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Online Learning News and Research
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Saturday, November 13, 2004
Internet Research Tracings: Towards Non-Reductionist Methodology - Lincoln Dahlberg, JCMC
Internet research has become a "field" in its own right in the social sciences, already boasting a number of peer-reviewed journals, a plethora of book titles, and an international association that draws hundreds of researchers from across the globe to its annual conference. This paper contributes to this burgeoning field at a meta-methodological level by considering what is needed to achieve non-reductionist understandings of the Internet. It shows how Internet research perspectives draw upon various established media and technology research traditions. (0) comments
Harvesting Knowledge: the role of the Internet in helping students to develop independent research skills - Julia Gainmster, David Gray; EURODL
The exponential growth of the web, now the depository of the largest database of information known to humankind, is now posing the potential for new forms of learning (harvested knowledge) through research and independent inquiry. This paper reports on a case study in which a group of students were actively taught web searching and research skills. The results show not only the potential of the web for independent learning, but also some of the current problems associated with using the medium in this way. (0) comments
Online Education is Entering the Mainstream - Public CIO
"Last year's online enrollment projection has been realized. There are 2.6 million students learning online this semester and there is no evidence enrollment has reached a plateau," says Jeff Seaman, chief information officer, The Sloan Consortium. The second annual survey is based on responses from over 1,100 colleges and universities and represents the state of online education in U.S. higher education. "Online learning is indeed entering the mainstream," says Frank Mayadas, president of Sloan-C. "Last year we found that a majority of academic leaders said online learning was just as good as traditional, face-to-face classroom instruction. This year's results confirm the finding and show that schools offering online courses believe their online students are at least as satisfied as those actually in the classroom." (0) comments Friday, November 12, 2004
Entering the Mainstream: The Quality and Extent of Online Education in the United States, 2003 and 2004 - Sloan-C
Entering the Mainstream: The Quality and Extent of Online Education in the United States, 2003 and 2004 represents the second annual study of the state of online education in U.S. Higher Education. This year’s study, like last year’s, is aimed at answering some of the fundamental questions about the nature and extent of online education. Supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and based on responses from over 1,100 colleges and universities, this year’s study addresses key questions. The complete report, Entering the Mainstream, is available as a free download in PDF format (27 pages, 695K) (0) comments
Blended Learning and Sense of Community: A Comparative Analysis - Alfred P. Rovai, Hope M. Jordan; IRRODL
Blended learning is a hybrid of classroom and online learning that includes some of the conveniences of online courses without the complete loss of face-to-face contact. The present study used a causal-comparative design to examine the relationship of sense of community between traditional classroom, blended, and fully online higher education learning environments. Evidence is provided to suggest that blended courses produce a stronger sense of community among students than either traditional or fully online courses. (0) comments
Enabling Distributed Learning Communities Via Emerging Technologies pt 2 - Dr. Chris Dede, THE Journal
The first part of this article described a distributed learning community for students based on the emerging technology of multi-user virtual environments. The vignette below depicts an alternative type of distributed learning community - this time based on possible applications of wireless mobile devices to create experiences outside of school that motivate and aid students in developing 21st century skills and knowledge (Partnership for 21st Century Skills 2003). Interfaces for “ubiquitous computing” involve portable wireless devices infusing virtual resources as we move through the real world. The early stages of these “augmented reality” interfaces are characterized by research on the role of “smart objects” and “intelligent contexts” in learning and doing (U.S. Department of Commerce 2003). (0) comments
Distance learning helps foreigners build language skills in the virtual classroom - Claudia Minke, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
One of the biggest advantages of distance learning is that learners can start at their own level. At Goethe-Institut, for example, new students write a short text, which is evaluated by an instructor. On this basis, instructors learn students' strengths and weaknesses and can create a program tailored to their needs. Then the course can begin. The advantage: Participants can fit learning into their own schedules. But in contrast to the prepackaged language courses available in stores, distance learning courses are real courses with real deadlines that must be met. (0) comments Thursday, November 11, 2004
On-line Learning at the University of London: building on a heritage - Marianne Coleman, Instructional Technology and Distance Learning
This paper outlines the long established tradition of distance learning at the University of London. It then focuses on one of the newer distance learning programs at the University, an MA in Applied Educational Leadership and Management which is being taught via the Institute of Education, University of London through a Virtual Learning Environment. This MA is available to international practitioners engaged in leading and managing educational institutions. (0) comments
