The Impact of Open Source

Online learning provides excellent opportunities for students to learn effectively. The internet and the personal computer in general have changed the way we think about teaching and learning (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, & Zvacek, 2009). In the past learning was teacher-centered but as instructional designers, we must design courses that are student-centered. Student-centered learning strongly promotes active learning, collaboration, mastery of course material and student control over the learning process (Simonson, Smaldino, Albright, & Zvacek, 2009). Prior to taking this course, I was not aware of the different types of online learning course nor was I was I was aware of how much work is put into the design of an online course. This course has definitely been an eye-opener for me. This week I learned about Open Courses. These are free courses anyone can take online to acquire knowledge and engage in learning experiences. I chose to review the Open Yale courses at http://oyc.yale.edu/. Open Yale Courses provides free and open access to a selection of introductory courses taught by distinguished teachers and scholars at Yale University. The aim of the project is to expand access to educational materials for all who wish to learn (Open Yale courses, n.d.). The site was very user-friendly and easy to navigate. I enjoy courses that are designed with simplicity. Sometimes graphics, animations, etc. can take away from the learning experience. Since this course provided general knowledge on different topics, there were different subjects on the side of the page one could click on if they were interested in taking a particular course. After I clicked on psychology and entered into the course another page opened with the course content. The course content was very basic and included introduction to psychology, syllabus, class sessions, downloads and survey. If the student clicks on each one of these links, it will take them to the necessary page. I think the course I reviewed was carefully pre-planned and designed for a distance learning environment. There was an overview of what to expect in the psychology course and it connected to the class sessions appropriately. Resources were provided through different modes such as video, audio, and text. I think this course followed the recommendations of online learned as listed in the text. The psychology course was learner-centered because it produced learning, the environment was cooperative, individualistic, collaborative, and supportive, and success is possible for all due to the fact that it would be determined by the learner’s knowledge and skills. Success can occur because the learners will learn at their own pace. The course designer could have added more components that would have maximized active learning. The course is a synchronous course. If it would have been asynchronous, discussion forums could have been added so the learners could learn from one another as well as the instructor. I enjoyed reviewing the psychology course and I plan to access it in the future to continue learning more about psychology.