Choices and Challenges Lessons Learned in the Evolution of Online - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Choices and Challenges Lessons Learned in the Evolution of Online Education

• Dr. Andy DiPaolo

Executive Director, SCPD

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News Items

• Stanford, Yale and Oxford create an

independent, not-for-profit alliance-- AllLearn-- to develop distance learning programs.

September 2001

• MIT launches project to post course

materials online for free worldwide access.

September 2002

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• European Commission adopts $13.3B

plan to promote online university education.

April 2001

• Intel and Microsoft work with universities

to develop company-specific online graduate degrees.

June 2001

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• Universitas 21, an international network
• f universities, moves forward with

Thomson Learning to deliver online education worldwide.

August 2003

• U.S. Open University to close after

spending $20M.

April 2001

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• NextEd partners with 25 higher education

institutions to deliver online education throughout Asia via the Global Education Alliance.

September 2001

• New York University shuts down its virtual

university spinoff company, NYU Online.

January 2003

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• University of Phoenix Online enrolls over

70,000 in degree programs. Now the largest provider of online degrees in North America.

November 2003

• Barnes and Noble University enrolls

200,000 online students.

January 2003

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• Harcourt Higher Education, a for-profit,
• nline, degree-granting college closes

after spending $10M.

September 2001

• Japan’s University Council recommends

students in national universities should be allowed to earn up to half of their undergraduate degrees online.

November 2002

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• U.S. Army’s $600M university partnership

– eARMYU – boosts e-learning industry.

January 2002

• International cyber university involving 19

colleges from California to Thailand aims to open next year.

April 2002

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• UK eUniversities Worldwide – backed by

government and organized as a commercial enterprise – to provide global online degrees from UK’s best universities.

May 2001

• UMass Online grows over 40% in one year.

Future growth projected at 50% per year for 3 more years.

November 2003

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• After spending over $30M Columbia

University closes Fathom, its money- losing online learning venture.

January 2003

• Cisco links online learning and university

partnerships to business strategy.

November 2002

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• Sloan Foundation contributes over $50M

to 60 universities during the last 9 years to develop asynchronous learning networks.

July 2003

• United Nations and partners launch

Global Virtual University to meet the needs of the developing world.

June 2003

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What Do Online Learners Want?

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• Assume responsibility for increasing

personal market value. Busy yet anxious to learn.

• Access to learning independent of time

and distance. Time and availability is more important than cost.

• Convenience and flexibility with a range
• f course and program delivery options

and multiple avenues for learning.

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• A choice of synchronous, asynchronous,

and blended learning options.

• A wide range of online degree,

professional certification and credentialing options – not just random

• nline courses – with flexibility around

when classes start and end.

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• Well-designed, engaging, intellectually

challenging and continuously updated courses which facilitate the transfer of learning to direct application. Mastery – not seat time – is a goal.

• Emphasis on active, outcome-oriented,

scenario-based learning using real, vivid and familiar examples. “Learning pull” vs “instructor push” preferred.

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• To control the scope, sequence and

pacing of learning. Impatient with inefficient methods.

• To receive a customized learning

experience activity based on assessment

• f knowledge gaps, previous experience,

personal learning styles and preferences.

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• Provisions for e-advising,

e-coaching and e-mentoring.

• Participation in a “connected learning

community” including interaction with instructors, tutors, peers and experts.

• To collaborate by working in

geographically dispersed learning groups.

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• Access to providers with established

brand names representing quality, competency, reputation and a recognized customer base.

• To sample courses and review

evaluations before registering.

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• World-wide access to information and

the training to find and evaluate it.

• To receive outstanding support

services with a focus on “student as customer.” Elimination of delays regarded as essential.

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• Continuous, prompt, and meaningful

forms of assessment and feedback.

• Competitive pricing.
• Ongoing educational renewal with

commitment from providers to support learning for a lifetime.

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Higher Education Online “A Market in Transition”

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• Individual universities
• Higher education collaborations.
• Virtual universities.
• Higher education for-profit spinoffs.
• Commercial certification institutions.
• Corporations, publishers, associations,

entrepreneurs and alliances.

The Online Education Landscape

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University For-Profit Spinouts

• NYU Online *
• Fathom/Columbia*
• Duke Corporate

Education

• Babson Interactive
• National University
• eCornell
• UMUC Online *
• GW Learning

Solutions

• Virtual Temple *

* failed

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“Higher education institutions will lose an increasing share of the growing post-secondary education market to other, non-traditional providers.”