Theory into practice: The design of an online technology skills course for nontraditional nursing students - Suzanne P. Stokes, Krista P. Terry; EJIT
Nontraditional students in an upward mobility nursing track delivered largely through distance learning technologies enroll in a one-hour credit elective course to learn skills required for success in the online learning environment. The course, "Introduction to Technology in Nursing Education," began as a traditional classroom course. Its transformation to an online course reflects strengths inherent through using a systematic instructional design process in course development. An overview of the Dick, Carey, and Carey (2002) model of instructional design, examples of design components reflected in the course, and illustrations of instructional objectives and strategies from the lessons are presented. (0) comments
Navy E-Learning Migrates to Navy Knowledge Online - Dean Persons, eMilitary
Navy E-Learning, the Navy’s single official distance learning system, has migrated to the Navy Knowledge Online (NKO) Web site, Navy Knowledge Online. Making Navy E-Learning available on NKO makes it easier for Sailors to manage their careers, providing them access to professional and personal education opportunities, as well as military information and models to pattern their career all under one Web site. “The Navy uses the Navy Knowledge Online portal as the single source entry in order to provide learning anytime, anywhere in the world,” said Terry Williams, who is part of the Naval Education and Training Command’s (NETC) Integrated Learning Environment program support team. “The portal is used as the primary vehicle to help create a dynamic learning environment, tying together NKO, Navy E-Learning and the 5 Vector Model to effectively manage Sailors' professional and personal development. In essence, a one-stop shop for today’s active Sailor.” (0) comments Wednesday, November 10, 2004
The Digital Convergence: Extending the Portfolio Model - Gary Greenberg, Educause Review
.... Text, graphics, sound, and video have converged into a common digital format in many disciplines. Media is now more easily created, manipulated, processed, and managed than ever before. And different media can coexist in compound multimedia documents. Perhaps most significant, the technical barriers and practical prerequisites for production have been dramatically reduced in recent years. With a common format, it is easier to keep diverse work together in one place. Without the limitations of physical space, it is possible to maintain a substantial archive of work with multiple revisions that might become important in the future. Digital convergence, affordability, and ease-of-use are creating portfolio opportunities for more disciplines while enhancing the opportunities for fields with long portfolio traditions. (0) comments
Speak2Me: Using Synchronous Audio for ESL Teaching in Taiwan - Deborah K. LaPointe, Katherine R.B. Greysen, Kerrin A. Barrett; IRRODL
Abstract: The use of a synchronous audio tool is discussed for teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) in Taiwan. Over several months, a community of practice has formed among teachers and teaching assistants, transcending cultural differences. Exploring the relationship that has developed between teachers and teaching assistants forms the basis of this report. We will also consider the technology underlying Speak2Me's program and its relationship to providing students with quality pedagogy and learning flexibility. (0) comments
Online degrees get real-world value - MIKE DRUMMOND, Charlotte Observer
An explosion of accredited online programs has generated a critical mass of accomplished graduates who have buoyed the cachet of Internet-based business diplomas, hiring experts say. "When (online degree programs) first came out, recruiters weren't sure about them," says John Dooney, manager of strategic research at the Society for Human Resource Management. "As more graduates with online degrees come to companies, they're getting more and more respected." That's not to say a diploma from the likes of DeVry University Online carries the same weight as a Harvard degree. Ivy League and upper-crust line-ups such as Duke University's Global Executive MBA program tend to loft post-graduates into a higher networking orbit. Yet online programs are enjoying a type of strength-in-numbers esteem. (0) comments Tuesday, November 09, 2004
Course Management Systems and the Reinvention of Instruction - Craig Ullman and Mitchell Rabinowitz, THE Journal
There is so much to say but not enough time to say it. Many educators are attracted to teaching because they like to wax eloquently about subjects they are passionate about. The problem is that there is never enough time during a semester to cover all you want to cover. Once again, technology potentially comes to the rescue with the Course Management System (CMS). A CMS is Internet-based software that manages student enrollment, tracks student performance, and creates and distributes course content. In this way, the CMS enables teachers to extend the classroom beyond its traditional boundaries of time and space. (0) comments
Blended Learning – Steering The Middle Course For E-Learning Success - David Stephenson, TrainingZone
The world’s first university, The Academy, established in Athens by Plato in 387 BC was free for students, entirely dependent on donations for its revenue and teaching was conducted through story telling and lecturing. The academic landscape has obviously changed a lot since then, especially in recent years. Government mandates for better quality and innovative education, greater student demands and expectations, overburdened faculty resources and the increasing number of educational options has led universities to explore alternative methods of teaching. Today, technology is changing the shape of education. Many universities globally have already introduced e-learning and some are using it in all their degree programmes. However, online learning should not be seen as a means of replacing traditional classroom based-teaching. Face-to-face teaching is still as effective as it was in the days of Plato. (0) comments
