Online and Distance Education Commons^™

On(Line) Being Relational: A Case Study, Carol Isaac, Arla Bernstein

The Qualitative Report

This study describes a master’s program cohort in the Southeast transitioning from a traditional to an online paradigm. This study examined through narrative analysis the online dialogue of engagement between students and faculty through the lens of social constructivism, specifically focusing on barriers creating monologue and facilitators creating “online” dialogue (Gergen, 1999). Transformative dialogue was more difficult in the online transition because of technology structures and differing expectations. Results suggest that faculty and students must be prepared to use online technology in a pedagogical setting that requires greater responsibility for students to “manage their education.” The “boundedness” of an online …

A Comprehensive Review Of Seven Steps To A Comprehensive Literature Review, Jan Kirksey Williams 8272621

The Qualitative Report

Onwuegbuzie and Frels (2015) provide the framework for evaluating current research and present seven steps for developing a Comprehensive Literature Review. Today a significant dilemma of research involves the sparse number of rigorous, empirical research studies to guide development of best practices of writing. The authors describe the purpose of their book as “a tool and guide for master’s-level students, doctoral-level students, and new and experienced researchers” to approach writing a CLR in a through and investigative way. The thrust and challenge is for researchers to concentrate on improving their methods and practices when reviewing topics with strong potential for …

Faculty Development – The Critical Element, Deborah J. Seepersaud

FDLA Journal

Faculty development is a complex idea, often misunderstood, but not at the University of Mississippi where the key to faculty development is clear – instructional design is the critical element of faculty development. Instructional design and instructional designers are considered necessary to quality online education. Instructional designers are involved in all aspects of faculty development from first efforts of professors to ongoing strategies for course enrichment.

An organization’s commitment to quality online education can probably be determined by asking one question – what is the institution’s level of commitment to appropriate and research-based instructional design strategies?

Do Udoit For Webcourses@Ucf: Who Is Using It And Where?, Karen Tinsley-Kim

FDLA Journal

This paper is an expansion on the presentation of the same name given on Tuesday, January 16th, 2018 at the 2017 FLDA/FAMTE Conference in Orlando, FL (originally scheduled for September 2017, rescheduled due to impact from Hurricane Irma). The presentation, “Do UDOIT for Webcourses@UCF: Who Is Using It and Where?” given by Karen Tinsley-Kim was part of the 10:30-11:45am Concurrent Session, “Online Course Design: Privacy, Inclusion, and Accountability.” Graphics and images originate from slides shown in the presentation and other relevant sources.

All Roads Lead To Online Teaching Excellence: An Alternative Route To Faculty Certification For Online Teaching, Nancy Swenson, Shelly Wyatt Phd

FDLA Journal

New faculty who arrive at the University of Central Florida are very likely to be asked to teach at least one online (“W”) or mixed-mode (“M”) course. Realizing that effective teaching in these digital formats requires additional skills and knowledge that go beyond the traditional face-to-face classroom, UCF requires faculty to be certified in online teaching. Faculty at UCF have two avenues to obtain certification to develop and teach online or mixed-mode courses: our online teaching certification course IDL6543 or our alternative track for experienced faculty new to UCF called Online Faculty Readiness Assessment (OFRA). This assessment recognizes a faculty …

Accelerating Students Forward To Excellence With Ucf Online, Bren Bedford, Beth Nettles, Karen Tinsley-Kim

FDLA Journal

The Center for Distributed Learning, in the Division of Digital Learning at the University of Central Florida (UCF), has been instrumental in driving the use of educational technology to expand online teaching and learning opportunities. The advances have occurred while retaining the level of excellence for which its online learning has been nationally recognized and awarded over the last 20 years. As online educational trends have evolved due to a demand for more expansive offerings, the fully-online UCF Online initiative was born. UCF is accelerating students forward to excellence by expanding the reach of an affordable higher education with UCF …

Users Not Watchers: Motivation And The Use Of Discussion Boards In Online Learning, Sarah Ransdell, Jia Borror, Angie Su

FDLA Journal

College students will participate in any learning activity when they feel it helps. Students have an uncanny sense of a tipping point of use. Is it worth my time? Will it help me get a better grade? Discussion boards only work if they help and not hinder online learning. Discussing course content online can be as useful as discussing it among physical classmates. In fact, actively using discussion boards can encourage students to be active users not passive watchers. Users are motivated to engage. Watchers disengage. The present paper provides six examples of how DB motivated online learning. These …

Give To Teachers What Belongs To Teachers, Senta A. Sellers, Joana Fernandez

FDLA Journal

The Nova Southeastern University Alvin Sherman Library, Research, and Information Technology Center opened in December 2001 to accommodate both academic and public users (Nova Southeastern University, 2001). The facility, built as part of a 1999 agreement between Nova Southeastern University (NSU) and Broward County Board of County Commissioners, serves the public as well as students, staff, and faculty of Nova Southeastern University. Joint-use facilities such as the Sherman Library have existed since the 1970s (Matthews & Calvert, 2007).

