Web-based informatics education: lessons learned from five years in the trenches

Duke University has a five-year history with high-quality and clinically oriented informatics web-based nursing informatics education. This paper highlights an overview of instructional methods used and pedagogical considerations for both students and faculty. To do the job well, faculty workload for web-based instruction has been more than double the time and effort required for teaching an on-campus course. Results suggest that virtual teamwork is difficult but possible for highly motivated students. Committed to excellence, Duke's program finds that most students do well in achieving their goals and achieving Duke's high standards of academic rigor, however some students are not successful with on-line courses.