Navy E-Learning Migrates to Navy Knowledge Online - Dean Persons, Navy News Service
Navy E-Learning, the Navy’s single official distance learning system, has migrated to the Navy Knowledge Online (NKO) Web site, http://www.nko.navy.mil. Making Navy E-Learning available on NKO makes it easier for Sailors to manage their careers, providing them access to professional and personal education opportunities, as well as military information and models to pattern their career all under one Web site. “The Navy uses the Navy Knowledge Online portal as the single source entry in order to provide learning anytime, anywhere in the world,” said Terry Williams, who is part of the Naval Education and Training Command’s (NETC) Integrated Learning Environment program support team. “The portal is used as the primary vehicle to help create a dynamic learning environment, tying together NKO, Navy E-Learning and the 5 Vector Model to effectively manage Sailors' professional and personal development. In essence, a one-stop shop for today’s active Sailor.” (0) comments Monday, November 08, 2004
Evaluating the Cost Effectiveness of Online and Face-to-Face Instruction - Sharon Jeffcoat Bartley and Jennifer H. Golek, Journal of Educational Tech
Online instruction is gaining an increasing presence due to the benefits associated with it, including the ability to consolidate education and training across geographical and time constraints, and the claim by many that online education and training is cost efficient. This paper provides a relatively concise and useful history of online learning, and a discussion of issues to be faced by the professional who intends to move the education and training environment online in response to the current academic and business environments. It presents a cost matrix tool by which the costs of online education and training can be tabulated and/or compared with the costs of the traditional education and training medium. (0) comments
Irish universities cannot ignore global e-learning - Brian Skelly, Silicon Republic
Despite the many challenges of implementing an effective e-learning system, Irish universities that ignore this educational trend risk getting left behind by the legion of online universities springing up around the world, a US e-learning guru told an e-learning symposium at Dublin City University yesterday. At the event organised by Universities Ireland, the all-Ireland representative association for the university sector, Dr Andy DiPaulo, executive director of the Stanford Centre for Professional Development at Stanford University, noted that the internet had transformed the learning experience forever. “In the industrial age we went to school; in the communications age the school comes to us.” He added that universities ignored this trend at their peril. “The danger is if you don’t engage in e-learning, what are the consequences of that decision?” (0) comments
e-Learning Portal in Viet Nam
The first online training portal in Viet Nam (e-Learning) is all set to debut by the end of this month according to the Ministry of Education and Training. Quach Tuan Ngoc, director of the ministry’s IT Centre, said that the e-Learning portal had been piloted at major institutions including the Ha Noi University of Technology and National University. Companies have also begun developing e-Learning together with the Corporation for Financing and Promoting Technology (FPT), at http://www.elearning.com.vn for English instruction. (0) comments Sunday, November 07, 2004
Downloading the classroom: a look at online courses - Jinah Kim, Tufts Daily
....This is a different kind of class, of course. The dress code is strictly pajamas. Showers - and even fresh breath -- are optional. This is the classroom via the Internet, and all it requires of the student is that she sit comfortably in her own room and follow along. ExCollege Professor Ronnee Yashon teaches a course called "Genetics, Ethics, and the Law" that was offered online last fall. "The online class was very popular -- students liked it and they learned as much [as a traditional class]," Yashon said. "The final grades when compared to the 'in class' section were almost identical." (0) comments
Teacher training will get a boost: NAAC chief - Times of India
An MoU has been signed between the National Assessment and Accreditation Council and Commonwealth of Learning (COL) to develop modules and quality indicators in the area of teacher training.... "These repositories would be like higher education learning banks that would be uploaded on the Internet to facilitate e-learning," Daniel said, adding that LORs could be integrated with the Infonet project of UGC that is linked to 100 universities. (0) comments
Distance Education from India in Qatar - John Rutledge, Alwayson
India has built an education system that is churning out large numbers of smart, motivated, highly-trained engineers. They have plans to launch an educational satellite to bring education to rural areas. Now they are exporting high-quality, low-cost education to the Arabian Gulf. This is great news for the people who will be able to take advantage of the education opportunities. It is the only long-term answer to global poverty. But it should also serve as a prod to US leaders that we need to use technology to drive down the cost of education in America. We need to drive the cost of college education from $40,000 per year to $400 per year and educate every child in the country who will sit still long enough to learn. (0) comments Online Learning News Blog Archives OTEL - Ray's Home Page - Notebook - UIS Online - U of I Online - UIS Home Fair Use |
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