NECESARRY CHANGES FOR ADULT LEARNERS

It is quite obvious that the University of Phoenix is an institution that has its “finger on the pulse” of Education Technology (ET) for its online and campus programs. They make full use of Web 2.0 technology and encourages its distance learners to do the same. With this in mind, there is a perspective that the University of Phoenix has yet to fully address: the lack of familiarity with Ed-tech and/or Web 2.0 learning tools on the part of its adult learner population. For those who are fully integrated into online research – or even social networking! – there is an assumption that everyone else is as well; or that those who are not comprise a minority of adult learners.

This is far from the truth. Many adult education programs report that there is a high attrition rate for first time eLearners. Smith-Tyler (2006) cites Whipp & Chiarelli (2004, pg. 6), who offer a very succinct observation: “A learner undertaking eLearning for the first time is confronted with multiple challenges and learning curves that can impact significantly on his/her confidence and ability to succeed as an eLearner.  These challenges include but are not exclusively “… technical access, asynchronicity, text-based discussions, multiple conversations, information overload and isolation”. Simpson also offers a startling statistic from the UK Open University, that “35% or more of eLearners withdraw before submitting their first assignment, which suggests that a learner’s initial experience with eLearning may well have a significant impact on a decision to drop out”.

An unfamiliarity with Web 2.0 tech is an area that the University of Phoenix should thoroughly address for its adult learners. Granted, they do provide workshops for students but these are generally voluntary. Pearson (2007) offers solutions for building an early rapport with online research for high school and journalism undergrads and graduate students, some of his ideas can be incorporated by the University of Phoenix if their desire is to increase the confidence and success rates of its adult learner population. His suggestions include developing a “degree track for teachers with certifications in language arts, art education and computer science” and he also proposes online research of public records, assembling databases, doing podcasts of lectures, thus “their lifelong connection to web 2.0 and online studies can be strengthened”.

While his proposals are for integrating Journalism majors to online

course work, they can be adapted by the University of Phoenix to

aid its adult learners in improving their knowledge of education

technology. This should not be limited to adult learners in

computer science programs, moreover required modules with

online assignments can be incorporated into every course.

Podcasts:

         Students can develop their own podcasts. How-To links can be provided showing them how to do podcasts. Podcasts can be designed by individuals and/or learning teams. Podcasts can cover a myriad of topics including assignments, lectures, personal projects, etc.

    Online Research:

         Adult learners can be given simple research projects that require using databases. Projects can be simple, keeping in mind that for many students in this demographic, online familiarity is at a minimum.

 Blogs:

         Adult learners can be required to start and maintain a blog throughout the course. As with podcasts, how-to links can be provided offering instruction on how to set up a blog spot. This is an area where they can be “encouraged to shine”, their blog(s) can be educational, creative, political – whatever strikes their fancy! They can post their assignments, offer commentaries on text books, required articles, opinions on information presentation, etc.

These are just a few ideas that the University of Phoenix can
incorporate on a more intensive level to ensure successful learning
opportunities for its adult learner population. Granted, many can
argue that some of these ideas are already included in many UoP
courses. However, they are not in all of them, and they are not
presented as being specifically for its adult learner population. The
University of Phoenix provides a few workshops, nothing more.
Other than that, it is “sink or swim”. Adult learners are forced to
seek help in familiarizing themselves with how to post
assignments, how to access, open, download and/or print out text
book chapters, and do online research. That is where Smith’s
 (2006) observations come into play. There is an assumption that
the workshops are all that is needed, yet he points out that “many
 mature adults have limited digital literacy experience and are
 generally far less adept at decoding the multi-media interfaces
involved with eLearning than their younger counterparts”.

The ideas listed for necessary upgrades are suggestions only; the
University of Phoenix is much further ahead than many of its
counterparts. However, there is still room for improvement. These
 observations/suggestions are based on personal experience as a
 UoP student who is also an adult learner that was not familiar with
ed-tech when starting graduate work. The options where simple:
sink/fail the course or swim/pass the course. Swimming has been a
trial of errors, near-misses and even a few failures.

