Education Commons^™

Setting The Pace: Examining Cognitive Processing In Mooc Discussion Forums With Automatic Text Analysis, Robert L. Moore, Kevin M. Oliver, Chuang Wang

STEMPS Faculty Publications

Learning analytics focuses on extracting meaning from large amounts of data. One of the largest datasets in education comes from Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) that typically feature enrollments in the tens of thousands. Analyzing MOOC discussion forums presents logistical issues, resulting chiefly from the size of the dataset, which can create challenges for understanding and adequately describing student behaviors. Utilizing automatic text analysis, this study built a hierarchical linear model that examines the influence of the pacing condition of a massive open online course (MOOC), whether it is self-paced or instructor-paced, on the demonstration of cognitive processing in a …

Developing Distance Education Content Using The Tappa Process, Robert L. Moore

STEMPS Faculty Publications

The proliferation of distance education has occurred alongside the emerging technologies of the Web 2.0 and Web 3.0 environments, changing the way instructors approach, design, and deliver their instructional materials. In the past, instructional design (ID) practitioners relied on instruction system design (ISD) models that focused primarily on macroinstruction. It is now important for these practitioners to use microinstruction strategies to keep pace with the technology evolution. This case study describes the TAPPA (Target, Accomplishment, Past, Prototype, Artifact) Process which was created using the Generic Model for Design Research (GMDR) proposed by McKenney and Reeves (2012) and uses selected ID …

Listening For The Squeaky Wheel: Designing Distance Writing Program Assessment, Virginia M. Tucker

English Faculty Publications

Distance writing programs still struggle with assessment strategies that can evaluate student writing as well as their ability to communicate about that writing with peers at a distance. This article uses Kim, Smith and Maeng's 2008 distance education program assessment scheme to evaluate a single distance writing program at Old Dominion University. The program's specific assessment needs include the ability to determine how well students are developing expert insider prose and working together as a virtual community. Kim, Smith and Maeng's assessment scheme was applied to six courses within the writing program, revealing that programmatic assessment weaknesses included providing varied …

Simulation And Visualization Enhanced Engineering Education- Development And Implementation Of Virtual Experiments In A Laboratory Course, Sushil K. Chaturvedi, Kaustubh A. Dharwadkar

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

This paper presents results from a National Science Foundation grant titled "Simulation and Visualization Enhanced Engineering Education", funded by the EEC division. Although the scope of the project is quite broad, embracing a wide range of courses in three engineering disciplines, the present work describes the results obtained from application of simulation and visualization for development and implementation of web-based virtual engineering laboratories. The present work leverages the advancement in hardware and software technologies to map physical experiments into web-based virtual experiments that can be used to enrich student's laboratory experience. Four physical experiments in the thermo-fluids laboratory course have …

A Comparison Of Instructional Delivery Methods Based On Student Evaluation Data, John Hackworth, Carol Considine, Vernon Lewis

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

Distance Education is an increasingly common educational delivery method. At Old Dominion University, all junior and senior level engineering technology courses are offered via distance education at least once every two years. A majority of courses in the distance education system at this university have three simultaneous delivery methods: on-campus, televised (receiving the course at an off-campus site via satellite video/audio), and internet-based video-streamed.

This paper explores the results of student course evaluation surveys for trends, in particular those trends which can be a result of the mode of delivery. Results of these surveys for 23 courses over a 4-year …

Creation Of A Faculty Task List For Teaching In A Televised Distance Learning Environment, John E. Turner, Philip A. Reed

STEMPS Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to develop a task list from which a self-check readiness evaluation tool could be developed to assist faculty who were unfamiliar with televised distance instruction. The study's results should provide guidance to new faculty in identifying both self-directed and assisted staff development activities in preparation for implementing distance education. A survey of experienced distance learning faculty at a major eastern university was utilized for data collection. Initial survey items came from distance learning literature, as well as interviews and feedback from six faculty members experienced in televised instruction. At the request of the researchers, …