Quality Assurance: Breaking Through the Online Learning Plateau

Introduction

Online learning or virtual learning continues to increase across the globe, in all academic areas for the past four decades (Zawacki-Richter & Latchem, 2018). As such there are still concerns surrounding the nature of online courses or programs as well as its validity (Agbebaku & Adavbiele, Justina, 2016; Markova, Glazkova, & Zaborova, 2017). It comes as no surprise as to the impact technology has had on education in the past few decades, in which distance education has grown rapidly into online, virtual education or even blended learning. Allen, Seaman, Poulin, and Straut (2016) claim that more than two-thirds of academic leaders believe online learning is a “critical” component to the long-term viability of the institution. This increase in online programs is partially attributed to its mobility, flexibility, internationalization and increased job opportunities. The flexibility and mobility of online learning make studying attractive, in which potential students can access high-quality education, across borders, without having to completely interrupt their already active lives.

Although online programs help learners to overcome the hassle and constraints of time, other hurdles obstacles arise such as, real-time communication, which is a vital role in making online learning more authentic and natural. The later in hopes of connecting with shy, less confident students, providing them with practical and genuine opportunities to stay involved in their own learning. However, Jiang (2017, p. para. 1) suggest that “learner's online behavior and peer-interaction would be more regulated and stimulated by assigning roles to learners in discussion activities”. There are an array of benefits to assigning roles with collaborative group assignments, such as allowing learners to stay on task, clear route for participation, encourage individual accountability while strengthening communication (Johnson, 2011; Villagonzalo, 2014). The diverse roles that could be assigned in online environments are mirrored from face-to-face interactions; however, they are still valid and extremely useful for online learners, such as being a facilitator, recorder, presenter, or even a reflector. In fact, additional roles such as encourager, questioner or even a checker (De Wever, Keer, Schellens, & Valcke, 2010) could also be used. Nevertheless, these roles can be assigned and distributed as needed in accordance with the topic or assignment at hand. Thus, this chapter will discuss how roles can be used managing online forum discussions, where learners become online instructors (OIs hereafter) for different periods during the online real-time sessions.

However, regardless of the increase and demand of online programs, many OIs still lack the essential knowledge of their learners as well as their online teaching context since OIs often carry over traditional face-to-face strategies into the online environment, making no significant adjustment, and simply changing the delivery modality. In fact, OIs are not truly aware of what or even who are their students, which in turn has a direct consequence on the teaching and learning process. Now, faculty members at higher education institutions (HEI, hereafter) across the globe are typically deemed “experts” in their field of study, but not in pedagogy, education or the like. Now, if a second or foreign language is involved, the recipe for teaching just got that much harder. Therefore, the combination of [expertise (-) pedagogy] + foreign language equals challenges in successfully acquiring the content at hand (Betts & Heaston, 2014; Tømte, Enochsson, Buskqvist, & Kårstein, 2015). Now, if this same formula is applied to an online course, the stakes just increased meaning that these professionals, now faculty at a HEI, often do not have competences to teach online, which in turn results in not so “positive” reactions from learners (i.e. high dropout rates, lack of field competences, limited cognition development, etc.).

HEIs try to off-set this lack of preparation/training by offering short courses, seminars and the like on various topics, unfortunately, teaching online is often not on “to-do list”, because faculty believe that since they are “experts” in their field, they do not need an “upgrade” to teach online, because they claim that it is the same. Unfortunately, both HEIs and faculty alike perceive online education as such.