University invests $8 million in online education initiative

Online education is often seen as a monologue — a recording of a lecture or an audio textbook — but a new initiative at IU is hoping to make it a conversation.

With an investment of $8 million from the University, IU’s Office of Online Education will guide departments across all eight campuses as they develop online programs, certificates and degrees.

“One reason why online education is important for us at IU and at other institutions to address right now is because it is becoming more accepted,” said Barbara
Bichelmeyer, director of the Office of Online Education.

“The question for institutions that have historically been around before the Internet is, ‘How do we position ourselves with a new way of offering courses and programs?’ This is our answer to that question.”

Most of the investment will be used to hire online instructional designers and technologists to develop effective methods for delivering course content.

“Their job is to work with faculty, who are the subject matter, the people who know and understand the content of the course,” Bichelmeyer said. “They will help them to figure out the best ways to design an online experience that will not only present content but facilitate the interaction that we need between faculty and students.”

Roughly a quarter of the investment is expected to be directly distributed to existing departments to develop online programs internally.

“We will bring the same energy, enthusiasm and commitment to IU Online as we devote to on-campus education,” President Michael McRobbie said in a press release.
Many departments have already gained momentum in online education.

Throughout the past 15 years, IU has established more than 80 online programs in the Kelley School of Business and the schools of nursing, public and environmental affairs, social work and education, as well as additional programs at the IU-East campus.

“The initiative is trying to harness that energy of the other programs in a way that we can present those offerings under the IU brand,” Bichelmeyer said. “We want people to know we have a place in online education.”

Online undergraduate degrees and certificate programs are expected to be established in business, technology and the liberal arts and sciences by fall 2013.
Additionally, online courses will be added by this summer for undergraduates and high school students.

Also by fall 2013, every IU professional school will be expected to have developed, or be in the process of developing, an online degree or certificate.

Provost and Executive Vice President Lauren Robel said the initiative has been long in the works, and it will help the University stay competitive in the global education market.

“Obviously, online is a big issue right now across the country,” she said. “You can’t pick up The Chronicle (of Higher Education) without someone making an
apocalyptic statement about our near demise.”

Bichelmeyer said IU Online is also a way to bring the expertise and knowledge of IU’s faculty into the international arena.

She is certain the program will bring online eduction to a new level of quality.

“Our challenge will be — and it’s a challenge I welcome and am looking forward to — to make sure that the online course and programs that are offered take advantage of the information technology we have, and what we know about good instruction, to ensure highly interactive and highly engaging education,” she said.