Progress In Masters Degree Online Programs Distance Learning Barred by a Cottage Industry Approach
Friday, January 30th, 2009It cannot be denied that distance learning and online education is achieving much success during the recent years. This is shown through the increase in the number of applicants vying for a masters degree online. More and more educational institutions have also launched their very own masters degree online programs distance learning. However, critics of online education systems note that most of the e-learning systems offered today are faculty centered. These programs follow a “one size fits all” model.
The “Cottage Industry” approach
Terry Hilsberg, chief executive officer of NextEd Ltd., explains that most e-learning providers use a cottage industry approach for masters degree online programs distance learning. As Hilsberg pointed out during the Western Cooperative for Educational Telecommunications (WCET) conference, “Most U.S. institutions do not have an institution-wide strategic approach to distance learning. Individual faculty members are practicing their craft with online tools, but there is little change in what they offering students.”
Basically, the cottage industry approach happens when a single faculty member uses his traditional methods in offering an online course. The faculty constructs and formulates the whole course matter – designing the course, creating the materials needed, supervising the class and assessing the students. Such traditional approach may be appropriate for the conventional learning format where physical space is not an issue. However, online learning might demand an approach that’s more innovative and engaging.
Answering the need for improvement
Many educational institutions are trying to devise an academic model that employs technology in ensuring a student’s success. Most of the researches are aimed at “academic transformation”, wherein effective educational models used in traditional academe settings will be applied to a distance learning environment.