Online Learning Technologies Research Articles

New theoretical approach integrated education and technology

The paper focus on exploring new theoretical approach in education with development of online learning technology, from e-learning to u-learning and virtual reality technology, and points out possibilities such as constructing a new teaching ecological system, ubiquitous educational awareness with ubiquitous technology, and changing the cognitive mode in learning process with virtual reality technology. Finally, the paper concerns effective approach to promote school-based teachers professional development through integrated ICT and classroom teaching.

Innovative Teaching and Learning across Multiple-campuses: The Case of Hospitality Services Management

This paper documents the case of the Hospitality Services Management (HSM) subject at Southern Cross University, and the attempts to develop and deliver a robust, current, yet resource-friendly subject to a dynamic, highly-separated group of over 400 students. The HSM unit has adopted a ‘converged learning model’, what we term a ‘scatter-mode approach’. The unit provides alternatives to the usual teaching and learning styles and offers stimulating and constructive independent learning opportunities for students, by collapsing the boundaries between internal and external cohorts, promoting cross-campus communication and utilising on-line teaching and learning technologies. The paper provides an overview of the ‘scatter-mode’ model adopted by the teaching team and describes the key teaching and learning strategies adopted. Feedback from students has indicated that while assessment activities are challenging they do offer an enriched learning experience. Evaluation of the 'teaching experience' in this unit to date, has identified several positive aspects and particular challenges for staff on the teaching team. These are highlighted in the concluding section of the paper.

Student Collaboration Integrating the Electronic Portfolio with Sakai Online Learning Technology to Assess Student Learning Outcomes for the Didactic Program in Dietetics

Text: Undergraduate dietetic students are challenged to demonstrate both academic and professional development in an increasingly competitive environment. Traditionally, students have maintained a hard copy Professional Portfolio beginning sophomore year until graduation. Beginning 2008, students enrolled in the course Professional Dietetics will be expected to use the electronic (e)-Portfolio-Sakai online learning technology to design their portfolio. A Faculty-Student Management Team comprised of the Dietetics Director, a Multimedia Associate, and six undergraduate dietetic students representing various academic levels participated in the development of the dietetics webinterface template to assess student outcome learning based on the Commission on Accreditation for Dietetics Education’s knowledge and skills content areas. The team integrated the Sakai learning system to create an e-Portfolio matrix that enables documentation of student learning based upon faculty-defined student learning outcomes. To assist students in documentation of learning outcomes, the team identified six overarching domains: 1) professionalism and ethics, 2) disciplinary knowledge, 3) multifaceted communication, 4) multidisciplinary teamwork, 5) systematic analysis, and 6) experiential learning. Students are expected to upload faculty designated course assignments into respective domains, catalog their experiential learning activities, and practice reflective thinking about the impact these assignments and experiences have on their learning. The e-Portfolio matrix will allow students to creatively showcase their academic and professional achievements online and allow them to share the contents with a variety of audiences. The matrix will also provide faculty the ability to collect assessment data on student learning outcomes using a systematic, continuous methodology that will subsequently support future programmatic curricular improvements.

Doing staff development: Practices, dilemmas and technologies

<span>Online learning technologies now pervade higher education institutions, and the convergence of teaching and learning onto technological systems has created new work practices and a demand for staff development. Educational developers are located at a nexus between the institutional and pragmatic imperatives, from which tensions and incongruencies emerge and need to be resolved in daily practice. In this paper, this nexus is explored by analysing accounts of educational development practice from one institution, based on interviews with educational developers. This paper considers staff development practices in higher education in response to the processes of change associated with learning technology, and the strategies used to resolve incongruencies and conflicts that emerged from these practices were analysed. The discourse analytic method of "interpretative repertoires" (Potter & Wetherell, 1987) is used to explore the resolution of dilemmas in practice. In this case study, two contrasting repertoires are used to account for staff development: one that 'enables' academic staff in their use of learning technologies, and another which 'guides' staff in their online teaching towards specified technologies. The intersection of the two repertoires in the institution presented dilemmas for educational developers. The responses to these contexts and the implications for educational development are explored.</span>

