Happy Professors Series: Thoughts on the Future of Online Teaching and Learning

“My first introduction to ‘distance learning’ was an Art History course I took in college. The format was straightforward. There were no classes, much less a virtual course classroom to login to, and you took a proctored midterm and final exam at the school library. A research paper was required and it was submitted via email. That was in the early 2000s and, much like Apple and Google technology, much has changed in the short time since.

The latest advancement in online learning management systems is Canvas. In Canvas, I can insert movies, link videos from YouTube, upload audible comments as feedback, and view Turnitin scores for plagiarism. The whole experience is geared to make online learning more engaging and meaningful for learners and instructors alike. As a former online student, I can attest to the dramatic changes in online learning and how it has facilitated a meteoric rise in enrollments in higher education. The schools recognize the importance and value online learning now offers and many campuses contain an independent ‘eLearning’ department.

I hope that students in the 21st century come to see this venue as a viable alternative to traditional college education, as online learning challenges traditional brick-and-mortar schools for supremacy. Online learning, as one social commentator recently observed, is the wave of the future. While that might be true, I argue that online learning is a force to be reckoned with in the here and now.”

Chris
Online Instructor
christopherberg.org