The one week workshop offered at the beginning of the graduate course work was insufficient, more direct instruction would have been welcomed but was not forthcoming. If only one adult learner communicates this online inadequacy, we can be assured that there are more adult learners who are experiencing it as well. As such, with all of the positive strides the University of Phoenix has made incorporating advanced educational technology into its courses, there is room for necessary upgrades and changes that will assure greater success for its adult learners.

References:

 Pearson, K.  (2007). Start Earlier. Expand the Mission. Integrate Technology. Nieman Reports. 61.3. Fall.

 Smith-Tyler, K.  (2006). Early Attrition among First Time eLearners: A Review of Factors that Contribute to Drop-Out, Withdrawal and Non-completion Rates of Adult Learners underTaking eLearning Programmes. Journal of Online Learning and Teaching. June.

 

How Does The Organization Manage those Technologies

University of Phoenix is one of the largest universities for adult education. The college currently has over 485,000 active students who are enrolled within the university. With a large amount of students attending the university the college has to have a separate department to handle the schools technology.

University of Phoenix has a technology department that manages all of the universities technologies for the university. The technology department supports administration, staff, students and faculty members to ensure accuracy with the technology functions for the university.

The university uses agile methodology which helps with the delivery of technology for online and local campuses. Agile delivers the technology needed for the school and other departments within the university will use agile along with scrum teams to help manage the technology changes. As technology needs to be updated and implemented the university security works with IT in ensuring accuracy and policies and procedures are accurately being followed. IT will generally run daily test to ensure the schools technologies are actively running on a daily basis.

The technology departments are split among different departments within the university. Some of the technology departments are IT, security, compliance, Applyweb for student applications, rEsource for materials, financial aid, IS3 for student schedules and academic catalogs. Each of these software’s are handled through a team of IT who will work 24 hours a day ensuring the systems are working and student and staff information is properly stored.

Hicks, M., & Foster, J. (2010). Agile Research Group Management. Business Source Complete, 53(), . 

Addressing Technology Capability Concerns

Bandwidth concerns deal with the number of users on the company’s internet/intranet and number of devices like computers, printers, and other devices that connect to the company’s network.   University of Phoenix’s overhead company, Apollo Group, had over 12,000 employees in Arizona alone in 2010 (Berry, 2010).  Given the number of employees who need ongoing training, reviewing the technology used in trainings is central to maintaining an efficient and quality training program.   Since University of Phoenix has thousands of employees accessing trainings or educational tools at any given moment, bandwidth is something that has to be monitored.  According to a former University of Phoenix employee there are few network or server problems when participating in trainings (Lee, 2012).  This indicates the company has high capacity servers and a large bandwidth capacity.   The former employee also noted that the company had few problems with training sites being slow (Lee, 2012).  The lack of server problems or training website issues at University of Phoenix indicates the university pays for sufficient bandwidth to support the training activities. 

Training Technology at the University of Phoenix

The University of Phoenix uses many different types of Web 2.0 technologies.  University of Phoenix uses podcasts to disseminate information from the company’s top leaders, such as the president of the university, to thousands of employees.   Employees are alerted to podcasts either via email or a news feed page.  This allows employees to view the podcasts when it is convenient for them.  The company also utilizes webinars frequently for trainings.   The webinars are created by a four person instructional design team for trainings on topics such as new degree programs and compliance trainings such as ethics or harassment.   However, for training regarding the soft skills, it seems each division creates their own training materials.   Increased collaboration between divisions regarding training for soft skills would be more efficient.  The company is large, so communicating across divisions is naturally a challenge.   However, given the technology resources the university has, creating videos or standardized trainings regarding soft skills would reduce the time each division spends on creating training materials. 

In Summary ...

In summary, there are advantages and disadvantages to both asynchronous and synchronous learning platforms. A huge advantage with asynchronous learning platforms is the opportunity for adult learners to review information that is posted on their course website and provide thoughtful and reflective comments. Also, asynchronous learning platforms, like blog spots, can be used for note-taking and test preparation. Another advantage is that they are also well-suited for those adult learners with “on-the-go” schedules who may not be able to take full advantage of real-time, synchronous instructional platforms.