Avaliação em ambientes virtuais de aprendizagem

A demanda por avaliações de projetos de aprendizagem virtual a distância tem requerido o emprego de conceitos e métodos que transcendem o campo exclusivo da Educação, destacando-se a multiplicidade de marcos teóricos e abordagens técnicas empregados nas estratégias avaliativas de aprendizagem online. A despeito da hegemonia dos métodos quantitativos na avaliação das tecnologias de informação e comunicação, o emprego de métodos qualitativos nas avaliações de ambientes virtuais tem crescido ao longo das duas últimas décadas. A combinação de métodos quali-quantitativos possibilita uma melhor compreensão dos fenômenos subjacentes ao uso das tecnologias para a aprendizagem online. Dado que a educação em ambientes virtuais refere-se a experiências de aprendizagem que utilizam recursos hipermidiáticos em ambientes apoiados por uma tecnologia de comunicação online, optou-se neste artigo enfocar alguns tópicos relativos à avaliação de tecnologias de informação e de aprendizagem nesses ambientes, aprofundando a discussão no que tange aos métodos relevantes à avaliação tanto dos ambientes virtuais de aprendizagem quanto da aprendizagem nesse meio. Essa opção se deve tanto ao reconhecimento das especificidades das práticas pedagógicas da EaD que colocam em evidência a relação entre educação e comunicação, viabilizadas por meio das tecnologias de informação e comunicação, quanto aos diversos papéis, negativos e positivos, atribuídos às tecnologias de comunicação e informação na Educação.

The early benefits of a problem-based approach to teaching social inclusion using an online virtual town

This article describes the delivery of a core pre-registration nursing and midwifery module centred on social inclusion. The module was previously delivered using a classroom-based problem-based learning approach. Difficulties with this approach led to changes to the module and its delivery. Logistic issues encouraged the module team to implement a blended learning approach using a virtual town to facilitate online learning and discussion activities. The paper describes and discusses the use of online learning technology to support student nurses and midwives. It highlights the benefits of this approach and outlines some of the experiences of the students including their evaluation of the virtual town. There is also an examination of some of the practical and theoretical issues related to both problem-based learning, online working and using a virtual town to support learning. This article outlines the approach taken and its implications.

An Australian Mathematics Educator in South East Asia: Globalization has Virtually Changed Everything

The world of the twenty-first century is characterized by change and uncertainty that is usually given the name, globalization. Universities have been exposed to increasing competition via the market place and some have embraced greater use of on-line teaching and learning technologies. Globalization has impacted upon the nature of work of academics in the interplay of global and local processes. In this paper the focus will be upon how an Australian mathematics educator involved in pre-service education responded to the challenges of globalization with a particular focus upon the move to virtual spaces. It will draw upon the educator’s research and publications in responding to the challenges. Research involving a Japanese teacher professional learning process implemented in Australia and Malaysia will be briefly used as an illustration. This paper presents the reader with an opportunity to reflect and judge whether the issues resonate with the reader's personal experiences and appear to be universal or are specific responses to the local context.

Attitudes, beliefs, and attendance in a hybrid course

Since online learning technology, such as streaming video, was introduced to the college distance-learning environment, there has been a need to study the attitudes of college students toward the use of this modality in hybrid courses. Understanding students’ attitudes toward using online materials and the impact on class attendance is not only essential to ascertain how effectively the online content is delivered, it also helps teaching faculty prepare online courses and education programs. This paper studies the attitudes of college students’ about online materials in a hybrid upper division communications class. Student attitudes towards combining distance-learning techniques with traditional lecture tended to be positive. Students held the belief that hybrid courses have a negative impact on attendance, but they did not self-report an actual impact. Students do believe that they benefit from this technology, but the belief is strongest in those who are most computer/Internet literate. How these attitudes/beliefs impact the student in the context of a rural culture will be discussed.

IVIMEDS: a short report on an evaluation of the cardiovascular system learning module

Background: On-line learning technology can be used to present curricular material in a variety of formats to stimulate and support student learning in both content and potentially skills-based areas in medicine. In 2005, second-year medical students at the University of Queensland evaluated the IVIMEDS’ cardiovascular module, and were given access to all learning objects in the module.Aim: The study aimed to determine the value to students of the IVIMEDS’ Cardio-vascular System (CVS) module compared with existing CVS learning resources.Method: Research and control groups (n = 50 respectively) completed a 16-item questionnaire relating either to the IVIMEDS’ CVS module or to the existing CVS resources. Responses were analysed for common themes, and the performance of the control and research groups on the mid-year summative assessment results was compared.Results: Thirty-five students in the research group completed the IVIMEDS evaluation. Thirty-one-percent had difficulty learning to navigate the software, and 17% felt that they would have derived greater benefit with prior training. Students in the research group scored significantly higher on one question in the summative assessment than did students in the control group (F(66) = 2.1, p < 0.5). Qualitative data suggest that for students to fully accept the IVIMEDS’ material, it will be essential to ensure that students are fully aware of its place in the medical program so they are confident that by using it, they will be able to achieve the set learning objectives.Conclusions: The students appreciated the potential of the IVIMEDS’ cardiovascular module, but a full evaluation of the package would require that the module be presented at an appropriate time using an easily navigable system, after training in use of the software package.