Source: Gartner Group

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From a Venture Capital Prospectus

Education:

• Is the most fertile new market for

investors in many years.

• Presents the opportunity for very

large scale activities.

• Has many disgruntled current users.

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From a Venture Capital Prospectus

• Generates a large amount of revenue and

its market is increasing and becoming global.

• Poorly run, low in productivity, high in

cost, and relatively low technology utilization.

• Existing management is sleepy

after years of monopoly and is ripe for takeover, remaking and profits.

“Although the gold rush attitude and the corporate cowboys of a few years ago have subsided, there is still enough good news to make online higher education attractive to entrepreneurs.”

American Council on Education 2002

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Online Education Entrepreneurs

• University of Phoenix
• Cardean/UNext
• Jones International
• Capella University
• Sylvan Learning
• Corinthian
• Kaplan Colleges
• DeVry Institutes
• Thomson Learning
• Strayer

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Online Education Entrepreneurs

• vs. Higher Education
• Focus on student needs and

competition.

• Nimble, flexible, responsive, and speedy

to market.

• Commercial grade marketing, sales,

design and production skills.

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• Larger investments, more resources.
• Applies incentives and rewards to

attract faculty and experts.

• No university bureaucracy and strict

evaluation measures.

• Regard education as a commodity.

Online Education Entrepreneurs

• vs. Higher Education

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The Online Education Market Continues to Churn…

• Successfully implemented with mixed elements
• f hype and reality.
• Lots of competitors from start-ups to well

regarded names.

• Online education companies beginning to extend

beyond adult learners to traditional students.

• When in doubt the customer chooses a brand

with a well-known reputation and will pay for that relationship.

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In online education it sometimes feels as if…

• You’re driving a new car down an unfamiliar road
• Without a map
• To get to an unknown destination at breakneck

speed It may sometimes seem like the best strategy is doing nothing.

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Choices and Challenges in Delivering Online Education The Stanford Online Case

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• Students:

6,731 undergrad 7,608 graduate

• Faculty:

1,714

Stanford University

• Recognized as offering outstanding

education and research programs.

• Research volume: $828M annually

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Stanford University

corporations of all sizes, from startups to mature, successful enterprises, Stanford provides firms with education, research partnerships, consulting, and connections to world class faculty and students.”

Stanford Corporate Relations

“Stanford University fosters a climate where collaboration with industry thrives, generating both breakthrough discoveries and the science and technology that can support continuous innovation. With a long history of very productive relationships with

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“Motorola no longer wants to hire engineers with a four-year

• degree. Instead, we want our

employees to have a 40-year degree.”

Christopher Galvin Previous President and CEO Motorola.

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“What our engineers and managers are saying is that the demands of their jobs are such that they can’t get away from

• work. Since they are working 60 hours a

week, any education they get has to be at their convenience and available online .”

Manager of Engineering Education AMP, Inc.

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The Stanford Challenge

• Balance the need to strengthen Stanford

industry relationships by offering career- long education while accommodating the interests and capacity limitations of faculty.

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Stanford Center for Professional Development

• Collaborates with Stanford faculty and industry

experts.

• Designs and delivers academic and professional

education programs to engineers, scientists, managers and executives using a variety of elearning technologies.

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Bridging Stanford and Industry

Academic Programs Professional Education Stanford University Curriculum Industry Education

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SCPD Online Education Portfolio

• 250 graduate courses leading to Master’s

Degrees in engineering, information technology, management and biosciences.

• 28 certificate programs
• 50 professional education courses
• 26 research seminars
• 50 courselets under development
• 10,000 new program hours produced

annually in digital form

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SCPD Customers

Top 30 in 2003

• Sun Microsystems
• Cisco Systems
• General Motors
• Lockheed Martin
• Agilent
• Intel
• Hewlett Packard
• Oracle
• Synopsys
• Nvidia
• Ford
• Toyota
• Compaq
• AMD
• Microsoft
• Juniper Networks
• Adobe Systems
• Cypress

Semiconductor

• Electronics for

Imaging

NASA-Ames

• IBM
• LLNL
• Space Systems/Loral
• United Technologies
• Xilinx
• Nat’l Semiconductor
• Cadence Design
• Altera
• AppliedMaterials
• NUS America

Total = 420

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SCPD Delivery Systems

• Five TV channels
• Two-way video
• Satellite
• Videotape
• Multimedia
• Online
• On campus
• Corporate sites
• Blended approaches

Stanford Instructional TV Network Stanford Online

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Stanford Online

• Delivers

academic and professional education courses worldwide.

