Below is the latest version of the definitions of e-learning that Frank Mayadas and I have been working on. This version reflects comments from several readers. Please take a look and let us know what you think.
Definitions of
E-Learning Courses and Programs
Version 1.1
Developed for Discussion within the Online Learning Community
By
Frank Mayadas
and
Gary E. Miller
As e-learning has evolved into a global change agent in
higher education, it has become more diverse in its form and applications. This increased diversity has complicated
our ability to share research findings and best practices, because we lack a
shared set of definitions to distinguish among the many variations on
e-learning that have arisen. This
paper is designed to provide practitioners, researchers, and policy makers with
a common set of terms and definitions to guide the ongoing development of the
field. Our hope is that it will
move us toward a set of shared, commonly understood definitions that will
facilitate the sharing of research data and professional standards in our
field. In developing the
definitions below, we have tried to incorporate existing definitions developed
by others and have incorporated comments from colleagues who have reviewed
earlier drafts. We do not
present these as the ultimate definitions, but as a step toward more commonly
held standards as our field continues to evolve. Additions and revisions will be published as needed.
The Impact of
E-Learning
While e-learning has become the primary form of distance
education, it is also transforming instruction on campus. Higher education historically is a
campus-based institution. Many
students live on campus for the duration of their studies; others live near
campus and commute to campus to take classes and to receive campus-based
support services. This physical
connection has defined the relationship between the student and the
institution. It has also helped to
shape the curriculum itself.
E-learning has blurred these traditional relationships, removing
geography as a defining element in the student-institution relationship.
Technology-enhanced learning has evolved both from enhancements to
earlier generations of face-to-face teaching and enhancements to earlier
generations of distance education. Engaged intentional design of learning experiences has also
evolved to promote the most effective design to serve the learners, their life
experiences and the opportunities and limitations of the particular
environment. For example, many graduate programs have deliberately
designed programs for working adults, which are predominantly offered online but
also include short-term face-to-face residencies.
At the same time, it is becoming increasingly difficult to
define a common measure for instruction.
The “seat time” measure on which common understanding of a “credit hour”
is largely based, is being challenged as new instructional models and
alternatives to traditional classroom lectures become more widely accepted. However, the credit hour remains the
most widely accepted measure used to compare courses across different delivery
environments. Continued growth in
the number and diversity of learning environments will increase the need for a
common standard by which different learning environments can be compared. The following definitions assume the
credit hour as the primary means by which courses are defined, regardless of
delivery environment.
As e-learning has matured, it has begun to be used in
different ways to address diverse goals.
Several models have emerged that have different geographical and
curricular implications. It is
important to be able to distinguish among these factors in order to compare
practices and to understand and be able to effectively apply research
findings. Shared definitions will also
empower students to make better decisions. The major goals of e-learning include: improving access for both traditional-age and nontraditional students who are
not otherwise able to attend a traditional, campus-based program; improving efficiency and effectiveness by using
e-learning media and methods to control cost or provide other efficiencies or
to make large-enrollment courses more effective for students; and improving student choice over when, where, and
how to engage in the learning process.
In addition, we are assuming that courses and programs defined below are
instructor-led experiences, distinguishing them from some corporate training
models.
The following definitions are designed to help both faculty
and students better understand the different kinds of e-learning that are now
practiced in higher education and to provide institutions with some standard
models to encourage effective sharing of data about e-learning, at both the
individual course and the curriculum level.
COURSE-LEVEL DEFINITIONS
Below, we have distilled current practices into six
categories that reflect the variety of applications that are in use today.
1. Traditional
Classroom Course – Course
activity is organized around scheduled
class meetings.
Traditional courses are measured by the number of hours
spent in required class meetings or other traditional activities, such as
laboratories, field trips, or internships. Such courses may involve some sort of computer usage—for
example, a software simulation or laboratory or design software for art or
engineering applications—but the course is still anchored to the normal time
spent in classes. For the purposes
of this paper, courses that use technology at this level are considered to be
“traditional classroom” courses.
2. Synchronous
Distributed Course—Web-based
technologies are used to extend classroom
lectures and discussions to students at remote sites in real time.
These courses use web conferencing or other
synchronous e-learning media to provide access to a classroom experience by
students at off-campus locations (such as places of employment, other campuses,
etc.) while otherwise maintaining a traditional classroom structure. These courses may mix on-campus and
remote students.
3. Web-Enhanced
Course – Online course activity complements class sessions without
reducing the number of required class meetings.
The University of Central
Florida was among the first institutions to adopt this term as an official
category. When Internet access is
required to complete course requirements, and when this Internet-based work
augments classroom activity or supplants less than 20 percent of the
traditional classroom activity, the course is considered a “web-enhanced
course.” Traditional courses and
web-enhanced courses are very similar, but are placed in separate categories
because web-enhanced courses require additional faculty and student support,
and very likely additional technology. Web-enhanced courses are not normally considered to be
e-learning courses, but are described here because they may be a step toward a hybrid
or online course. The National
Center for Academic Transformation (NCAT) calls this a “supplemental” approach,
in which some technology-based,
out-of-class activities are used to encourage greater student engagement with
course content.
4. “Emporium”
Course – This model, designed for on-campus use, eliminates all
class meetings and replaces them with a learning resource center featuring
online materials and on-demand personalized assistance.
This model was developed through several innovations funded by the
National Center for Academic Transformation (NCAT) designed to give
campus-based students control over when they study. The purpose is to allow students to choose when they access
course materials, to choose what types of learning materials they use depending
on their needs, and to set their own pace in working with the materials. It assumes that students have access to
sophisticated instructional software and one-on-one on-site help. It replaces formal class meetings with
increased access to instructional assistance and allows institutions to combine
multiple lecture sections into one large section.
