eLearn Magazine (subtitle Education & Technology in Perspective): I just discovered this site, chock full of Very Interesting reading that will keep my busy for a long while. Topics are very current and relevant. Categories include: Best Practices, Case Studies, Tutorials, Reviews, Research papers. Articles are grouped by Design, Technology, Usability, Business, Culture. The site "offers a community hub for e-learning professionals on the Web, providing a wealth of public forums for the free exchange of ideas. Our targeted readership includes both providers and consumers of online learning, with a special emphasis on teachers, managers, and administrators working to develop educational programs or classes on the Web." I investigated the "about us" page and discovered that one of my eLearning gurus, Stephen Downes, is on the Editorial Advisory Board, and another (more recent) personal guru, Lisa Neal, is the Editor-in-Chief. Yay for the online version of 6 degrees of separation. 05/25/08

Ten Things You Can Do in Ten Minutes To Be a More Successful e-learning Professional: Lisa Neal addresses the question: "You need a break and, instead of heading to the coffee pot, what can you do in 10 minutes that will refresh and energize you and increase your job satisfaction and career success?" 05/25/08

10 facts about learning that are scientifically proven and interesting for teachers: "The problem I had was whittling it down to ten!" says author Donald Clark. He concludes that "Many teaching practices are in direct opposition to the psychology of learning." 05/19/08

Preparing Teachers to Teach Online: by Greg Kearsley & Robert Blomeyer. A version of this paper appeared in Educational Technology magazine, Jan/Feb 2004.

Why use technology in the English classroom? This whole article is a gem. To entice you, here are a few snippets so you get the drift of Michael Umphrey's opinion and the article's direction. 10/21/07

• "...using technology to teach English. Why would I do that? Well, why do cowboys sing?"
• "For generations, educators have labored toward the goal of bringing young people to basic literacy, giving them the power to encode and decode written language. ...But today basic literacy isn’t enough."
• "Lots of kids are already their own publishers, posting whatever they want on My Space."
• "English teachers should be excited by the prospect of a culture of writing consisting of more than a few “stars” and the bestseller lists."
• "Whenever possible, school work should be real work. ...Great writers have always known that everyday life is the source of powerful writing."
• "This is a good time to recommit to being not primarily consumers of commercial culture but also producers of our own culture, our own literature about the places and lives that we know. And if we do it with our students, we’ll find all sorts of intractable problems won’t need to be solved. They’ll just dissolve. Besides, it’s a great adventure. It’s also a necessity."
• "Technology has enormous potential to make missing class less disruptive both for students and for teachers. Actually, it’s not potential. Everything we need now exists. Learning how to use it and getting districts to spend the money is another thing."

Annotated Bibliography for Online Teaching: Categories of articles include Overview of Online Teaching; Theory of Online Course Writing; Practice of Online Course Writing; Web Design for Online Course Writing. 09/09/07

Theories of and for Online Learning: "We see changes in teaching and learning emerging from the nexus of a changing landscape of information and communication technologies... We see the need for, and the emergence of, new theories and models of and for the online learning environment, addressing learning in its ICT context, considering both formal and informal learning, individual and community learning, and new practices arising from technology use in the service of learning. This paper presents six theoretical perspectives on learning in ICT contexts, and is an invitation to others to bring theoretical models to the fore to enhance our understanding of new learning contexts." 09/09/07

Pedagogical Templates for E-Learning: A report that "...describes a series of pedagogic templates for the integration of technology into teaching and learning... The main objective of this report is to provide an overview for IoE academics who are interested in integrating e-learning into their courses. This report has been designed to guide practitioners on how e-learning can be used in the context of a course, and the description of each template focuses on the pedagogical aspects of using e-learning." 09/03/07

Theories and models of and for online learning: "For many years, discussion of online learning...has been pre-occupied with the practice of teaching online and the debate about whether being online is ‘as good as’ being offline. ...We see the need for, and the emergence of, new theories and models of and for the online learning environment, addressing learning in its ICT context, considering both formal and informal learning, individual and community learning, and new practices arising from technology use in the service of learning. This paper presents six theoretical perspectives on learning in ICT contexts." 09/03/07

VOCATIONAL eLEARNING: From wwwtools for teachers, this page offers a rich collections of links relevant to VET (Vocational Education & Training), and in particular Vocational Elearning. "Effective Vocational Education and Training is considered crucial to industrial efficiency and economic productivity. To prepare learners for employment in today's technically-charged working environment, elearning strategies are proving successful in supplementing face-to-face mentorship with rich high-quality content, a variety of online networking venues, and flexible access to a range of remote learning environments. In this edition of WWWTools for Education, we consider vocational education and the role of modern ICTs in its delivery." 08/17/07

