Attending online classes is very much in mainstream nowadays. All leading universities and colleges offer this opportunity to connect students across the country. However, the ’humane’ aspect of an isolated classroom is a specific challenge in promoting the online education system. Students often refrain from taking up an online course because of the loneliness factor. Universities report many students stick to classroom coaching even when there are excellent online tutorial facilities available. This is an essential impediment to implementing the MOOP (Massively Open Online Courses) protocol. The Harvard Business School came up with an effective solution to the issue.
HarvardX, the online learning platform of the school is all set to launch the ‘Innovating in Health Care’ program from March 31st. The program already enrolled more than 10,000 students across the world. Before the course goes live, the Business School has a neat plan in place into encountering the isolation aspect of virtual education. Essentially, the top business school did their homework into finding connective traits between students groups. They made it imperative for candidates to collaborate and communicate on the projects. The very course structure design requires the participants to interact and follow a collective approach.
Regina Herzlinger, a veteran Harvard professor in business administration would be the first dedicated business school instructor to handle the virtual course. The experienced professor has been teaching innovation in health care for the past 43 years. She has been through the evolutionary system of healthcare to gain rich insights into the business processes connected with providing the commitment of good health. The key objective of her course conduction would be to promote collaborative understanding in students.
Herzlinger is collaborating herself with Svetlana Dostenko into integrating the project Lever to the HarvardX platform. Originally, the project design meant to connect students with the best resource options for their research works. In the new course, the software protocol would help students to connect with other participants following the same line of research. The professor confirms that it is easier to teach didactic courses than the practical ones via online.
Innovative courses must include teamwork and collaboration, and one needs advanced computing protocols into teaching them. The Project Lever protocol would look up time zones and student availability factors in assisting candidates to grow the right team. The new course also means to cover the overwhelming attrition rate for online students. Data from 2012-13 reveals 95% of students left the courses without taking the completion certificate. The professor hopes the team spirit would be a crucial factor in encouraging students to complete the programs.