Dr . Karen Vendouern-Srba is the Vice President of Academic & Instructional Technology for American Public University System ( APUS ). With over 28 years of experience in systems integration , information security , project management and education . She heads a team of eLearning professionals who design digital , interactive learning content and 3D immersive applications for education . Srba is an accomplished speaker and researcher and has created several scholarly papers and presentations on adaptive learning , pedagogy , immersive technology ( 3D and VR / AR ), and experiential learning for online adult students . Dr . Srba has created several learning technology frameworks that will transform the way higher education delivers adult student programs , degrees , courses , micro-credentials and certificates .
USA engine accelerated the process of launching a course dramatically . “ Normally it would take us about three months per course . Since we started using Realizeit ’ s ingestion engine in the adaptive format , it now takes us probably six weeks at the most ,” she says . Thanks to the collaboration between Srba ’ s team and Realizeit , “ every student that goes through this system might have a different pathway .” She notes that “ this way , the student is able to succeed no matter what .” The application of this personalized experience has seen student success increase dramatically . “ The data shows that there ’ s been a significant increase in the number of As , Bs and Cs , and significantly fewer Ds , Fs and people withdrawing from courses ,” says Srba .
Reducing the number of student withdrawals is a key element of Srba ’ s mission at the institution . She acknowledges that a hurdle for some students is the absence of discipline inherent to a physical classroom . “ In an online
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EXECUTIVE PROFILE
Dr . Karen Vendouern-Srba is the Vice President of Academic & Instructional Technology for American Public University System ( APUS ). With over 28 years of experience in systems integration , information security , project management and education . She heads a team of eLearning professionals who design digital , interactive learning content and 3D immersive applications for education . Srba is an accomplished speaker and researcher and has created several scholarly papers and presentations on adaptive learning , pedagogy , immersive technology ( 3D and VR / AR ), and experiential learning for online adult students . Dr . Srba has created several learning technology frameworks that will transform the way higher education delivers adult student programs , degrees , courses , micro-credentials and certificates .
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