Defining e-learning

[Tim Tirrell]

follow up to the email thread...

Hello All:

I always enjoy the insights of conversations like this with the people
on this list who "get it"; however I'll frame my comments in the
context of those who don't "get it" and whom James and Tom G probably
had in mind when initiating this discussion in terms of reporting.

First of all, I agree "distance" is a staid term, online learning is
just an instructional tool or format and temporal?... how cool.

While the online format is just an instructional tool it presents
unique issues and challenges for student services and faculty
support. The good news is the solutions for those, such as online
tutoring, are applicable across the entire campus and so what we do
will ultimately be to the benefit of all. I prefer to use "e-learning"
and thus online, blended, compressed video, etc are all points on the
e-learning continuum.

Synthesizing what has been said in previous discussions and just
presenting conclusions:

Do we need to categorize e-learning students and courses?
- yes, if for no other reason than planning and resource allocation
purposes. Online courses are taught and created differently than
their on-campus counterparts; like it or not, courses and FTE are the
coin of the realm and we have to be able to report those figures to
justify the funding and resources we need for us to do what we do.
Student locale really isn't so relevant in this case.

- yes, for student services as well. Distance isn't the issue here as
much as changing expectations. Students are expecting electronic
access to a full realm of student services even if they live in the
dorm; furthermore, the largest growing market in Montana Higher ed and
the market we all covet - the adult student age 25-45 - will want and
need to access to a significant number of student services
electronically.

When I can show the only segment of enrollment continuing to increase
is online credits, I become like E.F Hutton and people listen. I can
also show how many students are online only or taking on campus as
well, and I can show how many students we have that live over 100
miles away. That information is useful and I bring it out when
needed. But reporting that 30% of MSUB enrollments are online
students is why I have a budget.

Remember, we get it; until the work of apostles like Pat and the rest
of us is done, we need to be able to report this data to faculty,
administrators, legislators, etc who don't.

We have to be consistent or its meaningless; we have danced with this
issue previously on MetNet and at the meeting at Bozeman in February;
the sloan terms "online", "blended", "enhanced" are simple and clear.
However we will have to come to some agreement about the percentages.