Steven D’Agustino, Fordham University, Director of Online Learning, Office of the Provost
When Moving Education Online, Think Teaching, Not Tools
- When moving instruction online, it is critical not to lose the value of academic conversations, which are often spontaneous, that take place between students or between student and instructor.
- The model of the teacher being the expert, imparting knowledge, is shifting to one similar to a docent or curator, guiding students, providing feedback, encouragement, and assessment.
“With access to all of human knowledge in my telephone, it’s not about accessing information— that’s somewhat been destabilized. A decentering has occurred because of this democratization of access to information.”
For Steven D’Agustino, coordinating the online learning strategy at Fordham University has been as much about spirited conversations as it has been about technology implementation. Many of those conversations have been on topics like the changing role of instructors and the growing importance of design in education. Although these discussions have broad implications for the future of online learning, they have already had a positive impact on certain specific situations.
This is an excerpt from Expanding Educational Opportunity. The eBook was generously sponsored by Blackboard.
