CTE White Paper on Online Teaching and Learning

The delivery of courses online is nearly as old as the web itself, but as with any innovation, some faculty members have been early adopters while others have watched the development with both interest and skepticism. As publishing and managing content on the web has become easier, and as the delivery of online courses has become increasingly more popular, more faculty members have begun exploring ways to offer their courses online.

There is a common perspective that moving a course online is primarily about designing and sequencing course content. While content is important, we also believe that recent changes on the web – toward a more social and interconnected space – have necessitated the rethinking of what it means to make the transition to online teaching and learning. The unprecedented access to information coupled with the ability by anyone to publish online are disrupting how one teaches and learns, raising questions in the minds of faculty as to whether their own practices should change.

Jeff Nugent, Bud Deihl, and I at the Virginia Commonwealth University Center for Teaching Excellence where I work have authored a white paper, Building from Content to Community: [Re]Thinking the Transition to Online Teaching and Learning, that is intended to serve as a resource for faculty who are teaching online or are considering making a transition. We hope this paper serves as the starting point for conversation, and invite you to share your ideas by leaving a comment at our CTE blog or here.

We look forward to hearing your thoughts!

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]

One thought on “CTE White Paper on Online Teaching and Learning

  1. I really enjoyed reading the white paper. In my current work in higher ed I find my marketing work shifting more to helping faculty, staff in a consultation role on delivery of course/audience needs perspective and then blending that with new teaching/outreach methods using perhaps educational technology, Web 2.0, class format, etc…

    Very much the basic conversation of what is the goal, etc…and then the new part –how do you make the online course one that is more than just text or a talking head – more of an experience – interative and engaging…how do you help faculty/staff get there….

    Such a great conversation starter and one that is needed! Keep us updated and thanks for addressing this topic!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *