44cstudies.ubc.ca 604.822.1444

Online learning fOr PrOfessiOnal and PersOnal develOPmenttake advantage of online continuing education designed with adult learners in mind.

UBC Continuing Studies has been at the forefront of online learning for professional and personal development for over a decade.

We offer a variety of courses and programs for adult learners in 100% online and blended delivery (combines face-to-face and online components). Topics range from aboriginal health administration, English language teaching and writing to project management, web analytics and business analysis.

Our programs use the latest online learning technologies and distance education learning theories. For example, research into educational social software has shown it to be a very effective way to improve learner achievements and create a more enjoyable learning environment than is possible with traditional individual efforts.

Benefit from a university-level curriculum that has been researched and developed by UBC instructors and subject matter experts. The curriculum continues to be updated as techniques, business strategies and technologies evolve.

Program Online Learning Page

Aboriginal Health and Community Administration Blended 57

Academic Writing 100% online 35

Advanced English Language Teaching Blended 43

Business Analysis 100% online 71

Facilitating Online Across Cultures 100% online 47

Immigration: Laws, Policies and Procedures Blended 48

Integrated Marketing Strategy Blended 70

Intercultural Studies Blended 61

International Development Blended 61

International Graduate Study Preparation Blended 40

Professional Development for Practice Educators and Preceptors 100% online 55

Project Management 100% online 76

Web Analytics 100% online 68

Web Intelligence 100% online 69

Link to detailed web sites for individual programs at cstudies.ubc.ca/online.

See also: Free podcasts of liberal arts lectures – page 11

We invite you to take advantage of our online programs to:

• access up-to-date and relevant learning materials independent of location, distance and time

• engage in real-time interaction with students and instructors

• learn from experience with the guidance and encouragement of your classmates and instructor.

Many of our programs also allow you to:

• use multimedia to place learning in the context and culture in which it occurs

• work with classmates from around the world to develop global connections and cultural knowledge.

Whether you are taking a 100% online or a blended course, you are not learning alone. Participants support one another as they are challenged to carefully consider course concepts, leading to a better understanding of the material. Your online curriculum may consist of lectures, case studies, resources, research papers and more, all delivered through a learning management system.

45cstudies.ubc.ca

604.822.1444

earn yOur degree, nO matter where yOu are Distance education programs through the UBC Office of Learning Technology offer you the flexibility to manage your own time while completing full-credit courses you can use towards your degree or take for your own interest.

Choose from over 130 distance education credit courses, spanning 30 different subject areas, including 90 available 100% online.

Explore your options at:

www.olt.ubc.ca/de

dr. michael seear Instructor, UBC Certificate in International Development

As a pediatric respirologist, Dr Michael Seear’s passion is not only helping children at BC Children’s Hospital where he works, but also assisting children and their families in developing nations. It is Dr Seear’s interest in global health issues that led him to develop two online courses in international health delivery as part of the UBC Certificate in International Development (CID).

The program (p. 61) prepares participants with knowledge of global development issues and the skills to work successfully in international environments as health care practitioners, engineers or those affiliated with aid organizations.

Because the program is delivered almost entirely online, it enables participants to take courses from a variety of locations, both from within Canada and internationally.

“The great benefit of online course delivery is that a diverse group of students can come together to learn and share their collective experiences,” observes Dr Seear. “In a traditional classroom situation, you only get students who are able to travel to the course location on a daily or weekly basis, and that can impact the diversity of the student population.”

Dr Seear also believes that complex concepts are often better conveyed in an online format rather than through a traditional lecture model. “When you’re learning about multifaceted topics like world debt, poverty and

malnutrition it’s difficult to absorb all of the information simply through hearing it. Online learning enables the students to read about the topic, analyze the concepts through guided questions and discuss the issues amongst other students and with the instructor,” explains Dr Seear.

Students are expected to log in to the discussion forums, which are an integral part of CID courses, at least every other day. “Participants often have quite a bit of work-related or volunteer experience that they bring to the discussion which really enriches the dialogue,” says Dr Seear. “The online forums also give students, who might be too reserved to speak out in class, a voice in the discussion.”

While students in an online course are expected to spend five to seven hours a week studying and in discussion forums, the instructor often spends much more time interacting online. For example, Dr Seear logs into the discussion forum to answer questions and guide the dialogue several times a day, almost every day of the course. “It takes a very dedicated instructor to teach an online course because it’s quite demanding of your time. In the online age, participants expect answers within 24 hours of posting a question,” he says.

In the end, though, online teaching is a labour of love for Dr Seear as it enables him to share his knowledge and passion of international health issues with a broad range of students.

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Complex concepts are often better conveyed in an online format.