Case Analysis on Designing an Online Graduate Seminar - Report Example

Case analysis on designing an Online Graduate Introduction The application of online learning and teaching by an institution requires an expansive preparation of infrastructural resources. It comes with great challenges when faced with a massive number of learners who are to be transformed from physical learning to online learning. Such an initiative calls for numerous infrastructural designs to support the faculty and expand to a large scale. It calls for the design of a synchronous and discussion oriented courses that would attract and serve hundreds of students at a given school attendance period (Bain, 2010). In order to achieve this, teachers and stakeholders must work together to explore varied pathways to enable the demonstrations of proficiency in meeting the content delivery. This will help students and teachers accomplish the content expectations and guidelines. Online learning requires a structural learning activity that emphasizes on technology utility with internet based tools. Such tools and resources aids in the provision of mechanisms of delivery methods for research, assessment, instruction, and communication (Bain, 2010). Analysis Research has put it that students are most productive in an environment of learning which is teacher-led. However, with the increased number of enrolments in schools and colleges, not all the schools and districts have that capacity. The physical enrolment of large numbers of students who are mobile and widespread all over the country makes it even harder during enrolment times for graduate studies. As such, the demand for online graduate learning and teaching comes in handy to aid in solving such issues. The success of an online graduate course demands for the corporation of several departments in its implementation (Power, 1999). This program would require for committee meetings that entail the entire stakeholders including student’s representatives for the success of the program. The implementation of the program requires the analysis of goals, competence and the target population. The need for distinctions between the graduate course and graduate seminar needs to be assessed in order to gain an insight in the analysis. The specific technological requirements must be determined and put in place for the success of the process. Going online is an opening to a wide base of students since they have the convenience of operating from where they are so long as they are connected to internet (Power, 1999). It provides students with the ability to attain training that they would otherwise have missed and also provides an institution with the enrolments needed for a course. Online operations increases accessibility of the course to students, and in turn increases their ability to gainfully get employment after their study according to previous statistical analysis. As such it helps in making it easy to provide and gain education for the entire stakeholders of the program. Being online when learning and teaching provides the teacher and the students with an experience that facilitates higher order thinking, substantive conversation, a wide connection beyond the classroom atmosphere (Beqiri, 2010). Online learning places emphasize on the global Internet use beyond a stand-alone soft ware product. The completion of an online learning with a specific emphasis enables the students to become familiar with the ability to increase own learning skills. Online teaching entails the demand for more information that encourages the ability of research. It enables the students to acquire informal development of technological skills and gather experience through the exposure in the media-rich lives (Beqiri, 2010). The achievement of an online teaching and learning needs a commitment by the faculty members to make it a success. It involves a lot of work upfront, down the road, for the faculty to recoup time investments and more hence gaining more time for other investments. This enables the students to devote more time on their course work especially with regard to research. The institutions must have the ability to deal with issues pertaining to copyrights and intellectual property rights in their collective bargain in order to facilitate the smooth running of online operations of teaching and learning (Blignaut, 2003). Enrollment upsurge will likely enhance the institutional relevance in the eyes of the competitors. It calls for the knowledge of computer literacy among both the teachers and the learners. The spontaneous interactions among the students in seminars acts as a guide to the effective graduate course teaching. These aids in exchanging ideas based on readings, the essence of time availability and also matters on the process of online teaching and learning adoption. The learning process in a graduate course based on online course entails the preparatory phase by the students on areas and topics they will expect to be taught before they come to class (Blignaut, 2003). It entails a rigorous flow of activities from the students which include the discussions of viewpoints on issues of relevance, taking notes and writing down ideas and issues and the adoption of positive attitudes towards the readings and videos. In the development of online teaching and learning, it is important to view a course as not just a collection of materials but as a sacred covenant between the teacher and the learners that must be delivered in a manner that brings out its relevance in the real life situation (Bain, 2010). It involves learning assignment that must enable the students to complete assignments and meet deadlines through the adoption of appropriate online learning behaviors and collaborate with others for effective instructional setting. For an effective online learning, it should be a matter of policy that every student is provided with a meaningful technology-enabled learning opportunities based on research. It’s an opportunity that presents the student with real life data collection and application critical in the business industry hence being relevant in the 21st century (Bain, 2010). The goal for online learning should be its ability to provide highly integrated online experience that challenges and engages the learner. Students in the online course and seminar must be able to have experienced an extensive referential access made by the teacher available online. To achieve these, an institution must be able to develop legal and ethical standards and guidelines together with the stakeholders of the project. These will encourage the students to gather the experience and expertise through the competence of the online learning providers (Blignaut, 2003). The implementation of the process calls for a serious instructional design to look for innovative ways of course design in order to fit the curriculum of online teaching and learning. The design requires several practices including; delivering the question of number of front-end design that is enough. This is due to the fact that graduate course takes the format when conducted and there are often changes in the faculties depending on the market (Power, 1999). The need to address the back and forth nature of operations between students and faculty adamant members on the implementation of an initiative should be considered. This involves the analysis of major considerations to be put in place together with preliminary review of the impacts of the situations. It is important to consider the user friendly nature of the initiative to the environment and the society (Beqiri, 2010). In conclusion, the benefits of online graduate course surpass its demerits and as results warrant a speedy implementation within an institution. The delivery of such a course can take different formats including teacher-led format, blended format, teacher facilitated format, and self-paced format. Online learning enables students to know how to continually learn throughout their lives. It enables the learner to demonstrate information and communication skills, interpersonal and self-direction skills, and thinking and problem solving skills. These are necessary skills that enable one to be on top of his/her duties as an employee. As such it is important for the Rolling Hills University to adopt the program (Blignaut, 2003). Reference Bain, S., Fedynich, L., & Knight, M. (2010). The successful graduate student: a review of the factors for success. Journal of Academic and Business Ethics. 3 (7). Retrieved from http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/10569.pdf Beqiri, M., Chase, N. & Bishka, A. (2010). Online course delivery: An empirical investigation factors affecting student satisfaction. Journal of Education for Business. 96-99. Blignaut, A. S., & Trollop, S. R. (2003). Measuring faculty participation in asynchronous discussion forums. Journal of Education for Business,78(6), 347-353. Power, T.M. (1999) Designing an Online Graduate Seminar. Read More