       A disadvantages of asynchronous learning modalities is the sense of isolation that some students may feel, their instructor and/or fellow students are not present for spontaneous collaboration. One should keep in mind that this type of distance is a characteristic of asynchronous, or distance learning. As Keiser (2009) observes, “Distance education is essentially a form of teaching and learning where teacher and learner are separated for most of the time”. In other words, students go into this type of learning platform knowing that there will be no “real-time”. There are several advantages and disadvantages inherent in synchronous learning modalities as well. We cover these in previous blog posts, please read them at your leisure!

       In looking at our choice of asynchronous learning platforms/modalities we chose to do a blog spot because of the aforementioned reasons. The opportunity for reflective study and stress-free posting are strong highlights that can enhance any coursework. In terms of synthesizing this particular asynchronous modality with online course work, Hullsmann’s (2009) observation holds true, mainly that creating blogs for a class and encouraging students to create them as well “supports student individuality”. The idea is to create a positive, insightful experience for the adult learner. While asynchronous modalities appear distant and non-responsive, they can be very enlightening and supportive.

References:

Finkelstein, J.  (2006). Learning in real time: Synchronous teaching and learning online. San Francisco, CA. Jossey-Boss.

Hullsmann, T. (2009). POdcasting for learning in universities. Distance Education. 20.2.

Kieser, A. & Golden, F.  (2009). Using Online Office Applications: Collaboration Tools For Learning. Distance Learning. 6.1 

How This Mode Of Delivery Could Be Applied To Your Teaching Environment

Using a blog can be applied to our online learning environment by using it for team collaboration or classroom discussions. We can also use blogs for teaching and updating classmates on assignments, grades, posting team assignments and as a chat for students who enjoy chatting with other students. The assignments can be updated weekly so students will be able to post their responses on the blog site. Since most blogs have dates attached to each posting, we can see when students are posting to ensure they are meeting the classroom requirements.

Online classrooms generally have weekly summaries detailing what the students learned each week. Weekly summaries allows the students to voice what they have learned, how the course materials, how they can apply what they have learned to their professional and personal life. Using a blog in an online environment would increase communication which would encourage students feedback.

Finkelstein, J. (2009). Learning in real time: Synchronous Teaching and Learning Online (2nd ed.). new york, New York: John Wiley and Sons Inc..

Why We Chose a Blog For Our Mode of Delivery?

In comparison of both Asynchronous and Synchronous learning we can benefit from both modes of delivering course materials to students. Adult students have an idea of what kind of learning style they would prefer. Neither learning style is better than the other.

We have chose using a blog to deliver our team assignment because blogs are a great way to hear other students ideas and opinions. Blogs allows students to voice their concerns and dislikes without feeling as if their opinions do not matter.

Blogs allows participation from everyone in a classroom. Blogs capture changes in the way others think by allowing students and the facilator to think differently than they would before they read or posted on a blog page.

It broadens students minds to think outside of the box. Adult learners who are attending college online think differently than those who are attending a traditional college. Using a blog allows both students to see the world of education differently and often times can create positive feedback from both the students and faciliator.

Using a Synchronous Medium for this Topic

Start out the synchronous learning session by having learners share personal experiences with both asynchronous and synchronous learning in a live blog.  Using this activity initially helps the facilitator gauge students’ current understanding of the material and is considered a formative assessment (Finkelstein, 2006).  By reflecting on their own experiences, users will share some of the advantages and disadvantages, which provides a good springboard for presenting the topic.   After the initial discussion, present a webinar on the two learning modalities, allowing for continued student input in a chat room or voice to voice.     

