"Students" on the Highway

I am still grappled by the notion that we can earn degrees and certificates online. I love that I get the opportunity but as I plan to become an online instructor at some point, I am weary about this "honor system" we seem to have online. Is your student "your student"? Can he/she not just have a friend join a conference or submit an online journal?

Yes on-ground students can have a friend do a paper and send in BUT the on-ground instructor has a reference in-class that is not afforded to the online instructor. I have my students write in-class, or work on design projects in-class so that I can monitor their skill and progress. This way, if they turn in any out-of-class work I have a reference to validate consistency of there aptitude to write or design. Is it written differently? Are there sentence structures and language not used by this student before? Is the particular design his/her style? Could the student demonstrate the technical aptitude in-class that I see performed on this out-of-class assignment? Well, I can check that on the spot and have them talk through their design to me.

At some point, as an on-ground instructor, I will be able to say, ahhh, THIS is MY student's work because I was able to see, touch and "smell" it. You can't do that online. So what can you do?

I am thinking of forming ideas for my dissertation (before I even get into my PhD program) around this subject and possibly one on cultural and social considerations for learning online. Any suggestions or resources would be helpful.

RSS feeds

I just read three fabulous articles on RSS feeds. I truly did not know what it was. Very helpful was
this article by Quentin D'Souza.

School Sites
I thought it a great idea, as he mentioned examples of RSS use, for schools to have websites as blogs instead so that each department could provide up-to-date information and it would automatically feed, plus notify any subscribers of changes. The downside, as I view it from an Information Design perspective, is consistency. The sites that I viewed seemed to become lost in navigation once you click on a staff weblog (example). Each staff should have a link pointing you BACK to the main school site if weblogs are used for schools. Traditionally, the faculty would have a site using the schools url.

Credibility on the Highway

I remember searching for a PhD program and fell upon Capella University. I was excited to find EXACTLY what I was interested in: Instructional Design for Online Learning. I got as far as paying an application fee and reviewing courses I would take with a rep when I fell upon a site dedicated to trashing the school; with lists of instructors that don't have credible degrees or training, or have fake degrees.

Later that week I heard a discussion on the radio, I believe it was NPR but not sure, where an employer stated that she overlooks any candidate that comes from online schools. I recall that the discussion was about technical fields, etc.

I changed my mind that week and searched for traditional schools "just to be safe", especially with a PhD. I sent my application to GSU for Instructional Technology and sent an inquiry for West GA's Specialist program for Media and Instructional Technology. I've now pushed my start time back to 2008 so that I have time to research more.

BIG QUESTION? If someone told you they received their PhD online would you feel they were equally matched with someone that went through a traditional program (brick and mortar)? Does the subject matter? What about “certificates” for skills such as the one I have for Advanced Macromedia Flash?

Learning on the Hwy

My blog is about the "Information Superhighway" and how we use it to learn. Join me from time to time and share your views.