Richard Bothel, Ed.D

Executive Director,

Continuing and Distance Ed

Lamar University

Taking Advantage of the Online Evolution

Abstract: change in continuing education means finding ways to do more with less. Learn how you can establish an eLearning Center utilizing contracted services and minimal resources.

This interactive presentation purposefully is named “Taking Advantage of the ONLINE EVOLUTION” because it differentiates “online evolution” from the traditional development and offering of online classes. It proposes that by taking a new approach to the development of an eLearning Center, success can be assured.

“eLearning” is defined as a program delivering the majority of its instruction through technology, usually the Internet. Over the past few years training research shows that online courses in the United States have not delivered their promised “revolution” of program delivery. Online courses have experienced high dropout rates. Many students have becoming unwilling to take Web courses and there has often been an overall dissatisfaction with elearning. eLearning has been labeled as “non-human” and is in conflict with traditional learning paradigm. Proprietary systems and a piece-meal approach to delivering elearning to various populations have achieved limited success.

Despite the lack-luster success of the implementation of elearning programs, course numbers have seen moderate growth. There is currently about a 13% preference for elearning programs. No matter what the economy, people will always need to be trained. eLearning is not going away and offers a bright future for those who can overcome some major implementation hurdles…mainly the implementation cost barrier. Development of open architecture and universal standards are moving program development forward. Lower costs are made available through these standardizations and collaborative programs between program developers and various vendors. A key paradigm shift that recognizes the importance of bringing “learning” to the “student” make eleaning’s capability of being personalized to individual student needs become important.

ROI (Return on Investment) has been the driving factor in limited the expansion of elearning. Lower costs through vendor/developer collaboration are the first step, but the second important step is getting organizations to recognize the importance of newly defined ROV (Return on Value). Individual students and organizations must understand the elearning enables “success.” eLearning and knowledge management go hand-in-hand. Nobody’s as smart as everybody. Just-in-time (JIT) elearning allows individuals to access information when it is needed and important to the success of the “job of the moment.” This philosophy must be the under-pinning of marketing elearning programs. Peter Drucker’s well-know statement: “If you want it, measure it. If you can’t measure it, forget it” needs to become the watchdog of successful elearning. People must be assured that learning programs will support their future success in business or life. The emergence of the chief learning officer (CLO) in some business demonstrates the importance to integrating learning into daily activities that lead to the success of the organization.

It’s easier to invent the future, than predict it. The presentation concludes with implementation strategies and presentation of a vendor program that delivers the promise of elearning to interested institutions. For elearning to be successful implementation costs must be low and programs need to be based on the specific needs of the target population. Interactive examples are given of needs assessment and vendor programs.