In this session participants will gain insights about issues surrounding the planning, implementation, and evaluation of online language, literature and culture courses. Furthermore, participants will also be provided with a research-based framework for effecting the transition from face-to-face to online courses.
Panelists will begin with an overview of the move to online language, literature and culture instruction at their institutions. Panelists will describe both the current online environment (number and types of fully and blended online courses, student demographics, and instructor details) and the background for their online initiative (history of why and when online offerings were established). Then they will describe their online initiative in terms of factors critical to their successful move to online learning, which include:
• Vision and goals; • Strategic planning; • Institutional and departmental leadership commitment and support; • Leadership role of language lab director and language lab; • Faculty leadership, commitment, and support; • Resources provided to faculty and students; • Online course development processes and timeline; • Delivery format modes; • Teacher training and student preparation; • Outcome measures; • Quality control measures; and • Efforts to sustain momentum.
Next, a framework based on leadership and change that integrates the individual success factors into a model for implementing online learning initiatives will be presented. From the experiences of institutions successful in online initiatives best practices and leadership strategies for successful online learning implementation are identified in the literature. Due to the complexities involved, the establishment of online offerings within a university is tantamount to effecting institutional change. According to the research on organizational change, for any change initiative to be successful, leadership at multiple levels is imperative. The move from traditional to online language, literature and culture courses may be viewed as a change initiative requiring multi-level leadership and a comprehensive framework. The leadership and change model for online learning implementation offers an explanation for the successful move to online language, literature and culture courses at the panelists’ institutions and a framework to those embarking on such a move.