As of the end of 2017, the Sherman Library houses 1,176,148 volumes and has access to over 500 databases. Because the Sherman …

Teaching Qualitative Research Online: Using Technology To Leverage Student Engagement, Elda Veloso, Anymir Orellana, Jennifer L. Reeves

FDLA Journal

Three faculty colleagues collaborated to effectively pilot the concept of an online community to integrate innovative technologies for learning qualitative research concepts and skills in an online research course. The strategies implemented resulted in engaged students with improved research skills. Students also expressed how much they enjoyed learning and implementing concepts of qualitative research. Technologies that were integrated included cutting-edge apps, social media, and Blackboard collaboration tools. The team followed the ASSURE model (Smaldino, Lowther, Russell, & Mims, 2015) to plan and implement for effective integration of technology and media.

Leveraging The Affordances Of Virtual Reality Systems Within K-12 Education: Responding To Future Innovations, Rohan Jowallah, Luke Bennett, Kathleen Bastedo

FDLA Journal

It is estimated that by 2021, revenue from virtual reality systems could reach two hundred and fifteen billion dollars (Reyes, 2017). The leading investors in virtual reality systems include some of the largest technology companies: Facebook, Google, and Microsoft. This increased revenue spending has influenced and continues to influence improvements in virtual reality systems. As these new advances emerge, it is imperative that policymakers, educators and instructional designers consider the fusion of pedagogy and technology when using virtual reality systems.

Increasing Social Presence Online: Five Strategies For Instructors, Charlotte A. Jones-Roberts

FDLA Journal

As one component of the Community of Inquiry Model, social presence comprises how learners effectively project themselves in a learning environment. Effective cultivation of social presence can lead to more motivated students, success in the class, and, of course, effective online instruction. However, increasing social presence in an online course can be easier said than done. Through a review of literature, this paper briefly overviews the benefits of increased social presence and highlights five research-based strategies for improving social presence in online environments.

Digital Footprints: Creation, Implication, And Higher Education, Maureen Mcdermot

FDLA Journal

Twenty-first century higher education instructors are continually tasked to review, align, pilot, adopt, infuse, and evaluate new technology tools and resources into curricula rich with standards regardless of course format (online/distance, hybrid, and face-to-face courses). Demands often overwhelm instructors who cannot assume that all students approach technology with the same levels of expertise increases constantly with new multimedia developments. Before courses begin, instructors should pilot these tools and applications to determine accessibility, types of support students may need, as well as determine what types of digital footprints students will leave behind. Digital footprints are unique data trails Internet users leave …

A Critical Divide In Higher Education: Bridging The Gap Between Student Success And Organizational Leadership, Kathyleen G. Wyatt

FDLA Journal

The emergence of the use of technology in the classroom and the demand for on-line classes has created a challenge for organizational leaders in higher education to retain students and foster an atmosphere conducive to student success. The purpose of this article is to assist those leaders in determining if a leadership growth plan could be a valuable component of a comprehensive professional development plan to increase student success. The discussion in this article is based on the triangulated findings of a qualitative case study designed to generate unbiased, rich, and in-depth information from those involved in degree programs at …

University Partnership: A Grant-Funded Program For Minority And Underserved Populations, Jerry Holt

FDLA Journal

Provision of services for minority and underserved populations is often problematic. Often, these students attend schools in districts in which funding is lacking for the delivery of services (Ballantine, 2017; Brint, 2017). Classic texts such as Kozol’s Savage Inequalities (1991) highlighted the disparate nature of the schools that serve these populations, and concomitantly the diminished opportunity for these students in terms of academic progress and workforce possibilities. This disparity of opportunity, often characterized by ethnicity and socioeconomics, persists into the 21^st century (Rothstein, 2014; Weir, 2016).[1]

[1] Kozol also continues to describe the ongoing disparity in American education …

Beyond Chunking: Micro-Learning Secrets For Effective Online Design, Amanda Major, Tina Calandrino

FDLA Journal

This article focuses on micro-learning for its effectiveness in online learning design. Faculty members in many universities incorporate micro-learning in their classes as it engages students with the subject matter and results in deeper learning, by encouraging them to connect to the subject matter with their everyday lives as well as the world around them. By improving knowledge retention, micro-learning supports learning in a more easily accessible bites of information productively designed in an online environment.

