Theories relevant to the online classroom
Although the teacher and learner have somewhat different roles in the online community vs. the brick-and-mortar classroom, there are some basic educational theories that are relevant and authentic, including the following:
Bloom's Taxonomy
According to Bloom, in order to provide authentic learning for a student, the teacher must encompass the following:
- knowledge
- comprehension
- application
- analysis
- synthesis
- evaluation
Chickering and Gamson's 7 Principles of Effective Teaching
In a study conducted by Indiana University's Center for Research on Learning and Technology, a team of five evaluators evaluated online courses in a professional school at a large Midwestern University. Here are their findings of the lessons learned for online instruction that correspond to Chickering and Gamson's 7 Principles of Effective Teaching.
- Student-faculty contact: Ex.) Instructors should provide clear guidelines for interaction with students.
- Cooperation among students: Ex.) Well-designed discussion assignments facilitate meaningful cooperation among students.
- Active learning: Ex.) Students should present course projects
- Prompt feedback: Ex.) Instructors need to provide two types of feedback: information feedback and acknowledgment feedback.
- Time on task: Ex.) Online courses need deadlines.
- High expectations: Ex.) challenging tasks, sample cases, and praise for quality work communicate high expectations.
- Value diverse talents and learning styles: Ex.) Allowing students to choose project topics incorporates diverse views into online courses.
