Education Commons^™

Virtual Faculty Learning Community Implementation Framework, Angela Atwell, Cristina Cottom, Lisa Martino, Sara Ombres

Publications

This framework is meant to be a useful guide for those interested in creating a V-FLC. You may skip around to the various sections or read the framework from start to finish. The framework consists of twelve questions to ask as you begin developing a V-FLC, answers to these questions based on our experience, as well as a visual representation of the framework.

Using Technology To Facilitate Modeling-Based Science Education: Lessons Learned From A Meta-Analysis Of Empirical Research, Jing Lei, Patrick Heng Luo, Qiu Wang, Ji Shen, Sunghye Lee, Ye Chen

Journal of Educational Technology Development and Exchange (JETDE)

This study focused on the integration of technologies in regular science teaching within the pedagogical framework of modeling-based instruction (MBI), a well-established instructional method in science education, and aimed to identify new trends of technology integration in MBI, explore the particular features (Interactivity, Collaboration, and Scaffolding) and affordances of new technologies, and examine the effect of technology-supported MBI on students learning outcomes. By analyzing empirical MBI studies from 2000 to 2010 through a meta-analysis and qualitatively reviewing studies from 2011-2016, this study shared three major findings: (1) computer-based software was the most commonly used technology in MBI, with Internet and …

A Transcendental Phenomenological Exploration Of The Shared Perceptions Of Online Adjunct Faculty In The United States Who Have A High Sense Of Community, Tiffany Ferencz

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to understand the experiences of online adjunct faculty who have a high sense of community within their respective university. Sense of community was generally defined as feelings of connectedness within the university community. The theories that guided this study were McMillan and Chavis’ (1986) sense of community theory and Herzberg’s (1968) motivation-hygiene theory. McMillan and Chavis’ sense of community theory suggests a sense of community is a powerful force that influences people. Herzberg’s motivation-hygiene theory is used as it identifies guiding principles for why people are motivated to work. The central question …

Leveraging Digital Communities Of Practice: How Asynchronous Digital Collaboration Afforded A Complex Reading/Writing Dialogue For Secondary School Students, Susanne Lee Nobles

English Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation examines a case study of a research unit taught to secondary school students with the inclusion of an asynchronous digital collaboration with college students. Over consecutive school years, two classes of high school seniors and two classes of college students, despite being geographically separated by more than 90 miles, worked together in multiple reading and writing exchanges within an online community as they read a primary text and as the secondary school students wrote research papers. This study seeks to understand the effects of this unit on the secondary school students’ thinking, reading, and writing skills, focusing specifically …

Motivation And Learning In An Online Collaborative Project Using Gamification, Michele L. Hudiburg

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

In 2012, there were 2.9 million students enrolled in graduate degrees and 22% were taking strictly online courses (Kena et al., 2014). Many students are not motivated to participate in collaborative learning experiences in online courses (Dirkx & Smith, 2004). Gamification, the inclusion of game elements in non-game contexts, has been shown to have a positive impact on motivation (Deterding, 2012; Kapp, 2012). Prior work has focused on structural gamification including elements such as points, levels, and badges as extrinsic motivators to traditional course activities. The current study explored content gamification including narrative, role-play, interactivity, and feedback in an online …

Online Learning And Effective Leadership: The Importance Of Relationship Building And Culture, Nadine K. Rupp

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

Online and blended learning are becoming more important in k-12 public schools because of their flexibility and increased opportunity for students in urban as well as rural environments. Implementing and sustaining technology-based learning is a complex process that requires educational leaders to have a broad spectrum of knowledge and skills which are critical to the success of online programs. This case study research used in-depth interviews to gather data on how one district was able to provide a successful program using effective leadership skills. Three areas critical to success were identified in the data: clear vision and achievable goals, appropriate …

A Phenomenological Study Of The Impact On Collaboration As Perceived By Educators While Using Software To Manage Individualized Education Programs, Vaughn Hammond

