Education Technology: Extending Reach and Influence - NAIS

Education Technology: Extending Reach and Influence By Susan Booth Online learning, participatory social media, and open educational resources have increased access to education on a global scale. Empowered learners and consumers of educational products and services create and co-create educational content and experiences from a vast menu of choices, including free or fee-based online peer learning networks, courses, publications, and videos. The participatory, social nature of many of these experiences will generate seismic shifts in all teaching and learning and will likely alter what it means to be literate. At the same time, online “diploma mills,” questionable content sources, and the sheer number of education options available will raise concerns about the quality and validity of online content and learning experiences and create demands for quality assurance. Online Learning Following postsecondary trends, where “over twenty percent of all U.S. higher education students were taking at least one online course in the fall of 2007,”1 the number of high school students taking online courses will continue to grow. A lack of standard definitions for what constitutes an online course, different counting methods among institutions and states for online students, and the total absence of counting and reporting of online students in some states make it difficult to accurately estimate the total number of students currently enrolled in online K-12 courses or to estimate future market growth. Within these limitations, several organizations and individuals have made the following estimates and predictions: • •

Using a logarithmic approach, Christensen, Horn, and Johnson predict that “by 2019, about 50 percent of high school courses will be delivered online.”2 In K–12 Online Learning: A 2008 Follow-Up of the Survey of U.S. School District Administrators, the Sloan Consortium projects that “it is conceivable that by 2016 online enrollments could reach between 5 and 6 million K-12 (mostly high school) students.”3

1

I. Elaine Allen and Jeff Seaman, Staying the Course: Online Education in the United States, 2008 (Needham, MA: Sloan Consortium, 2008), p. 1; online at www.sloanconsortium.org/ sites/default/files/staying_the_course-2.pdf. 2 Clayton M. Christensen, Michael B. Horn, and Curtis W. Johnson, Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2008), p. 98. 3

Anthony G. Picciano and Jeff Seaman, K–12 Online Learning: A 2008 Follow-Up of the Survey of U.S. School District Administrators (Needham, MA: Sloan Consortium, 2009), p. 22; online at www.sloanconsortium.org/sites/default/files/k-12_ online_learning_2008.pdf.

© 2010 National Association of Independent Schools

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Ambient Insight estimates that by 2014, 13.1 percent of the K-12 population will be taking some online courses.4

While the estimates vary for how many current and projected K-12 students are taking online courses, there is widespread agreement that technological advances have made online learning as viable as traditional classroom teaching and learning and that the use of this instructional delivery model will continue to grow. Online learning could offer independent schools new ways to increase their course offerings, expand outreach to new populations, enhance scheduling flexibility, and continue providing education during school closures. With continued growth in the number of college and university students taking online courses and in the number of employers offering online training to employees, independent schools will need to provide high school students with online learning experiences to help them succeed in college and in a competitive online, global workforce. At the same time, parental expectations and competition from new sources, such as charter schools and for-profit organizations, will require independent schools to analyze their market position within the online learning market as part of their marketing and strategic planning efforts. A strategic vision that supports a school’s mission, teacher preparation and professional development, and strong support and leadership from school administrators are critical ingredients for successful online learning initiatives. School leaders should also analyze, plan for, and manage the possible impacts that online learning will have on pedagogy, infrastructure, staffing, and evaluation and assessment. Participatory Cultures In A Review of the Open Educational Resources (OER) Movement, Atkins, Brown, and Hammond described a new way of learning for “students growing up digital.” Students growing up digital approach learning quite differently from prior generations. Yes, their attention span is limited, but their multitasking capabilities allow them to switch contexts nearly instantly. They are comfortable with jumping into a situation or a topic not knowing ahead of time what they need to know to succeed. In that sense, they expect to discover or uncover knowledge as they explore a domain. They don’t expect to be told by an authority to read a manual. Sink or swim is their coin of the day. Although this sounds chaotic, they use social resources and the Net to navigate their way through a complex situation. They learn from and with their peers as much as from standard sources of authority. They are inherently collaborative learners who want to learn by doing. This process of doing plays out across nearly all the disciplines. They build, they remix, they mod, they blog, they converse, they share hints, stories, writings — all facilitated by digital communication in both physical and virtual worlds.5 4

Sam S. Adkins, The US Market for Self-Paced eLearning Products and Services: 2009-2014 Forecast and Analysis (Monroe, WA: Ambient Insight Research, 2009); online at www.ambientinsight.com/Resources/Documents/ AmbientInsight_2009_2014_eLearningMarket_ ExecutiveOverview.pdf. 5 Daniel E. Atkins, John Seely Brown, and Allen L. Hammond, A Review of the Open Educational Resources (OER) Movement: Achievements, Challenges, and New Opportunities (Menlo Park, CA: William and Flora Hewlett


