What makes an online/DL school Better/respectable?

What makes an online/DL school including traditional schools offering online programs better?
There are many schools who are not giving value for the $$ and time spent. Some schools have minimal interaction between students and faculties. Some schools send classroom lecture via VHS/DVD/TV relay etc. I am just curious to to have all of your thoughts about this. We shall assume that the schools are RA.

Please select everything you think an Online/DL school should offer which would make their programs better

 

I would have answered this differently as I was searching, and now that I am finishing, I have a very different perspective.

It would be interesting to see how the above poll changes as the experience changes.

Ona side note, many have said that the price of a DL school is a huge factor, which I think for most is not true. Many DL students are senior level employees, where their employer reimburses, so - like for me - tuition was not a factor (at all).

 

"Tough but fair exam regimes", as advocated by Professor Kennedy, should be the primary factor for DL course assessment. I like the UNISA process of earning admission to exams. Admission to the exam is granted after satisfactory completion of one or more assignments. The final mark is determined by the exam score alone.

 

Does that make UK and UNISA MBA programs better than "less well known/online only/virtual only" Schools in US ?

 

Thank you Charles, I was beginning to worry when I saw the results of the poll and noted that 'proctored' (I presume 'invigilated' by independent agencies) exams scored equal bottom (5 votes only).

Do colleagues not realise that unproctored exams, including on-line exams, leave a question mark on whose work is being assessed and that this could severely damage DL degrees if a scandal that is waiting to happen broke out?

There is a conflict of interest here in being a student and being a graduate. DL is difficult enough without exam hurdles, hence students prefer to 'soften' the regime. Gradautes marketing their degrees afterwards prefer 'tougher' regimes in case those that follow them on the same programmes 'dumb down' the reputation of the degrees. It is difficult enough 'selling' the credibility of a DL or on-line degree without evidence of its quality.

As an educator I prefer tough but fair exams that measure output (i.e., performance) and most graduates and employers who think about this, seem to agree. I found the desire for faculty-student and for student-student interaction interesting, which is something I have noticed over the years in similar surveys (and responded to, but that would be 'advertising!). Modern technology enables these preferences.

The interest in video lectures is worrying - they have near zero learning value (unless it is a 'star' performer) and more an easily discarded comfort blanket. (We've been there, wasted the money and the results gather dust on the shelves - and these performers were the top stars in Stanford!).

I hope many more than Charles have come to the same conclusions.

 

I voted, BUT!

While all of the possible responses listed have some merit (well maybe not "memory retention"), there is a lot more invloved I think. How about, well organized program with defined objectives (for course based).

 

Professor Kennedy

Professor Kennedy

 

Re: Re: What makes an online/DL school Better/respectable?

Kristie,

You are very fortunate to work for a company that reimburses so liberally. I work for a Fortune 500 company and my tuition reimbursement is "only" $4,000 per year. ***sigh**

Cy

 

Re: Re: Re: What makes an online/DL school Better/respectable?

I didn't mean to give them credit, they have fought me every step of the way, and I have taken a pay cut, but yes, they reimburse. Grass is always greener!

(Can you tell it has been a bad day!)

 

Yes, exams need to be proctored. As you stated, this makes clear that the knowledge assessed is, in fact, the student's. This principal is why I am a strong supporter of standardized examinations such as clep and dantes. These tests are proctored, closed book, and normed against a huge population of students who have taken the class residentially. For those who think this methodology is not valid, I would like to know why.

Tony

 

Re: Re: Re: What makes an online/DL school Better/respectable?

I'm in the same boat. Tuition reimbursement only goes so far.

The answer I was looking for was not on the list -- name recognition. I think a lot of people would prefer to attend a school that has positive name recognition. That's why big name college football teams are so important to many schools. I would guess that an online program that is associated with a school that people have actually heard of would be more popular than the typical DL program.

 

I'd agree that DL schools are more susceptible than BM schools to such scandal but I don't know that they should be. Cheating would seem to be a too common practice.

In-person lecturing allows for some interaction with the students but does it otherwise differ from the video form? This could be taken as an argument in favor of DL.