Saving a semester of learning: MIT’s emergency transition to online instruction
Name
Saving a MIT Semester Pre Print.pdf
Description
Accepted version
Size
186.65 KB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
57a4a4911c6e6b15b88fb4dd01b1398c
Author(s)
Kessler, Aaron M
Barnes, Sheryl Ann
Rajagopal, Krishna
Rankin, Janet
Pouchak, Lauren
Silis, Mark V
Esser III, Wesley J
Date Issued
June 2020
Journal
Information and Learning Science
Publisher
Emerald
Citation
Kessler, Aaron et al. "Saving a semester of learning: MIT’s emergency transition to online instruction." Information and Learning Science 121, 7/8 (June 2020): 10.1108/ils-04-2020-0097 © 2020 Emerald Publishing Limited
Version
Author's final manuscript
Abstract
Purpose: Prior to March 4th, 2020 only a handful of MIT courses had ever been delivered exclusively online. The purpose of this paper is to detail how over a 25-day period (March 4th-March 30th) approximately 1,250 spring term courses transitioned to being remote online offerings in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout that time five groups on MIT's campus – the Office of Open Learning (OL), the Office of the Vice Chancellor (OVC), including in particular the Teaching + Learning Lab (TLL), Information Systems and Technology (IS&T) and Sloan Technology Services (STS) - were primarily responsible for supporting the transition of residential courses to remote online delivery. Design/methodology/approach: Together these groups were able to engage in new communication processes and collaborations, initially established by the university's Academic Continuity working group, to address three: support all faculty and instructors in transforming residential courses to remote online instruction, support all students in transitioning to remote online learning, and support teaching assistants as they transitioned to online instruction. Findings: This paper describes the organizational structure (both distributed and centralized) that allowed for such collaborations. Critical decisions made by the group are described and connected with the key goals they addressed. Finally, examples of specific tools and supports that were implemented during the transition period are highlighted. Originality/value: Certain factors existed to allow MIT to make such a massive instructional transition (e.g. scaled lecture capture capabilities, members of the digital learning lab embedded within a number of departments and an extensive library of previously created open and free online resources), the overarching process and decisions presented within are likely to resonate across institutions. The potential impact of these changes and future community opportunities are also discussed.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Physics
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Teaching and Learning Laboratory
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Information Services and Technology
MIT Open Learning
Sloan School of Management
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Office of Digital Learning
Terms of Use
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike
Persistent DSpace Link
DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1108/ils-04-2020-0097