Canada must “unlock potential” in adult learning: A 2007 report by the Canadian Council on Learning is tackling the thorny and complex problem of adult learning in Canada. "'There are clear and well-substantiated links between lifelong learning, productivity and innovation. If Canada truly wants to unlock its potential, we must help workers engage in lifelong learning,' said Paul Cappon, the president and CEO of the Canadian Council of Learning." 06/23/07

Visions Shaping the Future of Online Education: Understanding its Historical Evolution, Implications, and Assumptions: The purpose of this paper from the Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration is to "...present a historical background of online education, review its current status, and provide visions shaping its future in an attempt to understand its potential and limitations that will lead to the advancement of the scholarship of teaching and learning. Online instructors must understand the way online education has evolved over the years from previous conceptions of education and the wide array of implications and assumptions involved in the delivery of online education. Recommendations for the advancement of online education, including future research, are given." 06/21/08

Factors Motivating and Inhibiting Faculty in Offering Their Courses via Distance Education: From the same journal/edition as above, this paper reports on a study the purpose of which "...was to discover what factors may motivate faculty members at small, private colleges to adopt distance education, as well as what factors may inhibit that adoption." 06/21/08

Technology in Schools: What Does The Research Say? A new report from Cisco Systems and Metiri Group is intended to assist educators to make informed technology investments. "Overall, across all uses in all content areas, technology does provide a small, but significant, increase in learning when implemented with fidelity. While this statistic is encouraging, the real value to research lies in the identification of those technology interventions that get sufficiently positive results to warrant the investment. Most educators are looking for the value proposition that will significantly advance learning, teaching, and school system efficiencies. Taking advantage of these leverage points requires serious review of specific research studies that specifically address the needs and challenges of specific schools and serious attention paid to leadership development, professional development for teachers, school culture, curricular redesign, and teacher preparation.... "The reader should be cautioned that, although single studies with positive results are encouraging, such results could not be generalizedbeyond specific student populations and contexts within the studies. Educators are encouraged to pilot such solutions and research the effect locally prior to full-scale implementation." 04/06/07

E-Learning Concepts and Techniques: "This e-book, E-Learning Concepts and Techniques, is the result of a collaborative effort by students in the Bloomsburg University, Department of Instructional Design spring 2006 E-Learning Concepts and Techniques online class as well as several guest authors and contributors from around the world." Headings include: What is E-Learning? Instructional Design Models for E-Learning; E-Learning Tools; Instructional Strategies; Development; Delivering; Evaluation; Web Standards. 11/25/06

7 Principles of Good Practice in Undergrad Education: Honolulu.hawaii.edu offers these for their own faculty. "How can students and faculty members improve undergraduate education? Many campuses around the country are asking this question. To provide a focus for their work, we offer seven principles based on research on good teaching and learning in colleges and universities." 11/07/06

Linking thinking - Self-directed learning in the digital age: "This study was undertaken to explore the extent to which and ways in which Information and Communication Technologies or ICT (basically global networks of computers and other associated digital devices) have impacted on learning. Instead of looking at learning in formal education and training settings, I have chosen to consider the dynamics of independent self-directed learning, especially that which is undertaken by adults."......"Adult learners are beneficiaries of self-regulation because it allows them to create order out of an often chaotic existence, and it helps them organize time, energies, and resources. This is a vital element as adults seek to balance career, family, travel, goals, dreams, and responsibilities. The following are steps that will help the adult learner build skills needed for self-regulation..." 07/24/06>

Eyes Wide Open: Five Views of Quality in Online Education: "To learn more about quality indicators and their relation to institutional, faculty, student, and public needs, CenterPoint interviewed five people with intimate knowledge of online education..." 06/14/06

Learning For Life -- Adult Education: This article asks some good questions. Although it's written about the British system, it could have easily been written about the British Columbia system where I work (and where we're experiencing cutbacks to adult education nearly every year! Some quotes: "The national mental-health strategy highlighted the importance of adult education in promoting positive mental health; the neighbourhood renewal strategy noted the importance of learning for communities seeking to overcome social exclusion. The Wider Benefits of Learning research centre at London University has shown that taking part in learning increases racial tolerance, gives you a better chance of giving up smoking, and prolongs your active life in retirement. All in all, the case for adult learning is a powerful one. On the other hand, public provision for adults has been plummeting ..... Too often policy for adults seems to be made by sewing together what is left once young people's needs are met. ... How much public money should be used to support lifelong learning? How much should individuals pay? And how best can we make sure employers invest in their staff? Adults deserve clear answers - and there is no better time than Adult Learners' Week to secure them." 05/23/06

Award-Winning Professors Offer Ten Teaching Tips: A group of Duke faculty and staff are promoting excellence in teaching with public talks, weekly meetings and research projects. "The Consortium for Scholarship on Teaching and Learning (CoSTL) has been meeting for two years, drawing participants from longer-running informal discussion groups within departments. CoSTL participants, about 25 each week, are mostly math and science faculty with “professor of the practice” titles, who are responsible for teaching but not research. Their research, they say, is on how best to teach undergraduates." 04/09/06

