UI discusses online learning initiatives
Feb. 2—The University of Idaho hopes to build a stronger remote learning infrastructure and enhance its online education offerings as part of recent initiatives.
Ken Udas, vice provost for digital learning initiatives at UI, discussed online learning strategies during a lecture Tuesday as part of the weekly Malcolm Renfrew Interdisciplinary Colloquium.
"The university's online efforts are guided by educational strategy," he said. "Online learning growth and quality are promoted through a sustainable financial model."
According to Udas, online learning is not expected to drain resources from the university but could actually provide a return on the investment over time.
Student success is the focus of online learning at the university, he added.
"Online learning supports digital innovation," Udas said. "The functions are coordinated centrally so student support services and technical service delivery become more continuous."
In spring 2020, during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, UI President Scott Green created a working group to examine how the university could move quickly into the online course and program delivery market.
The goal was to examine opportunities available in online education and develop a plan for establishing a stronger remote learning infrastructure.
"The pandemic has created an opportunity for faculty to learn about online education and engage in how to create, deliver and manage online courses," an executive summary from the working group stated. "The previously perceived daunting task of developing an online course or program is now understood as a doable instructional methodology and strategy."
The working group for online education is one of six working groups at the university.
Based on the group's findings, an initial investment of $1,048,809 is required to build up an online unit and begin competing in the already crowded digital marketplace.
An additional $666,000 was also recommended to invest in technological and user experience upgrades across the university system. The return on investment is expected to surpass the added costs.
"In the United States, over the 2013-14 school year, residential enrollments have been declining," Udas said. "For that period, we see a net contraction of students of about 2 million and distance education has increased by a significant amount."
He says building capacity and investing in online learning is essential for the university.
"We need to do more than just improve our current processes," he said. "We have to approach and really address some dispositions that challenge current norms."
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