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Full-Text Articles in Education
Enhancing E-Learning Effectiveness, Karen Swan
Enhancing E-Learning Effectiveness, Karen Swan
IACE Hall of Fame Repository
While there is considerable evidence that effective leadership makes a significant difference in student achievement in the K-12 environment (Waters, Marzano, & McNulty, 2003), similar research linking leadership in e-learning to student success does not exist. Indeed, similar research has not been undertaken at post-secondary levels at all, most likely because student learning at institutions of higher education has not been subject to the same scrutiny as it has K-12 schools. This state of affairs is changing rapidly, however, driven to no small extent by the rise of online education, and student achievement at post-secondary institutions is increasingly being questioned. …
Online But Off-Topic: Establishing Common Ground In Small Learning Groups, Trena M. Paulus
Online But Off-Topic: Establishing Common Ground In Small Learning Groups, Trena M. Paulus
Educational Psychology & Counseling Publications and Other Works
There is not yet a great deal of research in formal online learning environments focusing on the seemingly “off-topic” conversations that small groups engage in as they complete learning tasks together. This study uses the theory of common ground as a framework to explore what participants are talking about when not discussing the concepts to be learned and how participants negotiate common ground in distance learning environments, including their use of computer-mediated communication (CMC) tools. The email, discussion forum, and chat transcripts of ten small groups comprised of experienced distance learners were investigated using computer-mediated discourse analysis, particularly attending to …
“Am I Making Sense Here?”: What Blogging Reveals About Undergraduate Student Understanding., Trena M. Paulus, Rebecca Payne, Lisa Jahns
“Am I Making Sense Here?”: What Blogging Reveals About Undergraduate Student Understanding., Trena M. Paulus, Rebecca Payne, Lisa Jahns
Educational Psychology & Counseling Publications and Other Works
Educational researchers are interested in whether what is learned in the classroom is transferred to new situations. This qualitative case study explores how computer-mediated communication, specifically web logs (blogs), can extend learning and facilitate transfer of learned concepts. Participants blogged for seven weeks about concepts related to nutrition. Data included blog posts and comments and interviews. These data were analyzed inductively for emergent themes addressing our research questions. Four themes were identified: (a) concepts contextualized to participants' daily lives; (b) barriers to applying learned concepts; (c) sources of "expert" knowledge; and (d) unanswered questions revealing gaps in understanding. Implications for …
Approaches To Case Analyses In Synchronous And Asynchronous Environments, Trena M. Paulus, Gina Phipps
Approaches To Case Analyses In Synchronous And Asynchronous Environments, Trena M. Paulus, Gina Phipps
Educational Psychology & Counseling Publications and Other Works
Computer-mediated communication (CMC) tools can be used to integrate time-intensive tasks, such as case study analyses, more easily into the teacher education curriculum. How students talk together online for learning purposes in CMC environments is an area that has not yet been thoroughly investigated. This paper extends findings from a previous study by comparing two groups of four preservice teachers analyzing cases in a synchronous and asynchronous environment. A case study and computer-mediated discourse analysis approach was taken to make sense of the discussion transcripts and participant reflections. Booth and Hulten’s (2003) taxonomy of learning contributions is used as an …