834 Tips for Successful Online Instruction: [info-update May 2007 -- the online book is now FREE to access] The tips are from a 2005 questionnaire of eLearning Guild members on the subject of Synchronous Instruction. The tips are organized under headings, and the paper has a detailed Table of Contents so you can zoom in on the tips you're most interested in reading. "As might be expected the tips ranged from a single word (Plan! or Practice!) to as many as fifteen separate tips running over 350 words! They also ranged from the simple and obvious to the unusual and subtle. They covered the complete gamut of behavior for an online instructor. We are providing these tips to everybody who is interested in being more effective at doing online synchronous instruction." 02/08/06

eLearning Predictions for 2006: E-learning experts map the road ahead -- An article made up of quotations from the experts. In today's eLearn Magazine. 02/07/06

20 Technology Skills Every Educator Should Have: "...most educators use a variety of tools-including video, e-mail, desktop conferencing, online programs such as WebCT and Blackboard, as well as video conferencing-to teach. Thus, it is no longer acceptable for educators to be technology illiterate. With that in mind, here is a comprehensive listing of the technology skills that every educator should have. Because as computer and associated technologies continue to change and evolve, educators must continue to strive for excellence in their work. Today that includes continued time and effort to maintain and improve their technology skills (as much as some educators do not want to admit)." 01/31/06

The 10 Principles of eLearning: "There are ten basic Principles of Learning that, when practiced, help us grow in understanding and make us successful in whatever we attempt to do. These ten basic Principles of Learning are really a series of actions that successful people people can take in their daily lives. In fact, since learning is such an integral part of living, these rules might more appropriately be called the basic principles of a good life." 01/22/06

Teaching Online: Deakin University offers a rich site that "contains innovative cases of practice in the development and use of traditional and digital media and online environments. ...read summaries of cases, listen to intereviews with teachers, gain access to extra resources and explore the world of online teaching and learning at Deakin." 10/30/05

Professors online: The internet's impact on college faculty: "This paper reports on findings from a nationwide survey of Internet use by U.S. college faculty. The survey asked about general Internet use, use of specific Internet technologies (e–mail, IM, Web, etc.), the Internet’s impact on teaching and research, its impact on faculty–student interactions, and about faculty perceptions of students’ Internet use." 09/12/05

New Learning Environments for the 21st Century: A pdf article via Educause that is FUN to go through (graphic, interesting) and makes some excellent observations and suggestions. I'd like to quote the whole thing here! But start with this -- "Modern’ kids from the global world growing up with mobile phones and internet. Do We Understand Them? What creates meaning for them? How do they learn and do they like to learn?"

The author lists the "Skills of a Guild Master" (as in 'gaming')

• Creates a vision and a set of values that attracts…
• Finds, evaluates and then recruits players that have a set of diverse skills and with fit with your norms.
• Creates a platform for apprenticeship - newbies
• Orchestrates group strategy and governance
• Creates, sells and adheres to the governance principles for the guild and adjudicates disputes.

"Hmmm, getting students to think critically about what they find on the web - an important 21st century skill especially for our 21st century democracy. And re-contextualizing the role of the teacher now as mentor to critical thinking." 08/20/05

51 Competencies for Online Instruction: "This paper identifies and describes 51 competencies needed by online instructors and outlines an instructor-training program that satisfies 3 of the 24 benchmarks for excellence recommended by the Institute for Higher Education Policy." 08/16/05

Critical Thinking in Asynchronous Discussions: "Critical thinking is a process that allows learners to gain new knowledge through problem solving and collaboration. It focuses on the process of learning rather than just attaining information. It involves discovering how to analyze, synthesize, make judgments, and create and apply new knowledge to real-world situations. Critical thinking is important in the learning process since it presents opportunities to learn through discovery. When learners think critically they become actively responsible for their own learning. This can be a liberating experience that often leads to wisdom, and not just the learning of new information. Higher levels of interaction in asynchronous discussions are needed to encourage learners to think critically. The rapid growth of online discussions has shaped current research on how higher order thinking, and learning, can be promoted through interaction between instructors, learners, and learning content (Blignaut & Trollip, 2003). This paper will examine strategies and challenges to encourage learners to think critically in asynchronous discussions." 06/25/05

Insights into Promoting Critical Thinking in Online Classes: "This article explores the thought processes, realities and perceptions of the authors’ on-going experiences in on-line classes and gives their insights into promoting critical thinking in these Managed Learning Environments (MLEs)." 06/25/05

Establishing Trust Online Is Critical For Online Communication: In this article, researchers at New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) have confirmed this fact that many of us have already known for a long time. Some of their we-knew-it-already findings include: 06/05/05

• The most effective on-line teachers establish communication early and quickly.
• The team leader or teacher must work hard to overcome the potential coldness of the electronic medium.
• Good instructors model solidarity, congeniality, and affiliation.
• Good online group leaders reinforce predictable patterns in communication and action.
• Positive group leaders also involve team members in meaningful tasks.
• Establishing swift trust early, contributes to subsequent course success.