Scaffolding learners in authentic, problem based e-learning environments: The Geography Challenge

&lt;span&gt;The affordances of online learning technologies have enabled more widespread development of learning environments that facilitate the exploration and solving of complex and realistic problems. In this paper, we describe the design of a real world geography problem, embedded within a web environment that is facilitated by an onsite excursion for data collection. The learning environment has been designed to deliberately address known problems associated with the problem solving approach, specifically in regard to three issues, and uses scaffolding prompts and supports embedded within the environment to facilitate student learning. The paper describes the theoretical foundations for the approach, the design of the learning task, and specific scaffolding approaches used in the environment.&lt;/span&gt;

Using problem-based learning in a large classroom

Although PBL (problem-based learning) has gained increasing acceptance as an alternative to teacher-centered methods in nursing education, there are challenges to implementing this method in conventional course-based curriculums due to lack of additional faculty tutors to facilitate and monitor small group process. Little is known in nursing education regarding the effectiveness of teaching PBL in large group settings. [Woods, D. 1996. Problem-based Learning for Large Classes in Chemical Engineering. In: Wilkerson, L., Gijsaers, W. (Eds.), Bringing Problem-based Learning to Higher Education: Theory And Practice. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, pp. 91-99] suggests that there are significant challenges related to student acceptance of the method, monitoring small group process and evaluating the quality of students' work. This paper will provide a description of the process and outcome of using PBL in a second year Baccalaureate nursing course using both classroom and on-line learning technology. Findings from a student survey will be included to highlight the strengths and challenges of using PBL in a large group setting with one faculty tutor. Implications for using PBL in this format will be provided.

Works in progress / Travaux en cours: Mobilizing Knowledge and Building Capacity for Technology-Enhanced Professional Development

Technology-enhanced knowledge mobilization can be extremely useful for helping practicing professionals keep abreast of research and development efforts in their field. The initiative described in this paper encourages collaboration among university and community partners to effectively use online learning and communications technology for professional and staff development for multiple types of professional communities. We are engaged in pilot projects with two parallel professional communities within the health care sector (optometric training and practice) and the public education sector (school boards). While these communities differ in both their professional relationships and their learning needs, their variability allows us to design and test the technical, social, and instructional requirements of a generic strategy for using technology for effective knowledge mobilization.

From presentation to interaction: new goals for online learning technologies

Educators have used online technology in the past as information presentation tools and information storage tools to support learning. Researchers identify online technologies with large capacities and capabilities to enhance human learning in an interactive fashion. Online learning technology should move away from the use of computer technology as presentation and storage tools and advance to the next level by using them as interactive tools. Emerging technologies should be implemented with advanced and sound instruction to promote interactive learning by engaging learners in actively analysing information and knowledge construction and applying technology to support their decision‐making. Three dimensions of advanced, sound and interactive online technologies are purposed in this paper: instructional communication technology, cognitive technology and management technology. These thee dimensions engage learners in active online communication, knowledge construction and the exchange of mental models. De la présentation à l’interaction:de nouveaux objectifs pour les technologies d’apprentissage en ligne Les éducateurs ont par le passé utilisé les technologies en ligne comme outils de présentation de l’information ou comme outils d’archivage de l’information pour faciliter l’apprentissage. Les chercheurs voient les technologies en ligne comme des outils de grande capacité à fort potentiel susceptibles de stimuler l’apprentissage humain de façon interactive. Les technologies d’apprentissage en ligne devraient dépasser l’emploi de la technologie informatique à des fins de présentation et d’archivage et passer à un autre niveau en les utilisant comme outils interactifs. Les technologies émergentes devraient être mises en œuvre avec des instructions avancées et solides pour pouvoir faciliter l’apprentissage interactif en amenant les apprenants à faire preuve de dynamisme pour analyser l’information, construire les connaissances et appliquer la technologie à leur propre prise de décision. Dans cet article on présente trois aspects des technologies en ligne interactives avancées et solides : la technologie de la communication éducative,la technologie cognitive et la technologie de gestion. Ces trois dimensions amènent les apprenants à communiquer activement en ligne,à construire leurs connaissances et à échanger des modèles intellectuels. Von der Präsentation zur Interaktion: Neue Ziele für Online‐Lerntechnologien Pädagogen haben die Online‐Technologien in der Vergangenheit zur Informationspräsentation und als Informationsspeicher zur Unterstützung von Lernen verwendet. Heute wünschen Forscher, die Möglichkeiten leistungsfähiger Online‐Technologien auch in interaktiver Weise beim menschlichen Lernen zu nutzen. Online ‐ Lehr‐ und Lerntechnologien sollten von ihrer Verwendung als Präsentations‐ und Speicher‐Werkzeugen zu interaktiv nutzbaren Computertechnologien neuer Generation weiterentwickelt werden. Neue Techniken sollten mit fortschrittlichen und soliden Anweisungen verbunden werden, um interaktives Lernen dadurch zu fördern, dass Lernende sich mit aktiver Informationsanalyse, Wissenskonstruktion und dem Anwenden von Technologie zur Entscheidungsfindung befassen. Drei Dimensionen von fortschrittlichen, verlässlichen und interaktiven Online‐Techniken werden in diesem Papier vorgestellt: Unterrichtskommunikationstechnik, kognitive Techniken und Management Technologien. Diese drei Dimensionen beschäftigen Lernende bei aktiver Online‐Kommunikation, Wissens Konstruktion und dem Austausch virtueller Modelle.

