Herbert Brown III

Location: appalachian state university - boone, nc - usa

About me

Herb Brown is a professor and program director in the business and information technology education program at Appalachian State University in Boone, NC. He directs the Graduate program in New Media/Global Education and Online Teaching and Learning at Appstate. He has taught information technology, instructional technology, and business education courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels for 20 years and served 10 years in the role of Director of Technology for several universities. He has held teaching and administrative positions at James Madison University, The University of Virginia's College at Wise, the University of South Carolina and Appalachian State University. He holds a Ph.D. in Vocational Education with a cognate in Computer Information Systems from Virginia Tech. His articles have appeared in Information Technology, Learning, and Performance Journal, EDUCAUSE Quarterly, and the NABTE Journal.

Interests

online teaching and learning, career and technical education, business & information technology education

Skills

online teaching and learning, teaching methodology, information technology education, web development/design

Website

http://edtech.appstate.edu

Activity

Herbert Brown III

Discussion Comment

Will Online Learning Replace the Traditional Classroom?

MaryCatherine, The growth of online learning technologies in to the traditional classroom has created a boom in hybrid classrooms. As you mentioned, this trend is likely to continue. The students benefit from the merger of these technologies and the best of both. Herbert Brown III

Herbert Brown III

Discussion Comment

Instructor Presence

laura, While it is easier in a traditional classroom, it can still be done online as well. The longer I teach online the better I get at picking up on subtle elements of postings, quality of work, timeliness of posts, etc. and can identify struggling students even online. Even subtle things in emails can be warning signs. Herbert Brown III

Herbert Brown III

Discussion Comment

The Optimal Online Student-Instructor Ratio

laura, What you describe is the classic problem with student to instructor ratios. Most everyone agrees that 15-20 is the optimal level except administrators. Administrators see the bottom line and focus on the financial side and that does not always match the optimal ratio for teaching online classes. It gets even more problematic when administrators put 100+ in a course. Herbert Brown III

Herbert Brown III

Discussion Comment

Faculty Expectations

laura, A tone is important you are correct. However, a basic set of course expectations does help set the tone of the course for all students. Since a syllabus is a legal agreement with your students, establishing core expectations also set the legal expectations for the course. Herbert Brown III

Herbert Brown III

Discussion Comment

Faculty Expectations

laura, These are all good and they all appear to be student focused. Can you imagine any "instructor" focused expectations you might included as well? Herbert Brown III

Herbert Brown III

Discussion Comment

The Optimal Online Student-Instructor Ratio

Theran, I agree completely with your statement. There are ideals and then there is reality. I have also noticed the same influential factors you mention here. It is not universal; however, it is interesting to see this ideal range of 15-20 appear in this forum from many different individuals. Herbert Brown III

Herbert Brown III

Discussion Comment

The Optimal Online Student-Instructor Ratio

todd, Is there a reason that 15 seems to be a magical number for you? Herbert Brown III

Herbert Brown III

Discussion Comment

Faculty Expectations

Theran, These are all good areas. Some institutions have a standard set of expectations they include in all courses, but there are many times you can add your own to assist with the flow and communication in the course. Herbert Brown III

Herbert Brown III

Discussion Comment

Will Online Learning Replace the Traditional Classroom?

NICOLE, Excellent point that the demographic of our online student is often very different than our traditional student and that needs to be taken into consideration. Another growing area is hybrid instruction taking the best of online and the traditional classroom. We will continue to see widespread growth in this area as well. Herbert Brown III

Herbert Brown III

Discussion Comment

Will Online Learning Replace the Traditional Classroom?

Angela, I am not saying that online will replace traditional and unfortunately College Football teams will be one of the determining factors. The amount of money tied to College and professional sports is so large it cannot be ignored as a serious factors in these scenarios. Herbert Brown III

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