How to Evaluate Online Learning

Learning Online is Exciting and Effective.

Online learning is an exciting, unique and effective way to learn. To get the most out of online learning, evaluate each course before you register. Select the most appropriate course for you in terms of content, form and length.
Providing effective feedback and evaluation after finishing the course will help strengthen it for future students.

Instructions

Evaluating Online Courses Before Registering

1. Determine the reputation of the online provider. Generally, college or university certificates are viewed as more official than courses offered by a technical school, professional organization or book publisher.

2. Determine the level of credentials available for the online course, such as college credits or professional development continuing education units.

3. Look for a list of students that have taken the course before and any contact information for them; you may ask them for their impressions.

4. Seek testimonials given by other students printed on the class site. The best way to determine the effectiveness of the course is to read the reactions from former students. To get a more objective testimonial, you might try an Internet search on the course and the provider to see if anyone is commenting.

5. Evaluate courses from several providers for content, length of time needed for completion, level of course (e.g.., introduction, intermediate, advanced), type of technology used or delivery platform and extra materials you may need to purchase.

6. Locate the instructor bio and read through his background in the field of study and for his experience teaching online along with special degrees and credentials.

7. Evaluate all of the materials used for the course. Determine if the materials are written by the instructor and if the course uses a commercial book or a textbook. Look for ratings and reviews of the materials used.

8. Find statistics on courses that indicate how long the course has been offered, how many people have successfully completed it, who developed it, is the course is more than two years old, and if so, if and when the course has been updated.

9. Review the mission, vision, learning objectives and outcome to make sure they match your individual learning needs.

10. Price shop if all other factors such as the reputation of the provider, the professionalism of the instructor and materials, dates and times and delivery platforms of the class are equal. Register for the course with the best price.

Evaluating an Online Course After Completion

1. Give a complete and subjective evaluation of the program after completion. The only way an online course will get redesigned or improved is by the overwhelming voice of the participants.

2. Fill out evaluations every time one is requested throughout the course. Some online courses cover several weeks, months or years. Course evaluations should be distributed at every stage of long-term courses. Take the time to complete the evaluations and feedback forms.

3. Keep your frustrations with technology in perspective and don't let them shade your evaluation. Evaluate the course, the materials or the instructor based on the course itself rather than the problems you may have had with your own technology.

4. Include feedback on the helpfulness of the online course provider on your completion evaluation. If you experienced good customer service and were able to email or talk to someone on the phone when needed, let the provider know you had a good experience.

5. Let the course provider or the instructor know your overall feelings about learning online in general. Ask yourself if you learned what you needed and if would've learned more in an actual classroom. This lets education providers know where they should spend their time and money in programming development.