Stephen's Web

OLDaily

by Stephen Downes
August 31, 2010

Online, Bigger Classes May Be Better Classes
The Chronicle covers the open course phenomenon, talking eo myself, George Siemens, Alec Couros, David Wiley, Wendy Drexler and others. It's reasonable coverage, examining both the motivations and the outcomes. The headline is a bit odd, though. The courses aren't better because they're bigger, they're better because they're open. There is the requisite Chronicle contrarian, in this case Gary W. Matkin, dean of continuing education at UC Irvine, who comments despite not having any experience with the distributed delievry model we have been using. Instructors have to control the context of education, he says, and to keep the dummies from crowding out the paying customers. Of course, we've dealt with all that and more. Mark Parry, Chronicle of Higher Education, August 31, 2010 [Link] [Comment] [Tweet]

50 Best Websites 2010
Sigh - overlooked again. Still, one has to wonder at the selection of Chegg - a textbook rental company - and LiveMocha - a commercial language learning site - in the top 5 educational sites. Old media roots run deep. So I wouldn't gloat. Various Authors, Time, August 26, 2010 [Link] [Comment] [Tweet]

In response to Amy Kinsel
Amy Kinsel responds to David Wiley's case for open education. "I know first-hand that education does not consist primarily of the transfer of information from books or professors to students," she writes. "Access to information alone does not equal education." That's why the teacher plays such an important role. "If I were responsible not for 25-30 students per online class but 60 or even 100 students, I would need to change how I teach. I could not assign analytical papers that I'd have to read and comment on, I could not field student questions, I could not read or reply individually to student posts, and I could not ask students to write essay exam questions that told me how well students understood important concepts and were able to apply critical thinking skills."

Wiley responds in this post. He agrees with Kinsel's premise. "Access to a wealth of content, information, books, articles, and other resources is a necessary – but not sufficient – condition for learning." But he notes, "What we must not overlook in this statement is that access to content is a necessary condition for learning." And he agrees there are limiting conditions to teaching online. "Amy and I agree that no faculty member can legally post student work in public. And we agree that students need to feel safe in order for them to engage substantively in conversations and other activities." But where he disagrees - and where I agree with him - is in the contention that only the teacher can be the locus of the analytical and reflective work essential for an education. "I explain to my students that discussions on the open internet can still be framed as formative, learning conversations and not as one's final opinion." David Wiley, iterating toward openness, August 26, 2010 [Link] [Comment] [Tweet]