Emerging issues in the practice of University Learning & Teaching: A collaborative project resulted in this online book. "The collection explores a range of the current theory to practice learning and teaching issues in Higher Education... It is written for the new to competent Lecturer in Higher Education who is dealing with teaching and learning issues on a daily basis. The more experienced Lecturer and students on postgraduate teaching and learning Diplomas/Certificates should also gain some useful insights from the readings. The chapters in each section were based on issues that were identified by the group as being important in the current climate of higher education... include areas such as, scholarship of teaching, theories of teaching and learning, student-centred learning, active learning, curriculum design, feedback on student learning, e-learning, professional development of the lecturer and resources for the lecturer. The emphasis in each chapter is on practical advice based on the current literature." 06/05/05

Introduction to eLearning: An audio-visual presentation that has some good information, whether you're experienced with eLearning or brand new to it. My link is to the blog entry at eLearn Space where you'll get the direct link to open the presentation. 05/24/05

Exemplary Online Educators: "This paper outlines the initial findings of a qualitative study that asked students who study online their perspectives on why they recall certain online educators as outstanding." 04/10/05

Preparing Instructors for Quality Online Instruction: "With a growing number of courses offered online and degrees offered through the Internet, there is a considerable interest in online education, particularly as it relates to the quality of online instruction. The major concerns are centering on the following questions: What will be the new role for instructors in online education? How will students' learning outcomes be assured and improved in online learning environment? How will effective communication and interaction be established with students in the absence of face-to-face instruction? How will instructors motivate students to learn in the online learning environment? This paper will examine new challenges and barriers for online instructors, highlight major themes prevalent in the literature related to "quality control or assurance" in online education, and provide practical strategies for instructors to design and deliver effective online instruction. Recommendations will be made on how to prepare instructors for quality online instruction." 04/03/05

Achieving Success in Internet-Supported Learning in Higher Education: What are Common Factors and Best Practices of Institutions that have Been Successful at e-Learning? Published on February 1, 2005, this study contains the results of a study of 21 higher education institutions that have achieved success in Internet-supported learning. If you don't have time to read it all, at least read the Executive Summary, which closes with, "To successful institutions Internet-supported learning is an opportunity to reconsider the intersection of mission and student service and to create an improved educational product. It is not about technology adoption. The successful institutions are addressing strategic, cultural and process issues that will help them perform their mission more effectively in the future no matter what direction technology takes." 03/18/05

Teachers see IT, Internet and Imagination replace the three Rs: "Teachers in further education are increasingly using computers, the internet and other learning technologies on a daily basis as essential teaching tools. Evidence from a newly published report from the Learning and Skills Development Agency (LSDA) shows the spread of information and learning technology (ILT) within post-16 education and the positive impact it is having on both teachers and students. The developing impact of ILT is a report (published on 17 January 2005) based on findings from extensive surveys and interviews with staff and students in post-16 education."02/19/05

What motivates teachers to do ProD online? "...online learning takes such great a time commitment amidst such overburdened teacher schedules, that there has to be great motivation to pursue such efforts."This article is a report of a study about teaching teachers. "This project illuminates issues that we face in formal education online learning environments as we continue to discover how to best serve educators’ learning needs." I didn't read the whole article, not by a long shot. But thought you might be as interested as I was in some of the sections. If nothing else, scroll down and look at the charts (Table 1, table 2). Then scroll further down to the "incentives" section. "...the primary incentives were personal knowledge gain and CEU's [academic credits]. The learners made it very clear that personal knowledge was not sufficient....The focus groups provide evidence that teachers lacking intrinsic and extrinsic motivation withdrew from participation." And lastly, the "Recommendations" and "Conclusions" sections are enlightening. 01/27/05

Online Learning & Time-on-Task ~ Impact of Proctored vs. Un-Proctored Testing: Abstract: "The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of proctored versus un-proctored testing on practice time and learning for a self-study, online course...Learning, as defined by pre/post-test change score, was greatest in the presence of proctored assessment (online and text). In addition, use of practice quizzes had a stronger relative correlation with learning...when compared to content page "hits". Online course content paired with meaningful time-on-task (e.g. practice quizzes) was most effective when paired with proctored assessment." 01/03/05

Linking Thinking - Self-directed Learning in the Digital Age: This is a report from an Australian study "...undertaken to explore the extent to which and ways in which Information and Communication Technologies or ICT (basically global networks of computers and other associated digital devices) have impacted on learning. Instead of looking at learning in formal education and training settings, [the study chose] to consider the dynamics of independent self-directed learning, especially that which is undertaken by adults." The above link is a summary. Here's a link tothe full PDF report. 11/30/04

I feel the following selection from the above report is noteworthy enough to permanently display here on my own site. I quote:

The nature of online learning:

• Online learning offers the potential to engage learners who may have been marginalised, disadvantaged or excluded from traditional education and training programs, although new challenges of access and equity are presented by the digital domain itself.
   
