The present study analyses the use of Twitter in the course Social Media and Digital Learning, taught as part of a master's programme at Universidad Nacional de Educacion a Distancia (Spain). The main purpose of the use of this resource was to develop a learning community. This was implemented through the micro design of activities. A mixed…

We researched the incorporation of three learning technologies (voice boards, i.e. voice-based discussion boards, e-book readers, and Second Life virtual world), into the Master's Programme in Applied Linguistics and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages offered by distance learning at the University of Leicester. This small-scale study…

This paper describes the effects of collaborative support on groups of distance learners of General Certificate of Secondary Education mathematics. Two experiments are described. In each case, learners were provided with teleconferencing with peers, experts and mentors in addition to structured study materials. No improvements were noticed in…

The high cost of textbooks is of concern not only to college students but also to society as a whole. Open textbooks promise the same educational benefits as traditional textbooks; however, their efficacy remains largely untested. We report on a case study about one community college's adoption of a free online psychology textbook. During the fall…

This paper describes the implementation of an online discussion forum as a means of facilitating case-based learning in an intermediate financial accounting course. The paper commences with a review of case-based learning literature and the use of online discussions as a delivery platform, linking these pedagogical approaches to the emerging needs…

The aim of this paper is to investigate the pedagogical suitability of using cell phones to enhance learning through social interaction in distance education. Social interaction was used as a conceptual framework to explore the potential for using "MXit"--a cell-phone instant messaging system--to support and enhance learning for distance education…

This paper presents and discusses the initial findings of a mobile language learning project undertaken in the context of an undergraduate distance-learning French language programme at The Open University (UK). The overall objective of the project was to investigate students' experiences when using their own portable devices for additional…

We explore how small-format laptops ("netbooks") have been used within evidence-based investigations undertaken by secondary school students, to what extent these are suitable for effectively supporting learners across different locations and contexts, and their implications for open learning. Over the course of seven trials with 300 students and…

Microblogging as a form of expression has gained momentum recently: a widely popular version is Twitter, which began by asking "What are you doing?" While posts responding to this question were often inane and ephemeral, microblogging can still be harnessed for research purposes. This paper reports on a case study with eight participants during a…

This study describes the theoretical rationale underpinning the design and implementation of a career-related activity as an optional element of a virtual residential school. The activity comprised an interview with a practising chartered psychologist recorded as an MP3 audio file, which was subsequently supported by an asynchronous discussion…

Timely collection of feedback on the quality of teaching from graduates and their employers is of great significance in distance education, and can help enhance the quality of teaching and improve management and all-round learner support. However, since the graduates left university some years ago, are now widely dispersed and consequently may…

A comprehensive review of the literature on the evaluation of learning objects revealed a number of problem areas, including emphasizing technology ahead of learning, an absence of reliability and validity estimates, over-reliance on informal descriptive data, a tendency to embrace general impressions of learning objects rather than focusing on…

This paper considers the influence of e-tuition using an asynchronous written conferencing package, "FirstClass," upon retention and success rates for Masters-level courses in a distance learning programme as compared with similar courses that were supported in a traditional manner using face-to-face tuition. The paper investigates the common…

This paper presents our experiences and the challenges identified in transforming traditional lecture-based modules at a university into problem-based blended learning within a social constructivist approach. Our experiment was, among other factors, motivated by an urgent need to meet new curriculum requirements by reducing the lecturing time in a…

This paper presents a study of the use of wikis to support online group projects in two courses at the UK Open University. The research aimed to investigate the effectiveness of a wiki in supporting (i) student collaboration and (ii) tutors' marking of the students' collaborative work. The paper uses the main factors previously…