Nsu Ed.D. In Instructional Technology And Distance Education 2018, Nova Southeastern University

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice College Archive

No abstract provided.

Collaboration Or Collusion? The New Era Of Commercial Online Resources For Students In The Digital Age: An Opinion Piece, Cristian Lieneck, Salvador Esparza

Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice

The purpose of this paper is to share online resources available to students at a global level, to include healthcare administration programs and any other course of study. While somewhat daunting in nature, this editorial offers faculty of healthcare administration (and other related programs of study) the opportunity to explore what course materials (of any format) may be posted to commercial external websites by current and/or previous students for ongoing collaboration among academic cohorts. Findings include an opportunity for students in any program, at any level, to post individual and/or copyrighted course materials on public, external websites, often with an …

Topkit: An Online Faculty Development Resource, Shelly Wyatt Phd, Wendy S. Howard, Ashley Salter, Jessica Tojo

FDLA Journal

Faculty preparation is a critical success factor for any program that involves online teaching and learning (Kane, Shaw, & Pang, 2016; Merillat & Scheibmeir, 2016; Parker, Maor, & Herrington, 2013). Although experts in their respective fields, faculty may not have studied online pedagogy or instructional design before stepping into the onsite or online classroom. While few educators would argue against offering faculty development, institutions grapple with limited funding and campus resources (e.g., limited space, scheduling constraints) for faculty training. To pool resources for this purpose, the State University System of Florida Board of Governors committed to sponsoring a program to …

Expediting And Sustaining Change: Diffusing Innovation In Dynamic Educational Settings, Jeff Dungan

FDLA Journal

Change is critical in most organizations. International schools attempting to redefine 21st century education for their students are constantly innovating pedagogies and school structures. International schools tend to be dynamic, fast paced, nimble learning environments constantly innovating to meet the demands of evolving student populations. Hayden, Rancic, and Thompson (2000) found common characteristics of international schools included open-mindedness, flexibility of thinking, and action with the pragmatic skills of students. International schools in the East Asia region are well resourced and often looking for ways to differentiate themselves in the highly competitive global educational marketplace. The International School Consultancy (2016) reported …

Developing And Implementing An Online Course Framework, Jennifer L. Reeves, Jason Karp, Gabriela Mendez, Elda Veloso, Maureen Mcdermot, Jia Borror, Berta Hayes Capo

FDLA Journal

Integration of technology tools and resources is imperative when working with today’s students as many are expecting to encounter various apps and media-based software in the curriculum. It is important, however, to have a clear purpose for integrating technology into the classroom; technology should not be integrated into the curriculum simply for the sake of doing so! To assist with purposeful integration, faculty members from Nova Southeastern University and St. Thomas University created a Technology Integration Learning Community (TILC); an online professional learning community where members teach each other about the latest and greatest technological tools and share ideas for …

Student And Faculty Perceptions Of Live Synchronous Distance Education For Allied Health Students Following Program Expansion To A Rural Campus, Betsy J. Becker, Kelsey Rutt, Allyson Huntley, Harlan Sayles, Kim Michael

Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice

Background & Purpose: Distance education (DE) is a means to meet allied health workforce needs in rural locations where healthcare worker shortages are apparent. Five allied health programs were expanded to a rural campus teaching synchronously using distance education technology. The purpose of this convergent parallel mixed methods study was to explore perceptions of allied health students and faculty at two campus locations.

Methods: Quantitative and qualitative information were collected through a survey of students and faculty (physical therapy, physician assistant, and medical imaging [diagnostic medical sonography, radiography, magnetic resonance imaging] programs). Both campuses served as live and distance sites …

Nine Potential Solutions To Abate Grade Inflation At Regionally Accredited Online U.S. Universities: An Intrinsic Case Study, David Blum

The Qualitative Report

Grade inflation must be abated. The effect of grade inflation weakens academic standards to the point where accurately assessing levels of competency and student knowledge is difficult to determine. Using intrinsic case study design, I contacted 411 online instructors in the United States exploring potential solutions to abate grade inflation. Of 411 faculty members contacted via personal e-mail, 27 instructors at three regionally accredited online universities in the United States agreed to be interviewed by the use of an interview protocol and recorded via Skype. The research question guiding the study was “What are potential solutions to abate grade inflation?” …

Using World Of Warcraft To Teach Research Methods In Online Doctoral Education: A Student-Instructor Duoethnography, Chareen Snelson, Christopher I. Wertz, Kimberly Onstott, Jason Bader

