Online Education Is Evolving

Jonathan Lekstutis
November 23, 2007

As online learning continues to grow and more and more students are making the choice to get their college degrees online, educators are searching for more ways to make the experience more enjoyable. During the fall 2006 term, about 3.5 million students took at least one online course, according to the Sloan Consortium report “Online Nation: Five Years of Growth in Online Learning.” And although they did it because they wanted a college degree, that aspiration alone might not carry them to completion.

Online educators are trying to give their students more of a feeling of community. For on-campus students this is not a problem. They have a strong connection to their college or university because they live there and it’s where their friends are. But online students are usually only connected by a fiber optic, so strengthening that connection can sometimes be difficult. Educators are trying to do just that though as they believe it will increase student satisfaction.

According to Martha Cleveland-Innes, associate professor at the Centre for Distance Education at Athabasca University, one way to increase engagement between students is to lessen issues students might have with technology, and increase contact among and between students and faculty.

“We have preliminary data,” said Cleveland-Innes, “that suggests that an enhanced sense of community will enhance completion.”

George Saltsman, the director of Educational Technology for the Adams Center for teaching and Learning at Abilene Christian University, looks to research that shows that when students form learning communities, they hold each other accountable for the success of the entire class.

“If you can foster a connection,” said Don Smith, manager of distance learning programs and support at Sinclair Community College, “students will be more persistent over all. It helps them feel they are part of a class and not flying solo.