Monday, October 02, 2006
C is for Course Management: Expert Opinions
In the second half of the article I began discussing last week, the authors each offer their observations about the survey results and course management more generally. As Patricia McGee notes, and I think this is the consensus view of all three authors, "Virtual learning systems have been assigned with the primary function of management. " There is little in course management systems as they've been currently conceived that focuses on motivating learners or even helping them learn better. All three authors discuss the problem of having these systems closed off, as if learning only takes place during a particular time and place. As Carmean notes, "Faculty embraced the new L/CMSs for convenience in managing their teaching loads, but the courses stayed the same." Everything else has changed--courses, students, workplace demands--and yet we're still teaching basically the same way we did centuries ago.
The authors also lament that faculty don't take more advantage of existing tools that are available for free--Skype, blogs, wikis, Furl, MySpace, Flickr, IM--that could be used in addition to the CMS. Carmean says "It isn't the technology that's stopping us: technology and the learners have left us [the faculty] behind." This is a rather harsh assesment, but true in some regards. We cannot ignore the sea change in technology that's happening around us. It's changing many fields. Companies almost all have blogs now. Quite often, people in corporate environments as well as academic ones require technology-enabled presentations. Students communicate in a variety of ways--via IM, text messaging, email and via FaceBook. These ways of communication will continue beyond college. While they may be proficient in using these communication methods, they may not use them as effectively as they could. We need to be helping students use technology effectively and appropriately. If they don't practice until they get a job, they may fail.
Another issue that all the authors touch on is the way that current social networking software allows students to connect with others outside of their institution. CMSs generally don't allow this kind of networking. The message is that learning must come from the professor and not from anyone else. Learning with and from others can be very motivating. Many faculty I know that use tools such as blogs and wikis talk about the motivation that contact from "the outside" gives their students. Not only do these students connect with other students, but also with experts in their field, providing them with expert opinions and perspectives.
The key finding seems to be that these systems right now are failing to meet the needs of today's learners. Technology developed outside of these systems are filling some of the gaps and students are flocking to those technologies while CMSs struggle to keep up. CMSs are built on frameworks and concepts that are 10-15 years old. In the tech world, that's ancient. I don't have any easy answers. Some have suggested abandoning CMS-type technology altogether. Others have suggested moving to an open source CMS which might allow schools to customize the system to meet the needs of their particular environment and learners. Either way, I think we're thinking beyond today's CMS. Perhaps the CMSs will catch up, but I think we can't necessarily wait for them.
The authors also lament that faculty don't take more advantage of existing tools that are available for free--Skype, blogs, wikis, Furl, MySpace, Flickr, IM--that could be used in addition to the CMS. Carmean says "It isn't the technology that's stopping us: technology and the learners have left us [the faculty] behind." This is a rather harsh assesment, but true in some regards. We cannot ignore the sea change in technology that's happening around us. It's changing many fields. Companies almost all have blogs now. Quite often, people in corporate environments as well as academic ones require technology-enabled presentations. Students communicate in a variety of ways--via IM, text messaging, email and via FaceBook. These ways of communication will continue beyond college. While they may be proficient in using these communication methods, they may not use them as effectively as they could. We need to be helping students use technology effectively and appropriately. If they don't practice until they get a job, they may fail.
Another issue that all the authors touch on is the way that current social networking software allows students to connect with others outside of their institution. CMSs generally don't allow this kind of networking. The message is that learning must come from the professor and not from anyone else. Learning with and from others can be very motivating. Many faculty I know that use tools such as blogs and wikis talk about the motivation that contact from "the outside" gives their students. Not only do these students connect with other students, but also with experts in their field, providing them with expert opinions and perspectives.
The key finding seems to be that these systems right now are failing to meet the needs of today's learners. Technology developed outside of these systems are filling some of the gaps and students are flocking to those technologies while CMSs struggle to keep up. CMSs are built on frameworks and concepts that are 10-15 years old. In the tech world, that's ancient. I don't have any easy answers. Some have suggested abandoning CMS-type technology altogether. Others have suggested moving to an open source CMS which might allow schools to customize the system to meet the needs of their particular environment and learners. Either way, I think we're thinking beyond today's CMS. Perhaps the CMSs will catch up, but I think we can't necessarily wait for them.