Online Learning as a Demonstration of Type II Technology

Online learning can be an effective tool in second-language acquisition (SLA) because it can be an efficient and convenient way to provide accurate, understandable material to second-language learners. It is crucial for instructors to have online knowledge and skills as well as the ability to choose how, when, and to whom to apply such expertise. Online learning also promotes student-centered learning, which is widely believed to be important in SLA. Online learning technologies also have the advantage of reducing learner anxiety by providing a nonjudgmental, independent learning environment. In addition, SLA students using online learning may develop improved attitudes toward the second language (L2) and its culture.

Partners with clinical practice: Evaluating the student and staff experiences of on-line continuing professional development for qualified nephrology practitioners

The inclusion of online learning technologies into the higher education (HE) curriculum is frequently associated with the design and development of new models of learning. One could argue that e-learning even demands a reconfiguration of traditional methods of learning and teaching. However, this transformation in pedagogic methodology does not just impact on lecturers and teachers alone. Online learning has ‘pervasive impacts and changes in other HE functions’ (HEFCE, p.2). Thus, e-learning is a transformational process that posits new challenges for staff and students, both in educational methods and support. Many political, clinical, financial and social influences impact on registered health professionals’ ability to continue their professional development. This is particularly pertinent in the delivery of nephrology care. In order to evaluate the programme that has now run for 2 years in the context of this institution, evaluative research methodology sought to explore the experiences of the staff and students involved. Qualitative data was collected from the students and a reflective framework was used to form the basis of a focus group for the staff. This paper will present how a virtual learning environment (VLE) was developed utilising the pedagogic framework of solution-focused learning. It will demonstrate evaluation of the students’ experiences compared to their traditional classroom-learning counterparts, and highlight the reflections of staff developers as they moved into new roles and developed different aspects of their present roles within a traditional HE context.

The Fashionable Adoption of Online Learning Technologies in Australian Universities

ABSTRACTDuring the 1990s, many Australian universities adopted innovative new online learning technologies without critical examination of their merit to those institutions, leading in some cases to wasted resources, unfulfilled expectations, program and organisational failure. Given that limited theoretical and empirical explanations have addressed this important research problem, this paper discusses and applies a management fashion framework to this research problem and argues that online learning technologies could be conceptualised as a management fashion, following the empirical work of Abrahamson and Fairchild (1999). The major contributions of this paper are to identify an important yet under-researched area in higher education research, demonstrate the utility of a management fashion framework in this context, and propose a number of recommendations for policy makers, university managers and academics confronted with educational innovations.

The Fashionable Adoption of Online Learning Technologies in Australian Universities

ABSTRACTDuring the 1990s, many Australian universities adopted innovative new online learning technologies without critical examination of their merit to those institutions, leading in some cases to wasted resources, unfulfilled expectations, program and organisational failure. Given that limited theoretical and empirical explanations have addressed this important research problem, this paper discusses and applies a management fashion framework to this research problem and argues that online learning technologies could be conceptualised as a management fashion, following the empirical work of Abrahamson and Fairchild (1999). The major contributions of this paper are to identify an important yet under-researched area in higher education research, demonstrate the utility of a management fashion framework in this context, and propose a number of recommendations for policy makers, university managers and academics confronted with educational innovations.