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to gain a deeper, richer understanding of how educators’ use of software to manage individualized education programs (IEPs) impact collaboration in the IEP process. Research questions included: (a) What are the challenges identified by educators when using software to manage IEPs? (b) What are the benefits identified by educators when using software to manage IEPs? (c) What are educators’ perceptions on the impact using software to manage IEPs has on the collaboration among the IEP team? (d) What are educators’ perceptions of the use of software on increasing collaboration skills? Educators from …

Students’ Motivations And Barriers To Online Education, Vladimir Abramenka

Masters Theses

The problem explored in this study stems from the paradox between the growing number of online classes and the decreasing retention rate of students who take online classes. In order to understand the reasons behind this decreasing retention rate the study is aimed at revealing barriers students encounter when taking online courses. The second main area of the study is to determine whether or not differences exist between students who want to take online classes and those who do not want to take online classes. Answers to the first research question were obtained by gathering and analyzing survey responses.

Multiple …

Virtual Peer Teams: Connecting Students With The Online Work Environment, Thalia Anagnos, Alicia Lyman-Holt, Sean Brophy

Faculty Publications

This study examined the potential of online collaboration tools to develop team cohesiveness and research skills of undergraduates participating in Virtual Peer Teams (VPTs) in a geographically distributed research experience for undergraduates (REU). The VPTs mimic geographically dispersed virtual teams that are now common in industry. VPTs consisted of four to six students from multiple REU sites around the United States who were asked to experiment with various collaboration and social network technologies to complete specified research-based and social tasks. Surveys were used to collect formative and summative feedback. Students agreed their VPT experiences were significant in their professional development …

Fostering Study Skills Using Google Apps For Education, J. A. T. Smith

J. A. T. Smith

On October 15, 2014, Pepperdine University held its third Technology and Learning Faculty Conference. In this presentation, Dr. Jennifer Smith (Seaver College) discusses the integration of Google Apps for Education into her curriculum, and how she uses it to improve college level literacies like study skills, note taking, and collaboration.

Assessing Online Collaborative Discourse, Henny Breen

Faculty Publications

This qualitative study using transcript analysis was undertaken to clarify the value of Harasim’s Online Collaborative Learning Theory as a way to assess the collaborative process within nursing education. The theory incorporated three phases: (1) idea generating; (2) idea organizing; and (3) intellectual convergence. The transcripts of asynchronous discussions from a two-week module about disaster nursing using a virtual community were analyzed and formed the data for this study.

This study supports the use of Online Collaborative Learning Theory as a framework for assessing online collaborative discourse. Individual or group outcomes were required for the students to move through all …

Connect Exchange Programs: A Critical Component In Media Studies For Indian Media Schools, Pradeep Nair, Navneet Sharma

Journal of Educational Technology Development and Exchange (JETDE)

This article addresses the objectives, philosophy, and need assessment of connect exchange programmes (CEP) in media studies. It underlines the importance of CEPs as an effort to mitigate the chasms created by a discriminatory, hierarchical, and fragmented society. Simultaneously, this article questions how CEPs can contribute to the paradigm of media studies when the institutions of media and media Studies still abide by the vision of age-old understanding of the constitution of Media and its function. This article raises a pitch for viewing media studies as a discipline with an integral commitment to society and social issues rather than relying …

Examining Student Participation In Three Learning Activities Supported By Social Annotation Tools, Tian Luo, Fei Gao, Kathryn S. Hoff

Journal of Educational Technology Development and Exchange (JETDE)

ocial annotation (SA) allows learners to highlight and comment on Web pages and share annotations with each other online. Despite its potential in promoting collaborative learning, examining how to integrate it into educational settings has not been fully studied. The purpose of the study is to examine student participation in three different SA-based online activities: (1) peer review, (2) annotated discussion, and (3) collaborative reading. Students participated in all three SA-based activities and took a survey at the end reporting the effectiveness of these activities. The analysis of students’ annotations and their survey responses suggested that although participants perceived …

Virtual Collaboration In The Online Educational Setting: A Concept Analysis, Henny Breen

