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Online Learning News and Research
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Saturday, March 04, 2006
iPod goes to University of Wales - Macworld Daily News
The University of Wales, Bangor, has begun making essential course materials available as podcasts. A local report reveals that the university's School of Psychology has begun the initiative, introducing podcasts of lectures and video podcasts, available for download. It's a new initiative, explained Jesse Martin, teaching Fellow at the School of Psychology: "We've only been doing it for a few weeks, but the podcasts are well received by students. We haven't yet found an example of another university combining images, such as slides from demonstrations in their podcasts, as we are," she told IC News Wales. (0) comments
System Dynamics in Distance Education and a Call to Develop a Standard Model - Steven C. Shaffer, IRRODL
This paper describes systems dynamics, reviews the literature of uses of systems concepts in distance education (DE), presents a preliminary model, and ends in a call to researchers to contribute to the building of a standard model of DE. Systems theory, system dynamics, and similar phrases are often found in the literature of education, in general, and online education, in particular (Shaffer, 2004). There are two main strands of systems thought: systems theory and system dynamics. Systems theory was initially developed by biologist Ludwig von Bertalanffy (1968) as a rigorous method of describing the structure and mechanisms of organic systems. He was concerned about “the danger that general systems theory may end up in meaningless analogies” (p. 35) and was at pains to point out that “general systems theory is not a search for vague and superficial analogies” (p. 35). System dynamics (Forrester, 1968), the approach taken in this paper, comes out of the tradition of cybernetics research and is primarily focused on the dynamics of feedback loops, which, it is claimed, lie at the core of all real-world phenomena (Sterman, 2000). Sterman (1994) offers an excellent, detailed introduction to the use of systems theory in education. (0) comments
Stanford goes digital with iTunes - Kimberly Drelich, Chicago Maroon
As podcasting gains momentum at Stanford University and other colleges across the nation, catching up on lectures may no longer be a matter of being in the right place at the right time, but of downloading a file from iTunes. Stanford’s new podcast service extends guest lectures and campus culture to anyone with iTunes. Podcasts—a type of audio or video web feed that allows users to download media files or get them directly through subscription to podcasting services—are quickly becoming a popular communication tool on the computer or iPod of the academic community. (0) comments Friday, March 03, 2006
The college of Web knowledge - David Shamah, THE JERUSALEM POST
Sweden - home of Ikea. And free university education! Unbelievable, but true. You can get a free bachelor's or master's degree from any Swedish university. You don't even have to be a Swedish or European Union citizen - all you have to do is apply, get accepted - and start learning! Of course, it helps if you know Swedish. And it helps even more if you can go to Sweden to attend classes. But it's not a requirement, strictly speaking. Some Swedish schools have on-line "distance learning" programs (see http://www.lu.se/o.o.i.s/1728 and http://www.netuniversity.se/en, among others). (0) comments
Mapping MLIS Asynchronous Discussions - Barbara A. Frey, Millie S. Sass, Susan W. Alman, ITDL
Asynchronous discussions offer a convenient, flexible communication forum to actively engage students and enhance learning. This paper describes a formative assessment process of mapping discussions to analyze group interaction and critical thinking skills in a graduate level Library and Information Science course. Discussions of various depth, breadth, and complexity were mapped, beginning with the initial or parent posting and branching to include all student responses within a thread. Postings were analyzed with a content analysis tool to identify statements according to the level of cognitive skill, questions, reflections, and affirmations. In general, open-ended questions solicited contributions at higher cognitive levels. The deepness of ongoing responses in a discussion did not necessarily lead to higher levels of thinking. Recommendations include training students to manage discussion threads they begin, to write clear, concise contributions, and to use subject lines as advanced organizers for each posting or reply. In addition, facilitators should establish clear expectations, summarize forums, and model effective online communication strategies. (0) comments
Canadian College Curbs Wi-Fi Due to Health Risks - David Rider, Reuters
A small Canadian university has ruled out campus-wide wireless Internet access because its president fears the system's electromagnetic forces could pose a risk to students' health. Lakehead University, in Thunder Bay, Ontario, has only a limited Wi-Fi connections at present, in places where there is no fiber-optic Internet connection. And that, according to president Fred Gilbert, is just fine. "The jury is still out on the impact that electromagnetic forces have on human physiology," Gilbert told a university meeting last month, insisting that university policy would not change while he remained president. (0) comments Thursday, March 02, 2006
Is An Online Degree Right for You? - KPC News
