Boston, MA (PRWEB) December 8, 2010
Sixty-three percent of higher education institutions believe that online education is critical to the long-term strategy of their organizations, according to the recent Sloan Survey of Online Learning. Yet, although online learning in the US continues to skyrocket--approximately 5.6 million college students were enrolled in an online course last fall, a 21 percent increase, according to the survey--the vast majority of instructors in this space receive little formal training about how to teach effectively online.
Preparing online educators is the foundation of Pearson's new Professional Online Educator, a comprehensive approach to training K12, higher education and corporate educators on the leading instructional principles of online learning. Professional Online Educator is fully customizable, with a suite of courses, an internship and a practicum that can be delivered quickly in all of the standard learning management platforms, or accessed on a Pearson-hosted site. The program is currently being piloted and will be available widely beginning in January 2011.
"Our mission at Pearson is to create educational solutions that improve student performance and institutional effectiveness. The continued growth of online learning, coupled with the federal goal of increasing the number of college graduates, highlights the need to fully prepare educators to teach effectively in this space. Our new Professional Online Educator program will help ensure that both educators and students are getting the most from their online courses, thus increasing student retention and success," said Don Kilburn, CEO of Pearson Learning Solutions.
Courses are geared towards online teachers at every level and feature media-rich presentations, discussion forums and performance-based assessments. Courses include: Introduction to Online Learning; Instructor Technology Preparation; Instructional Design for Online Learning; Promoting Student Success in the Online Learning Environment; Assessing Knowledge and Skills in the Online Learning Environment; Beyond the Online Classroom; Internship; and Course Design/Project Practicum.
"Pearson has provided an innovative and effective means for our online faculty to learn and teach online with the Professional Online Educator program," said Tammy Hall, Director of Academic Services for the Louisiana Community & Technical College System. "The courses are well designed and enable us to teach our faculty how to create stimulating online delivery of timely and appropriate content, modeling positive online teaching practices while also working to develop a strong community of leaders."
About Pearson
Pearson has global-reach and market leading businesses in education, business and consumer publishing (NYSE: PSO).
About Pearson Learning Solutions
Pearson Learning Solutions is a business unit within Pearson, the world's leading learning company. As an education partner and consultant to higher education institutions, Pearson Learning Solutions is committed to designing total, client-driven education solutions. We are a team of world-class education experts, instructional designers, curriculum development experts, education course writers, development editors and experienced textbook publishers. We tailor solutions to each institution's individual needs, including off-the-shelf online, in-classroom or blended courses, or fully customized curriculum development. We also provide a range of technology tools and learning platforms to help students, faculty and institutions succeed.
Media Contact: Susan Aspey, susan.aspey (at) pearson (dot) com or (800) 745-8489
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