Internet Learning Volume 5, Number 1, Fall 2016/Winter 2017 | Page 36

We are the Campus
critical discussion. People seem to
appreciate seeing different ways to
be immersed in digital education
and technology. (personal communication,
October 31, 2016)
In 2015 the original project leaders began
the process of refining and updating
the Manifesto, bringing the document
up to date in a context that had
seen the rise and fall of MOOCs, the
proliferation (if not embrace) of online
education, and the increasing digitization
of nearly all aspects of human activity.
The Context
The Manifesto for Online Learning
bears many of the hallmarks of
that Scotland’s post-secondary
educational system, which differs in
important respects from the American
experience. Scotland is the most highly
educated country in Europe, and
among the most educated in the world.
In Scotland, there are no tuition fees for
undergraduate students from the European
Union; fees for students seeking
first degrees are paid by the Student
Awards Agency of Scotland. Further,
the link between Scottish universities
and employers is strong, with educational
agencies meeting often with the
government to coordinate planning and
share information over a range of learning
and training issues. The number of
Scottish college students (226,919) is
dwarfed by the number of American
full-time college students (12.7 million
full-time, 7.8 million part-time)
(Learning House, 2016). Thus the Scottish
system avoids some of the issues
which plague American higher education.
There are no issues of rising tuition
or student debt, and the close ties
between the educational system and
Scottish industry mitigate the concern
that students may not be able to find
jobs after graduation.
The Manifesto
The Manifesto for Teaching Online
embodies premises that may
jolt many American educators.
The 22 tenets of the 2016 Manifesto
can serve as provocative conversation
starters as U.S. students and teachers
struggle to align digital education with
its more traditional sister. Several key
points from the Manifesto raise discussion
about applicability to higher learning
in the United States:
Table 1. Manifesto for teaching online—Digital Education, University of Edinburgh,
2016 (Ross & Bayne, 2016)
1. Online can be the privileged mode. Distance is a positive principle, not a
deficit.
2. Place is differently, not less, important online.
3. Text has been troubled: many modes matter in representing academic
knowledge.
35