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ARS Home » Plains Area » Brookings, South Dakota » Integrated Cropping Systems Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #194838
Title: ONLINE TEACHING AND LEARNING – REFLECTION AND CASE STUDY

Author
item BALAMURALIKRISHNA, RADHA - NIU TECH DEPT
item Rosentrater, Kurt

Submitted to: Meeting Proceedings
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/23/2006
Publication Date: 3/31/2006
Citation: Balamuralikrishna, R., Rosentrater, K.A. 2006. Online teaching and learning – reflection and case study. 2006 ASEE IL/IN Annual Conference, Fort Wayne, Indiana, March 31-April 1, 2006.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: During the past several years, engineering and technology departments have witnessed an explosion of college courses that are taught online. An examination of recent ASEE conference proceedings reveals that the number of papers addressing online learning has also registered an exponential growth during this period. As this method of course delivery is new for both the teacher and the taught, the effectiveness of this approach is not always well understood, primarily due to sparse data and lack of comparative studies. Currently, the momentum in engineering and engineering technology disciplines clearly appears to be heading towards making more courses available online as opposed to investing in research related to its effectiveness. Faculty use of online teaching tools, such as BlackBoard and WebCT, is also growing at a furious pace. But, a majority of users tend to use these systems in a passive manner, such as posting course handouts and grades. Web teaching technologies, though, have made remarkable strides in recent years, both in terms of available features and by becoming more user-friendly. Although opportunities for training and professional development are widespread across college campuses around the country, it is always challenging to induce changes large enough to cause an educational paradigm shift. While the answer to the question “Is online delivery of instruction better than, or at least as effective as, conventional techniques?” may not be satisfactorily answered for many years, there is little doubt that engineering and technology educators will increasingly use online teaching tools in one form or another, due to peer pressure, student demand, or for pure “moral and aesthetic” reasons. The authors have experience in the use of on-line course delivery systems, BlackBoard in particular. The authors are experienced in using BlackBoard to deliver an online course or augment traditional instruction. The purpose of this paper is to focus on a recent experience involving the delivery of a quality control course online.