Theme 3: Engaging with the External Community and the Region |
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Report on Theme III, Issue No. 4: Distributed Learning CSUSB has been engaged in distance learning since 1985, when ITFS (instructional television, fixed site) microwave technology was used to deliver 2 way audio, 1 way video courses to Palm Desert. In 1986, the Palm Desert campus (called the Coachella Valley Center) was established. A newer two 2 video technology (called compressed video) was implemented as a result of an AQMD (Air Quality Management District) grant in 1993. In the early 90s faculty experimented with using online tools to enhance their teaching. In 1995, early pioneer faculty members started using the WebCT course management system to teach online courses. An internal 1996 report on distance learning recommended the formation of a central office to coordinate distance learning at CSUSB. The Office of Distributed Learning was formed in 1999. (Office of Distributed Learning) In 1999, the university was awarded a $2+ Million, 5-year grant under the Title V program, Hispanic Serving Institutions, of the U.S. Department of Education. This grant has allowed the university to improve the infrastructure of the university to allow it to better serve the 27,000 square mile region in Southern California. The intent was to create a distributed learning network, linking CSUSB to regional community colleges. Factors associated with the creation and implementation of the network have included: development of a distance learning strategic plan, development and campus approval of a distance learning policy, development of procedures for online, videoconference, and blended/hybrid course development, formation of agreements with community colleges, academic program development, assessment, authentication, student services, marketing, funding, and other administrative issues. Key components of the grant, written in the summer of 1999 by Interim Director of Distributed Learning, Susan Cooper, and College of Education professor, Judy Rymer, included: partnerships with select community colleges that would offer CSUSB courses, development of multimedia resources for use in courses, and improved accessibility of the university through online web resources. Similar models had been implemented in Arizona, Texas, and South Dakota. In the first two years of the grant, due to staff turnover and delays in initial startup, there were delays in implementing the grant. In the middle of the second year, there was a vacancy in the project director position (which also was the Director of Distributed Learning position). Eventually, this position was filled by Dr. James Monaghan, an Associate Professor in Instructional Technology. With the assistance of the offices of the Provost, the Vice Provost and the staff of the Office of Distributed Learning, notably Dr. Rosa Gonzalez, Assistant Director, and Bill Gray, Site Coordinator, the Office of Distributed Learning (ODL) developed a renewed plan for implementing the vision for the distributed learning network. Due in part to limited enrollment in CSUSB courses offered at a site 175 miles from campus, ODL realized that it was essential not only to forge partnerships with regional community colleges that served students in far-flung locations in our service area, but also to actively develop a high demand academic program that could be offered in collaboration with community college partners. Thus, in the summer of 2001, heeding recommendations from needs assessments, ODL embarked on a concerted development effort to produce coursework that would lead to a Bachelor's degree in Liberal Studies, the degree most often pursued by prospective elementary school teachers in California. This development effort involves coordination of diverse interests and four colleges in our university. Coordination involves:
Other components of the distributed learning network model included making registration services, academic forms, grade reporting, and other student services available through the Internet. ODL also stepped up their advising for potential transfer students from community colleges. This involved collaboration with Enrollment Services (in the Student Affairs division). Additionally, as an institution, ODL developed dual admission agreements and agreements to offer CSUSB courses through community colleges (videoconference, live, online, blended). With a concerted emphasis on program development, it was essential to get the campus to agree to policies and procedures for implementation of online, blended, and videoconference courses. During the spring of 2001, extensive free response surveys were conducted of key internal stakeholders on issues salient to distance learning. These surveys were then collated into categories and analyzed in summer 2001 by members of a faculty senate task force on distance learning. Members of the committee included the chair of the senate curriculum committee, the chair of the Intellectual Property Committee, the Director of Distributed Learning, the chair of the Educational Policy and Research Committee and the director of the National Center for Excellence in Distance Learning. During extensive meetings in the summer of 2001, this committee drafted a campus policy on distance learning. This policy was approved, with limited revision, by upper administration and became binding in December 2001. Given approval of the policy, after extensive airing of the
proposed policy through open forums, ODL was poised to accelerate
development and deployment of courses. This required ODL to
better coordinate existing offices. Thus, roles for online
course development were refined among the Teaching Resource
Center, Academic Computing and Media, and the Office of Distributed
Learning. ODL is working closely with these colleges on formal advising procedures in which community college students are encouraged to continue their education and pursue a baccalaureate degree. By working with students at a location with which they are familiar, ODL anticipated convincing many first generation college students that they could attain a baccalaureate degree using distance technologies. ODL continues to work with community college partners on videoconference courses and partnerships, but it has been their experience that community colleges appear to desire a physical presence of the 4 year university on their campuses. Nevertheless, ODL has successfully conducted agreements with three new community colleges since the inception of the distributed learning network program. These colleges are Victor Valley College (Victorville - 33 miles North of CSUSB), Riverside Community College, Moreno Valley (Moreno Valley - 28 miles Southeast of CSUSB), and Palo Verde College (Blythe - 175 miles East of CSUSB). These three sites have joined CSUSB's Palm Desert campus (Palm Desert - 70 miles East of CSUSB) in receiving curriculum through videoconference technology. The Palm Desert campus has long been a spearhead for ODL's efforts to deliver distance learning courses. According to the Palm Desert Campus strategic