There is no doubt that Web Based Courses are going to be the way of the future. I can completly understand their use in rural or remote schools around Manitoba (or the world for that matter). They are simply too great for allowing schools to supplement the core courses with some of the topic courses that are not necissarily required to graduate. Being able to include more student interest classes or advanced classes can only help increase the amount of students who are interested and engaged in school.
I was also interested in the study that found that classes that had less face to face time and more internet time were more successful. I would like to see this study because I have my doubts about its legitness (yes I know thats not really a word). I can understand that intrapersonal learners would have success but extrapersonal leaners would be at a disadvantage - and I have a feeling that the majority of people who have used WBC's thus far are probably those that feel this type of learning would be appealing to, which of course would skew their stats a bit. Regardless, they are hear to stay and I am sure I will be using it as a resource for myself.
Yup, well said. While there are people out there who definitely can benefit from completing a course solo, who have the drive/initiative to get it done, most would require that one on one time to help guide them to their full potential. WBC's are a fantastic "resource," but, I think, are best suited as a starting point.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your statements and think it's quite obvious that intrapersonal learners would in fact have success and extrapersonal learners would be at a disadvantage, as the extraverts need social interaction to thrive and intraverts the opposite. It's just really too bad that ALL students (whether extra or intra) in rural areas must sometimes solely depend on WBCs. I suppose it is better than nothing. WBCs are a great resource all around for both the teacher and students and I wish that they could be used more as a "filler" for the classroom other than a sole reliance that you see in rural areas. I believe that with a combination of WBC and F2F instruction, students that work at different rates can either catch up, or work ahead at their own pace.
ReplyDeleteAll in all.. I look forward to the future potential use of WBCs and think they are a great addition to learning.
Actually there have been many studies that show blended as more effective than f2f or totally online. Of course, it depends on what one means by effective, and the context and the quality of the delivery.
ReplyDeleteI could completely understand that a blended style would be the most effective - because it would allow both inter and intra personal students to have parts of the course that caiter to their strengths. What I have difficulty believinig is that pure WBC would be better on the whole for the majority of students rather than F2F.
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