S. BRAUDE, J. MERRILL
that does not necessarily reflect learning. Consequently, there
exists much skepticism of the claims of better educational out-
comes from online courses.
In response to the repeated claims that there are thousands of
studies supporting the efficacy of online education, the US De-
partment of Education co mmissi oned a meta -analy sis of re se a r c h
on online learning. The 2010 DOE investigation involved a
systematic search of empirical studies documenting the effec-
tiveness of online and distance learning published between
1996 and 2008. The initial search of published research yielded
1132 articles, of which only 176 met three key criteria: they
investigated learning taking place partially or entirely over the
internet, they included a controlled, experimental design, and
finally, they reported data on student achievement or other
learning outcomes. Of these, only 99 articles compared face-to-
face learning to online education and only 37 articles specifi-
cally examined the variation in online learning practices and
those effects on the learner at the undergraduate level. This is a
far cry from thousands of articles. Furthermore, while the meta-
analysis found that students in courses with an online compo-
nent had modestly better outcomes than students receiving only
face-to-face education, these results were not due to any unique
characteristic of the online medium, but were attributed to the
high motivation of the subset of students who completed online
courses, and to the amount of time they spent studying.
Will the Live Classroom Go
the Way of Live Theatre?
Prognosticators predicted the demise of live theatre when
Edison introduced moving pictures and the demise of movie
theatres when CBS beg an broadcast ing television. And yet live
theatre flourishes even in the era of Netflix and Youtube. There
is an attraction to live experiences compared to remote. But
why is the live performance attractive and how might that me-
chanism explain the pedagogic benefits of the live classroom
experience?
Daniel Levitin (2006) suggested that music is a combination
of familiar pattern and surprise. More broadly Braude (2013)
proposed that our brains have evolved to reward us for recog-
nizing the subtle surprises against a variety of background pat-
terns. This same mechanism is involved in our enjoyment of
humor and literature and may also explain the attraction of live
performance where there is always the opportunity for surprise.
The film Romeo and Juliet starring Leonardo DiCaprio and
Claire Danes will obviously be consistent between viewings.
However, a performance of Romeo and Juliet in the theatre will
be different every night!
The opportunity for surprise contributes to the heightened
attention and alertness associated with the live classroom and
this enhances learning. This element is lacking in asynchronous
online courses. Additionally, the social aspect to being in class
with one’s peers is lost in online courses. This social compo-
nent may explain the attraction of the live setting for a large
portion of the population, but does the “face-to-face” experi-
ence lead to better education? Goran and Braude (2007) argue
that, in addition to visual, auditory and kinesthetic learners,
there are also social learners. Essentially, while we may not all
seek out a social learning setting, being with others, especially
peers, raises alertness and this alone can lead to better learning
opportunity. This is consistent with Schutte’s (1998) finding
that collaborative learning with peers is the key factor in ex-
plaining higher performance of classroom learners compared
with online learners and Frankola’s (2001) finding that personal
connection is one of the most important factors in boosting
completion rates. She also reported that NYU students found
that the social aspect with their peers was helpful in their stud-
ies, and nearly all of the NYU online students who completed
online coursework reported that live sessions provided an emo-
tional lift.
Who Is at Risk of Replacement
by an Online Course?
Despite the apparent benefit of a live classroom setting, does
all education necessarily have to be confined within the class-
room? The live setting creates the opportunity for the instructor
to make a great impact on the experience of their students.
However, not all instructors are influential and inspiring. Con-
sequently, courses that have been taught by a lecturer reading
directly from note s or relying solely on the text might be easily
replaced by a video of a better lecturer. Furthermore, courses
involving repeated practice to enhance memorization and re-
gurgitation might also be easily transferred to the online do-
main. Neuman (1998) argues that these courses are for “stress-
ing fundamentals as well as helping students gain real skills”
and student performance can be easily automated. We propose
the general guideline that any course in which student perform-
ance can be evaluated with multiple-choice exams is a candi-
date for replacement by an online offering. We challenge our
colleagues to examine their own teaching and consider whether
their teaching could be easily replaced with an online alterna-
tive. While t he mission of many higher education institutions is
to create the beginnings of “life-long learning”, the courses de-
scribed above fall short of these institutional goals and instead
emphasize memorization of knowledge.
What Do We Look for in the
Best Online Courses?
The best online courses are those that creatively engage the
student. Excellent online courses contain: synchronous discus-
sions, small class size, qualified discussion leaders and graders,
timely grading and feedback on written work, and engaging
lectures. Synchronous discussion takes the place of in-class dis-
cussions. With discussion, students are able to articulate ideas
and analyze the arguments of others. An excellent online course
features this aspect of the education process. Furthermore,
qualified discussion leaders and graders are necessary to pro-
vide quality content for online students. Qualified instructors
should be chosen to provide quality content. Additionally,
small class sizes allow the instructors to get to know their stu-
dents on a more individual level. While it is easy to get lost in a
lecture hall of 300 students; how much easier in an online class
of 300?
The asynchronous features of an excellent online course should
include access to exciting lectures, links to related material,
high quality graphics, and videos. The paradox is, however, that
it is not cheap to incorporate these features into an online
course. Graphics and videos, alone, require time and effort to
create. Also, in many disciplines, there is new, pertinent, in-
formation being generated yearly, requiring materials to be up-
dated. Considering the requirement for low student-teacher r a t io s ,
qualified discussion leaders, high quality video and graphics,
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