Education Commons^™

Meeting The Distance Education Challenge: A Guide For Designing Online Classrooms, Patrick Allen Bungard

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The emphasis on education fluctuates with the economy. When education is encouraged, many individuals flock to colleges and universities to increase earning potential or achieve goals. Thanks to advancements in technology, distance education in the 21^st century can be similar to face-to-face education. Students spend many hours sitting in front of a computer completing course work. Although still in infancy stages, online education has vastly improved. Perspectives like teaching adults (andragogy), transformative learning, and teacher immediacy all address teaching individuals from afar. In consultation with these three perspectives, several qualitative measures have been developed aid with online course design. …

Online Learning In Biology: An Investigation Into Designing Online Learning Resources, William Ford

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As technology continues to advance, many instructors are incorporating online activities into their courses. While online learning has several benefits, there is still debate on how instructors can best develop and utilize these resources in their classroom. This study is split into two smaller projects that both aim to provide further insights on how to develop online activities that target undergraduate biology students. The first project revealed that elaborative feedback in a phylogenetic activity was more useful for students who had some exposure to phylogenetics prior to completing the activity. The results of the second project revealed that the appearance …

Exploring Strategies For Teaching Creatively Online, Conny Van Der Wouw

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

The way we learn and teach is changing. There is more emphasis on collaboration and personalization of the learning. Teaching online is becoming common. For my Master’s project I have developed a product that will help designing and delivering teaching programs creatively through the use of online learning opportunities. The product discusses the opportunities and challenges of a creative climate when teaching online and provides strategies to develop creativity during the online learning process. It is developed with the use of the Torrance Incubation Model of Teaching and Learning (TIM) and Ekvall’s ten dimensions of a creative climate. This paper …

The Effects Of Group-Based Context Personalization On Learning Outcomes And Motivation, Jessica J. Resig

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

The rise of online course enrollments in higher education has highlighted the need to establish and validate effective online instructional strategies focused on improving learning outcomes and affective responses towards instruction. One such strategy, group-based context personalization, frames instructional materials within contexts relevant to shared interests among groups of students. This study sought to investigate the effects of group-based context personalization on learning outcomes and motivation towards the instruction when materials were contextualized based on a learner’s academic major.

This study employed a true experimental design to explore the effects of group-based context personalization on learning outcomes and motivation for …

Higher Education Distance Advising In The 21st Century: Distance Learning Students' And Advisors' Perceptions, Brooke Lambert Brown

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

The intent of this study was to focus on distance learning students’ and advisors’ perceptions of distance advising at a large, public university. Specifically, this study addressed four questions: what were the perceived performance gaps between distance learning students and distance learning advisors practice, how distance learning students’ needs were being satisfied, what tools and technology resources were being incorporated, and how advising needs differed based on college. The Winston and Sandor Academic Advising Inventory (AAI) served as the foundation for this quantitative research. The survey was modified accordingly and sent to two populations: distance learning advisors and distance learning …

Exploring Factors That Help Students Feel More Connected To Their Online Instructors, Debra Austin

Doctor of Business Administration (DBA)

This research explores business students’ perceptions of connectedness with their online instructors in higher education. The results were analyzed to discover the basic constructs of these perceptions. The findings will help faculty understand how they can improve their connection with students in an online environment in an effort to form stronger relationships with students and better their teaching practice. Students across multiple sections of introductory level business courses at Portland Community College were asked to participate in this qualitative study. Narrative research methods were used to best understand the complexities of the students’ lived experiences. Journey maps and interviews were …

Adaptation And Acceptance In Online Course Design From Four-Year College And University Instructors: An Analysis Using Grounded Theory, Sally J. Baldwin

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the perspective of tenured and tenure-track instructors at public four-year colleges and universities involved in online course design. Using a classic grounded theory approach, 21 tenured and tenure-track instructors who had designed online courses for public four-year colleges and universities were interviewed about their experience. A pilot study was performed on this subject earlier that tentatively suggested instructors rarely use formal instructional design principles, yet their design tasks show a striking similarity to those formalized in the ADDIE model. In this study, the findings of the pilot study were expanded. Additional data helped develop a theory of …

Crowdsourcing Cognitive Presence: A Quantitative Content Analysis Of A K12 Educator Mooc Discussion Forum, Kathryn Dawson Shields

Doctor of Education in Teacher Leadership Dissertations

Massively Open Online Courses (MOOCs) offer participants opportunities to engage with content and discussion forums similar to other online courses. Pedagogical components of MOOCs and the nature of learning are worth of examining due to issues involving scale, interaction and the role of the instructor (Ross, Sinclair, Know, Bayne & McLeod, 2014). The Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework provides a basis for measuring cognitive presence in online discussion forums. As voluntary point of entry to a community of learners, it is important to consider the nature of participant contributions in terms of cognitive presence. This study focused on an educator …

Educating Incarcerated Youth In Illinois: A Blended Learning Model, John Sonnenberg

Dissertations

The purpose of this case study was to better understand the reasons behind the apparent continued success of a blended learning educational model in place since 2012 in the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice (IDJJ). Using a mixed methods approach, data were gathered and analyzed from a variety of records, reports, and other documentation that included: diplomas awarded, courses taken, course completion, enrollment trends, student mobility rates, GED testing information, and special education student enrollment and performance. Data were also gathered through classroom observations and individual and group interviews with the IDJJ district superintendent, principals, and teachers at six different …

Memoverbs®: Designing An Online Educational Game For English Learners, Bruna Tadross

MA TESOL Collection

Technology has reshaped the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) field. A pertinent example is the increasing number of online games and activities for EFL learners. Although having a myriad of technological resources to choose from can promote learning, the quality of these tools varies greatly, leading some EFL students to become frustrated by the cost and time spent on ineffective tools. In light of the above, an online educational game to assist learners with irregular verbs in English, based on Design Thinking methodology, is proposed here as an attempt to strengthen the EFL online niche. This research paper illustrates …