When I started my bachelor’s degree in 1997, it was obtained through online, or ‘distance’ learning. At the time, we were learning through VHS tapes and painfully slow online course chat rooms. This mode of educational delivery eventually led to my earning my degree from Kansas State University. Since then, I’ve earned two Master’s degrees in Health Information Informatics Management and IT Leadership from one of the oldest, and best HIM universities in the country: the College of St. Scholastica via, you guessed it, online education. I’ve spent almost 15 years in online education as a student and now professor. Online learning is here to stay! Technological advances in online education are moving forward in leaps and bounds. We are now encouraged toembrace the mind-boggling choices for creative delivery of online learning for the future. What we see at present is only the tip of the iceberg.
What will change look like?
Changes in online learning are occurring at every angle – from how web platforms host and deliver quality cyber classes, to open-source courses from highly acclaimed universities. Coursera, for example, was co-founded by two former Stanford University professors, and has already earned a whopping $65 million in funding in its short existence. Coursera is a, “Social entrepreneurship company partnering with 33 top universities in the world to offer courses online for anyone to take, for free.” Coursera.org works with professors around the world to deliver “…sound pedagogical foundations to help master concepts quickly and effectively.” We will continue to see more and more of these university consortiums in the future form what is known as MOOC– Massive Open Online Courses.
Virtual classrooms continue to evolve – 24 x 7 learning is taken for granted, students exchange files through URLS and other technologically advanced resources. Artificial intelligence, web-based learning profiles and intelligent tutoring systems are being streamlined and fine-tuned to accommodate the needs and expectations of generations Y and Z. Let’s face it folks, we are way beyond the dawning of the Age of Aquarius!
How do we embrace change?
As we head into a new fall term, those of us designing our
online courses for coding and health information management classes need to be aware of innovative ways to keep our students engaged and
involved. It’s not as easy as taking a
face-to-face class and, ‘putting it all online.’ Those who have done so learn from experience that
it’s a bad, bad, thing to assume online education is likened to face-to-face
classroom time.
Resources for designing creative and engaging online learning courses are at our fingertips. Our college’s information technology department most likely has an ample list of tips, support and often times classes for faculty on how to adequately prepare an online class. Furthermore, if your educational institution is using Blackboard, Moodle 2, WebCT or other education delivery platforms there are a multitude of resources available to make the most of your online course design.
Perhaps one of the most single important things to remember when transitioning a face-to-face class to online learning is: keep it simple. Less is more. While it’s incredibly important to relay all required curriculum as well as assignments and resources to students on a course page, it’s even more important to make a course page easy on the eyes. That is, no multi-colored, multi-sized fonts unless there is rhyme and reason. You don’t want your students to get ‘lost’ trying to figure out what they need to do. I currently use Moodle2, and although there are a variety of templates available to professors, I stick with the simple designs. I make certain my course homepage flows, and I allow plenty of time to design my online course homepage. Since I will be staring at this all term, and so will my students, I do not want it to distract from my material, instead, I want it to compliment my course content. Follow this pearl of wisdom, and you’re off to a good start with your course.
Icebergs may be melting, but there continues to be huge unknowns beyond the surface. This holds true with education and how it's delivered to our future HIM and coding professionals. Our old ways of face-to-face teaching are disappearing, and new technological advancements in education are evolving and must be embraced in order for humanity to thrive.
