Education Commons^™

Using Hands-On Experiences Including Various Forms Of Arts To Increase Ninth-Grade Female Students’ Interest In Stem, Hui Fang Huang Su, Jia Borror, Teri Williams

Faculty Articles

Aim: The research aims to increase interest and a greater awareness of STEM fields among female minority students by providing hands-on STEM-infused workshops incorporating the arts as a central theme. Methodology: The research methodology involved conducting workshops for thirty-seven female students, primarily from low socioeconomic backgrounds, who attended fifteen-hour-long STEM-infused hands-on workshops presented by university professors in the College of Education and the College of Arts and Sciences. Findings: The study’s results revealed that the 15-week STEM workshops positively impacted the female students’ attitudes toward STEM. In addition, the post-survey results showed a significant increase in their interest in Science, …

Using The Community Of Inquiry Framework To Analyze Emojis As An Emerging Language In An Online Educational Experience Via Whatsapp, Jennifer L. Reeves, Glenda A. Gunter, Junia Braga, Marcos Racilan

Faculty Articles

With the ever-growing interest in WhatsApp as a social space to accommodate pedagogical initiatives, the role of emojis as an emergent Internet language in this social space needs to be better understood as mobile technologies have been integrated in education. With that in mind, this paper reports a study that employed an embedded correlational mixed methods design, and aimed to identify: the emojis used to support cognitive, teaching, and social presences in a teacher education course via WhatsApp; participants’ attitudes regarding the use of emojis, and their age and gender relation to this use. The data generated from the interactions …

And Finally... Systems And Instructional Design, Michael Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

A system is a set of interrelated parts, all working together toward a defined goal. The parts of the system depend on each other for input and output. The entire system uses feedback to determine if its desired goal has been reached. If not, then the system is modified until it reaches its goal (Dick et al., 2015).

The Crises Facing Today’S Colleges And Universities, Robert W. Hill Ed.D.

Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

And Finally... A New Era..., Michael Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

Some have written that the modern era of distance education began with the widespread availability of the internet. Others move the date back to when it was possible to communicate quickly, such as with the telephone.

And Finally... Crisis Planning, Michael Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

The time to plan is now. If you do not have a plan to move to online teaching and learning, develop one. If you do have a plan, review it, update it, and train everyone.

And Finally … It’Ll Never Happen …, Michael Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

Educational contingency planning is the process of developing in advance what will be done if there is an event that impacts the school or training organization. Contingency planning for distance education is a subset of general contingency planning.

And Finally … The Night Is Dark …, Michael Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

For many, the previous 18 months have been dark and uncertain. Jobs have been changed, friends are different, and future events seem threatening— the playing field of doomsayers and charlatans preaching negativity.

And Finally A Baker’S Dozen Ideas For Creating An Online Course, Michael Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

Most likely, everyone reading this column in Distance Learning journal has been asked how to quickly develop an online course, or tasked to actually redesign a course for online delivery. For those who have taught and learned in the world of distance education this process is easy, straightforward, even if time-consuming. One issue for new online designers or instructors is that much of the process for converting a traditional course to an online one is not intuitive, and in some respects is counterintuitive. For example, the idea of chunking instruction into single concept building blocks is an example of …

And Finally... Blending In All The News That’S Fit To Print, Michael Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

Even the New York Times agrees. In a recent Business section article about success in online courses, the Times wrote that “The instructional ingredients of success include … short videos of 6 minutes or less, interspersed with interactive drills and texts; online forums where students share problems and suggestions; and online mentoring and tutoring” (“Online Courses,” 2020). The Times got it right.

And Finally … What’S In A Name?, Michael Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

Call me Ishmael” is the first line of the classic novel, Moby Dick. Most high school students do not realize the importance of Ishmael’s name when they start reading. However, if they wanted an A on the final essay they wrote about the novel, they should have mentioned how this first line of three words set the intellectual tone for Herman Melville’s masterpiece.

And Finally... Course Quality Or Instructional Quality, Michael Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

Quality has become a popular word in distance education literature. Quality this, and quality that, all demanding that distance education, online learning, or virtual schooling must “have” something called quality— most often course quality.