Reference

Finkelstein, J. (2006). Learning in real time: Synchronous teaching and learning online.    
           San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

General Facilitation Tips

-          Give opportunities for students to connect and interact

-          Prepare for technology problems and have a backup plan

-      Be skilled at reading non verbal cues in place of body language 

Facilitating An Asynchronous Class

Asynchronous facilitators should: 

-          Monitor class posts to check for student progress

-          Identify and address any common questions learners have  

-          Post follow up instructions if necessary

-          Provide clear feedback and instructions as there is more possibility of misunderstandings and  less opportunity to clarify than in a synchronous setting   

-          Post new information to keep online discussion flowing

Facilitating A Synchronous Class

Synchronous facilitators should:

-          Closely observe classroom activities and check for understanding

-          Re-group to  clarify instructions if students misunderstand (Finkelstein, 2006)

-          Circulate throughout teams in breakaway rooms

-         Multitask: Monitor many students nearly simultaneously, note students who are not participating and engage those students

-     Allow learners to be autonomous when appropriate

Advantages and disadvantages of each type of learning

The advantages of Asynchronous Learning

Asynchronous learning is designed for students to have the flexibility needed for school. The flexibility is for most adult learners because it allows students to log in to the online learning environment at any time needed. Students do not have to be online at a certain time, only to post assignments before a specific deadline. This allows students to spend more time doing their work and making sure they have the time allotted to thurly complete each assignment without rushing.  This type of learning style allows students to focus on peer to peer relationships and self study. Students can have open class discussions through discussion boards, blogs, email and threads for new postings.

The disadvantages of Asynchronous learning

The disadvantages of Asynchronous learning are it is not for all adult learners. Most adult learners have been attending school for different reasons and might only be use to face-to-face interaction. Changing modalities can cause adult learners to have to adjust to not being able to receive instant feedback when needed. Most adult learners will feel secluded and miss the interaction with their peers in class. Learning the online environment technology might be challenging and requires more time that what is needed for the adult learner is willing to give.

The advantages of Synchronous Learning

Synchronous learning is similar to in class instruction for adult learners. It allows adult learners to have instant feedback from the instructor and peers in the classroom. Adult learners enjoy having instant feedback when they have a question and when feedback is given it allows them to move forward into the next question they might have.  Adults tend to ask more questions in class because the instructor will be able to clarify their problem. Adult learners tend to be more motivated in class because they can communicate and socialize with their peers and instructors.  Real time interaction with peers helps build momentum, motivation, encouragement and cohesion.  Face-to-face interaction is important with synchronous learning and having the ability to have a live virtual classroom type setting is also important for adult learners.

The disadvantages of Synchronous Learning

Face-to-face interaction isn’t always for every adult learner. Some adult learners do not like the live virtual learning and therefore, will not participate in class. Some adult leaners learn better within the online environment because they feel free to communicate openly without others seeing or knowing who they are. The freedom of speech and knowing they can voice their opinions without anyone seeing them in class.

Hello and welcome to Phoenix Learner, a blog spot dedicated to adult learners!  Phoenix Learner is not just one person, it is a learning team of adult learners/students from the University of Phoenix.  We are studying Adult Education & Training and are currently enrolled in AET 531 (Technology For The Adult Learner).

 This blog spot will carry all of our insights, adventures and even a few homework assignments!  You will get an opportunity to learn more about Adult Education and about incorporating technology into this dynamic field.  Adult learner, what’s that?! What is Web 2.0 technology? Can it really make a difference for adult learners?  These are just a few of the questions that you will find answers to. Phoenix Learner also welcomes your opinion on such interesting topics as Instructional Design, Adult Literacy and Educational Technology. Feel free to post a comment, offer a suggestion – or tell a friend.

Do you know other adults interested in Continuous Learning? Perhaps you yourself are interested in returning to school to earn that long-awaited Bachelor’s or Master’s Degree. Maybe you were told that you were “too old to go back to school”, or just didn’t know how to find an Adult Education Program that suited your on-the-go schedule. Believe it or not there are thousands of adult learners across the country – and globe! – who are returning to school. Some are going back to get their GED, earn a secondary degree or brushing up on skills to gain advancement in the workplace. Either way, all adults ARE adult learners!! Our blog posts will enlighten and hopefully answer questions and address concerns. We’ll also point you towards finding an Adult Ed program of your choice.