New Profile: National University

National University an online school that appeals to adults with work experience. In my latest college profile, I give information about National university's multimedia format and its unique admissions requirements. Here's a blurb:

"National University is a private, non-profit university system offering dozens of online programs in addition to its brick-and-mortar courses held on California campuses. Online students at National University take one class per month. National University's programs are highly interactive with streaming videos, real-time discussions, multimedia learning material, and class chat rooms. Programs at National University are designed for adult learners with five or more years of work experience."

Interested? Check out the full article for more details.

Penn State Offers Online Programs for Soldiers

penn state recently joined forces with the US Army's educational program to help provide college choices for soldiers. Here's a blurb from their latest press release:

"U.S. Army recruits can now get a jump on a Penn State education as the University has joined on to be a part of the Army's Concurrent Admissions Program (ConAP). ConAP is designed to help soldiers begin to talk with a university immediately after enlistment, so they can begin and potentially complete a bachelor's or master's degree while in the Army. Since distance education through online learning is the preferred method for soldiers to gain their education, soldier students can begin their education online through Penn State World Campus. All 24 of Penn State's campuses are participating in ConAP, so soldier students can complete a degree online or on campus."

This program looks to be particularly unique because Penn State has so many campuses throughout the country. Enrolled soldiers will be able to balance online learning with traditional classroom time, if they choose to do so.

New Profile: Charter Oak State College

I recently published a new online school profile for Charter Oak State College. If you're an adult learner with a lot of college-level credits (even if they're from multiple schools), Charter Oak may be a good choice. Here's a blurb from the profile:

"Charter Oak State College is one of the "big three" non-traditional colleges offering flexible degree completion opportunities. Charter Oak allows students to earn personally-tailored degrees by transferring credits from regionally accredited schools, taking exams, proving life experience, and taking online courses. This online school is best for students who have already completed a lot of college-level coursework, not college freshmen."

Charter Oak has an extremely lax admissions policy – if you're over 16 and have at least 9 college credits, you'll be accepted. Check out the full profile for details.

Students Want Schools Off MySpace

Recently several colleagues and clients have sent me Facebook "friend requests." I'd like to have an easy way to keep in touch with them professionally…but I don't quite feel comfortable adding them to my list. Do I really want my professional peers checking out the pictures from last weekend's party? Is my favorite client going to drop me when he realizes I subscribe to the views of a different political party than he does? My Facebook page isn't extreme or inappropriate. But, that doesn't mean I want to blend my personal life with my professional life.

According to recent research, many students feel the same. Networking sites like Facebook hold a lot of untapped potential when it comes to online learning…and students want it to stay that way. A recent Guardian article reports:

"E-learning gurus want to exploit their students' passion for the new generation of interactive online communication tools – collectively known as web 2.0 – to deliver academic content. Not content with podcasting mini-lectures to students' mobile phones and i-pods, they are hijacking the internet telephone system, Skype, and invading FaceBook…

Online spaces are blurring, as universities that podcast and text their students have shown. The Jisc project manager, Lawrie Phipps, explains how the battle lines are being drawn: "Students really do want to keep their lives separate. They don't want to be always available to their lecturers or bombarded with academic information."

One idea is to create "channels" on social sites that limit the information schools can see. Another possibility is forming an entirely new social site – one dedicated exclusively to professional interaction with schools and business associates.

Online Sheriff Training Program Announced

Baltimore's Towson University recently announced a new online sheriff training program. Here's a blurb from their college paper:

"Towson University will offer online training courses for sheriffs across the country who are limited by budgetary or travel restraints.

Towson announced its partnership with the National sheriff Association at a reception in the Administration Building Wednesday morning.

The NSA presented the Division of Economic and Community Outreach's Extended Education and Online Learning unit with a $53,000 check to start the program."

The new program features video examples of physical activities and online versions of already existing courses. Interested officers may enroll in courses early 2008.

UMassOnline Announces Nation’s First Online Master of Public Health in Nutrition Program

The University of Massachusetts Online recently announced that they will be offering the nation's first 100% online Master of Public Health in Nutrition program. Here's a blurb from their news release:

"Building on its reputation of breaking new ground in distance education, UMassOnline today announces the launch of the nation's first fully online Master of Public Health in Nutrition degree program. The MPH program, offered through the Amherst campus, marks another significant milestone by offering programs that are in demand and meet the needs of adult learners. Applications for the inaugural class, slated for fall 2008, are currently being accepted…

The online MPH in Nutrition program prepares students to tackle today's intensifying societal problems of obesity, malnutrition, and food insecurity. The program is in response to widespread demand for professionals trained in an interdisciplinary approach that encompasses both nutrition science and public health perspectives, according to Dr. Nancy Cohen, interim dean of the School of Public Health and Health Sciences."

The degree is regionally accredited and there is no residency requirement. Interested students may apply to begin classes in fall 2008.

YouTube in Education

Many professors are beginning to recognize the educational value of YouTube. There may be a lot of fluff on the site, but ignore the skateboarding dogs and you'll find a lot of potential. In fact, Pitzer College is currently offering a course called Learning from YouTube.

YouTube is simple to use and may be a particularly helpful resource for online learners who could benefit from a more visual learning experience. wwwTools recently published a list of YouTube in Education links. Check out their article to find out how YouTube can promote learning.

Microsoft to Scan Books from Yale University

More good news for online learners…Microsoft and Yale University recently reached an agreement to digitize books from the university library. Wired University shares the details of the book scanning project:

"Yale will start by scanning 100,000 of its English-language books that are out of copyright, according to a news statement.

Microsoft is sparring with two other groups in what has become a crowded book-scanning marketplace."

Microsoft's book search will compete against Google Books. As book scanning becomes more competitive, we benefit from more available texts and more features. In a few years, perhaps online learners will be able to use the internet to access most of the books they need.

Online Law Schools Becoming More Acceptable?

The American Bar Association has never accredited an online law school. However, a new article from Inside Higher Education points out subtle changes that may indicate a growing (albeit hesitant) acceptance for online learning in the study of law. Here's a blurb:

"As online education has become more and more popular, law schools have largely been on the sidelines. The American Bar Association will not accredit distance programs, and has strict limits on the use of distance education in traditional programs…

While the ABA has not changed its rules, it has quietly approved an unusual variance from its procedures to allow the penn state Dickinson School of Law to offer many more courses at a distance than ABA rules permit. While the effort relates in part to particular characteristics of the Penn State program (which makes use of two physical campuses), the ABA waiver represents the broadest experiment to date in the association giving its blessing to the extensive use of distance education."

The Penn State exception and the Concord Law / Kaplan U merger (blogged about earlier this week) may very well indicate that the tides are turning.

80% of Young Adults Interested in Learning Online

According to a new study from eLearners, many students (particularly young adults) are interested in learning online in the future. Here's a blurb from their recent release:

"Six out of ten Americans say that if they had to go back to school at some point, they'd be interested in doing it online, according to new research released by eLearners.com, the leading resource that specializes in connecting people with online education. What's more interesting is that even the younger generation is more compelled to go online, with 80% of young adults ages 18 – 24 indicating they would be interested in the online route if they wanted to take more courses or get a degree in the future."

I take this as one more sign of the growing credibility in the field of distance education.