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Where will successful institutions be placing their emphasis in the future with respect to Internet-supported learning?
Finances. One of the implications of the “Thwarted” Study was that financial support for e-Learning might be dropping off at some institutions. We specifically asked our participants about future funding expectations. As was already pointed out in section VII, a substantial majority of the participants felt that financial support was adequate and that there was a long-term commitment to the e-Learning initiatives. The results shown in Figure 17. There is only a small decrease in future expectations from past levels.
Competition. How competitive is the market for online learning as perceived by our participants? About 32% of the institutions felt that their online initiatives were either already involved in significant competition (11%) or were heading rapidly for significant competition (21%). 47% reported that there was essentially a status quo of an environment of limited competition.
Coming Year Priorities. We asked the participants to select their three highest priorities for the coming twelve months. Implementing new technologies or processes to achieve higher quality/more interactive courses came out at the top of the list. Tied for second were better support services for online students and improved marketing of online programs. Whereas course quality and student service came out as clear themes in the common denominators and best practices, this is the first time marketing has popped to the top of the list.
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Internet-supported Learning Format and Capabilities Going Forward. We asked the participating institutions which formats of delivery do they expect will get more emphasis at their institution in the future. The results, shown in Figure 20, indicate that these successful institutions see a growing emphasis on the already emphasized fully online courses. They also see a growing emphasis on hybrid courses that reduce or eliminate some class sessions. Almost startling is the degree to which there is agreement that web supported courses will not be receiving additional emphasis. Only 11% of respondents chose web supported courses as gaining in the next three years. Since most of the institutions in the study have implemented web supported courses, this appears to be a statement as to the value of these going forward.
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In the final survey, each of the participants was given a long list of 43 “e-Learning Capabilities” and asked to rate them with respect to emphasis over the next three years. The question was asked in a way to attempt to uncover four categories of capabilities:
• Those that have been designated as a critical priority
• Those that will get increased emphasis
• Those for which the institution is satisfied with the current level of progress and does not expect to do more
• Those that the institution has put some emphasis on in the past and has learned that this capability is less important than what they thought
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Table 10 summarizes the top items in each category, assuming they received votes from at least 20% of the institutions.
The results indicate that faculty support, program marketing and recruiting, new approaches to content development, and new technologies for content development or delivery will receive emphasis in the next three years. The results under the “Satisfied” section in particular indicate strong satisfaction with external partners to date. This is consistent with 43% indicating in a different portion of the survey that an external partnership was either critical or very important to their success. While some capabilities received a few votes as less important, none represented 20% of the institutions.
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Table 10. E-Learning Capabilities Next Three Years.
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Top Priority
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Training and support of faculty (42%)
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Feature and function improvements to course management platform (26%)
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Marketing of e-Learning programs (32%)
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Online marketing and recruiting (26%)
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Better tracking of leads and/or applications from prospective students (32%)
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Online library or reference services (26%)
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Better online quizzing and testing products (32%)
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Several at 21%
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Plan to Give More Emphasis
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Greater inclusion of multimedia (audio or video into the online experience) (74%)
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Learning object repositories or content management tools (58%)
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Better products for online collaboration and discussions (53%)
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New technologies for high-end course production (47%)
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Online evaluation tools (course evaluations, surveys, etc.) (53%)
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Several at 42%
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Satisfied
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Partnerships with external providers for e-Learning platform (63%)
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Ease of use of course management platform (53%)
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Partnerships with external providers for faculty training and development (58%)
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Partnerships with external providers for 24/7 support (47%)
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Partnerships with external providers for course development services (58%)
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Partnerships with external providers for student support services (47%)
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Less Important
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None > 20%
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Support Services. A similar ranking of importance over the next three years was posed with respect to both student support services and faculty support services. Table 11 contains the results for student support services. The respondents were presented with a list of 24 items.
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Table 11. Student Support Services Next Three Years.
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Top Priority
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Online student services (32%)
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Online marketing and recruiting (26%)
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Online or phone-based registration (32%)
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Online or phone-based payment (26%)
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Assessment of learning outcomes (32%)
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A program coordinator to handle and resolve e-Learning support issues (26%)
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Student orientation to online courses (26%)
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Program specific website to market individual online programs (26%)
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Highly available 24x7 course management system (26%)
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Special programs to increase retention (26%)
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Plan to Give More Emphasis
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Assessment of learning outcomes (63%)
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Tracking of the achievement of graduates (raises, promotions, etc.) (53%)
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Student orientation to online courses (58%)
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Several at 42%
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Online tutoring/academic support (58%)
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Satisfied
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Highly available 24x7 course management system (58%)
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Student 24x7 customer care helpdesk - for any issues, technical or non-technical (47%)
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Student web/email helpdesk (53%)
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Student 24x7 technical helpdesk (47%)
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Student phone helpdesk (53%)
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Student focus groups or surveys to determine e-Learning program features most important to students (47%)
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Program specific website to market individual online programs (47%)
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Less Important
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Non-program oriented community websites for students (26%)
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Table 12 contains the results for faculty support services. The respondents were presented with a list of 25 items.
The tables are relatively self-explanatory. One overall conclusion is that assessment of learning outcomes seems to be a very strong focus for the next three years. Otherwise, the tables largely reaffirm some of the gaps in common practices that were seen in the analysis of section X, but adding a bit more detail in terms of quantifying the specific priorities over the next three years on a relative basis.
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Table 12. Faculty Support Services Next Three Years.
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Top Priority
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Establishing course quality standards (26%)
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Course development support from support center staff (21%)
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Faculty support website for technical support (26%)
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Help from unbiased experts to assess the course quality and effectiveness (21%)
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One-on-one instructional design consultations (21%)
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Process and support to improve the course or program each term it is offered (21%)
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Required comprehensive training before teaching online (21%)
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Additional fees paid to teach an online course (21%)
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Plan to Give More Emphasis
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One-on-one instructional design consultations (53%)
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Course to develop the online course (47%)
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Specific support resources for adjunct faculty (53%)
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Program website to support faculty sharing of best practices (47%)
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Course management or other technical training classes (47%)
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Learning object repositories to aid program or course development (47%)
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Satisfied
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Clear and effective policies for ownership of online materials (74%)
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Course testing support prior to deployment (47%)
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Faculty web/email helpdesk (58%)
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Required comprehensive training before teaching online (42%)
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Faculty phone helpdesk (58%)
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Formation of faculty team to redesign courses or programs (42%)
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Faculty 24x7 helpdesk (58%)
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Course development support from support center staff (42%)
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Less Important
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None > 20%
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