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| - Photo Credit: Neno Burger by c-reel.com - |
So burgers and online education. Makes sense to me.
I guess a little background is in order. I am an instructional designer and manage the learning management system (LMS) for my organization. So before I go any further I need to state that this is entirely personal ramblings and thoughts that pertain to the work that I do. Nothing in this blog is in any way reflective of the institution that I work for.
I recently had a conversation with someone totally outside of the online education sphere about the perception of online degrees. They were relating that online education was perceived as inferior to traditional institutions. That they thought of "mail-in" degrees and lower standards. Now as some one in this field I truly disagree with this but it started a pattern of thought that I feel is a great analogy for my view of online education - it's a hamburger.
Picture a hamburger. What burger comes to mind? What does it look like? Is it a small, flat, dollar burger from a fast food drive-thru? Is it a high end, $20 designer burger? Is it something in-between? Why did you think of that burger?
I guess a little background is in order. I am an instructional designer and manage the learning management system (LMS) for my organization. So before I go any further I need to state that this is entirely personal ramblings and thoughts that pertain to the work that I do. Nothing in this blog is in any way reflective of the institution that I work for.
I recently had a conversation with someone totally outside of the online education sphere about the perception of online degrees. They were relating that online education was perceived as inferior to traditional institutions. That they thought of "mail-in" degrees and lower standards. Now as some one in this field I truly disagree with this but it started a pattern of thought that I feel is a great analogy for my view of online education - it's a hamburger.
Picture a hamburger. What burger comes to mind? What does it look like? Is it a small, flat, dollar burger from a fast food drive-thru? Is it a high end, $20 designer burger? Is it something in-between? Why did you think of that burger?
My informal experience has been that people when asked to picture a hamburger is that they typically picture an experience that they had with a burger.
Now what if I said a McDonald's dollar menu burger? How about a Five Guys and Fries burger? A Whataburger? One from In and Out Burgers? Does your picture change with each location's burger? Why? And how does this relate to online education?
When people talk of online programs or online degrees, we naturally picture something that we, or someone close to us, experienced. Somehow when we place a qualifier on the online program, it changes the view of an online degree.
Try it. Would you prefer a online degree from [insert name of unknown university here] or would you rather it from [insert name of highly accredited university here]? Does it make a difference?
Just like judging the burgers by the business, online programs need to be judged by the institutions that offer them.
So who makes the best burgers?
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