Search results

Many universities now offer courses online using learning management systems (LMS). Numerous studies have been conducted to assess the effectiveness of the LMS but few studies have examined how student online behavior within the course, or what they think about the online course, are related to their actual learning outcomes. The paper aims to discuss this issue.

In this study, student activity in an online business course was captured though learning analytics and assignments to determine if online activity and reflective learning impact final grade. A post-positivist ideology was employed. The dependent variable was the grade resulting from five assignments assessed using rubrics. Correlation, t-tests, multiple regression, surface response regression, General Linear Model (GLM)/F-tests, text analytics, analysis of means (ANOM), and cluster analysis were used to test the hypotheses.

Four statistically significant predictors of online student learning performance were identified: course logins, lesson reading, lesson quiz activity, and lesson quiz scores. This four factor model captured 78 percent of variance on course grade which is a strong effect and larger than comparative studies using learning analytics with online courses. Text analytics and ANOM conducted on student essays identified 17 reflective learning keywords that were grouped into five clusters to explain online student behavior.

First, from a pedagogy standpoint, encouraging students to complete more online lessons including quizzes, generally promotes learning, resulting in higher grades, which is a win:win for students and for the university. Second, from an IT perspective, the student pre and post testing resulted in statistically significant increase of IT-course knowledge, which puts students on a solid foundation to begin an online business course. Additionally, the link between students voicing IT problems but nonetheless scoring very well on the course certainly implies the development of IT self-efficacy, developed partly through the pre and post testing process. A clear link was established between course learning objectives and student learning performance by using a unique text analytics procedure.

The mixed-methods research design started with hypothesis testing using parametric and nonparametric techniques. Once a statistically significant predictive GLM was developed, qualitative data were collected from what the students thought as expressed in their last essay assignment. Text analytics was used to identify and statistically weight the 17 most frequent reflective learning keywords from student essays. A visual word cloud was presented. Parametric statistics were then used to partition the reflective learning keywords into grade boundaries. Nonparametric cluster analysis was used to group similar reflective keyword-grade associations together to form five clusters. The five clusters helped to explain student online behavior.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a selected bibliography of recent resources on library instruction and information literacy.

Introduces and annotates periodical articles, monographs, and audiovisual material examining library instruction and information literacy.

Provides information about each source, discusses the characteristics of current scholarship, and describes sources that contain unique scholarly contributions and quality reproductions.

The information may be used by librarians and interested parties as a quick reference to literature on library instruction and information literacy.

Poses some fundamental questions which need to be answered before course developers and facilitators can transform hands‐on, classroom experiences to a totally computer‐based learning environment, as happens when adopting the Internet as a teaching medium. Recognizes that instructors face steep learning curves with the advent of Internet‐based education and emphasizes that the online environment must be created in such a way that learning can and will take place. Examines many pros and cons of online learning. Concludes that faculty life will become more complicated until members become proficient in online learning but ultimately believes that effective learning experiences will be the result.

In this paper we provide evidence of successful online learning experience with UAE students at Zayed University in the UAE. First we describe the processes and technologies used in delivering the online course "Virtual Business Challenges". Based on survey results we discuss students’ evaluations and experience and the technologies used. Overall, students had a positive learning experience in the course.

The future of online business education seems quite bright. Three‐fifths of the 1,700 US institutions of higher learning that are engaged in distance education – 55 percent of which offer credit‐bearing business courses – already use some form of Internet‐based technology. Nonetheless, there have been no large‐scale studies of potential online business students in terms of their traits and desires. In this article, the background of distance education is presented. Then, the results of a major survey, involving NPD’s Online Research Panel, are discussed. In all, 2,651 adults participated in the survey, 1,945 of whom indicated some interest in online business education. Eight propositions are tested, relating to demographics, courses versus programs, reasons for enrolling or not enrolling, desired features, customer service expectations, tuition, prestige and value, and institutional attributes.

With the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe in March 2020, higher education institutions (HEIs) worldwide were confronted with creating online courses to complete the semester. While emphasizing positive elements such as flexibility and innovative solutions, the literature focused on numerous faculty problems such as online fatigue, emotional well-being and stress. This paper aims to explore faculty perceptions of teaching during the exceptional circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Two surveys, in the first week and at the end of the semester, were conducted at a business school in Switzerland via the program Lima. A total of 19 faculty members participated in the survey. Of the participants, 56.7% responded in the first survey and 70.9% responded in the second.

The findings revealed that the faculty’s impressions of their online courses remained positive. The most significant issue cited was time. According to faculty estimations, more than ten additional hours per week were spent preparing for online courses. Nonetheless, many faculty members reported interest in continuing online practices in their future courses.

