Strategic Planning and Trends in Online Education

Strategic planning should illustrate how the curriculum should grow— which courses need to be added or removed, which courses need to be updated immediately or on a regular schedule of updates. However, strategic planning as technology changes also includes more than pedagogical changes based on course content. It also includes anticipated developments in technology and a realization of how quickly or slowly those innovations will reach the majority of prospective learners. Then the institution needs to upgrade hardware, software, and networks to accommodate the changes as incrementally as possible, to avoid technological culture shock for teachers and learners. As the need for specific courses is determined, the number of highly qualified and trained faculty must be in place to facilitate these courses. Strategic planning must account for the curriculum, the people involved in presenting and learning it, and the technology used to implement the curriculum.

Strategic planning is important for every curriculum, but the plan cannot be put away and forgotten until it is time to develop the next required plan. A strategic plan should be a vibrant document that is checked frequently. If a deviation from the plan is necessary, the modification should be documented and a rationale provided for the change. At times, the modification may indicate the need for a whole new strategic plan, which is then developed and discussed right away. Strategic plans must reflect the institution’s mission and the direction for online education. They must be workable plans that have the faculty’s and administration’s support. Following and updating an online program’s strategic plan is an important managerial activity.

A strategic plan should emphasize not only the immediate institutional needs and priorities—such as developing and updating programs, implementing a curriculum or curricular changes, marketing programs, and preparing for accreditation. It also should acknowledge and help educators plan for changes within the larger “outside” world of online education. As society and technology change, new issues arise that demand administrative policies that protect and assist teachers and learners. Some current issues include privacy, ownership of information, plagiarism, and general security of online information. As changes occur, new issues must be considered by faculty and administrators, and new initiatives added to the strategic plan.

The concept of using shared learning objects or multimedia teaching objects requires administrators to envision their courses as part of a larger educational effort that raises questions about the independent structure of one institution’s online programs. Usability testing and the development of standards of online courses and programs may require the institution more formally to evaluate its online courses and development processes. Privacy policies and security are ongoing concerns that must be part of a strategic plan. These areas must be revisited as new social, legal, and technological changes take place within a country as well as globally. These and other issues are facing everyone who helps develop and deliver online curricula. Those who work with a strategic plan need to be made aware of changes within online education and begin to plan now for their responses through possible changes in policies and practices.