And Finally … Open Access, Michael Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

Open Access—the idea that scholarly literature should be free and easily available to read online to anyone with an interest. We distance educators naturally embrace the idea of having readily available content that can be used in courses in a format that is easy to use and access. According to the web location Opensource.com there are two different versions of open access—libre and gratis.

And Finally … Telepresence—New Or ?, Michael Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

Telepresence is most simply defined as the virtual presence of a speaker who is at a distance. More sophisticated definitions emphasize the use of technologies that allow a videoconference viewer to feel as if distant participants are present.

Thirty Years After Allan Bloom's Classic "The Closing Of The American Mind": The Liberal Arts And The Question Of What It Means To Be College Educated, Robert W. Hill

Faculty Articles

The author, a university professor for many years, ponders the important question of what academic Allan Bloom would make of recent developments in higher education such as the disappearance of many liberal arts colleges by either closings or changing the academic mission to add graduate or professional degree programs.

Guns On College Campuses – Not A Good Idea!, Robert W. Hill

Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

Thirty Years After Allan Bloom’S Classic The Closing Of The American Mind: The Liberal Arts And What Does It Mean To Be College Educated Today, Robert W. Hill

Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

And Finally... Engagement, Michael Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

Engagement of a learner is defined as emotional and intellectual involvement or commitment—the participation in learning activities via interaction with others in meaningful ways. Engagement theory considers engagement as the process of involving learners in groups or teams working collaboratively on project-based and authentic activities.

And Finally... Doing It Wrong—Who Says?, Michael Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

Several years ago there was considerable discussion among leaders of schools, colleges, universities, and organizations who wanted to offer instruction at a distance. In response, Distance Learning published a column titled “Designing the Perfect Online Program” hoping that the set of guidelines provided would assist organizations in their planning, and to reduce the likelihood that illconceived plans would be implemented.

And Finally … Let’S Go Deeply Digital?, Michael Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

The origination of the term “deeply digital” is widely credited to a Report to the President made in 2010 by the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology. The core of this report was that technology, deeply digital technology, should not replace teachers but support them. Properly used, technology can extend the reach of teachers by giving them access to the best instructional and professional development tools that can create customized learning environments and assessments for students, and to capture rich information about individual performance. (p. 80)

And Finally … Seven Critical Elements, Michael Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

Robust research and decades of experience have yielded a wide variety of useful (if sometimes conflicting) guidelines for planning and implementing online instruction. However, seven elements are critical for an effective online course.

Civility Is Needed In College Classroom—Now More Than Ever, Robert W. Hill

Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

Red America, Blue America: A Country (Campus) Very Much Divided, Robert W. Hill

Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

The Art Of Synthesizing: A Masterpiece In The Making, David B. Ross, Melissa Sasso

Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

Eight Fundamental Elements Of Power: Information For Policy And Leadership Courses, David B. Ross

Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

The Shift In Leadership Styles: Joyful To Toxic, M. Adam Carswell, Melissa Sasso, David B. Ross

Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

And Finally ... Online Courses Have Three Critical Components (And Learning Management Systems Are Not One Of Them), Michael R. Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

It is happening again. Vendors—and some well-meaning educational administrators—are talking about the power of course/learning management systems and claiming that the technology used to deliver online courses has an impact on student achievement.

And Finally … Social Media And Online Learning: Pros And Cons, Michael R. Simonson

Faculty Articles

Excerpt

Are social media applications empowering or addicting—or both?

Developing Policy By Understanding The Political Culture And Power: The Relevance Of Doctoral Level Assignments For School Leaders, David B. Ross

Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

Creating A Survey For Analyzing A Culture Of Narcissistic, Toxic, And Power Behaviors In An Organization, David B. Ross

Faculty Articles

The purpose for creating this survey was to understand employees’ experiences of coping with their organizational administrators/leaders who have characteristics regarding narcissism and elements of power, and who create a toxic culture. After much research and reflection, it prompted me to further my thoughts regarding a development of an instrument to measure these factors of a person who maintains an administrative/leadership position. Additionally, this survey seeks to understand the challenges, successes, and advice from employees who have been prone to a power hungry, narcissistic, and toxic leadership culture, as well as the mystery behind these behaviors. This survey will hopefully …