The Qualitative Report

The educational potential of games has captured the ongoing interest of scholars and educators who have sought to understand when, how, and under what conditions games support the teaching and learning process. General knowledge of how games support literacy, scientific thinking, or social learning has been theorized and researched, but some applications of game-based learning remain unexplored. One area where much remains to be learned is within online doctoral education and particularly in the poorly understood area of research methods education. In this study, three doctoral students and an instructor collaboratively field-tested a set of instructional activities within World of …

The Role Of Pedagogical Beliefs In Emerging Technology Integration: An Exploratory Case Study Of Faculty Perspectives, Marianne Justus

The Qualitative Report

The integration of social media, mobile/wireless and Web 2.0 technologies in higher education supports student engagement locally and globally to create new knowledge using innovative strategies. However, there remains a disconnect between the positive perceptions of faculty regarding the value of integrating technology and its adoption in online contexts. The purpose of this qualitative exploratory case study was to investigate the factors that influence faculty to integrate innovative and emerging technologies, and to consider whether pedagogical beliefs influence choice and adoption of technology. Participants included graduate and undergraduate faculty members who had experience teaching online; were representative of diverse disciplines …

Debriefing The Interpretive Researcher: Spider Sniffing With Critical Friend, Jan K. Williams, Reese H. Todd

The Qualitative Report

This auto-ethnographic study describes a practical application of qualitative research skills in an intensive writing retreat. The retreat was held in response to an inadequate dissertation defense just three weeks before final university deadline for graduation. It uses narrative and double- storytelling to step in and out of the experience of a debriefing process that put the writer in a vulnerable position with a critical friend. The reality of not completing the PhD demanded aggressive and immediate action – an intense commitment to critical analysis of the dissertation. The reflective self-study of the writing retreat experience describes the significance of …

Enhancing Inquiry-Based Learning (Ibl) Strategies Online Through The Integration Of Interactive Technology Tools, Kathy-Ann Daniel-Gittens, Tina Calandrino

Florida Distance Learning Association Conference

No abstract provided.

Including “Anyone” In The “Anytime, Anywhere” Paradigm: Strategies To Build Aceess To Distance Education, Kathleen P. King, Greene M. Thompson

Florida Distance Learning Association Conference

In the past 30 years, distance learning has come a long way in innovative technologies advancing opportunities for teaching and learning. In 2011, the public understands and accepts widely the once surprising concept of “Anytime, Anywhere” learning (Allen & Seaman, 2010). To expand our educational commitment to access and equity, this paper addresses the need and means to incorporate “Anyone” into this paradigm.

While we spend a great deal of time and effort teaching educators to adopt and design effective online learning, we focus much less on creating welcoming and accessible online learning environments for every student. This paper has …

The Missing Link: Discovering Your Facilitation Power For Online Course, Kathleen P. King, Heba Abuzayyad-Nuseibeh

Florida Distance Learning Association Conference

Unfortunately, most of our faculty development related to online learning has been regarding designing courses. Yet where do we faculty spend most of our time? We spend it facilitating the courses, semester after semester. However, one of the reasons more one provides more guidance about online facilitation is that many people assume teaching online is more or less the same as traditional instruction. In fact, nothing can be further from the truth (Fink, 2003). Online learning shifts the focus from teacher to learners, and our role as educators from “all knowing experts” dispensing knowledge, to facilitators of more self-directed and …

Online Instruction Of Dyslexic Students: A Call To Action, Matthew G. Kenney

Florida Distance Learning Association Conference

This paper is a call to action for academic and information technology industry leaders to develop a generalizable online instructional model tailored to the learning needs of those suffering from dyslexia. It is estimated that 35% of entrepreneurs are dyslexic (Logan, 2009). According to the Sloan Consortium, online instruction is the fastest growing segment of the higher education industry (Allen & Seaman, 2010). Online entrepreneurship students may provide researchers with an opportunity to identify dyslexics clustered in higher proportions than other academic disciplines. There is no evidence to show entrepreneurship students are more likely to be dyslexic than other students, …

Online Learning Communities: Enhancing Undergraduate Students ‘ Acquisition Of Information Skills, Ling Wang, Noraida Domínguez-Flores

Florida Distance Learning Association Conference

Since the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL, 2000) approved the Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education, many efforts have been made to help undergraduate students develop the information skills they need. Although there are different activities that have been developed to facilitate the acquisition of information skills and work with the students’ limitations and the problems that are evidenced, and research has identified librarians as the key resource to educate students and to help them develop better research skills (Mundava, & Chaudhuri, 2007; Wilbe, 2006), the reality is that librarians do not have enough time available to …