Online Education in Saudi Universities - Essay Example

Online Education in Saudi Universities Introduction Universities in Saudi Arabia are developing rapidly to keep up with the latest technologies regarding learning and teaching. One of the relatively new technologies at Saudi universities is offering online classes. However, one university is not yet offering any online courses. Therefore, this project will propose that this university can add the use of instruction through online courses to its teaching options. Further analysis will explain how online courses are more efficacious for all the stakeholders – administration, faculty, students, finance and IT – that will be effected by the shift to online education. Statement of Management Problem The university needs to add online courses to its curriculum. All considerations must be acknowledged and the concerns of all stakeholders must be addressed. This will involve studying all the managerial and financial factors to make an appropriate decision as to whether start adding online course, or stay teaching all courses in the traditional face-to-face classroom. Methodology: Frames Human choices are remarkably susceptible to the manner in which options are presented. This is known as framing. Presenting a decision in a manner that appeals to given stakeholders is important. This also implies that different arguments and benefits must be presented to different stakeholders to gain widespread acceptance of a management decision. Two brief examples will illustrate the method, the price for not applying it or applying it improperly, and its value. The Encyclopedia Britannica has been regarded as one of the worlds most authoritative knowledge sources for over a century. In the 1990s it persisted in publishing in traditional hard – copy and marketing with door – to – door sales. Despite the continuing quality of the product its market evaporated as Microsoft introduced the Encarta encyclopedia on CD – ROM, and lower quality encyclopedias like Wikipedia flourished online. In 1995 CEO Peter Russo resigned and the company has never regained its prominent position. The executives in the firm were using narrow and restrictive frames – not taking into account new technologies like CD – ROM and the Internet – and the company may never recover from this monumental failure to frame the problem and opportunity presented by the PC and the Internet. (Russo and Shoemaker, 2002) This is the price of improperly framing a management challenge in a changing marketplace. Simply put, in a rapidly changing world what worked in the past will not always work in the future. Change is inevitable, adapting to change in a positive way is not: Rather, it is a result of foresight, planning and the proper presentation of decisions to stakeholders. Russo and Shoemaker (2002) suggest Britannica was like a person walking, an act we undertake with little aforethought. We walk for exercise and for pleasure but think little of it. However, consider the case of the competitive speed walker. They think about walking, they think about how to lengthen their stride (thus the strange swivel – hipped motion) and how to walk the fastest with the least effort. They may look silly doing it but they are doing it the most effective way. In their frame the look is not important: Their priority is covering the longest distance the fastest. Loping across the countryside is not their frame and their solution looks nothing like typical walking but is perfect for their Olympic event. Their frame is Olympic competition not leisure and their solution, strange though it may look, is appropriate for that frame. Framing a problem is the first step to reaching the right solution. Further, the frame for determining a management decision is not only the best solution, but the best way to present it to diverse stakeholders. Consequently, the remainder of this discussion will discuss the introduction of online learning in Saudi universities using the frames method. Four frames designed to gain the support of administrators, academics, students and the financial department will be presented. Frames for Administrators Technology is one of the important pillars to disseminate knowledge and share information and experience between science academics and with students. (Balanskat, Blamire, & Kefala, 2006). Therefore, it is important to integrate technological innovation into education. It impacts on education and training systems by revolutionizing the education process and offering increased interaction and effectiveness in learning (Al-Sadan, 2000). Historically, education in Saudi Arabia has neglected technology as an instrument of education. Instead, it has emphasized religious training and education. However this has changed recently and is attributable to “the new stress on science [and technology] to King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, who even before becoming king in 2005 was urging more attention to science and math in school curricula.” (Murphy, 2010) It is the policy of the King and the government to increase the use of technology in education and online education is a way to facilitate that goal and align Saudi universities with the policies of the Kingdom. Frames for Academics Heerema and Rogers argue that there is a potential conflict between quality and quantity in distance education. Early online programs, “failed to realize their promise because they were confronted by a fundamental trade-off, they opted to choose between quality personalized education – and – quantity.” (Heerema and Rogers, 2001) They also acknowledge that early online educational programs emphasized quantity over quality, but that problem has been overcome. The quality of instruction online is as high as it is on campus. The American University of Beirut (AUB) is having a symposium on online learning scheduled for December 10 and 11, hosted by the universitys Academic Computing Center (ACC) and the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL). Faculty will have the opportunity to attend international conferences of this nature in preparation or the introduction of online courses. (AUB, Office of Communications, 2010) Frames for Students With file sharing and e-mail students can submit assignments instantaneously from anywhere in the