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Student Attitudes About Distance Education: Focusing On Context And Effective Practices, Esther Smidt, Jennifer Bunk, Bridget Mcgrory, Rui Li, Tanya Gatenby
Student Attitudes About Distance Education: Focusing On Context And Effective Practices, Esther Smidt, Jennifer Bunk, Bridget Mcgrory, Rui Li, Tanya Gatenby
Esther Smidt
There has been an unquestionable upsurge in distance education in recent years. Given this, it is extremely important to understand the experience of online courses from students’ perspectives. The purpose of the current qualitative study is to understand student attitudes about distance education in a specific context, namely that of a Mid-Atlantic mid-sized state university. We then translate our findings into practical recommendations for instructors. Data sources consist of journal entries written by 36 teacher candidates taking the course, Teaching English Language Learners PreK-12. Findings are categorized according to Course Characteristics, e.g. students have definite opinions about the use of …
Faculty Attitudes About Distance Education, Esther Smidt, Brian Mcdyre, Jennifer Bunk, Rui Li, Tanya Gatenby
Faculty Attitudes About Distance Education, Esther Smidt, Brian Mcdyre, Jennifer Bunk, Rui Li, Tanya Gatenby
Esther Smidt
In recent years, there has been a dramatic increase in distance learning in higher education. Given this, it is extremely important to understand faculty attitudes about distance education, not only because they can vary widely, but also because it is the faculty, through their design and implementation of online courses, that will shape the future of distance education. The purpose of the present study is to uncover faculty attitudes about distance education in a specific context, namely that of a mid-sized mid-Atlantic state university. Data sources consist of posts from two of six discussion boards written by 21 faculty participants …
Preparing E-Learning Designers Using Kolb's Model Of Experiential Learning, Joanna Dunlap, J. Dobrovolny, David Young
Preparing E-Learning Designers Using Kolb's Model Of Experiential Learning, Joanna Dunlap, J. Dobrovolny, David Young
Joanna Dunlap
In this article, Joanna Dunlap, Jackie Dobrovolny, and David Young describe their approach to the design of a real-world learning experience that prepares online graduate students to work as e-learning designers and specialists. Using Kolb's model of experiential learning to support their instructional design decisions, Dunlap, Dobrovolny, and Young have created a series of online instructional-design courses in which students use a variety of e-learning technologies and tools to discuss instructional strategies and to provide support and feedback to each other on the e-learning products they design individually. This approach allows school and the real world to be integrated in …
From Pixel On A Screen To Real Person In Your Students' Lives: Establishing Social Presence Using Digital Storytelling, Patrick Lowenthal, Joanna Dunlap
From Pixel On A Screen To Real Person In Your Students' Lives: Establishing Social Presence Using Digital Storytelling, Patrick Lowenthal, Joanna Dunlap
Joanna Dunlap
The Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework is a comprehensive guide to the research "and" practice of online learning. One of the most challenging aspects of establishing a CoI in online courses is finding the best way to attend to each element of the CoI framework in a primarily text-based environment. In our online courses, we have examined the use of digital storytelling as a way to break down the barriers that can get in the way of achieving a healthy and productive CoI. In this paper, we describe how we use digital storytelling to establish our social presence as instructors.