A variation on the Emporium model is the Flex Course, developed at Herkimer Community College in New York State,
in which students have available to both classroom-based and online options for
all or most learning activities and may choose to participate entirely online,
entirely in class, or mix online and in-class sessions.
5. Hybrid
Course – Online activity is mixed with classroom meetings, replacing at
least 20 percent, but not all required face-to-face meetings.
When the technologies used for education and communication
outside the classroom are used to supplant some of the classroom work, reducing
the time actually spent in the classroom, the result is a hybrid course. For example, if a course traditionally
meets in a classroom three times per week, a hybrid version might use online
sessions to replace one or two of the traditional weekly classroom sessions or
to eliminate all but a few key face-to-face sessions for laboratory work or
examinations. A general rule is to
classify a course as hybrid if online components replace a minimum of one class
meeting per week in a typical three-credit course or to replace all but a few
key face-to-face sessions for laboratory work or examinations. Some
institutions use hybrid courses with traditional on-campus students to improve
efficiency in the use of limited classrooms. For example, replacing 50% of classroom experiences with
online experiences would allow an institution to schedule a second course in
the same room. The National Center
for Academic Transformation (NCAT) describes this as a “replacement” approach, in
which online activity replaces some class meetings. The Sloan Foundation required that
funding for such courses use online experiences to offset at least 30 percent
of traditional classroom experiences.
A variation—call it Hybrid-Plus—identifies
courses that are mostly online but that require a small number of scheduled
classroom or other on-site group events.
These courses are at least 80% online.
Hybrid courses are one component of E-Learning. They are particularly relevant in
programs that serve students within commuting distance of campus. They increase flexibility but do not
totally eliminate the need for students to have physical access to a campus
facility. Hybrid courses will be
attractive to many traditional full-time students, in addition to
non-traditional learners, typically working adults who are within commuting
distance and who wish to earn a degree.
Note that, in the past, the terms “blended” and “hybrid”
have been applied at both the course level and the program level without
differentiation. This has created
a degree of confusion. Our definitions
use “hybrid” at the course level and “blended” at the program level to allow
for clearer distinctions in usage.
6. Online
Course – All course activity is
done online; there are no required face-to-face
sessions within the course and no requirements for on-campus activity.
Online courses totally eliminate geography as a factor in
the relationship between the student and the institution. They consist entirely
of online elements that facilitate the three critical student interactions:
with content, the instructor, and other students.
While these courses may appeal to on-campus students, they
are designed to meet the needs of students who do not have effective access to
campus. They may reside near the
campus, or they may reside quite a distance away in other states or even in
other countries. Over the
years, universities have sought to serve this “non-traditional” population
through a variety of media—from correspondence courses to satellite
teleconferences—but only since the mid-1990s has technology enabled easy and
continuous communication—interaction—among the learners and instructors at a
distance. The Internet also has made library and other information resources
available to this group. Improvements
in basic technology also permit this user group access to complex data as in precision
images, mathematical visualizations and simulations of various kinds. Social networking applications allow
these learners to participate in both formal and informal learning communities.
PROGRAM-LEVEL
DEFINITIONS
Similar distinctions among delivery environments can be made
at the program level. Degree and
certificate programs can be designed with a mix of traditional and e-learning
courses in order to serve populations who have different levels of access to
campus. Currently, there appear to
be four major kinds of practices in wide use:
1. Traditional
Classroom Program—The program may include a mix of traditional,
web-enhanced, or hybrid courses, but all courses require some face-to-face
sessions.
These programs take advantage of web-based applications to
enhance learning, but without changing the traditional requirement that
students attend classes on campus or in other traditional learning environments. As a result, online elements do not
significantly improve access to commuting or distant students.
2. Multi-Format
Program – A program mixes, along
with traditional classroom courses,
other formats that use a variety of different delivery modes, web-enhanced,
hybrid, fully online courses, synchronous distributed education, etc.,
without a specific access goal.
These programs use a variety of technologies and course
designs to provide a variety of learning experiences. Typically, choice of technology is less related to the
geographic or time needs of students than on curricular goals or instructional
needs.
3. Blended
Program – A significant percentage, but not all of the credits required
for program completion are offered fully online. Typically, up to 30 percent
of the curriculum may be offered as face-to-face or hybrid courses or other
face-to-face formats or as independent study.
These programs provide increased access to distant students
who are able to come to campus for some courses, laboratory work, intensive
residencies, or other occasional group sessions. Ideally, face-to-face
sessions will be organized to minimize travel requirements for distant
students. Some academic support services should be available to distant
students as well.
4. Online
Program – All credits required to complete the program are offered as
fully online courses. Students can complete the program completely at a distance,
with no required face-to-face meetings.
Fully online programs are designed with the truly distant
student in mind. Institutions that offer fully online programs should
also take care to provide support services—registration, testing, advising,
library support, etc.—at a distance.
Implementation
The authors are indebted to the many colleagues too numerous
to list individually who have contributed to these definitions by providing
feedback on earlier drafts and who, in some cases, have pioneered in developing
innovative applications of technology to create new learning environments.
These definitions are a work in progress that will be
updated annually as needed.
The authors welcome comments and anticipate that they will prepare
occasional companion pieces to add new definitions as the field evolves, in the
hope the community will come together around a common set of definitions that
will guide research, practice, and policy. We encourage researchers and professional associations to
adopt the definitions with the goal that a shared vocabulary will facilitate
the sharing of research data, increase the transfer of research into practice,
and, ultimately, promote standards of excellence for the field.
Your comments are welcome in this ongoing discussion.
Version 1.0 8/2/2012
Version 1.1 9/7/12