The participatory cultures made possible by social media and web applications provide new opportunities for individuals to access information, create and share content, form communities, and exert influence in various social spheres, including politics and media. According to media scholar Henry Jenkins, participatory culture includes affiliations in online communities such as Facebook and gaming groups; expressions such as fan videos and mashups; collaborative problem-solving, where people work together in teams to solve problems or create new knowledge and content; and circulations, such as blogs. These participatory cultures and the opportunities and challenges they present require a new definition of what it means to be literate and what media and social skills students need if they are to be successful and influential in this globally connected world.6 Jenkins suggests that educators will face challenges in providing students with the skills, tools, and resources they need to access and be full participants in online communities, become proficient at analyzing media sources, and develop a deep understanding of ethics. The literate student will not only consume information and content but will also be required to actively create, evaluate, synthesize, and share content and information across multiple media channels and to network and work collaboratively with diverse individuals and communities.7 As institutions, independent schools will find that participatory media such as Facebook and blogs create a greater demand for institutional transparency and increased expectations for engagement from parents and other groups. Readily available personal learning networks made possible by social media have already become increasingly important for continued professional development for both teachers and administrators. Educators will find that the need to provide students with access to participatory environments — and the transformation of students from passive consumers to active creators of information and content — will require shifts in teaching and learning practices, policies, and evaluation and assessment. Democratic, accessible, and engaging, participatory cultures provide independent school students, educators, and administrators with new opportunities to network, collaborate, teach, learn, and reach out to individuals and groups both within and outside of the school community. Open Educational Resources Atkins, Brown, and Hammond define open educational resources as “teaching, learning and research resources that reside in the public domain or have been released under an intellectual property license that permits their free use or repurposing by others. Open educational resources

Foundation, 2007), pp. 43-44; online at www.oerderves.org/wp-content/uploads/2007/03/a-review-of-the-openeducational-resources-oer-movement_final.pdf. 6 Henry Jenkins, with Katie Clinton, Ravi Purushotma, Alice J. Robison, and Margaret Weigel, Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media Education for the 21st Century (Chicago: John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, 2009), p. 3. 7

Ibid, pp. 3-4.


include full courses, course materials, modules, textbooks, streaming videos, tests, software, and any other tools, materials or techniques used to support access to knowledge.”8 Free and accessible to all, open educational resources such as those of the OpenCourseWare Consortium and Creative Commons are redefining access to quality educational content and experiences and providing new vehicles for institutional outreach. A collaborative project involving more than 200 higher education institutions and organizations, the OpenCourseWare Consortium’s mission is “to advance education and empower people worldwide through open courseware.” The consortium’s member institutions currently offer thousands of free online courses to individuals and groups anywhere in the world. Housed in the public domain, open educational resources or “learning objects” can be used, remixed, and repurposed to create new educational content and experiences. The repurposing and remixing of existing course content and materials allow for greater innovation of existing materials and additional feedback loops for course improvement. MIT OpenCourseWare, which has published over 1,900 MIT courses, had 50 million visits to its site in 2008. Its Highlights for High School provides an outstanding model of the reach, breadth, and quality that are possible with open courseware. Designed for teachers, students, and parents, the site offers introductory MIT courses, high school courses developed by MIT, and courses taught by MIT students. Videos, practice problems, exam questions, online labs, and links to other resources help students learn concepts, experience college-level work, and prepare for AP exams. Higher education institutions have found that open courseware initiatives help fulfill missions related to public service and appeal to alumni and other community members. Students, families, teachers, donors, and others may become interested in a school as a result of experience with the school’s open courseware. Open educational resources provide independent schools with new resources for teaching and learning; new models for enhancing and improving course materials; and new opportunities for public service, visibility, and outreach. ACTION STEPS These action steps are adapted from Online Learning: A Continuum of Opportunity – Critical Questions for School Leaders, created by the NAIS 21st Century Curriculum/Technology Task Force. • Determine how online learning offerings will affect your school’s market position. What is your school’s current position in the K-12 online learning market? • Identify the essential skills students will need to participate in online learning and participatory cultures, and develop a plan for how your school will teach these skills. • Plan for the pedagogical shifts that online learning, participatory cultures, and open educational courseware and resources may require at your school. 8 Atkins, Brown, and Hammond, A Review, p. 4.


• Determine how your school will evaluate and assess teaching and learning when online learning, participatory cultures, or open educational resources are used. • When your school is considering online learning, participatory cultures, and open educational resources, also consider the types of professional development and support your teachers will need in order to continue providing high-quality teaching and learning experiences. • Ensure that marketing and outreach efforts highlight the online learning, participatory cultures, and open educational resources at your school. Resources Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media Education for the 21st Century, Henry Jenkins et al., MacArthur Foundation, 2009: http://digitallearning. macfound.org/atf/cf/%7B7E45C7E0-A3E0-4B89-AC9CE807E1B0AE4E%7D/JENKINS_WHITE_PAPER.PDF Creative Commons Open Educational Resources: www.creativecommons.org Online Learning: A Continuum of Opportunity – Critical Questions for School Leaders: www.nais.org/ programmatic/article.cfm?ItemNumber=153859 Curriki: www.curriki.org MIT OpenCourseWare Highlights for High School: http://ocw.mit.edu/high-school/ NAIS K-12 Online Learning: A Literature Review: www.nais.org/about/article.cfm?ItemNumber=153512 NAIS 2010 K-12 Online Learning Survey: www.nais.org/ research/article.cfm?ItemNumber=153925 New Media Literacies: www.newmedialiteracies.org/ OpenCourseWare Consortium: www.ocwconsortium.org/

This article originally appeared as a chapter in the 2010-11 NAIS Trendbook.
