Abstract: This is the third in a series of three papers about online pedagogy and educational practice as part of the JISE “Online Education Forum.” This paper deals with the question: What approaches help assure a quality online educational experience? Clearly achieving quality is the chief concern of everyone involved with online education. This article focuses on techniques for doing that, such as mastering one’s course management system, standardizing course design, consistency in interactions with learners, and controlling class size. Another aspect of success here is developing a well-honed and consistent philosophy toward online teaching that will help learners understand what is expected of them and guide the teacher when unusual situations arise. A transition is underway. The same networking and computing technology that has revolutionized global commerce, and many other facets of modern life, is now being targeted in education. Partnering the Internet with modern course management technology makes it possible for universities to offer online coursework on a global basis. The critical task that lies ahead is to create and disseminate curricula of high quality that students can embrace and educators can sustain. The overall objective of JISE’s Online Education Forum is to examine the realities of college and university online teaching, and the processes of education using today’s information technologies. The issues and insights discussed in this Forum will provide educators with important tools and the understanding needed to embrace the world of online education.

Keywords: Information systems education, Educational software, Online course design, Distance learning, Online education

Download this article: JISE - Volume 19 Number 3, Page 281.pdf

Recommended Citation: Dykman, C. A. & Davis, C. K. (2008). Online Education Forum: Part Three - A Quality Online Educational Experience. Journal of Information Systems Education, 19(3), 281-290.