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Staying High Tech in Higher Education: Mix Online and Onsite Classes

Posted on Dec 21, 2011 - 06:00 AM | Online Classes | Comments (0)

According to Educause*, a leading proponent of high tech in college classrooms, students like it when professors combine online and onsite education. They believe lectures are enhanced by a sprinkle of technology. It can make a boring lecture or presentation just a little bit more exciting and keeps students engaged in classroom discussion.

The Technology Students Want in the Classroom

Presentation Software. Students want to feel more involved, whether that means PowerPoint, Prezi or something else that’s interactive.
E-textbooks. Students may love them, but the results are inconclusive, at best.Students who use e-textbooks don’t always get the best grades because they tend to skim the text rather than read it. Don’t use e-textbooks the way you use web pages. READ the text; don’t look for keywords; you’ll miss too much. Used properly, e-textbooks (with their pop-ups and links) are great.
Email/Social Media. Students wish professors used email or social media to make themselves more accessible, or to keep them updated on changes, breaking news in the subject area, good research materials, etc.

Blending Online and Onsite Classes

Education techniques need to stay current and keep students learning in the way that works best for them. In fact, that’s the premise behind our Learning Style Inventory, the first of many ways we demonstrate our willingness to use high-tech tools to help you learn.

Approaches to Online Education:

Interactive Programs. From personality tests to vocabulary builders and SAT or ACT practice tests, interactive materials are fun, educational and immediate. Videos can be a great addition, particularly if they help in fields where you specifically need help. Videos keep students engaged in their education, allow you to play back important information and take notes as needed.
E-textbooks. Our grade-appropriate handbooks and worksheets are all online. Short, reader-friendly sections keep students from getting distracted or skimming ahead, and the breakouts and sidebars highlight important details for easy memorization and reference. Our worksheets even feature something most e-textbooks don’t – they can be filled out online.
Electronic Updates and Alerts. We use email to keep students and parents informed, and we encourage them to contact us the same way. We also use Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and Knowledge Bound: The RSC Blog to keep students informed of important events and deadlines. We even use it as an educational tool with our original Word of the Day.

Plenty of studies show that experts and students agree: a combined curriculum of onsite and online classes works best. RSC’s college prep program lets you do both. You go to school, and we’ll bring the technology to your doorstep. If that’s the way you want to learn (like most students), your online education will be waiting for you when you get home.

*From the 2011 National Study of Undergraduate Students and Information

***This blog picked as one of the day's top stories by Int'l Higher Edu. You can also see Staying High Tech in Higher Educatin: Mixing Online and Onsite Classes here.

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