Claims for online teaching: separating the real from the virtual

Students may also find that studying online corresponds to an increase in workload, particularly in cases where the teacher is new to online teaching.

Teachers must make sure that the workload for the students is also reasonable and manageable (Harasim et al., 1998).

“Any teacher who can be replaced by a computer deserves to be” (Cooley in McInerney & McInerney, 1994)

Administrators may consider that lower-level staff can 'playback' material after initial development (Harasim et al., 1998). Some may even be ‘lured into the fantasy’ that online delivery can supplant the need for teachers (Shneiderman, Borkowski, Alavi, & Norman, 1998). These views appear to be predicated on the role of the teacher as information transmitter which is 'a limited conception of what it means to be a teacher’ (Freeman, 1997).Educators need to be aware that some managers may hold this view and promote a better understanding of what it means to be a good teacher.

It is important to recognise that information technology ‘is not just a way of accessing a vast, impersonal data bank’, but represents a human information network, developed and maintained by humans (Fowler & Dickie, 1997). Some people mistakenly speak of ‘computer communication’ when they really mean ‘computer-mediated communication’ – the object of communication is another person not a computer.

In particular, the significance of relationship in the process of learning cannot be underestimated. (Pettit, 1998; Shneiderman et al., 1998). Even if it is interactive, computer-based content cannot guarantee learning any more than the presence of a library on campus (Reeves, 1993).

“Subject matter cannot carry itself. Relation, except in very rare cases, precedes engagement with subject matter” (Noddings, 1992)

It is unlikely in the near future, and undesirable at any rate, that this aspect of teaching will be successfully simulated. Incorporating human elements into courses run entirely online will be one of the main challenges for distance educators. While it is doubtful that technology will replace teachers, it has the potential to significantly influence approaches to teaching and it may become increasingly important for teachers to be technology literature (Barritt, Ashhurst, & Pearson, 1995; Porter & Foster, 1998).

“Computers will never replace teachers, but teachers who can use computers will replace teachers who can’t” (Barritt et al., 1995)

Whether the threat of being made obsolete is real or perceived it should be remembered that it will affect teacher attitudes and the rate of adoption of technology in education (Bondaryk, 1998).When introducing change this perception needs to be acknowledged and addressed.