• Pioneered at Stanford, became award

winning, recognized model.

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Stanford Online

• Over 1500 online

courses since 1997.

• Courses updated

quarterly to maintain currency.

• Approach is

transparent to faculty.

• First online MS

degree in engineering and science.

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Stanford Online

• Presentations digitized, formatted and

integrated with learning materials within two hours of campus course.

• Used strategically to support research

initiatives, development efforts and to build alumni loyalty.

• Distribution experiments in Asia Pacific,

Europe and South America.

• Significant benefit for campus students.

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SCPD and the Pacific Rim

• Online courses delivered to technology

corporations throughout Asia.

• National University of Singapore - NUS College

Silicon Valley internship program.

• Nanyang Technological University – Stanford

environmental engineering degree program.

• SCPD Korean government distance education

partnership for technology professionals.

• Professional education pilot programs with

Development Research Center of PRC.

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Online Education

“Lessons Learned at Stanford and Elsewhere”

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Lessons Learned

• Online learning attracts students who

would not otherwise have taken courses.

• Convenience and choice is critical for

students at all levels.

• Best for motivated, disciplined, self-

directed, mature students.

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Lessons Learned

• Greatest online opportunities for

universities are in professional education and corporate development especially in the “skilled sectors.”

• Equal emphasis in developing an online

program needs to be placed on business, pedagogy and technology.

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Lessons Learned: Business

• Online initiative needs to be consistent

with institution’s mission, strengths and areas of distinction.

• Must begin with a clear, worthy strategic

mission and keep it close to core faculty and competencies. Use traditional academic structures to accelerate

• development. Enterprise-wide strategy is

best, if possible.

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Lessons Learned: Business

• Design online education initiative as a

way to extend and enhance - not replace - academic programs. Develop a “focused niche” or “micro-market” approach to meet a market need and try to have program appeal to multiple audiences.

• Aim for the “sweet spot” -- intersection
• f audience needs and wants, faculty

interests, university strengths and what people will pay for.

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Lessons Learned:Business

• Think course-to-certificate-to-degree
• progression. Interdisciplinary programs

matched to research initiatives are highly

• valued. Online versions of existing

courses are easier to start than new ones.

• Recruit best faculty by offering incentives

and rewards. Address faculty concerns regarding ownership of intellectual property and increased demands and impact on workload.

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Lessons Learned:Business

• Start small: pilot and test with existing

students, alumni and focus groups. Experiment, adapt, improve. Think

• scalability. Use the “build it once, use it
• ften” approach.
• Develop financial model that covers costs

and investments and delivers revenue to sponsoring departments and faculty in

• rder to show direct benefit in
• participating. Point out non-revenue

values of online learning.

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Lessons Learned: Business

• Build strong e-services teams which

provide “personal” contact and act as student guides. Use customer relationship management tools to track everything.

• Construct differentiated help desks –

logistics, technical, academic – to reduce non-learning queries to faculty.

• Online students want more than branding

and image - they want credentials from an

• rganization with a recognized reputation

that will continue to exist.

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Lessons Learned: Business

• If possible, create a unified university
• brand. Strong brands with weak

programs will diminish the reputation of the university. Beware of brand abuse by partners.

• Identify every possible interaction with

student and try to make it positive and

• satisfying. “Moment of truth” concept.

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Lessons Learned:Business

• Exceed student expectations in order to

generate enthusiasm in the program. Consider the “surprise and delight” factor.

• Consider outside partnering for

development, management, marketing and distribution of online courses, but be careful around the business/university clash of cultures and values.

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Lessons Learned:Business

• Market programs using loss leaders, opt-

in communications, niche sites, etc. and then measure success rates of everything you do.

• Promote, promote, promote - - press

releases, awards, endorsements, etc. – for use with external and internal audiences.

• Question everything like an entrepreneur.

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Lessons Learned: Pedagogy

• It’s not the content. Online students want

access to degrees, certificates and classes.

• Need to create a “community of learners”

with synchronous and asynchronous interactions between students, faculty, TAs and experts.

