Identifying the Differences Between Online and F2F Teaching

Governing agencies and administrators of education have typically been operating under the impression that online teaching is Face-to-Face (F2F) teaching using computers. This belief is a negative stereotype of education that is continually disproven by instructors of both modes, students of both modes, and research into the similarities and differences. Traditional pedagogies have a longstanding role in the F2F classroom, which do not always transfer into the online classroom. Rather, online pedagogy should be considered as a distinct area of study that addresses the new and evolving pedagogies regarding technology and online learning. Specifically, this chapter identifies what the differences are between online and F2F education in order to demonstrate the unique and necessary distinction of online pedagogy from traditional pedagogies.

Examining Guidebooks as an Online Pedagogy Resource

As the field of online pedagogy is newly developed and being distinguished from traditional pedagogies, the supplemental materials and trainings available for instructors are only just being created. There are few, if any, textbooks available solely for the purpose of a class or training in online pedagogy. Rather, what exist currently are guidebooks. These guidebooks are typically step-by-step instructions by current online educators for new online teachers. Since guidebooks are the official documentation and research (sometimes anecdotal) available regarding online pedagogy, they play a significant role in understanding and evaluating acquisition and learning in teacher training. Therefore, this chapter examines and defines a number of guidebooks for online educators in order to see the development of the field and acknowledge the positioning of acquisition and learning in these currently existing educational standards.

History of Distance Education

Distance education has taken on a number of different roles throughout history. As technology has changed and grown, so has the definition and possibilities of educating at a distance. This chapter examines the chronological history of distance education beginning with correspondence courses and moving into a present day examination of learning management systems and the expansive network of online courses and universities. This chapter also discusses the development of online teacher training (or lack thereof) in the same timeframe.

Conclusion

Chapter 12 serves as a conclusion chapter for the entire text. This chapter reiterates the importance of acquisition and learning and, in particular, the importance of balancing acquisition and learning for online teacher training. This chapter also focuses on identifying future trends in online teacher training and potential directions for institutions, accreditation committees, and higher education in general to pursue. In addition, this chapter further argues for the flexibility of an online teacher training program utilizing acquisition and learning to present the argument that this concept is within reach for all universities that should want to further the training of their online instructors.

Applying Acquisition and Learning to Online Teacher Training

Chapter 9 extends the information in chapter 8 to consider the effect of combining acquisition and learning and then applying them to a teacher training program. This chapter defines an appropriate balance of acquisition and learning that should be applied to online teacher training in order to give potential instructors the most effective and comprehensive training program to be fully prepared to teach online. Ideally, as this chapter demonstrates, this training should occur before an instructor has the opportunity to teach online, but can be implemented at any time. This chapter provides the set up and organization for chapter 10, when the program suggestions are given in their entirety.

Common Standards for Online Education Found in Accrediting Organizations

Standards for education are established by a number of governing agencies including regional accreditation committees, national accreditation committees, committees on educational standards within colleges and universities, and the United States Department of Education. These standards are long-established and are updated occasionally to reflect the changes in the fields of education. This chapter discusses the standards, as they exist today, in all of the aforementioned accreditation committees. Specifically, this chapter focuses on the educational standards as they currently exist for distance and online education, such as the standards for teacher training, professional development opportunities, and resources for online faculty.

How Can this Program be Adapted for Various Institutions?

The acquisition and learning balanced program that has been described in the previous chapters is intended to be a graduate-level degree program for potential instructors. However, this level of change may be an insurmountable amount of preparation, work, and modification for current institutions. Therefore, this chapter discusses the potential adaptations available including, but not limited to, a type of crash course in online pedagogy, a certificate program, a varying elective scale, whichever type of program may be the easiest for an institution to implement. This chapter focuses on not only defining a program but also recognizing the importance of implementing any type of balanced acquisition and learning-based online pedagogy training for new online instructors.

Identifying the Impact of Acquisition and Learning on Education

Acquisition, or the opportunity to practice skills within the classroom to the point of understanding and mastery, is different than formal learning. For the purposes of this text, acquisition refers to the opportunity to practice skills and technologies appropriate to the online classroom. Learning, in this context, refers to the background material necessary for understanding online education and the metacognitive understanding of choosing one technology for an online classroom over another. Learning, although a unique part of online teacher training, works in conjunction with acquisition in order to create a well-rounded and sufficient online educator. This chapter examines the role that acquisition and learning play in education and the necessary balance of these in order to provide setup for the following chapter incorporating acquisition and learning into an online teacher training program.

Introduction

Online pedagogy is among the most important and timely developments within higher education. Administrators and regional accrediting agencies set forth standards of education, many of which predate the advent of online education. Therefore, additional standards have been developed to compensate for the technological innovations utilized in and in lieu of traditional classrooms. This chapter serves as an overview and introduction into online pedagogy and exploration of its role in the regional accreditation standards. In particular, this chapter lays the groundwork for the detailed standards and accreditation information to be discussed in chapters 2 and 3.

Developing a Teacher Training Program with Acquisition, Learning, and Technological Literacy Skills

This text has defined acquisition and learning and identified their role in educational processes. In chapter 10, these terms are applied specifically to online teacher training. Using the information garnered throughout chapters 1 – 9, this chapter provides suggestions regarding potential course offerings for a formalized training program in online pedagogy. In order to be most comprehensive, this chapter begins with the concept of a graduate-level degree program in online pedagogy. Any and all aspects of the potential courses can be modified based on institution, discipline, time or budget constraints, or a different level training program such as a certificate program, which will be discussed in chapter 11.