Tuesday, November 17, 2015

Troubling times at Broward College - Sun Sentinal Editorial Board

In years past, before distance learning became all the rage, Broward College offered faculty members incentives to develop online courses, including the "right of first refusal" to continue teaching those classes. But just as the college has created a north, central and south campus, it's also now created a fourth campus dedicated to online learning. And it wants to staff that campus with faculty dedicated solely to online learning, which runs contrary to past goals. Howdyshell says the college wants on-site faculty members to teach their required five classes face-to-face, lead clubs and engage with students outside the classroom. If they're teaching online, which more and more want to do, they can't do that. Plus, by segregating online learning into its own campus, the college can ensure instructors do more than post lecture notes online. It wants faculty to innovate with video and interactive features, too. http://www.sun-sentinel.com/opinion/editorials/fl-editorial-broward-college-david-armstrong-confidence-20151106-story.html