Online Learning Information
Definition of Online Learning Modalities
All online learning modes offered at SPCCD will be considered in the plan. Currently, these include the following: online, hybrid, television, and tele-web.
Online Course: An online course is a course that is offered over the Internet. Typically, content is presented through web pages and class discussions using a combination of email, mailing lists, bulletin boards, chat rooms, or newsgroups. All class meetings, assignments, lectures, and assessments are online (except for orientation meetings or other face-to-face examinations as determined by the professor).
Television or Tele-Web Course: This type of course uses cable TV to deliver some or all of the course content. A tele-web course merges online and TV delivery. Typically, only a limited number of face-to-face meetings are held, and the remainder of the course is conducted using television delivery of content and web-based activities, communication, and discussion.
Hybrid Course: A hybrid course is a course that is taught online using similar web-based tools and activities as an online class. Some potion of the course meeting time is conducted online, and the remaining percentage of the class is conducted in a traditional classroom manner.
Web-Enhanced Course: This type of course is taught face-to-face for 100% of the course meeting time, but classroom assignments and materials are supplemented with web-based activities. Examples are: online projects, handouts and materials, online discussion, or online testing (Note: this is a definition of a non-online learning course which uses online learning tools).
SPCCD was a pioneer in online education and was one of the first community colleges in California to offer fully online courses in 1998. However, over the next few years there was limited growth in online offerings and only 15 course sections were taught online during Fall 2000. The adoption of a learning managment system in Spring 2001, and the availability of training to teach online, and recruitment of new faculty interested in teaching online resulted in a rapid increase in online offerings.
