Distance learning is commonplace in higher education, with increasing numbers of students enjoying the flexibility e-learning provides. Keeping students connected with peers and instructors has been a challenge with e-learning, but as technology has advanced, the methods by which educators keep students engaged, synchronously and asynchronously,…

People in society have managed to survive and, often, thrive in a world characterized by ever-increasing technological change. Yet technological transience causes or at least exacerbates challenges faced by teachers and teacher education programs when using technology for educational purposes. This article presents frameworks used to assist in the…

The movement toward greater availability of online education in the university setting creates challenges for design, development, and implementation of online courses, particularly those focused on the educational use of technology as content. This article is structured around a central theme of designing and implementing hybrid online courses…

Collaborative learning technologies (tools that are used for facilitating or mediating collaborative learning) have been widely incorporated in distance education as well as broadly adopted in higher education. While a range of collaborative technologies has been incorporated, their implementation has often failed to align with well-established…

In this article, the author explores how technological change is affecting most aspects of our society. In this vein, it is noted that even though education has historically been more resistant to technological change than other societal sectors, recent advances in distance education, specifically online learning, promise to radically disrupt…

The purpose of this study was to examine online instructors' experiences and perceptions of online teaching and their communication with students in an online environment. More specifically, the study focused on the questions regarding: (1) instructors' general experiences and perceptions of online teaching; (2) instructors' general experiences…

The three-dimensional (3D) virtual world is one of the current innovations that has been discussed extensively as the potential medium for online distance education. Despite the heated discussion on the possible applications of 3D virtual worlds for distance education, empirical studies were hard to locate, and little has been written about how…

Standards for academic and student support services (SSS) in distance education as identified by the University of Wisconsin System Administration Board of Regents were applied to the SSS provided by the Wawasan Open University (WOU). A student feedback survey conducted over 4 semesters confirmed that WOU's SSS had been positively received and…

This study sought to understand how an online cohort in a master's program, comprised of teachers from the same school district, constructed knowledge about instructional theories and practices. Participants in this descriptive study included 10 teachers from the same rural school district. Data collection consisted of a focus group and written…

The authors conducted a comparative analysis to examine learners' interaction in the Web-based learning environment of 2 distance education institutions. The interaction was critically analyzed based on social, procedural, expository, explanatory, and cognitive dimensions, across 7 categories of exchanges between course coordinator to groups,…

This article reviews research related to the construct of interaction in the educational technology and distance education literature. The review is limited to higher education and includes theories and empirical research that inform the construct of online interactions. Conceptual and operational definitions of "interaction" are categorized from…

Briefly examines past military distance education practices and then focuses on discussion of the Department of Defense's (DoD's) initiative in Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL). Outlines some of the potential problems that should be addressed in the near future and possible solutions towards the goal of implementing a successful ADL system for…

Presents a process-based framework for evaluating students' efforts in online discussion. Delineates criteria for evaluating students' contributions to an online discussion and describes processes for implementing student-centered evaluations and professor-centered evaluations. Offers implications for future theoretical and empirical endeavors.…

How will appropriate technologies for courses designed in the 21st century be determined? Some say the meeting of students with teachers will soon be a relic of the past, like signal fires. Others advocate the need for face-to-face instruction. Another position is advocated by those who say education should use a combination of face-to-face and…

Examines distance education in postsecondary institutions, specifically in community and technical colleges in the United States, as an educational domain where information technologies have a central place. Looks at characterizing features of distance education management through a group of distance education managers and explores their role as…