The purpose of this reflection of teaching online through the COVID-19 outbreak is to shed light on the importance of setting middle school students up for success despite being thrust into an unfamiliar virtual, learning environment. The personal narrative speaks to the ways in which I set up a new online learning environment with structure,…

Given the widespread adoption of the Next Generation Science Standards in the United States, there is a need to study new models of professional development to prepare teachers to enact practice-based visions of science learning and to address problems of access to reach teachers nationwide. While studies of online professional development offer…

In recent years, a number of models concerning problem solving systems have been put forward. However, many of them stress on technology and neglect the research of problem solving itself, especially the learning mechanism related to problem solving. In this paper, we analyze the learning mechanism of problem solving, and propose that when…

Using a quasi-experimental, nonequivalent pretest/posttest control group design, the researchers examined the effects of online collaborative learning on eighth-grade student's sense of community in a physical science class. For a 9-week period, students in the control group participated in collaborative activities in a face-to-face learning…

In two studies, we investigated how learning strategies can support learning from multimedia. In the first study, 112 students learned from a web-based learning environment. On the basis of a strategy, one group of students took typewritten notes. The second group of students wrote a summary. Producing typewritten notes did not benefit learning…

While our understanding of student engagement in the compulsory schooling sector is well developed in face-to-face contexts, the same cannot be said for online and distance learning environments. Indeed, most of what is currently known about online engagement has come from research with older students in tertiary education contexts. This study…

Background: Blending collaborative learning and project-based learning (PBL) based on Wolff (2003) design categories, students interacted in a learning environment where they developed their technology integration practices as well as their technological and collaborative skills. Purpose: The study aims to understand how seventh grade students…

Considering the digital landscape of the 21st century classroom, it is paramount that teacher education programs prepare preservice teachers to incorporate technology into their classrooms to engage in communicative and collaborative acts as readers and writers. This collective case study was conducted to explore what happened when nine preservice…

This paper focused on whether the use of online discussion boards can enhance the quality of interaction in the middle and high school English classroom, covering both the characteristics of online discussion boards and potential negative effects of their features. The features of online discussion boards, their effects, and how these boards…

This research provides an analysis of Internet use and online literacy skill among seventh-grade students who were identified as having a high risk for school dropout. Participants (n = 1,025) included students from 12 middle schools in 9 school districts. Six of the schools were located in rural and urban districts in the Northeast United States…

This study explored rural middle-school students' participation in an online summer reading course. The research question explored the patterns and practices of the student's participation in an online reading course and the instructional moves made by the teacher. Data were gathered from a small group (n = 4) of rural middle school students…

Online classes are a viable option in today's educational landscape, but are they right for your school and students? This article reviews the status of online education, 21st century skills, best practices in online education, and online classes as experienced by a middle school student and parent. (Contains 2 figures.)

Eight teams of elementary and middle school teachers developed pilot online courses for the North Carolina Virtual Public School (NCVPS) in the USA. A qualitative case study with focus groups and a follow-up survey helped to identify common needs of these non-traditional course designers during course development efforts. Findings suggest virtual…

This paper draws on data gathered from a five-month phenomenological study of middle school students' perceptions of the effects of computer-based technologies on a learning community in an online synchronous environment. Twenty-four eighth-grade students participated in the Web Pen Pals project, a university-secondary telecollaborative…

For the twenty-fifth year, the Research and Theory Division of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) is sponsoring the publication of these Proceedings. Papers published in this volume were presented at the National AECT Convention in Dallas, TX. The Proceedings of AECT's Convention are published in two volumes.…