E-learning courses distributed via learning management systems help to solve many problems that schools have faced in recent months, including fewer course offerings, lack of funding, and lack of AP courses.
But despite all the benefits of e-learning courses, the fact is that plagiarism and other forms of student deceit in coursework become likelier and easier online.
Many of us in the e-learning community with the conviction that online education can be an effective and powerful way to teach and train students are also deeply concerned about the bad practices we see becoming more widespread. All too often, online education systems are not well developed. And of course, the ones most closely affected are the students. It becomes difficult to know whether or not a student understands the material based on the online assignments and assessments.
Studies indicate that around 70% of American high school seniors admit to cheating at least once in their high school career, and 95% of those students say they were never caught in the act. This indicates that most people do cheat at some point in their lives.
As training instructors, supervisors, online course developers, and educators, it is our mission to provide students with effective and well-developed learning material in order to ensure that students are both interested in and held accountable for their own understanding of the material. But how can we go about accomplishing this mission?
A powerful learning management system will include the best features for ensuring that learners are giving their best effort and creative work. One aspect of these tools are those that prevent cheating and track student success in a course.
Utilizing Web 2.0 tools such as discussion forums for student assignment is an increasingly popular practice--especially at the university level. But it isn't sufficient simply to tell students to answer questions and post them, and then to get engaged with the content. Without a powerful strategy to use the tools to their full potential, copying, repetition and a general lack of learning are inevitable.
To ensure that students are engaged with the material, the best strategy is to create interesting learning content in the first place. Course tools like videos, podcasts, and others are easy ways to gain and keep student interest.
Nevertheless, even the most interactive, engaging and interesting course requires some way to track and monitor student progress.
Automated tracking tools offered in learning management systems are features that help e-learning instructors help students put forth their best and most genuine efforts.