• The boundaries between online learning and other life activities are becoming increasingly indistinct because technologies are becoming seamlessly woven into work, leisure, shopping and banking, social activities and other domains of people's lives.
   
• A particular strength of the online environment is the availability of information 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, without geographic boundaries or restrictions. This potentially liberates users from historical limitations of time and space, although simultaneously it confronts information providers with compelling challenges in ensuring continuous access and learner support around the clock.
   
• Online learning is becoming increasingly commonplace, and its popularity is bound to increase as young people who have grown up with digital technologies enter adulthood.
   
• The blurring of boundaries between entertainment on the one hand and education on the other may prove to be one of the defining convergences of our age, with dramatic implications for both domains but particularly for education.
   
• Online learning is particularly suited to the acquisition of specific facts or reasonably coherent bodies of information, especially in rapidly developing fields. In its current form it is less well suited to learning highly contextualised information; large quantities of textual material (although it is unsurpassed in its capacity to store and retrieve large quantities of information); the development of certain practical skills; and areas that involve and depend on direct face-to-face human contact including emotional and affective learning.

HUGE LIST of article, resources, links, all about eLearning: Teaching and learning online, eLearning Communities, Webcasting, Assessment & Evaluation, Cheating, much more. 11/12/04

Facts and Figures in Adult Learning: from the Center for Lifelong Learning 10/23/04

Down with Boring eLearning: An interview with Michael Allen, author of Guide to e-Learning: Building Interactive, Fun, and Effective Learning Programs for Any Company. "Allen speaks out about his frustrations with today's e-learning and brings fundamental issues to light. He also shares specific, commonsense guidelines that reliably produce effective and practical learning solutions." 07/10/04

Three Principles of Effective Online Pedagogy: I can't introduce this article any better than Stephen Downes did in his newsletter, where I got this link : "When the first principle is, "Let students do most of the work," you know you've hit a good guide. This is not tongue-in-cheek: the only way to manage an online course is to delegate many common tasks to students, such as leading web discussions, finding and discussing resources, answering each others' questions, grading and case study analysis. Other principles focus on the importance of interactivity and the importance of presence (and how to do it). Good article with a fair amount of discussion and examples complete with screen shots. Via Seb Schmoller. Other articles from the same issue of JALN are available online." 07/10/04

Email as an Educational Feedback Tool: Relative Advantages and Implementation Guidelines: This article examines the nature of feedback in education, discusses technology implementation issues of email as a feedback and communication tool, and provides a list of suggestions for incorporating email into the classroom to make the most of the medium's relative advantages. 06/24/04

From Classrooms to Learning Environments: A Midrange Projection of E-Learning Technologies: I found Stephen Downes perspectives here to be an excellent summary of what we've been up to and where we're likely to proceed to with learning -- not just eLearning but the whole concept of how and where we'll be learning beyond that. "If there is an over-riding theme in this discussion...it is this: that the world of learning will become more integrated with the other parts of our lives than ever before... as learning resources, mentoring, collaboration, and other forms of learning become more widely syndicated and more deeply personalized, it will be easier to enable just this sort of direct access to learning, making the infrastructure necessary to support classroom learning seem like a needless expense... the primary impact will be greatly empowered workforce, one able to adapt and react to changing circumstances very quickly. ...this will have an impact in unrelated areas, such as corporate management and governance. It will also have an impact - perhaps one that cannot be completely understood - on the lives of these new learners." 06/11/04

The Theory & Practice of Online Learning: (online book; FREE)  The book is concerned with assisting providers of online education with useful tools to carry out the teaching and learning transactions online. It presents, in an easily readable form, the theory, administration, tools, and methods of designing and delivering learning online." Athabasca University (Alberta, Canada) has published the book as an open source book under a Creative Commons License, thus making the book available to educators all over the world at no cost. The complete text is available online; pPrinted, bound copies are available for purchase. 04/01/04

Welcome to Virtual High School: "VHS is the education industry's leader in providing high-quality online courses to high school students and in preparing classroom teachers to be effective online teachers. Please explore our website and learn about VHS and how membership in our collaborative can benefit the students, teachers, and schools in your district!" 04/01/04

Education, 21st Century-Style: Easy to read article because it's in Q&A format. "Ask Virtual High School CEO Liz Pape what she thinks her organization has to offer high school students and she'll tell you in no uncertain terms: great content, curriculum not available in kids' regular schools, a chance to interact with people around the world, a 24/7 learning experience, an environment that tends to include, rather than exclude kids. Pape's cyber school, a non-profit entity, primarily works with educators in traditional high schools to provide a wider variety of courses for their students. Since 1997, enrollment has mushroomed, from 710 students in 11 states to more than 5,000 students in 26 states and 10 countries. Pape's forecast for next year: 7,500 enrollees." Read more.... excellent details and examples of how things work. 04/01/04

