With all of
the recent hullabaloo over massive open online courses (MOOCs), digital
textbooks, and online learning systems, some people might come to the conclusion
that these developments are brand-new and that the traditional form of higher
education—based on a physical campus—might evaporate any day now.
Professor Kel
Fidler, with 50 years of experience in the academic world and currently a
director at the online learning provider Resource Development International in
the U.K., sees it differently. In a piece for The Telegraph, Fidler points out many universities have been
successfully engaged in online courses and digital content for years.
Although Fidler’s
piece discusses higher education in the U.K., his comments could also apply to
North American higher ed.
He views
online courses, whatever their size, as providing more options for educational
institutions and for students, but he doesn’t think they will or should take
the place of on-campus learning, in part because some courses need in-person
interaction. But the real foundation for any type of instruction, Fidler says,
is quality.
“My
experience has shown me that, whatever the delivery model, success relies on
the same fundamental principles of quality teaching, content, and
experience—and this is where I believe the debate about MOOCs often misses the
point,” he writes.
