The discourse on blended learning must not take away focus on learning by concentrating explicitly on technologies. When learner-centred discussions are incorporated, these may be confined to constructivist pedagogies, as evident through the well-established community of inquiry (CoI) framework. While a few early advances argue for behaviourist…

Time seems to be moving at lightning speed with busyness unsustainably being "celebrated" and not allowing for sufficiently deep interaction with learning content, others, and the experience of which we are part, including our interactions in videoconferencing sessions. One benefit of videoconferencing is that it can address time and…

The goal of this single-phase and convergent mixed methods study was to compare the differences in the effectiveness of the Community of Inquiry (CoI) presences of a community college blended block instructional model with the in-person counterpart. Data were gathered from the Community of Inquiry Survey, Blackboard LMS reports, and course…

The ever-changing digital context, digital habits and pressures, demands and practices, often contribute to online learners experiencing burnout, stress, fatigue, sleep deprivation, cognitive overwhelm, and work-life imbalance, just to mention a few issues identified in literature. With the rise of online learning offerings, an increasing number…

Instructional designers are in a unique position to provide leadership and support for advancement of new technologies and practices. Yet a search of literature reveals a paucity of research on current and potential roles specifically focused on instructional designers in relation to incorporating and advocating for open educational practices at…

The purpose of this paper is to highlight the work of one tripartite partnership with stakeholders to improve and strengthen novice teachers' pedagogical designs using design based professional learning guided by the principles of knowledge building/knowledge creation. The tripartite partnership involved 450 novice teachers from an urban school…

This case describes the strategies implemented in the development of an online Master's degree program in Health Professions Education (HPE) and an online short, Master's level diploma program. The strategies presented pertain to three of the main challenges identified: program cohesiveness, a multidisciplinary approach, and information technology…

Quite by chance, and over the course of a few haphazard meetings, a Master's degree in "E-learning Design" gradually developed in a Faculty of Economics. Its original and evolving design was the result of an iterative process carried out, not by a single Instructional Designer (ID), but by a full ID team. Over the last 10 years it has…

This case illustrates the process of developing a learning module to support BA students in their use of ICT (Information and Communication Technology) tools in their learning. At the university where this case occurred, the skill level of ICT use among students in a learning context was very heterogeneous. The E-learning Competency Centre, or…

This case deals with a university program which is well respected but requires changes to be made to it as enrolments dwindle. Pressure from administration is making the Program Head and Program Committee members as well as Senior Instructional Designer LeFort consider new options for its delivery. Online learning is not a well-established…

This case deals with an instructional designer (ID) working at a European university who has been asked to convert an existing on-campus program for working professionals to online delivery. This case took place over a period of several months and led to the development of an online training program. The program was designed to facilitate…

This case describes the two-year development of a set of interactive tutorials for students and faculty at a number of community colleges and one university in order to target information literacy skills among their students, primarily searching for and evaluating information found online. The tools created were published under a "Creative…

Nurses in Canada face diverse challenges to their ongoing educational pursuits. As a result, they have been early adopters of courses and programs based on distance education principles and, in particular, online learning models. In the study described in this paper, nurses studying at two northern universities, in programs involving online…

This case study deals with the implementation of an e-learning program in a business school in Canada. Cabot Business School decided to offer the program in a blended format so as to increase the flexibility of the program for clientele enrolled in the undergraduate certificate program. A pilot was initiated in 2009 starting with four hybrid…

Does learner participation vary depending on the learning context? Are there characteristic features of participation evident in formal, non-formal, and informal online learning environments? Six online learning environments were chosen as epitomes of formal, non-formal, and informal learning contexts and compared. Transcripts of online…