Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/337193
19 BizEd July/August 2014 ing multiple computer languages. Once students finish these pro- grams, employers such as Google and Adobe hire them at six-figure salaries. "Employers are validating such nonaccredited learning path- ways because they know these stu- dents have exactly the set of skills they're looking for," says Weise. And what about MOOCs? Even with so many headlines focus- ing on MOOC providers such as Coursera and edX, experts don't see them as game changers yet. "As they stand today, MOOCs aren't a disruptive force in the way we define disruptive innovations," says Weise. "However, they have the potential to be, and Udacity is the closest to figuring this out. Instead of just offering one-off courses, MOOCs need to bundle courses more strategically for the right set of nonconsumers—in this case, people who want to 'skill up' in a particular area." Even if MOOCs haven't yet found their niche, Means of the Warrington College appreciates how MOOCs are changing the way educators think about their role in the classroom. "We're hav- ing fabulous conversations about online pedagogy that we've never had before. MOOCs are push- ing us to rethink what we do," says Means. "They're also great resources for our students so we don't have to reinvent the wheel every time we teach. I'm really excited about that." Online Advantages Many faculty are finding that well- designed online courses offer ben- efits to students that face-to-face courses cannot, says Ken Hartman, a principal analyst with Eduven- tures, a Boston-based consulting firm that works in higher ed. Online courses allow stu- dents more time and oppor- tunity to reflect, engage with content, interact with classmates, and progress at their own pace. In online formats, faculty can use simulations, gamification, and social media more seamlessly. That said, faculty also must do more online to actively manage students' learning experience and keep them engaged. Hartman, Ives, and Means advise faculty to adopt certain best practices that have been shown to improve students' online learning experiences: Establish an ongoing presence. "It's important for instructors to establish social presence in the class, whether they're posting photos of themselves, uploading weekly video clips of themselves, or making sure they know something about each of their students," says Ives. At the beginning of her own online classes, Ives asks her students to post intro- ductions of themselves. When she interacts with them, she then can ask about their new baby or recent vacation. "Students need to feel rec- ognized," she says. Think about engagement, not just content. Online education is about more than uploading recorded lectures and materials to a learning management system. "That's an online filing cabinet, not an online course," says Means. "Faculty need to think about how they want to teach this content online and what kinds of interac- tions they want students to have." For instance, to teach students how to use Microsoft Excel and Access, one Warrington College professor asks students to check concepts on a handout as they hear it presented in each online lecture. Such an intellectual "scavenger hunt" helps them focus on what the professor wants them to learn, says Means. Means asks her own students to write blog posts in an assignment she calls "Muddy- Clear." Students write about con- cepts from each week's discussion that most confused them (muddy) or enlightened them (clear). They then hit the discussion boards to talk about the blogs. "Requiring them to reflect on what they learn deepens their understanding," she says. Embrace adaptive technologies. Hartman is a big believer in the power of self-paced adaptive learn- ing. "Given what we know about how people think and learn, we're seeing tremendous advances in adaptive assessment and learning, which allows students to progress at different rates, and only after they've demonstrated mastery of a competency," he says. "You can't do that very well in the face-to-face classroom. Online there's no place for students to hide." 57.2 percent of educators in 2003 who believed learning outcomes for online learning were equal or superior to those for face-to-face * Source for the figures on these three pages: "The 2013 Survey of Online Learning" from the Babson Survey Research Group, the Sloan Consortium, and Pearson 74.1 percent of educators who thought so in 2013