Virtual School Costs Under Seige: the other side of the coin to the above article. "K12's Flood says the company "is looking at all 50 states" as possible locations to open new schools, but added that states need to allocate approximately $4,800 to $5,000 per student to adequately support virtual schools. "We're not interested in going into states that don't provide that level of funding," he says. "The profit is in curriculum." 04/01/04

Ten Things We Know About Teaching Online: "I generally recommend the following ten guidelines for managers evaluating the educational effectiveness of Web-based training and CD-ROM programs. These items are grounded; that is, there are research studies showing these items are important factors in effective programs. This is far from an exhaustive list, but these items are easy to understand and managers can relate them to their prior experience. The ten items focus on the teaching aspect of online learning programs." 03/18/04

Institutional Support for the Virtual Professor: "This paper focuses on the institutional support factors that would have to be addressed if the virtual professor is to execute efficiently and effectively the various and traditional responsibilities of the full-time academic. Also, a brief discussion of the competencies required of the virtual academic in order to function effectively is presented." [review posted by Ray Schroeder, editor: Online Learning Update] 01/06/04

Read the E-Learning Predictions for 2004, written by various "eLearning Gurus". 01/06/04

Principles of Adult Learning: By Stephen Lieb. "Despite the apparent truth, adult learning is a relatively new area of study. The field of adult learning was pioneered by Malcom Knowles. He identified the following characteristics of adult learners." 12/10/03

What Can Virtual Learning Do for Your School? a case study on Hawaii’s E-School. 12/04/03

E-Learning ~ Emerging Issues and Key Trends: "The paper considers issues and developments of a technical, organisational and pedagogical nature that are likely to generate change in the use of technologies in education and training. The paper offers a view of the driving forces for e-learning, an historical context for its development, and a vision for the future." 10/06/03

Teaching Courses Online ~ How much time does it take? "The data showed that teaching each online course required 3 to 7 hours per week, with the greatest number of emails and amount of time required during the first and last 2-weeks of the semesters. Participation in and grading of the discussions took the greatest amount of time and remained steady across the semester. However unlike many live courses, the students participated more in the discussions than the instructor did. The number of assignments that were submitted each week steadily increased over each semester. This case study indicates that the time needed to teach online courses falls within the range of reasonable expectations for teaching either live or online courses and represents the beginning of this area of inquiry." 09/28/03

A Revolution in Knowledge Sharing: In this article, we argue that knowledge sharing—if it sparks innovation, changes in organizational dynamics, and new sources of value—can also make the difference in academia and e-learning." "E-knowledge is ready to be harnessed." "Between now and 2010, the elements of e-knowledge, e-knowing, and e-knowledge commerce will mature,using technologies that are largely developed and that await deployment and widespread use. ...The knowledge ecology of colleges and universities will need to change if they are to move from a culture of knowledge hoarding to one of knowledge sharing." 09/13/03

Hard lessons from the big e-learning experiment: An article that examines corporate e-training to discuss "...why the much-hyped new way of workplace training has failed to deliver on its promises and why so many staff just don't want to know." 09/07/03

Top ten tips for implementing e-learning: by Jane Knight. Just one of the very useful articles to be found at her great resource site, the e-Learning Center, "a free information resource for educators and training professionals on e-learning. ...The main focus is on adult e-learning, i.e. e-learning in the workplace, in Higher Education and in continuing professional development." 08/23/03

The Web's Impact On Student Learning ~ Three Areas That Can Enlighten Current Online Learning Practices: The three areas discussed are: The role of individual differences; Instructional design; and Specific skills that are enhanced by online environments. Here's something intriguing: today's college students, brought up with computers and video games, etc. "...arrive with brains that are more likely to have been shaped by very visual, rapid movement, hypertexted environments (Healy 1998). This has led some to suggest that these younger brains are different from those of faculty, who are more likely to have brains formed by reading - a largely linear and slow activity." 05/17/03

A theory for eLearning: "There has been much written about eLearning practice however little attention has been given to eLearning theory. After arguing that a lack of established theory will hinder further development in eLearning, this paper presents ten hypotheses for eLearning in an attempt to focus attention on the underlying principles that apply to eLearning in all situations." The hypotheses cover items such as pedagogy, course design, online vs. offline tradeoffs, learner engagement, etc. 03/21/03

10 Damaging E-learning Myths: "Make no mistake about it, the e-learning industry is going through troubled times. The current economic climate isn’t conducive to providing top quality e-learning and there are mixed opinions about the success of this type of training. ...this article presents 10 damaging myths that we feel are contributing to the problems facing our industry. This list... gives us an opportunity to look again at the assumptions and beliefs that have come to define our dealings with customers. This list could be used to educate clients as they impact the outcome of our work considerably." 03/08/03

