Humanizing Learning for All: Considerations for Large-Scale Online Design Initiatives

Introduction

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are at a critical juncture. Increasingly, the sector is being commodified and marketized, with changes to government policy, the mainstreaming of alternative providers, and a more open marketplace driving competition between institutions to unprecedented levels (Teelken, 2012). At the same time, the sector has experienced a series of “disruptive moments” (Christensen & Eyring, 2011; Bass, 2012), including the widespread introduction of online learning, social media, Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) and competency-based education. These have challenged institutions to rethink traditional practices, and reconsider what the University might offer in terms of student experience and outcomes.

In such a climate, many HEIs are making important decisions about the kinds of strategic initiatives that will distinguish them from others in the sector. The perceived economic imperative to respond to disruptions in a competitive market has given these initiatives an added sense of urgency, with significant, large-scale changes in online learning and teaching practice at various institutions now a regular feature in the news and social media (Cameron, 2014; Higher ED IQ, 2014; Dodd, 2015; Redrup, 2015). At the coalface, academic leaders and educators often feel overwhelmed, given the multiple expectations placed upon them. Even the most passionate educators can feel disengaged through the process (Teelken, 2012).

This chapter explores the complexities and challenges of large-scale change in higher education through a faculty-based project to redesign 280 subjects for the online environment over a period of two-and-a-half years. While simply moving online is hardly a ground-breaking activity in today’s climate the mentioned large-scale undertaking is significant in that it aligns with the increasing recognition of a key long-term challenge for universities: moving from pockets of innovation to enabling the introduction of existing innovations into everyday practice, and regarded as mainstream (Hill, 2015). It is significant in its size and impact, as well as the short timeframe in which the changes were required, thus serving as a mirror for the kinds of issues that will potentially challenge other large-scale initiatives in online learning.

Charles Sturt University (CSU) is an Australian multi-campus university located in regional New South Wales, and at a strategic level, has long referenced its provision of distance education as a major aspect of its role as a higher education provider (CSU, 2013). Beginning with a correspondence model comprizing solely mailed print packages, this has evolved over time to incorporate residential schools, and over the past decade, an increasing use of the online learning environment. Yet, as is the case in many institutions, this transition has been sporadic and uneven across faculties and schools, with pockets of innovation developing amongst individual academics and disciplines, rather than through any coordinated, large-scale initiative designed to achieve a collective and consistently high quality outcome.

In July 2012, a memo from the Acting Deputy Vice Chancellor charged faculties with the responsibility of achieving the “...phased introduction of online equivalents in 2013 and 2014 with no printed guides and notes to be available after 2014” (official communication, July 25, 2012). How to achieve this objective was up to individual faculties to determine and implement. The Faculty of Business, through its Online Course Innovation (OCI) Project, used this as an opportunity to explore large-scale change, its complexities and challenges, and the kinds of strategies put in place to ensure that the change was inclusive of the needs of all stakeholders. This meant balancing the change requirements, while also respecting that the human experience is central to the change process.