; Young, 2006), but minimally involved in discussions" (Dennen, Darabi, & Smith, 2007; Levy, 2008; Shea, Li & Pickett, 2006; Young, 2006).
Online Engagement Strategies
To better understand what online engagement looks like in e-learning, one must first define what it is not in terms of effectiveness. At the inception of distant learning, e-learning was more or less dressed up traditional methods of delivery. The redesigning of PowerPoint slides for narrated presentations, syllabuses and PDF files converted into online text, course pages jazzed up with graphics, photos, or videos, and even assessment tools, like exams, getting a makeover to drag and drop responses and visual matching. All of these instructional design strategies did provide a simplistic approach to delivery of e-learning without little consideration of learning effectiveness and engagement. The development of a high-quality online course is hard work. In addition, an e-learning focus on student engagement compounds the task at hand because it forces the instructional designer to rethink standard pedagogical practices to coordinate the balance between cognitive and educational psychology, and educational technology into every learning experience (Jonassen, 2004). It is important to note that instructors do not need expensive technology tools or resources to create engagement. Rather than focusing on the e-learning technology involved, an instructor can use their creativity and imagination to design the learning experience to be implemented and adapted to fit the outcomes of the course. To more effectively engage students in online courses, a number of adaptable and flexible learning strategies can be applied to create authentic learning.
Authentic learning usually includes real world problems and solutions, using scenario and role playing experiences, case studies, and problem-based activities. Learners are more engaged when solving real-world problems (Donovan, 1999). Effective educators know that learning by doing takes students to the top of Bloom's taxonomy (Shephard, 2008). However, authentic learning has been difficult to include in e-learning. The element of experimentation and trial and error exercises that require collaboration and communication among students seem to be impossible in the online classroom. With the emergence of Web 2.0 tools and robust features in learning management systems, students can be more engaged in authentic learning experiences. Researchers have proposed that authentic learning experiences can utilize specific adaptable instructional elements.
1. Real world relevance: Authentic activities match the real-world tasks of professionals in practice as nearly as possible. Learning rises to the level of authenticity when it asks students to work actively with abstract concepts, facts, and formulae inside a realistic -- and highly social -- context mimicking "the ordinary practices of the [disciplinary] culture."
- 2. Ill-defined problem: Challenges cannot be solved easily by the application of an existing algorithm; instead, authentic activities are relatively undefined and open to multiple inteipretations, requiring students to identify for themselves the tasks and subtasks needed to complete the major task.
- 3. Sustained investigation: Problems cannot be solved in a matter of minutes or even hours. Instead, authentic activities comprise complex tasks to be investigated by students over a sustained period of time, requiring significant investment of time and intellectual resources.
- 4. Multiple sources and perspectives: Learners are not given a list of resources. Authentic activities provide the opportunity for students to examine the task from a variety of theoretical and practical perspectives, using a variety of resources, and requires students to distinguish relevant from irrelevant information in the process.
- 5. Collaboration: Success is not achievable by an individual learner working alone. Authentic activities make collaboration integral to the task, both within the course and in the real world.
- 6. Reflection (metacognition): Authentic activities enable learners to make choices and reflect on their learning, both individually and as a team or community.
- 7. Interdisciplinary perspective: Relevance is not confined to a single domain or subject matter specialization. Instead, authentic activities have consequences that extend beyond a particular discipline, encouraging students to adopt diverse roles and think in interdisciplinary terms.
- 8. Integrated assessment: Assessment is not merely summative in authentic activities but is woven seamlessly into the major task in a manner that reflects real-world evaluation processes.
- 9. Polished products: Conclusions are not merely exercises or sub steps in preparation for something else. Authentic activities culminate in the creation of a whole product, valuable in its own right.
- 10. Multiple interpretations and outcomes: Rather than yielding a single correct answer obtained by the application of rules and procedures, authentic activities allow for diverse interpretations and competing solutions (Lombardi, 2007, pp. 3-4).
One can see the relevance of authentic learning in the examples noted above. The use of actual experiences helps the learner to grow and develop.
Conclusion
This paper has demonstrated how the engagement of online students using their real world knowledge is vital for successful online classroom experience. The use of creativity will go a long way in helping all students to learn key principles in the online classroom. Since online education is growing as a viable form of education, the faculty must ensure that they are keeping up with the latest methods to enhance this type of education.
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By DR. MARGARET BRITT, Mount Vernon Nazarene University
Source: College Student Journal, Fall2015, Vol. 49 Issue 3, p399, 6p
Item: 109506012
