I came across this report from Blackboard Learn via Stephen Downes. The report is based on research Blackboard did in the US. I had to pinch myself to check I was reading it right.
Amongst the conclusions or findings were:
[direct quotes]
- When students take a class online, they make a tacit agreement to a poorer experience which undermines their educational self worth.
- Students perceive online classes as a loophole they can exploit that also shortcuts the “real” college experience.
- Online classes don’t have the familiar reference points of in-person classes which can make the courses feel like a minefield of unexpected difficulties.
- Students take more pride in the skills they develop to cope with an online class than what they learn from it.
- Online classes neglect the aspects of college that create a lasting perception of value
I do not think this is inevitable with online courses or teaching online, rather it represents a failure to understand that the ‘L’ in LMS is usually subservient to the ‘M’. I suspect many of these points apply to online material as part of residential courses, too. Getting the online bit right requires large investment of academic staff time. I do not see how you can do it well without increasing costs — at least in the short term.
Mike Caulfied has some useful points to make on this report here