Conventional Courses vs. eLearning: "In this paper, we address the issue of how [students using] Web-based instructional development cope with this new style of learning.... We formally evaluated the examination results of one of the Hong Kong CyberU courses and concluded that the learning effectiveness of the students does not exhibit any noticeable difference from those courses offered in conventional mode." 02/08/03

Distance Learning Report (Dec. 2002) from UNESCO: (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) Open And Distance Learning: Trends, Policy And Strategy Consideration. The paper's objective is "to review open and distance learning in the context of present challenges and opportunities, examine relevant concepts and contributions, outline current global and regional trends, suggest policy and strategy considerations, and identify UNESCO's initiatives in open and distance learning, including its role in capacity-building and international co-operation." 01/02/03

Back to basics - e-learning in 2003: "In this article, Clive Shepherd argues that we have only just started to see the true potential for information and communication technology in education and training but that, by getting back to basics and doing the simple things well, we can still expect to see powerful results in the short term." 12/27/02

Ten Things to Consider about E-Learning before Spending a Dime: MariAn Klein has some good food for thought. "Pitfalls abound for those who have not considered many key elements and components necessary to create, develop, and implement an effective e-Learning initiative. ...These basic considerations make up the foundation from which to launch an effective e-learning initiative. ...What is important to consider when developing e-learning initiatives... is that the value of each initiative can be quadrupled through the use and implementation of aligned learning strategy, stream-lined analysis, and careful consideration of cultural and change management factors." 12/20/02

InSynchTraining: This site contains links to several helpful items for those who want to learn more about teaching synchronously online. They also offer training workshops, productions services, and more. 10/30/02

Tips for Synchronous Training: InSynch's Jennifer Hoffman has a webcast at Horizon Live on the topic. 10/30/02

Synchronous Team Teaching: Put Your Heads Together: "A producer or assistant trainer can help transform synchronous programs into trouble-free, fast moving, interactive events that keep learners involved and the trainer on track. In short, the trainer can stay focused on content while the producer takes care of everything else." 10/28/02

Transitioning Technical Instructors to the Web: "You’re not the only one making the shift to live instruction on the Web. Here's how New Horizons Computer Learning Centers made the transition." 10/28/02

What is "Constructivist" teaching and learning? Start your research with these links: 06/07/02
- Constructivism as a Paradigm for Teaching and Learning (starts with "what is constructivism")
- Constructivist Teaching and Learning Models
- Constructivist Teaching and Learning
- Constructivist Teaching Practices: Perceptions of teachers and students

16 Ways to Be a [Great] Teacher: This really is worth reading; maybe we know the 16 points, but a frequent reminder is a good tune up. 06/02/02

E-Learning for the Workplace: An interesting report that includes a "toolkit for developing an e-learning strategy". Prepared in 2001 by the Conference Board of Canada and the Education and Lifelong Learning Group, promoting the use of e-learning to "advance Canadian productivity, innovation, and skills development. 04/26/02

Andragogy: "M.Knowles' theory of andragogy is a theory specifically for adult learning. Knowles emphasizes that adults are self-directed and expect to take responsibility for decisions. Adult learning programs must accommodate this fundamental aspect. ... Andragogy applies to any form of adult learning and has been used extensively in the design of organizational training programs." 11/16/01

Explorations in Learning & Instruction -- The Theory Into Practice (TIP) Database: "TIP is a tool intended to make learning and instructional theory more accessible to educators. The database contains brief summaries of 50 major theories of learning and instruction. These theories can also be accessed by learning domains and concepts." 11/13/01

Aboriginal Learning Technologies: This website is "an initiative of The Conference Board of Canada, and Human Resources Development Canada’s Office of Learning Technologies. The website acts as a toolkit to help Aboriginal communities build opportunities by using technology in education and skills training." Click here for their (pdf) report on Aboriginal Digital Opportunities. 10/18/01

Articles for Website Designers and Site Owners. A recent addition by Ivan Hoffman, Attorney at Law, specialist in Internet and Intellectual Property Law. This site covers copyright, licensing, permissions, linking, fair us, and numerous other legal issues. 08/25/01

Web Based Language Education: The Web Tools Newsletter article discusses issues, pros and cons, materials, tools, etc., and provides links to professional development for online language teachers. 08/21/01

Canadian Online Learning vision statement: July 13, 2001 -- "The Council of Ministers of Education, Canada (CMEC) released today a pan-Canadian vision statement for on-line learning... intended to help Canada’s provinces and territories continue as leaders in the emerging world of e-education. An overview of all major on-line learning initiatives and programs currently in place across Canada and a high-level action plan on e-learning have also been released with the vision statement." Electronic versions of the vision statement, the action plan, and the e-learning overview are included.08/11/01

