Building the Successful Virtual University

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Baker, S. (1999). Building the Successful Virtual University. In B. Collis & R. Oliver (Eds.), Proceedings of World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia and Telecommunications 1999 (pp. 1505-1506). Chesapeake, VA: AACE.

Conference Information

World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia and Telecommunications (EDMEDIA) 1999
  1999
  Betty Collis & Ron Oliver
AACE
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Author

Sunny J. Baker, University of Phoenix, USA

Abstract

As a result of increasing demand for flexible educational programs and increasingly easy, inexpensive access to the Internet, almost every college and university in North America is considering online education in one form or another. Every week more schools announce their “innovative” online degree programs and new “virtual” universities. But what among all of these seemingly similar programs characterizes a quality virtual university program? Why do some programs exhibit lack-luster results? How can administrators, faculty, and instructional designers use information from the successes and the failures of online university instruction and administration to help inform the development of new, improved, or more robust online degree programs? Those are the questions that led the researcher, who is also an experienced distance education administrator and instructional designer, to begin to study the successes and failures of diverse online university/college degree-granting projects. To begin to compare the “new” online degree programs, the researcher began to develop a database of online degree programs from interviews and questionnaires completed by the directors and deans of online degree programs across the United States. (The degree-granting programs studied are asynchronous programs presented via the Internet or commercial online services such as America Online.) In reviewing the instructional design, administrative support systems, technical implementation, student services, faculty interactions, and academic results of these programs, some broad preliminary observations have been made on the data that can help administrators, faculty, accrediting agencies, and even students understand how to evaluate the quality, potential, and eventual outcomes of online degree programs. The presentation at ED-MEDIA 99 in Seattle, Washington will review the study in progress and provide preliminary observations and recommendations to those interested in developing or improving their own online degree or virtual university programs. These recommendations include the development of clear interactional guidelines, accessible administrative systems, technical flexibility, faculty training, curriculum consistency, and advance student preparation for successful online degree implementations.

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Keywords

• Administration
• Administrators
• Distance Education
• Instructional Design
• Internet