With the ever-changing job market and increasing competition for stable, well-paying jobs, more and more adults are seeking additional education to help them in their current professions or to prepare them for a career change. For people who are working full time, online learning, sometimes referred to as distance learning, can be a great choice. Taking courses online enables you to pursue an advanced degree without sacrificing the time you spend with your family or the momentum you have in a career track. Online programs allow learners to take courses when it's convenient for them. (0) comments
Promoting Comfort in E-Learning for Professional Women - Mary-Anne Andrusyszyn, ITDL
E-learning, from the context of distance education for professional women, is discussed in this paper. Studies conducted with women, principally nurses, in graduate and undergraduate distance programs, that reflect the issues of gaining comfort when studying by distance education are highlighted. An overview of some of the technological and design conditions that contribute to e-learning environments which enhance students’ success in and satisfaction with distance programs and promote knowledge development are presented. Specifically, comfort is addressed as it relates to technological access, learner preferences for distance delivery methods, language and culture, and integration of the e-learning role into one’s life. (0) comments
Bond Uni chalks up e-learning rollout - Renai LeMay, ZDNet Australia
Queensland's Bond University plans to implement a new e-learning solution over the next few months in a project which builds on a storage area network (SAN) implemented last year. "We've got a new online teaching project at the moment, called Blackboard," the university's senior systems administrator, Stephen Tonna, told ZDNet Australia yesterday."That's for next semester, that's when it's starting its first pilot and production environment." Bond's second semester starts in mid-May. (0) comments Wednesday, March 01, 2006
Digital curriculum could be first step to e-learning - Howard Fischer, Capitol Media Services
Some Arizona children could soon be getting schooled not going to school, at least not full time. The Senate Appropriations Committee voted Tuesday to start creating a "digital curriculum'' for public schools. Senate President Ken Bennett said this would be the first step to an optional e-learning system for the state. SB 1512 has an up-front cost of $5.9 million, with the prospects of more dollars in the future. But Bennett said the plan, if successful, could save money: Fewer students in class means fewer expensive schools to build. Bennett said, though, the real beneficiaries would be children. (0) comments
Creating Concept Maps: Integrating Constructivism Principles into Online Classes - Brent Muirhead, ITDL
The author will describe a lesson plan for creating concept maps using the constructivism learning environment for an online class. Students will be challenged to create a definition of good character by developing mental models using Inspiration software. A description of a six step constructivism learning environment for a graduate education online class (EDD520 Critical Issues in Education) will be discussed. Students will create definitions by conducting research from the Internet, utilizing course resources, and collaborating with classmates with assistance from their teacher. The final phase of the assignment will involve producing individual concept maps based on the student’s description of good character by using Inspiration software. (0) comments
eLearning Guild Survey - eLearning Guild
The eLearning Guild completed its survey on The Future of e-Learning in 2006 just last week. A total of 656 people responded to the survey and a quick analysis of the data shows that Rapid e-Learning is the single hottest topic out there. In fact, a full 77% of the respondents report that their organizations interest in Rapid e-Learning is increasing moderately (44%) or significantly (33%). Another 17% say their organizations interest is remaining the same as it was for 2005. Most revealing was that a mere 6% say interest is decreasing. (0) comments Tuesday, February 28, 2006
Texas A&M may begin offering iLecture - TMCnet
Imagine looking around campus and, instead of students listening to music on their iPods and mp3 players, they are listening to lectures, interviews and course-related material. With advancing technology in the academic world, this could soon be a normal occurrence. Technology and education are combining to present universities with more advanced teaching methods, through the utilization of iPods and podcasting, which is the downloading of sound, video and graphic files. Aaron Brender, director of Internet Media Services at Texas A&M, said that education, at times, lags behind the mainstream population. (0) comments
Implementing Wireless PDA Technology in the IT Curriculum - David R. Rawlinson and Kimberlee Bartel, Educause Quarterly
Requiring students in an introductory course to use PDAs taught the IT department how to implement them in the curriculum. Colleges and public universities must stay abreast of rapid changes in the application of information technology, typically on very limited budgets. Additionally, students increasingly expect faculty to apply bleeding-edge technology in the classroom and integrate it into the curriculum. This article briefly notes prevailing literature related to wireless technology use in the classroom (see the sidebar) and examines the processes and methods used to successfully integrate wireless personal digital assistant (PDA) networked technology into the IT curriculum at a public university. (0) comments
Prep Pioneer Taps Tech Trend to Reach Busy Students