• Provide students with electronic access to

learning resources, tools and facilitators.

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Lessons Learned: Pedagogy

• Start with existing low enrollment courses.
• Offer online labs, simulation, gaming, and

collaboration.

• Build in automatic grading and feedback.
• Online education does not need to be

“edutainment.”

• Consider blending online and on-site

activities and synchronous/asynchronous learning.

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Lessons Learned: Pedagogy

• Develop rigorous assessment program
• n access, learning, cost effectiveness,

learner satisfaction, and faculty satisfaction.

• Develop “bite-sized” chunks – small,

self-contained units such as courselets and apply as reusable learning objects.

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Stanford Online Courselets

• Self-contained, integrated set of learning

materials designed as an online custom tutorial.

• Fills knowledge gaps for learners.
• Offers self-tests and indexing to

determine placement.

• Made available for use at other

universities and industry education.

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Courselet Examples

• Microscopy Techniques for Materials

Characterization

• Systems Analysis with Random Processes
• The Heart and Circulatory System
• Introduction to Mechatronics
• Link Equations
• MOS Capacitors and Transistors
• RF Technology for Plasma Processing
• Digital Electronics Lab Experiments
• Junction Diodes and Bipolar Junction Transistors

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Lessons Learned: Technology

• It’s not about technology, it’s about

learning!

• Create or outsource to obtain uniform

course format allowing optimum interaction, easy course development, interoperability and scaling.

• Provide administrative and technical

support 24X7.

• Capitalize on the unexpected and have

the courage to stop doing.

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The Promise and Peril

• f Online Education

“What Does the Future Hold?”

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• Online education - as the intersection
• f learning activities, learning resources

and enterprise systems - recognized as an essential function of universities and corporations.

• Minimal distinction between on-site and
• ff-site students through networked

learning communities.

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• Focus of online education shifts from

teaching to learning with students having more control of place, pace and modality.

• The student as consumer will establish

program value.

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• A shift from “just-in-case” to “just-in-

time” to “just-for-me” education.

• Education and training organizations

not rooted in time and place. Learning accessible from anywhere and available at all times via personal, portable, unified

• devices. The future is mobile learning.

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• Technologies will support common standards for

greater interoperability. Seamless solutions and invisible technology will be the norm.

• Online education winners will be those packaging

complete end-to-end solutions- not simply

• ffering courses.
• Degree programs and curriculum further

customized and aligned with corporate strategies.

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• Market volatility and shakeout continues

with alliances between higher education, professional associations, publishers, government, libraries, museums, and high tech companies.

• For-profit providers will gain additional

share of higher education markets- but there will be fewer of them.

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Non-Traditional Universities

• Evolution of non-traditional universities

characterized by outcomes-based education:

• Assessment engines.
• Customized curriculum paths.
• Knowledge/skill modules.
• Variable pacing.

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Non-Traditional Universities

• Short residencies.
• Distributed cohort groups.
• Competency certification.
• Learning pulled through natural query

language bots.

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Non-Traditional Universities

• Prescriptive guidance and dynamically

assembled content based on learner profile and preference specifications.

• Adaptive learning technologies with

ability to predict future education needs.

• Collaborative learning around

problems and cases.

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Online Learning Challenges for the University of the 21st Century

• Meeting expectations for program

development and delivery: collaboration, connectivity, and application.

• Acting on political, financial and

technology mandates.

• Addressing the blurring of higher ed

boundaries and new competition.

• Building an institutional culture, structure

and reward system supportive of change.

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Online Learning Challenges for the University of the 21st Century

• Creating targeted online learning ventures

to achieve institutional advantages.

• Developing strategic alliances and

partnerships.

• Measuring online learning program quality

and effectiveness.

• Appointing leaders with focus, passion

and vision.

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“The scarce resource today is not bandwidth, but people who can create and innovate in the knowledge age.”

R.Birnbaum

“How Academic Leadership Works”

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Presentation Slides

• http://scpd.stanford.edu
• Click “About SCPD”
• Slides on right side

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Questions and Conversations

• Andy DiPaolo

adp@stanford.edu (650) 725-3000

• Stanford Center for Professional

Development http://scpd.stanford.edu

Choices and Challenges Lessons Learned in the Evolution of Online Education

• Dr. Andy DiPaolo

Executive Director, SCPD