I disagree in that should be as important as the knowledge and skills, but feel a though the look and feel of the online course is paramount to the success of learning. They are environmental condition which make major contributions to imparting knowledge, a means to which students can easily grasp, understand, process, and engage with the material. The look and feel is a vehicle which critical thinking drives, and critical thinking itself should be considered the top priority.
I completely agree with this statement.
An online course needs to have structural integrity as discussed in the first module of this training to allow students and facilitator the opportunity to present course content in a logical sequence and build upon new concepts, new information that is being presented to the students throughout the course.
It is also important to make the course easy to navigate as to minimize frustration and optimize the time that we spend online completing course assignments, reviewing content, lectures, etc. Both the design of the course and the content of the course are important and should be carefully addressed.
Hi gang…
Our question here is the following:
“Is the look and feel of an online course as important as the knowledge and skills it is designed to impart?â€
And my answer would be an unequivocal “yes†- absolutely. As course designers, we can rely on Subject Matter Experts (SME’s) to create both content and questions and summaries (information) that teaches, focuses, and tests students on the critical aspect of what is being taught. However, if the content that has been validated is unorganized, presented in difficult to access ways, and/or doesn’t take into account the learners “entire course experience†then it’s very possible that you’ll have a “good plan†that’s gone bad.
That is, students may not learn in an optimized way, and certain information that is presented earlier may confuse later information if not properly addressed, discussed, reviewed, and tested. There’s also an issue of just one modality - text - and if you are not using other multimedia opportunities to present information, you may “dull†your student to a dreary failure.
So…if you have excellent content for your course you’re half way there. The next half - and sometimes the most challenging and fun task - lies in front of you.
Thanks for allowing me to contribute to the discussion and have a great day.
Geoff Hacker
Tampa, Florida
I agree that easily digested "fun" material, or material that students already have some knowledge of, and are eager to gain more knowledge about is more easily taught. The fun part for me is getting them engaged with the material they thought they had
no prior knowledge about, but by applying common sense and life examples, they find they do have more knowledge than they previously thought. Then I get them eager to learn even more on those applied topics.
Angel Brown CPhT
CIDMA Instructor
Michael,
We must promote critical thinking in our classes. This seems to be missing quite a bit in today's society.
Shelly Crider
Hector,
You are right, you really need to have a good balance. Content is the utmost importance, however, we need to engage the student to view the content!
Shelly Crider
Geoffrey,
dull and dreary does not get the student involved in the content.
Shelly Crider
I agree that look and feel is important because if the student becomes frustrated with the layout and content, then they will fail.
Yes, absolutely! If an online course has small font or lack of color it is very demotivating to work on. I like an online course to be warm and inviting with welcoming font and pics if possible. A personal welcome and some directional and navigational help is a powerful tool to make students feel more comfortable.
I agree that the look and feel of an online course is important to help facilitate learning. If there are too many objects or disorganize content on the page, it is confusing to students, it wastes time trying to navigate through the items, and can result with misunderstanding the material or reduced levels of learning.
I believe the "feel" of online content is important because if it communicates a sense of negativity, confusion, or anxiety it can overwhelm the student and result with them giving up on the course. It is helpful to have the material convey a sense of inclusion to different cultural interests as online learners can be in many different countries, different age groups, or different cultural backgrounds.
I agree, the format of his home page should give him a feeling of direction and there is some logical method to the learning process. A link to the syllabus should be present on his home page as well as links to various modules. Each module should contain objectives, assignments, assessments, presentations,discussion links and a checklist that outlines requirements for completing the module.The checklist should define required text materials, tools and any special applications needed for the course.
Yes agree. Students want to know they are learning from a well established institute, college or university. The look and feel of an online course sets a standard for the class.
I'm just entering the nuts and bolts of online instruction. I know from experience in the classroom the difference the look and feel of a course can make to imparting knowledge and skills. Given that we don't have the body language to tap into, the more means that are used to deliver the content, the better. These elements of a course would also respect the various learning styles of online learners which would increase success for the students (and instructors).
I agree. The interaction with students must be visually stimulating as well as functionally easy for the student to navigate. If the interface is bland and unappealing the student won't pay attention and will not focus on the information or the education experience.
David Pittman
Lisa,
A personal welcome must be in each and every class, otherwise, students feel they are in a shell.
Shelly Crider
Edwin,
I like having the checklist there as well. This helps teach organization to the students.
Shelly Crider
Jesse,
If a student is paying money, they ought to be receiving a decent education.
Shelly Crider
Teresa,
These are good points. Body language is very important in the classroom. You can actully tell from a note from the students how they are feeling.
Shelly Crider
Generally speaking it is necessary to have a professional course delivery system. This would interpret to power point presentations and video clips when appropriate. However, I struggle with the "look and feel" reference since this seems to detract from the more important content. I would not put knowledge and skill on equal footing to the "look and feel". I may be reading into the word choice but there are only so many options available to improve the look and feel of a course and I am not certain if increased focus on this is an optimal use of time.
David,
We definitely want knowledge at the front of our platform. How we get the knowledge transferred to the student is up to the instructor. Some will emphasize look and feel, others go right for content. This is not any different than in the traditional setting where an instructor stands up in front of class to lecture.
Shelly Crider