College- and grad school-bound students can now use their iPods for more than music and movies -- with the launch of a new podcast series from Kaplan, they will be able to get expert insight on high-stakes entrance exams, financial aid, the shifting admissions landscape, workplace recruiting, and more. The series of downloadable audio clips, which will be accessible via Kaplan's site http://www.kaptest.com and iTunes and free to all, will include perspectives and timely advice from testing specialists, experts at top-tier universities, leading corporations and high-achieving peers. In just a year, "podcasting" -- a term coined from iPod plus broadcast that refers to the transmission of audio files downloadable from the Internet -- has gone from a little-known technology to the New Oxford American Dictionary's 2006 Word of the Year. An estimated 6 million U.S. iPod users* now tap into this application -- a number projected to balloon, with estimates ranging from 12.5** to 56*** million by 2010. (0) comments Monday, February 27, 2006
More students taking online classes than ever - TMCnet
Today, the most mundane tasks can be completed online. Consumers can rent movies, pay bills and even buy postage stamps on the Internet. Increasingly, students are now able to take classes online. There are 3,900 students enrolled in online classes at Ole Miss, said Kathy Palan, coordinator of Continuing Education. Palan said this number grows every semester, so 3,900 is the largest number so far. While Ole Miss does not keep track of the number of non-traditional students, Palan said Ole Miss assists non-traditional students interested in online courses with admissions and other requirements. (0) comments
Uniting Technology and Pedagogy: Evolution of an Online Teaching Certification Course - Bonnie Riedinger, Paul Rosenberg, Educause Quarterly
Going online with a certification course for online teaching solved training and delivery problems on and off campus. For two-and-a-half hours, our instructors-in-training had listened intently, scribbled notes, and asked intelligent questions. They had learned how to use Blackboard’s course management tools to set up folders, learning units, and announcements. They had discussed best practices for online communication and e-mail management. They had even nodded knowingly as we explored the intricacies of the gradebook. At the end of class, they told us how much they had learned and how much they looked forward to becoming online instructors. We smiled and shook hands as they departed. (0) comments
Information Technology Impacting Information Technology Education - Ayinde O. Chase - All Headline News Writer
American Public University System last month began offering an online information technology (IT) certificate program. Students may choose from among five key areas, set their own study schedules - and learn skills in demand by today's IT employers. Wallace E. Boston Jr., president and chief executive officer says, "The IT sector continues to be among the nation's fastest growing,". The distance learning institution serves more than 13,000 students worldwide with more than 50 online undergraduate and graduate degree programs. (0) comments Sunday, February 26, 2006
Has eLearning Revolutionized Education? - Heather Kanuka, Embassy Report
Does eLearning have the ability to ease many of the pressures that educators are currently facing? As we entered into the 21st century, leaders in this field argued that eLearning could respond to accelerating global competition, increase the quality of learning experiences, remove situational barriers, and be more cost effective. And for those who remained skeptical of the eLearning advantage, pundits such as Larry Ellison (chair and CEO of Oracle Corporation), Peter Drucker (author of The Effective Executive and Management Challenges for the 21st Century) and Jaron Lanier (Virtual reality pioneer) each suggested a looming breach of monopoly for providers of education should administrators of these institutions not become more technologically innovative and consumer oriented. Peter Drucker, for example, claimed that the physical presence of universities would cease to exist within 10 years. (0) comments
Learner and teacher electronic relations: experiences of one distance learning health studies programme - Jane Morgan, EURODL
The technological opportunities provided by digital learning environments for electronic communicative transactions between learners and teachers, now common in Higher Education in the United Kingdom (UK) challenge the traditional concept of a learner and teacher relationship. This paper considers electronic interaction between learners and module facilitators and draws on a small study that evaluated the experiences of twenty five post-qualifying health and social care practitioners studying on a BSc (Hons) Health Studies programme. A case study approach was used to explore how learners and module facilitators communicated and interacted using the electronic system as part of their support structure. The aim of the study was to explore in what ways interaction with teachers using electronic communication systems influence the learning confidence of learners studying at a distance. (0) comments
Texting and open universities
The Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM), one of the country’s top academic institutions, recently announced the launching of its own open university system. The open university’s chancellor is Dr. Benjamin G. Tayabas, the president of the Pamantasan. Actually, the open university concept, or distance learning, is not new to PLM. Working with the Quality University Education for Social Transformation, or QUEST, a nongovernment educational foundation, PLM and Trinity College in Quezon City have already graduated some 6,000 midwives throughout the country. Distance learners study the same courses as campus-based students and have to pass even more rigorous tests and examinations than them. (1) 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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