Hi there,
It is simple: they have to remain on the cutting edge, reach out to the maximum amount of people while bringing down cost. They have to create the future!!!
:-)
Mike
Your are right about creating the future, and also because of the competition. It is so fierce that if students are needing online, want to go to a certain school but with no online, those will go elsewhere. In this day and time, schools can't afford that to happen.
Yes, we know they have lives like we do; we can help them handle it better by giving them examples of our own work and school experiences or what it took to get through it. I remind students that their "rescheduled" lives, at the present, will not be forever; it will be worth it.
We have several programs but the one I'm in charge of is so lab heavy, with such a small enrollment every term, that we can have up to eight different classes in one room at the same time. Our students get the training they need, but it comes primarily from the book that they are issued. We are looking to create a hybrid program so that students who wish to can do labs from home and get the same credit and knowledge as those who decide to come to our campus.
With today's Tweeters, Facebookers and text messagers, we've noticed that most of our students don't want to go anywhere to learn. Other schools are offering an escape from the cage and we need to compete with them. We may not be able to go fully online at first, but the hybrid classes will give us time to video our other instructors to open the possibilities in the future.
Schools benefit by allowing students to achieve success, at their own pace, in subject areas that lend themselves to distance learning. This encourages retention. Classroom instruction is used for "hands on" learning.
Schools also keep up to date with the younger generation's desire for technology, motivating and encouraging them to achieve success.
Institutions offer online courses and programs not just for competition but to meet the needs of its students. Most students do not attend class due day/time conflict with other personal / work committments.
I am a board certified psychiatrist and medical director of the organization that I work at in the Pittsburgh area. Many physicians now are turning to online CME programs to meet the state requirements, which in Pennsylvania require 100 CME's every two years to remain licensed. Harvard Medical School has traditionally provided a broad range of online medical prgrams, including nontraditional and complimentary medicine programs that relate to weight loss and stress reduction. There is a need for more of these programs.
With the passing of the health care bill, there is a significant need to organize this information and teach practitioners how to integrate it into clinical practice.
I am professionally very interested in developing online courses and programs that respond to these health care challenges. In addition the field of gerontology is dramatically growing, and as baby boomers enter into older age groups, it will be exciting to provide educational opportunities for all health care practitioners who wish to learn about these unique and growing health care niches.
To enroll additional students and to give current students the opportunity to study from home.
Hi, Monika,
Many feel as you do--some courses lend themselves to distance learning; others require "hands on" in a classroom. How do you (and other posters) respond to the notion that "every course" can be taught online given enough resources?
I'm not trying to put you on the spot. I'm just playing devil's advocate since you expressed yourself so clearly.
Thanks for participating. Linda
The idea of offering online courses is just a thought for us at this point, but many of the issues brought up in this section apply to us as well.
1. more flexibility for students
2. alleviation of potential overcrowding
3. other schools in our area offer online classes
Online courses are important in educating students due to their distance to the campus, transportation cost, and for the adult learner, work time. I believe that our institution can deliver a program that will not only help with cost but a stronger and more willing student. Adult learner especially will not have to choose between provided for their families or going back to school. Which isn't that what education is all about?
We are wanting to reach students that we wouldn't normally reach with our B&M campuses. We are also offering a few different programs than our ground campuses.
We want our school to be progressive and deliver content economicaly.
I think it is important to offer online programs because of the flexibility, it gives prospects more of an option to return to school without a strict, set schedule. People tend to have a busier life style now, and this gives them a reason to come back to school. It also gives a great opportunity to reach prospects from a greater distance.
Institutions offer online courses and programs for various different reasons:
1.) In order to compete with other post-secondary institutions
2.) Convenient for stay-at-home or working adults
3.) In order to free-up classroom space and create more labs
4.) Technology is rapid and ever changing
Institutions offer online courses for a variety of reasons:
- to reach a different market
- to be more competitive
- lack of classroom/lab space
- to meet the needs of a specific market
The primary reason is revenue. By offering students online courses, we have an opportunity to increase course loads in a way that is flexible for students.
The other primary reason is competitive. Students expect to have the option to take courses in a way that is convenient for them. Not offering online options for students today puts your institution at considerable competitive risk.
Agreed. We all completed class at some point, and out lived were put to some extent on hold. Education is not about the immediate benefit, but using the immediate knowlege or skill gain for future benefit.
THis is what must be stressed. Their lives are what is important to us!
Convenience of access is important for working adults, but we cannot lose sight of the fact that the younger "Y" generation grew up with technology and it has become a part of their life. They seem to prefer that medium of communication and can multi-task better than older generations. They want to be entertained and that can be accomplished easier online that in a more traditional classroom setting through the use of graphics, animations and the like.
