Washington State Community College System plans online competency-based associate degree
The Olympian (2014) Competency-based learning makes college credit more accessible for all The Bellingham Herald, June 3
The State of Washington is introducing a new...
Are universities teaching the skills needed in a knowledge-based economy?
I've been on holiday the last two and a half weeks, but also doing some writing for my open textbook on teaching in a...
A balanced research report on the hopes and realities of MOOCs
Hollands, F. and Tirthali, D. (2014) MOOCs: Expectations and Reality New York: Columbia University Teachers' College, Center for Benefit-Cost Studies of Education, 211 pp
We...
Instructional design, the academy and industry: a ‘blended’ event
What: The Academy and Industry: Exploring Instructional Design Roles
In a professional discipline, sometimes there can be uneasy tensions between those in the Academy (i.e. professors...
Contact North on How to Design an Innovative Course
Anon (2014) How to design an innovative course, Sudbury.Thunder Bay ON: Contact North
As reported in Contact North's Online Learning News:
There is a lot of pressure...
Further developments in competency-based learning
Salt Lake City: HQ of Western Governors' University
Fain, P. (2013) Rise of customized learning, Inside Higher Education, March 5
Contact North (2013) Western Governors' University,...
No. 3 aha moment: asynchronous is (generally) better than synchronous teaching
In an earlier post, I listed the seven ‘aha’ moments that have been the most seminal ‘discoveries’ in my researching and working in educational...
Is prior learning assessment coming of age?
Fain, P. (2012) New momentum of an old idea Inside Higher Education, November 12
This excellent article discusses new developments in prior learning assessment: 'The...
The challenge of converting MOOCs (or anything else) into college credits
Kolowich, S. (2012) The online pecking order Inside Higher Education, August 2
This article takes a careful and detailed look at different ways that students...
A sustaining innovation: a case of competency-based online learning
Fain, P. (2012) Competing with competency Inside Higher Education, August 6
This article describes in some detail Kentucky's community colleges competency-based online learning programs under...
About Tony Bates
Dr. Tony Bates is the author of eleven books in the field of online learning and distance education. He has provided consulting services specializing in training in the planning and management of online learning and distance education, working with over 40 organizations in 25 countries. Tony is a Research Associate with Contact North | Contact Nord, Ontario’s Distance Education & Training Network.