Faculty Publications

This study was designed to explore the concept of virtual collaboration within the context of an online learning environment in an academic setting. Rodgers’ method of evolutionary concept analysis was used to provide a contextual view of the concept to identify attributes, antecedents, and consequences of virtual collaboration. Commonly used terms to describe virtual collaboration are collaborative and cooperative learning, group work, group interaction, group learning and teamwork. A constructivist pedagogy, group-based process with a shared purpose, support and web-based technology are required for virtual collaboration to take place. Consequences of virtual collaboration are higher order thinking and learning to …

Examining Student Participation In Three Learning Activities Supported By Social Annotation Tools, Tian Luo, Fei Gao, Kathryn S. Hoff

STEMPS Faculty Publications

Social annotation (SA) allows learners to highlight and comment on Web pages and share annotations with each other online. Despite its potential in promoting collaborative learning, examining how to integrate it into educational settings has not been fully studied. The purpose of the study is to examine student participation in three different SA-based online activities: (1) peer review, (2) annotated discussion, and (3) collaborative reading. Students participated in all three SA-based activities and took a survey at the end reporting the effectiveness of these activities. The analysis of students’ annotations and their survey responses suggested that although participants perceived the …

An Investigation Of Using Wikis As A Collaborative Tool For Teaching In A Non-Western Tertiary Education Classroom, Chun-Min Wang

Journal of Educational Technology Development and Exchange (JETDE)

Wikis are innovative Web 2.0 tools that allow users to create, expand, and edit content collaboratively. This makes wikis promising for online collaborative learning, but further exploration is required to determine if using wikis can achieve learning goals efficiently and appropriately. With increasing globalization, it is useful to determine how students from non-Western cultures respond to using wikis in the learning environment. In this study, the author compares two Taiwanese undergraduate classes with different instructional design and peer assessment strategies to understand Taiwanese student online behaviors and learning preferences in a learning environment using wikis. The results …

Interdisciplinary Collaborative Research For Professional Academic Development In Higher Education, Elizabeth Johnston, Cheryl Burleigh, Andrea Wilson

Higher Learning Research Communications

Although faculties are more diverse, decentralized, and increasingly isolated in technology-supported modern universities, effective technology use can also foster faculty professional academic development and collegiality. This scoping literature review applied Cooper’s systemic review model and a categorical content analysis technique targeting decentralized collaborative research teams in higher education. Findings indicate technology supports formal and informal university and nonuniversity networks, as well as various collaborative research structures; all contributing to professional academic development. Shared attributes of successful collaborative online teams include a sense of social presence, accountability, institutional and team leadership. Collaborative teams are integral to research and allow more faculty …

P2p: Assessing A Peer Evaluation Strategy, Ching-Wen Chang, Cathy J. Pearman, Nicholas W. Farha

Journal of Educational Technology Development and Exchange (JETDE)

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of peer evaluation in a performance-based, Web-enhanced undergraduate instructional technology course. The results of a survey administered at the end of three semesters indicated that learners believe the peer evaluation process helped them improve the quality of their own work, both as a result of being a peer evaluator themselves and from the quality of the feedback received from their classmate-evaluators. Higher quality final projects with fewer mistakes corroborated the students’ assessment. These findings provide valuable information for instructors who are currently utilizing or considering the implementation of a peer …

Enhancing Collaborative Problem Solving In Distance Education Courses Using Web-Based Concept Mapping, Ludmila Ortegano-Layne, Charlotte Nirmalani Gunawardena, Carrie Main

University Libraries & Learning Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications

The purpose of this study is to investigate the use of web-based concept maps as a communications and problem-solving tool in an online graduate level course. The study used an exploratory-descriptive research design that applied a qualitative methods approach in order to explore how concept maps foster collaborative problem-solving activities in an online learning environment. Three of the five groups participating in the study effectively used concept mapping, which they combined with other communication strategies such as eliciting group suggestions, asking questions, and brainstorming ideas, to reach consensus and solve the CBR project required. These results indicate that concept maps …

Case Study Of Connected Knowing In An Online Learning Environment, Jaya Kannan, John Laurence Miller

CTL Publications

This paper reports a single-subject case study designed to investigate the role of group discussion in student learning. The group discussion took the form of contributions to a series of online discussion boards. And our analysis focuses on the contribution of one group member. We argue that this individual came to serve as a catalyst to learning for many group members because of the concomitant roles that she came to occupy.

