Course Restructuring and the
Instructional Development Initiative
at Virginia Polytechnic Institute
and State University: A Benefit Cost Study
 

 

Summary, Findings, and Conclusions 1. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) is located on a 2,600-acre site in the town of Blacksburg in the southeastern part of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The university offers approximately 200 degree programs from the bachelor's through doctoral level to 25,000 students. Virginia Tech draws students from throughout the nation and the world. Approximately 73 percent are from the Commonwealth. Almost all students live on or adjacent to the campus. 2. As a way to focus upon the need for a university-wide strategy to leverage instructional technology to achieve its strategic mission, the Provost and the Vice President for Information Systems began in 1993 the implementation of an "Instructional Development Initiative." This large-scale effort was designed to invest in faculty (through a component program, the Faculty Development Initiative - FDI) by providing them an opportunity to rethink their teaching and explore the potential of (electronic) instructional technology for improving the effectiveness of the teaching-learning process. 3. Faculty who participated in the FDI workshops have been provided access to multimedia computers with high speed network connections. The campus has an ongoing program to equip classrooms and upgrade computer labs with sufficient computers to provide adequate access for students enrolling in the redesigned courses who do not have their own computers and network access. 4. Two professors who participated in the workshops restructured the courses that are the basis of this study: Philosophy 1204, Knowledge and Reality, taught by Dr. Valerie Hardcastle and Biology 2604, Introductory Microbiology, taught by Dr. G. William Claus. Data from these courses as taught in spring term 1997 are the primary basis for the evaluation of learning outcomes. Learning Outcomes in the Philosophy Course 5. Dr. Hardcastle redesigned her course to simulate small group discussion sessions which were previously face-to-face. The redesign involved use of a combination of synchronous and asynchronous methods facilitated by emerging instructional technology applications. The redesigned course meets as a group only once per week for a regular lecture which primarily consists of an overview of the study topic for the week. 6. In the spring semester 1997, one section of the philosophy course was taught by Dr. Hardcastle in the "interactive web-based mode." The other section was taught by another faculty member in a more traditional large lecture/small discussion format. 7. Students in both sections of the course were assigned to write a persuasive essay. Forty essays were randomly selected from each section. These essays were scored and graded by three readers (graduate students in philosophy) from another university. 8. The evidence regarding learning outcomes is somewhat ambiguous. Students in the web-based course scored better than the lecture section on eight of sixteen specific essay scoring criteria deemed important to philosophical discourse, there was no significant difference between the two sections on seven of the criteria, and the lecture section scored significantly better on only one criterion. Based upon these results, the web-based section's performance on the essay was superior. This result is consistent with the increased writing and interaction regarding the writing that was built into the course redesign, i.e., that increased practice and review should improve performance. Even though the web-based group showed superior performance based upon the sixteen criteria, letter grades assigned by the readers to this particular essay showed no significant difference between the two groups. 9. In terms of responses to the student survey, there is evidence that student behavior was affected to the extent that over half had increased their use of the Internet and that over three-quarters better appreciated discussion, peer review and the value of informal writing as a component of the learning process (both of these results may indicate other learning outcomes that will be very important for students living in an increasingly digitized work and social environment). Less than a fourth of the student respondents felt there was too much use of the computer in the course. 10. Advantages most frequently mentioned by students in the web-based section were better access to course materials and convenience and flexibility in studying. The disadvantages most frequently mentioned were technical problems and the impersonal nature of the technology. Learning Outcomes in the Microbiology Course 11. Biology 2604 is a sophomore level introductory microbiology course that enrolls approximately 200 students per semester. It is taught once each semester by Dr. G. William Claus who has been responsible for the course for several years. The class meets three times per week in a large lecture hall. There is an associated microbiology laboratory course, and, although it is not required, most students take the lab concurrently with the lecture course. 12. With the help of a grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Dr. Claus and a development team in Virginia Tech's Educational Technologies Department restructured the course offering. The goals of the restructuring were to improve student access to course related materials and to improve communications between students and faculty and among students. 13. The changes took the form of enhancements to the lecture presentation, network access to all course materials, and new communications capabilities. All overhead transparencies were converted to PowerPoint slides which Dr. Claus used in lecture. These materials were in turn converted to files that students could access from the web site. An elaborate course web site was created that allowed students to access class announcements, frequently asked questions, course documents (e.g., syllabi), color slides, printable black and white slides, practice exams, live communication links to the professor and the teaching assistant (electronic office hours - "chat room"), direct e-mail to faculty, asynchronous discussions with other students ("message boards"), and links to other web sites related to biology and microbiology. 14. Although a statistical test for differences in learning outcomes based upon course grade comparisons over time was not performed, the evidence strongly suggests there is no difference in either mean grades or the grade distributions for versions of the course offered before and after the course redesign. The grades, themselves, provide no evidence that learning outcomes have changed as a result of the introduction of the network technology. (It is worth reiterating that Dr. Claus's objective in the course transformation was not to change the grades but to improve communications and increase student access to course materials.) 15. The student survey responses clearly indicate that the course web site has improved student access to course materials, which was one of the primary objectives of the course redesign. 16. The survey responses indicate, in terms both of activities and attitude changes, that students are learning to use the computer and the Internet as tools to assist them in their studies. Such results will have direct application in their careers after graduation. Institutional Renewal 17. The Instructional Development Initiative is a large-scale effort to invest in the faculty of Virginia Tech by providing them with the opportunity to rethink their teaching and to explore the potential of instructional technology for improving the effectiveness of the teaching-learning process. This initiative is based upon the realization that digital technology is causing profound changes in the way people communicate with each other and gain access to various types of information. These changes have important implications for the curriculum both in terms of how the technology applies in particular disciplines and in terms of how courses can be taught. Students must be educated about these applications in order to function in society and the labor market. 18. Virginia Tech has met this responsibility with the Instructional Development Initiative and the Faculty Development Institute (FDI). The FDI provides both opportunities and incentives for the faculty, the campus's most valuable resource, to learn more about the application of the technology as it applies to their teaching activities and to work with each other in sharing ideas and experiences about the instructional applications. 19. This investment in human capital has been augmented by providing faculty with the appropriate desk-top computing equipment and network connections. It also includes a large-scale effort to provide network access, specialized computer labs, and support for students; classroom upgrades and equipment in classrooms to make them suitable for computer presentation and network access. 20. Many "graduates" of the FDI have continued to develop their courses and contribute to an exciting atmosphere that encourages change and innovation. Dr. Claus, in particular, attributes a renewal in his teaching to his experience in the FDI and subsequent support from the Department of Educational Technologies, which manages the FDI workshops. Student Access 21. Virginia Tech's emphasis upon the use of the technology in the Instructional Development Initiative has been to improve communications and access to course materials for on-campus students. The Initiative is broadly conceived, however, and is providing the basis for an expansion of Virginia Tech's distance learning activities. Costs 22. The costs of restructuring these courses include the one-time costs of the FDI workshops and the course conversions. Providing workstations for faculty and students is a major ongoing cost. 23. For courses that enroll 100-200 students per term, course costs, including FDI, course conversion, and workstations for faculty and students, the estimated costs are $4,200-$6,000. On a per student enrolled in one course basis the costs are $30-$42. 24. If 25 percent of a student's entire degree program were to be taken in these restructured courses, the cost per student would increase by $331-$465. If twenty-five percent of the university's courses were restructured, its annual expenditures on these activities would increase $1.7-$2.4 million.