world. Similarly, using forums, real-time chat and regularly scheduled electronic tutorials students anywhere in the world can communicate with instructors at Saudi universities. This means that students traveling, studying or working in other parts of the world can register for and complete courses at Saudi universities simultaneously despite geographic separation. The Internet also means that students in even the most isolated locales – oil rigs in Indonesia for example – can access online libraries and other resources. According to Castle and McGuire accessibility and convenience are the two factors that students cite as primarily motivating them to engage in online education. (2010) Convenience and accessibility are not the only benefits of online education. At the graduate level, for working professionals, there are also other benefits. According to Grundmann, Wielbo, and Tebbett, they “provide the student with a high degree of flexibility while maintaining a work-life balance and staying connected with the field through continuing employment.” (2010) Finally, Grundmann, Wielbo, and Tebbett compare student assessments of satisfaction with online courses compared to traditional face – to – face course delivery and conclude that, “the results suggest that the delivery of advanced online science courses can be successful in regard to student perception and expectations and is at least comparable to a traditional classroom setting, if not better.” (2010) Financial Frames In the twenty-first century online education is growing at an exceptional rate. Almost a decade ago it was described as the “fastest-growing segment of education”. (O Leary, 2002) Saudi universities can not afford to miss this opportunity. Passing up on it would be like Britannica continuing to market its hard copy encyclopedias door- to – door in the 1990s. Secondly, online education is cost – effective and profitable. Castle and McGuire surveyed a large body of research on the cost-effectiveness of elearning and concluded the evidence universally supports the cost effectiveness of elearning as it permits a much higher student to faculty ratio and places no demands on the institutions physical plant. (2010) Online education is a key way for universities to increase enrollment and revenue. Universities around the world have adopted online courses as a method of reaching more students cost – effectively – including Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Oxford and Cambridge. In this region, the American University of Beirut has an extensive online learning program and an entire area on its website is dedicated to online courses and resources. (http://moodle.aub.edu.lb/) To not adopt online education would be to pass on an opportunity to increase revenues in a cost-effective manner. Barring absolute failure (a highly improbable, almost impossible outcome) there is no fiscal downside to beginning to offer online education programs. Frames for IT Staff This is the simplest frame to present to the stakeholders involved. A shift to online course offerings will have a wide range of benefits for IT support staff. Simply put, it will increase their role in the universities operations. They will be required to do all the work on course delivery and they will also have to play a role in training and preparing the administration and faculty for the introduction of the online programs. Bottom line, this will mean new hiring, promotions, increased pay packages and a host of benefits. Clearly, they will be the easiest stakeholder group to obtain the support of for the introduction of online courses because it offers them many benefits with no downside. Scenarios One worst case scenario would be significant technological problems arising during the introduction of online courses. The best case scenario in the technological realm would be a successful roll out, largely free of technological glitches. In this scenario the focus would be on the IT support staff for the program. A successful roll out would indicate that they had prepared well and developed an effective system for grading, student – to – student communication and student – to – instructor communication. It would also indicate that the system was user – friendly for both faculty and students. A negative scenario would indicate that the aforementioned goals had not been achieved. While the focus is on the IT staff in this scenario they are not the only stakeholders involved. An IT failure would have negative impacts on students and faculty participants in the online courses also. This, in turn, would have negative implications for the financial profile of the online program. A plan to minimize the possibility of the worst case requires adequate staffing for the IT department to implement this initiative. It also requires that they be adequately trained. It also requires that the technology offer an accessible and understandable Help option and support staff that can address user concerns quickly and appropriately. Finally, to enhance the likelihood of the best case scenario being realized, it would require the university administration to initiate partnerships with universities already offering online courses and some reliance on their expertise during the development and introduction phase of the online course program. A second worst case scenario would be low enrollment and poor student response to the availability of online courses. The best case scenario would be an adequate student response to fill the positions in the courses, without the response overwhelming the system or forcing many students to be put on a waiting list or told that the course offerings were no longer available. The focus in this scenario would be on the marketing and promotion of the program and relevant university departments. The primary effects of a poor response would be failing to realize potential revenue having invested in the program. A poor response would also discourage faculty involved in the program and undermine their support for this new program. The opposite case, an overwhelming response, requiring that many students be told the program is already full would undermine the support of students. Avoiding the worst cases of over- or under-enrollment can be avoided by accurate market surveying prior to development of