Collaboration In Schools: Creating Solutions To Complex Problems, Wendy Steelmon

Perspectives In Learning

Although the concept of cooperative teams is not a new one, Transformational Leadership is bringing collaboration back to the spotlight in the world of education. In this approach, the principal becomes a facilitator, teachers become professional colleagues, students are motivated by the mere joy of learning, and parents and the local community increase their involvement as stewards, resulting in the involvement of all stakeholders in the complex problem solving issues of the school. Collaboration requires trust and support among these team members and, though it takes time, yields much more effective schools and productive students.

Bringing The Ivory Tower And Real World Together: Lessons Learned In The Collaborative Process Of Preparing Effective Teachers, Tina D. Butcher, Jan G. Burcham, Deirdre C. Greer, Mary Beth Hendricks

Perspectives In Learning

When the “ivory tower” world of educator preparation faculty collides with the “real world” of in-service teachers, the result can be a partnership that is committed to preparing teachers equipped to meet the needs of diverse learners in 21st century classrooms. The lessons learned in the development of such a partnership include a focus on: a) authentic engagement of all stakeholders; b) honest, diplomatic, and timely communication; c) support and scaffolding for pre-service teachers; d) a variety of authentic assessment measures; and e) assistance for new teachers during the induction period. Strengthening the bonds between university faculty and classroom teachers …

Teaching Basic Counseling Skills To Aspiring School Leaders: Active Listening Skills As Critical Components Of Team Building And Collaboration, Paul T. Hackett, L. Christopher Ross, Irene Asuncion

Perspectives In Learning

The preparation of school leaders in educational leadership programs provides multiple challenges in terms of a set course of study with discrete skills for the leader. Programs in educational leadership have been criticized for curricular disarray (Levine, 2005). Deficiencies cited by an American Enterprise Institute study of 31 educational leadership programs found that a small percentage of instruction in those programs focused on issues such as data analysis, public relations, marketing, and parent and school board relations (Hess & Kelly, 2005). A Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) study of educational leadership programs found that the majority of universities “fall short …

The Effectiveness Of Block Schedule In Middle School, Ginger L. Markham

Perspectives In Learning

Block scheduling in one form or another seems to be highly effective when properly used. It invites depth in learning, inquiry based and student based learning, which corresponds with Georgia Performance Standards (GPS). The faculty and staff of Veterans Memorial Middle School are planning to meet the needs of the students by changing their teaching methods to support the GPS and alternating 4X4 block schedule. The author would recommend any middle school use a block schedule of some type in order to meet the needs of their school. Once the teachers buy into the concept, there is no limit to …

Best Practices In Educator Preparation, Deborah Gober

Perspectives In Learning

One of the themes emphasized in the College of Education (COE) Conceptual Framework is excellence in teaching. As defined in the Conceptual Framework, excellence in teaching embodies the use of best practices which embody a variety of educational ideas and activities that lead to improved student learning. The phrase “best practice” is used frequently in fields such as medicine or law to describe reputable work based on current research and employing the latest knowledge, technology, and procedures in the field (Zemelman, Daniels, & Hyde, 1998). However, best practice in education has been somewhat difficult to define.

Does Emotional Intelligence Affect Successful Teamwork?, Joseph Luca, Pina Tarricone

Dr Pina Tarricone

There is a growing emphasis in tertiary education that students should develop professional skills as part of their education. Skills such as problem solving, communication, collaboration, interpersonal skills, social skills and time management are actively being targeted by prospective employers as essential requirements for employability especially in team environments. Of these, employment authorities consistently mention collaboration and teamwork as being a critical skill, essential in almost all working environments. How then can students successfully practice teamwork skills in tertiary institutions in order to develop these skills? In this study, a group of final year multimedia students were investigated while completing …