Online Teaching and Learning Resources: Similar to this site, it's a sectioned "collection of useful sites dealing with the most important issues related to online learning: learning styles, teaching, community building, accessibility, copyright issues, and comparisons of online course management systems." Put together by Laura Little in West Virginia. 07/10/01

Prerequisite Skills for being an Online Educator: Not only a list, but links to resource sites to help you get those skills. 07/02/01

E-Learning is a 24 x 7 Endeavor: This article examines the eLearning Market from a corporate point of view. 07/02/01

Creating Quality Guidelines for Online Education & Training: A draft version of a document created by Canadian Association for Community Education (CACE). Practitioners are invited to review and comment on the draft guidelines, which will form the basis for "a consumer's guide or decision-making tool for on-line learners." 06/15/01

WBT: Web Based Training Information Centre

The e-learning e-volution in Colleges and Universities 03/17/01

Learning Without Limits: From the US Dept. of Education, this site discusses Strategies for the 'new environment', Access, Improving Teacher Quality, Integrating Technology into the Curriculum 03/17/01

Determining the Cost of Online Courses: "A study concerning not only the costs of online education, but which also contains feedback from faculty and students of online courses regarding satisfaction and dis-satisfaction." [Brian Morgan] 02/08/01

Supplemental or totally web-based teaching? An excellent 2-part article by online educator Barb Solberg. 02/06/01

Canadian Advisory Committee Recommends More Spending on Distance Education: Short news article Feb 9/01, with link to their report. 02/13/01

CADE ~ Canadian Association for Distance Education: CADE is "a National association of professionals committed to excellence in the provision of Distance Education in Canada."

Meet the Hologram Teacher: BBC News Report 01/12/00

Virtual Teacher Centre: This online Centre offers teachers and school managers a forum for sharing best-practice ideas and for collaborative problem solving. (It also has libraries of resources for teachers of primary and secondary level.) 01/03/01

Online Teaching Tips from Karla Embleton, Ph.D.: Web design issues, pedagogy, WebCT, and much more. 12/05/00

Web-based Education Overview: Karla Embleton, Ph.D. briefly discusses potential advantages, misconceptions, etc. 12/05/00

The Education Index: "An annotated guide to the best education-related sites on the Web. They're sorted by subject and lifestage, so you can find what you're looking for quickly and easily." 11/17/00

Distance Education At A Glance: "In order to help teachers, administrators, facilitators, and students understand distance education, Barry Willis, the Associate Dean for Outreach and the Engineering Outreach staff present the following series of guides highlighting information...." (many links about Dist.Ed) 10/18/00

Distance-Educator.com: Distance education hub that links educators, students, retailers, and professionals in a single network. References, Solutions, Newsletters, etc. 09/16/00

An Ongoing Debate: Synchronous Versus Asynchronous Interaction in on-line education

Creating Quality On-line Professional Development: Ten Things You Need To Know 10/31/00

What IS the "Digital Divide"? 10/25/00

Facilitating On-line Learning: A New Book - "Experienced and novice on-line educators, looking either for new techniques to add to their inventory or for strategies to improve their overall teaching in on-line mode will find this book informative and useful." (Linda Harasim, TeleLearning Network Leader and CEO, SFU, Vancouver, BC) 10/31/00

Teaching with Electronic Technology: Resource list links to many interesting sites. 10/27/00

Concerns of Instructors Delivering Distance Learning via the WWW: "Institutions must find a way to train and encourage more faculty to develop web-based courses." 10/26/00

Technology Integration: A HUGE list of links to articles and resources for the on-line educator 10/26/00

Redefining the Role of the Teacher: Article from the George Lucas Educational Foundation 10/25/00

The Teacher as Learning Guide 10/25/00

Web Based Training Information Centre: "a non-profit resource for those interested in developing and delivering web-based training, on-line learning, or distance education. Here you will find a WBT primer, surveys, discussion forums, and resource links." 10/18/00

Distance Educator: A wide range information, articles, etc. 10/06/00

CyberLearners.com: an On-line Educational Portal Web Site developed by L-Paradigm

International Forum of Educational Technology & Society - Discussion forum archives, plus links to articles

Distance Ed. Internet Resources: from the Chronicle of Higher Education

Engagement Theory: A Framework for Technology-Based Teaching and Learning: by Greg Kearsley and Ben Shneiderman

Reaching the Reluctant Teacher: Previously published in the May, 1999 issue of eSchool News

American Centre for the Study of Distance Education

Dist.Ed. at Post-Secondary Institutions: statistical analysis report from the National Center for Education Statistics (pdf file)

Beyond Technology: Making a Difference in Student Performance

The Role of the On-line Instructor/Facilitator: Berge, Z.L.

Guidelines for Educational Uses of Networks: An excellent set of links