the program to assess student need and probable response levels. This might involve bringing in a consulting firm to survey students and to assess the online programs at other Saudi universities. It also requires that some flexibility be built into the system when it is rolled out. Ideally this would allow additional course capacity to be added if the response if overwhelming and course capacity (and costs) to be reduced if the response is minimal. The analysis of demand before program roll out and a marketing campaign that ensures adequate enrollment but not excessive enrollment will both minimize the likelihood of either worst case scenario developing and also enhance the likelihood of optimum enrollment, the best case scenario. Confronting Objections Since the university board members largely former faculty, and current faculty will probably have spent their teaching career in the traditional classroom. The ICT Report identifies this as a significant barrier to the introduction of online education. However, it also proposes a simple and practical solution: “Teachers’ poor ICT competence, low motivation and lack of confidence in using new technologies in teaching are significant determinants of their levels of engagement in ICT. These are directly related to the quality and quantity of teacher training programmes.” (The ICT Report, 2006) Staff will have to address these deficiencies, and can address these deficiencies, through training opportunities as outlined earlier in this report. Castle and McGuire conclude that with adequate instructor training online education is an exceptional method of delivering course content: Schools of higher education must balance their efforts to develop premier e-learning courses with a corresponding reeducation program for current faculty to prepare them to operate in the new emerging educational paradigm. This is likely a necessary prerequisite to obtaining sustainable education delivery outcomes using the online environment. (Castle and McGuire, 2010) That most universities are still teaching in the traditional way is a commonly held belief. Simply put, it is inaccurate. Quite the opposite is true: Many academic institutions with the highest reputations have already adopted online courses. Therefore,doing so in Saudi universities is not a risky, groundbreaking proposal but rather, simply keeping up with universities throughout the world. The real risk is in not following this trend: Again think of the failure of Encyclopedia Britannica to adopt to changing technology and the price it paid. That a high quality university should either specialize in face-to face education or online education is another misconception. Both methods are employed by a host of prestigious institutions. Further the quality problems that once afflicted online education have been overcome. The introduction of online courses will in no way negatively impact the quality of education offered by Saudi universities nor their reputations. Again, quite the opposite is true. Saudi universities risk appearing behind the times if they do not adopt online education as an important method of instruction. Conclusions Online education is the wave of the future in university education. It is an essential component to maintaining and increasing enrollment levels. That said it is not a risky endeavor that may prove to be a dead-end or a false hope as its success has been demonstrated at many prestigious universities throughout the world. Further, strategic partnerships with universities with established online education programs can ease its introduction. It is now a proven method of instruction not a futurist fantasy. The financial department and the IT department see benefits in terms of enrollment and revenue and are prepared to facilitate its introduction. The introduction of online courses will present challenges to faculty. However, these challenges are not terribly significant. There is little difference between lecturing to a classroom and lecturing to a web cam. Student grading is already conducted using computer software and this will not change. Additionally, the IT staff will provide training and support throughout the process. For students the benefits of online education are many and diverse. Distance from the institution is eliminated as a problem. Further, working professionals can stay in their jobs and manage their education to maintain an optimum balance of career, family and education. Th introduction of online education is essential to keeping pace with global education developments. Moreover, a of the resources necessary to insure a successful transition are in place. Finally, the economic opportunity presented by online education is guaranteed. For all of these reasons Saudi universities must implement online education programs. References Al-Sadan, A. (March 2000). Educational Assessment in Saudi Arabian Schools. Assessment In Education: Principles, Policy and Practice. 7: (1). American University of Beirut (AUB), (2010). “Technology paves the way for team-based learning. http://www.aub.edu.lb/news/archive/preview.php?id=112541. Balanskat, A.,Blamire,R., & Kefala,S.(2006).The ICT Impact Report. http://ec.europa.eu/education/pdf/doc254_en.pdf. Castle, Sidney R., and Chad J. McGuire. (2010) "An analysis of student self-assessment of online, blended, and face-to-face learning environments: implications for sustainable education delivery." International Education Studies. 3 (3). Grundmann, Oliver, Donna Wielbo, and Ian Tebbett. (2010). "The implementation and growth of an international online forensic science graduate program at the University of Florida." Journal of College Science Teaching. 40: (1). Heerema, Douglas L. and Richard I. Rogers. (December 2001). “Avoiding the quality/quantity tradeoff in distance education”. Technological Horizons in Education Journal. Murphy, Carlyle. (October 12, 2010). “Saudi Arabia maps genome and educational future”. Global Post. http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/education/101011/saudi-arabia-science. Retrieved November 11, 2010. OLeary, Mick. (March 2002). “E-global library advances the virtual library”. Information Today. Russo, J. Edward and Schoemaker, Paul J. H. (2002). Winning Decisions: Getting it right the first time. New York: Random House. Read More