Blurring the Boundaries? Supporting Students and Staff within an Online Learning Environment.

The inclusion of online learning technologies into the higher education (HE) curriculum is frequently associated with the design and development of new models of learning. One could argue that e-learning even demands a reconfiguration of traditional methods of learning and teaching. One of the key elements of this transformational process is flexibility. This paper considers a number of aspects relating to the flexibility inherent within models of online learning and the potential impact of this on support structures. City University, London, is used as a case study to provide examples of online practice which support strategies outlined here. A number of models of online learning are used at the University to provide evidence of the variation in modes of support and illustrate the different needs of both students and staff when using these forms of learning. What is apparent through this discussion is that to provide effective support for online learners, whether students or staff, clear and solid structures need to be put in place to assist with the creation of an online community.

Using online learning technology to develop nurse leaders

Clearly, one of the major challenges facing nurse administrators is the need to develop and support nurse managers. The fact that there is a shortage of well-prepared nurse managers to build and maintain work environments that retain nurses while providing cost-effective, quality health care outcomes for consumers is widely accepted. The issues surrounding this shortage are multifocal and complex, including dissatisfaction with the role, lack of preparation and ongoing development for the role, the declining graduate enrollments in nursing administration programs, and the aging of nurse managers.

The Medium is the Message: Online Technology and Knowledge Construction in Adult Graduate Education

Teaching online entails delivering a course fully or in part via the Internet and, in particular, the World Wide Web (Aragon, 2003; Ko & Rossen, 2001; Palloff & Pratt, 1999). Online course delivery in higher education is widespread and increasing (Aragon, 2003; Palloff & Pratt, 1999; Weiss, Knowlton, & Speck, 2000). A range of offerings exists, including fully online degree programs, online courses in all disciplines of study, and hybrid courses, where face-to-face meetings are combined with online learning technology. It is important to focus on effectiveness as it is enhanced or degraded with the use of online technology rather than on the technology itself (Maid, 2003). Research has shown rather conclusively that pedagogy and instructional design are correlated with student learning while technology itself has little influence (Johnson & Aragon, 2003). Watts (2003) views technology not as end in itself, but rather as a catalyst that allows educators an opportunity to revisit how, what, and why we are teaching (p. 6). More prominent online technology tools like WebCT (see www.webct.com) and Blackboard (see www.blackboard.com) appear to support a traditional behaviorist approach to (Maid, 2003). Yet, many adult educators are social constructivists who ground their instructional designs in the assumption that learning occurs through interaction with students, the instructor, and the learning environment (Gibson, 2000; Taylor; Marienau, & Fidler, 2000). For their students, the connecting classroom has been found to play a central role in their learning (Graham, Donaldson, Kasworm, & Dirkx, 2000). Adults make meaning of being a student, develop relationships with students and instructors, and connect with cultures and communities in the connecting classroom (Graham et al.). Some adult educators are resistant to online because they believe it does not complement social constructivist pedagogy by facilitating the experience of the connecting classroom (Palloff & Pratt, 2001). At the same time, online course delivery is of particular interest to adult educators in higher education because it offers greater access to adult students for whom it is inconvenient or even impossible to attend classes on campus (Derrick, 2003; Gibson, 2000; Kilgore, 2003; Palloff & Pratt, 2001). In response to criticism of the use of online technology, Gibson observed that it is possible to design online courses to encourage interaction and experiential learning, and that there are countless examples of [constructivist] adult education using a wide range of (p. 429). Wilson and Lowry (2000) argued that constructivism can be employed in online by providing access to rich sources of information; encouraging meaningful interactions with content; and bringing people together to challenge, support, and respond to each other (p. 82). The problem for the instructor, then, is to improve accessibility for adults with the use of online technology, without threatening the constructivist potential of the connecting classroom. The purpose of this article is to describe my own experiments with online technology in adult education graduate courses, as I attempted to improve access to adult students while providing a collaborative, connected, and experiential learning environment. I will briefly describe three cases where I designed a blended course including both face-to-face meetings and online interactions. I will then compare and contrast the different technologies used, and how they shaped the knowledge collectively constructed by the students and me during the semester. Finally, I will discuss the implications of what I learned for practitioners. Three Experiments With Online Technology for Adult Graduate Education I first became active participant in Internet-based communications in 1990. …