When creating an online course there are many variables to consider. However, perhaps the first step is deciding on an online learning platform that will best suit your needs.
There are many sites out there that take the technical work out of organizing your content - Versal, Udemy, Moodle, etc. Many of these sites are free and offer great customer service. The one thing I have discovered is the lack of privacy features offered within the free versions. You may be asking yourself "shouldn't the public take advantage of your content?". Well, yes and no. Here's why...
Let's say you are trying to convert a traditional leader-led class on compliance or specific Human Resource topics into a series of online modules. Normally this would not be an issue because many organizations and institutions offer these programs to their employees. But if the intent of your instruction is to improve the quality or behavior of your day-to-day operations, would you really want to air your company's dirty laundry to the public? Do you think an insurance company would like the public to view their courses on "When to deny a claim"? If the public new the intricacies of their business procedures there would be an uproar.
Don't get me wrong, some of these platforms do allow you to set your course to private. Versal does offer this feature, but at a premium of $5.00 per month or $50.00 per year.
In my pursuit of a free alternative I discovered that Canvas offers a private setting at no extra charge. There area a lot more moving parts when establishing your profile and setting up your content. I would much rather invest my time than money for a free learning platform.
Have you discovered other online learning platforms that offer a private setting for your content? Please share below.
Jason,
ReplyDeleteI am a high school teacher creating an online learning environment (which is a little different from the corporate world). I have found two very useful tools on Google.
The first is Google Sites which is a little more complex to use, however you can embed items like google calendars that automatically update themselves. The issue is privacy, anyone can see the site if they look hard enough on a search engine.
The other is Google Classroom. This seems more fitting for me because only students I "approve" AND with a google email account can access the information. It is more user friendly but it is not as easy to personalize to my class.
Which should I go with based on the personalization and the privacy aspect?
Erin
Jason, I was wondering - are you searching for a site to host an 'actual' online course, or just researching the options? I ended up going with Udemy because I wasn't doing anything work-related, but I'd be interested to learn what you end up going with.
ReplyDeleteHi Jason,
ReplyDeleteThis is a really interesting perspective from the corporate world of teaching. My school always promotes transparency with our students, parents and our community. It makes sense that corporations would not want all their information out for the world to see. It's also great to see how versatile canvas is, that it works for the school community as well as the business community. Do you feel that canvas is going to meet your needs for your module project?