The COVID-19 pandemic pushed HEIs to embrace the digital revolution while teaching in a competence-oriented mode. However, moving forward, HEIs must mitigate the long-term effects by careful planning and evaluating their digital readiness as an institution and offering training for their faculty and students when necessary.

The study contributes to the existing literature by analyzing one stakeholder group, i.e. faculty members, and their perceptions of teaching during a worldwide pandemic.

The current literature examining the design of effective online learning opportunities recommends an array of best practices but no agreed upon and unifying model. The purpose of this paper is to survey the existing research of effective design models for online learning in an attempt to identify best practices and present a new model.

Through a comprehensive review of the literature, the paper identifies obstacles to developing an effective course design model for asynchronous distance education. Based upon this review, best practices are identified and a design model is recommended.

The research identifies the key components of successful course design methods and ultimately recommends a process that has eight steps which occur in three phases. The first phase, the identification phase, encourages the instructor and/or course design team to identify strategies, objectives, assessments and resources. In the second phase, design, instructors select, organize, adapt and reflect. The final phase is implementation, during which the course is taught.

The recommended design model has implications for practice by providing a clear structure for design activities which are aligned with the best practices identified in the research. Instructors and/or instructional designers creating online learning opportunities now have a coherent model supported by a review of the literature.

While a number of online course design models exist, no one model has emerged as pre‐eminent or most effective and efficient. The model recommended by this paper offers a unified model of courses design that synthesizes the most effective aspects of the extant models.

The purpose of this paper is to understand the lived experiences from the voice of the authors (a science professor, an instructional designer, a distance learning doctoral intern, and a distance learning director) in the process of transitioning a face-to-face science course to online modality at a large, research university.

The method of this qualitative inquiry involves a personal narrative approach in which the authors reflect on their experiences of this process and analyze it through writing.

The findings examine the challenges of moving a traditional course online and reiterate the value of a team approach to ensure its quality. The narrative offers clarity to the different phases of such a project and can enhance decision making among those involved in course design and delivery, as well as administrators incentivizing the conversion of traditional courses to the online modality.

Online education has emerged as a viable solution. The challenges and rewards of transitioning face-to-face courses to distance learning modalities are well documented, even for a senior science educator.

Universities face several modern day challenges, including reductions in state appropriations, lack of available space for classes, challenges of engaging a technologically savvy generation, and preparing students for a global marketplace.

To support faculty members’ transition to online education, universities offer instructional design support, where ideas are exchanged with faculty members to ensure pedagogically sound and engaging distance learning. The authors conclude with recommendations for both practice and future research in the area of practice and process improvement for diffusion of online courses at traditional universities, one course at a time. This is important to those beginning to transition course offerings online.

As online education offerings are extended to more students, organizations are increasingly interested in the effectiveness of online learning compared to a traditional classroom. The need for research on the learning outcomes of students is imperative. The purpose of this study is to compare student learning in a traditional classroom with the equivalent online course. This research explores the research question: What is the difference between student learning in a leadership studies course through online versus traditional delivery methods? This study utilizes a directed content analysis to investigate student assignments using Kolb’s Experiential Learning Model as a foundational theory. Previous research reveals a contradiction on student outlook on the instructor and format of the class, as well as understanding the effectiveness of each method of delivery. Findings in this study indicate that online students may engage more often in deeper learning on assignments than those in the traditional classroom environment.

This study aims to demonstrate which course elements were responsible for community building, fostering subjectification and learning for being in an online course on environmental and sustainability education (ESE) during the COVID-19 pandemic and physical distancing.

The study investigates a graduate-level course on Environmental Education for Sustainable Living that due to COVID-19 had to be taught mainly online. A retrospective analysis was conducted when the facilitators reflected on why the course, against expectations, appeared to have affected so many students in such a meaningful and profound way as shown by their personal reflections and the course evaluation. Methodologically, this study can be described as explorative and interpretative, although it was complemented by a standardised empirical analytical end-of course evaluation.

Within the context of this study, sense of community is linked to and facilitated by the online learning environment and the educators’ and students’ roles throughout the course. This study found that interaction and inclusion can be augmented by a hybrid educational design and supported by the mutual efforts of educators and students. Reflective tasks and discussions most prominently evoked subjectification. The encouragement of students to see themselves as central subjects and the inclusion of creative tasks supported both personal exploration and sense of community.

This study provides educational institutions teaching online with valuable information regarding course elements that foster subjectification and create a sense of community. This is particularly of interest for the design of online ESE emphasising learning for being and more relational approaches towards teaching and learning.