plan, a significant portion of the Palm Desert offerings should be offered through electronically mediated instruction. (50% enrollment, 1/3 of classes; however, it has not exceeded 10%.) Distance learning could, if implemented in a prudent manner, allow more students access and be financially viable. ODL's center at Victor Valley (33 miles from CSUSB) operates on a model similar to the Palm Desert campus. In addition to being a videoconference receive site, courses leading to the Elementary and Secondary teaching credentials, the Educational Administration and Special Education credentials, and the Liberal Studies degree completion are offered live on-site at the Victor Valley campus. Additionally, CSUSB sends introductory Communications courses to three regional high schools in the Virtual High Tech High program. These schools are Eisenhower (Rialto - 5 miles from CSUSB), Redlands (Redlands - 16 miles from CSUSB) and San Gorgonio (San Bernardino - 8 miles from CSUSB) High Schools. The campus is now actively engaged in a concerted development effort that would have been much more challenging three years ago. There is a clear shift in the willingness of faculty, departments, and administration to embrace distance learning. For instance, in addition to development efforts that will lead to the Liberal Studies degree completion program, the department of Nursing has embarked upon development of a distance option for the RN to BSN degree completion program. The department is working closely with health care providers in the Palm Desert area on this effort. Also, the department of Communications has embarked on a degree completion program geared to the needs of the community served by the Palm Desert campus. A new faculty senate committee is charged with continuing evaluation of courses; this committee will build on efforts conducted by the Teaching Resource Center and the Office of Distributed Learning. In 2002-03, this committee has pilot tested a new SETE (student evaluation of teaching effectiveness), specifically dedicated to electronically mediated instruction. Another faculty senate committee is working toward revisions to the CSUSB Intellectual Property policy to adhere to strictures mandated by the federal TEACH (The Technology, Education, and Copyright Harmonization) act. ODL is currently expanding their efforts in the student services area. ODL's goal is to establish a robust personal relationship among distance learning students who could otherwise feel alienated from the university community. ODL is exploring remote access to personal advising in order to complement a host of student services that have been implemented online. ODL will be conducting videoconference advising sessions in the near future. ODL is also exploring the creation of multimedia advising tools that would be archived in digital format (on CD and through streaming video on the Internet). These materials are scheduled to be delivered for the 2003-04 academic year. In 2002, the campus developed a technology strategic plan in which distance learning figures prominently. On the technical side, ODL has, within the past year, expanded their computer network infrastructure and their videoconference infrastructure. Internet video streaming and TV broadcasting (through the new Inland California TV Network (ICTN)) are being examined for their potential to archive course content. In addition to its potential as an instructional medium, ICTN can serve as a recruitment tool, allowing people in their homes to get a glimpse of a course in which they may enroll. This has the potential to make college more accessible, more plausible for students in this service area. This is important, as fewer than 45% of high school students go on to attend college in the two county area. ODL is forging relationships with other Hispanic Serving Institutions, notably with California State University, Chico, California State University, Monterey Bay, California State University, Dominguez Hills and with the University of Texas, El Paso. ODL's vision is to become a model for distance learning for Hispanic Serving Institutions. Through a contract with the Navy, Dr. Ken Lane and the National Center for Excellence in Distance Learning (see NCEDL) are addressing the needs of the national training market. Its funding necessitates that the Space and Naval Warfare Information Technology Center receive training . Internal gap analyses and needs analyses have not yet matched CSUSB's desire to develop for-credit business courses. To date it has been difficult for this project to coordinate with the state-support side as models for instruction have conflicted. Also, the needs of the training market have not easily meshed with traditional needs for matriculated students. Reuse of content, sharing personnel, sharing infrastructure resources, and overall coordination of administrative functions have been elusive to date. NCEDL is developing MBA prerequisite courses for use in a national market, with the potential for the development of additional courses that will lead to an MBA. The campus is experiencing a rapid shift to earnest distributed learning. Where previously the university served occasional courses to a single remote satellite campus, the university is now actively developing online courses, hybrid and videoconference courses that lead directly to a degree. Additionally, technologies that were previously considered to be the purview of experimental distance learning courses have become mainstream, essential components of on-campus courses. Most notably, over 100 instructors and 4000 students currently engage with course management systems (predominantly the Blackboard Course Management System). The Blackboard course management system serves as the online repository for the syllabi, instructor information, course documents, online class discussions, live Internet CHAT, and other online functions for these courses. A snapshot of Blackboard usage on April 9, 2003 revealed the extent to which this system has become vital to our core academic mission, where, on average, the http://blackboard.csusb.edu web site is accessed almost 30,000 times daily.
Table: April 9, 2003 Snapshot of Blackboard Course Management System Use Over 200 separate campus courses have used course management systems (usually Blackboard) for partial delivery of course materials. As more and more professors employ blended learning approaches, there is the potential to more effectively utilize classroom space. For instance, ODL could potentially coordinate on-site meetings so that two 50% online courses could meet in the same space during the same time slot, alternating meeting times. Appendix of Supporting Materials and Links for Theme III, Issue No. 4 Office of Distributed Learning Distributed Learning Strategic Plan Distance Learning and Off-campus Programs Tactical Plan National Center for Excellence in Distance Learning (NCEDL) homepage: A campus wide Intellectual Property policy Adoption of a Distributed Learning Policy Space and Naval Warfare Information Technology Center
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