James,
Thank you for all of your insight. I appreciate your thoughts!
Shelly Crider
Nikki,
Love this analogy! There have been stores I have walked out of due to being messy.
Shelly Crider
Thank you Shelly,
When we create the dynamics of a forum, we must think about our customers (students). If the forums are too "messy" then we will not have a good retention rate. Like you, the students (customers) will leave.
I agree because a student can become distracted by the ineffective layout of a course.
I do agree that the look and feel of an online course is important to a student who develops from its content. The online course must have a structure that makes sense and is fluid. The material must be presented in various fashions to address different learning styles. It is also very helpful to provide an interactive mechanism for students to determine how well they understand the material.
Diane,
Having great feedback from an instructor helps with the understanding of the material as well.
Shelly Crider
Nikki,
Oh so true! We have all been on the customer end at one point!
Shelly Crider
I could not agree more. A well designed course has many advantages. For the student, it can reduce stress in that the student is not guessing what the course is about or what is expected of them. For the instructor, you are able to place emphasis on the student and not spending time trying to fix the course or apologizing for any confusion.
Ted,
Isn't it nice to be able to place emplasis on the student!!!
Shelly Crider
Shelly-
I agree with you. I have seen the transformation of UMA-online since the beginning to today and the cosmetic changes, as well as the layout and design of the classroom has made a tremendous impact on the students. It seems every 5 weeks or so, we are making another change to enhance structural integrity, navigational simplicity as well as coming up with new ways to use the different sensors to help increase retention not only of the knowledge but the student as well. I am eager to learn more in the next modules on how to work most effectively with the tools we have in place.
Leti Ramirez
Leti ,
There should be a class on how to handle change!! Change is everywhere!
Shelly Crider
I agree. I think it is really important to engage students in a dynamic learning environment. You want them to get something out of the experience, not to just robot through the information. The more interactive, the better. Color, pictures, animations, videos all contribute to the engagement.
its very important the look ad the feel of an online course. The material needs to be deliver in a cohesive way that the online student will perceive the content. Also easy navigation is crucial for the student, and simple instruction allow for the course to be a success.
I think the feel of a course is as important as its content, the look slightly less so. While you don't want to have a motley collection of ill-planned slides, spending too much time on the look at the expense of the student experience can also be a problem. From course development teams I've worked on in the past, I think that it is possible to design an interface which serves to distract the student from the more important task of acquiring skill.
Ms. Crider
I agree with the statement "The look and feel of an online course is as important as the knowledge and skills it is designed to impartâ€.
In considering this question, I needed to think about the look and feel of online classes I have worked with. Some classes were very well designed and others were not. A well-designed course should look simple and logical and the feel of it should be user friendly.
An online course that is structured in a logical way can make it easier for a student to understand where to locate information such as assignment instructions. I was involved in one online class where assignment instructions were layered within the course description material. I had great difficulty trying to find information. Another class that I was involved in provided a link for instructions in the assignment submission area. The placement was so logical that I never had to think twice about where the instructions were.
I assess the feel of an online class by looking at the clarity of material and instructions and the simplicity of submitting assignments. Clear instructions can help the student to submit assignments that meet the requirements. A class that contains ambiguous instructions will often create confusion and frustration for the student and the instructor. I was enrolled in a class that provided very vague instructions and it had a negative impact on my performance.
If I were designing an online class, I would also be sure that assignments could be submitted and edited with ease. Some platforms are very difficult to work with in terms of assignment submission.
 
Debra
Kathy,
We are in a technology age, we need to use what we can. We do need to make sure that our students are use to techonolgy though as I have a a class full of older students who did not like all the technology!
Shelly Crider
Ajani,
I like how you stated "motley collection" because I have seen that before and just shook my head!
Shelly Crider
Debra,
Very good post. I like how you use the word logical. Students want this as well and those who are not logically inclined....well it helps with critical thinking!
Shelly Crider
hayvelises,
Simple is good when the bottom line you want is to transfer the knowledge!
Shelly Crider
I agree! Easy navigation of an online course is, in my opinion, the most essential element that makes any online course successful. Additionally, the use of multimedia in an online course must be planned properly so not to overwhelm students. I've seen this far too often lately, where students must engage in complex simulations as a major part of their grade in a course. The instructions for the simulations can take someone 3 weeks to learn how to use the platform, immensely increasing the cognitive load on the student.
