Abstract
Technical education programs in community colleges prepare students for many science and engineering-based jobs in the United States. An increasing number of technical education programs in community colleges are using online learning tools to teach courses. However, little is currently known about the ways these programs are integrating online learning in their coursework. This study examined fifteen National Science Foundation funded technical education programs that use online learning to partially or entirely deliver their courses. We conducted semi-structured interviews with key personnel from each project. Through analysis of this data, we found that technical education programs used a variety of instructional delivery approaches that can be categorized as follows: (a) a hybrid or blended course with asynchronous online lectures; (b) a hybrid or blended course with synchronous lectures; (c) a hybrid or blended course with a combination of asynchronous and synchronous lectures and discussions; or (d) a course that is fully online. We also found that online or hybrid technical education programs used a variety of different methods to give students experience in their field of study that can be categorized as follows: (a) pre-recorded video; (b) live video; (c) simulations; (d) equipment at home; (e) equipment in lab; and (f) professional site experience. We recommend that future research examine how well these approaches are working, incorporate student perceptions, and incorporate the views of employers of these programs’ graduates.
Highlights
Technical education programs in community colleges prepare students for many science and engineering-based jobs in the United States
We designed a study intended to examine a set of community college technical education programs that use what we determined to be a significant amount of online learning
We reviewed 15 National Science Foundation (NSF) Advanced Technological Education (ATE) projects in order to understand how online learning was being integrated into those technical education programs
Summary
Technical education programs in community colleges prepare students for many science and engineering-based jobs in the United States. An increasing number of technical education programs in community colleges are using online learning tools to teach courses. This study examined fifteen National Science Foundation funded technical education programs that use online learning to partially or entirely deliver their courses. The importance of technical education was reinforced by U.S federal efforts such as the White House’s (2009) call for an additional 5 million graduates from community colleges by the year 2020 To help achieve this goal, over $2 billion was allocated to fund community college and industry partnerships through the Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training (TAACCCT) program (Plotkin, 2011; The White House, 2014)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
