Earlier forms of distance education were characterized by minimal social interaction like correspondence, television, video and radio. However, the World Wide Web (WWW) and online learning introduced the opportunity for much more social interaction, particularly among learners, and this has been further made possible through social media in Web…

This article presents the results of a three-year study of graduate and undergraduate students' level of satisfaction with online instruction at one university. The study expands on earlier research into student satisfaction with e-learning. Researchers conducted a series of surveys over eight academic terms. Five hundred and fifty-three students…

Learning management systems (LMS) have been proven to encourage a constructive approach to knowledge acquisition and support active learning. One of the keys to successful and efficient use of LMS is how the stakeholders adopt and perceive this learning tool. The present research is therefore motivated by the importance of understanding teachers'…

This paper outlines an action research project involving the development of an educational online role-playing website, known as Lake Devo. Designed in keeping with constructivist principles, the website is used in select post-secondary courses at Ryerson University and allows learners to work synchronously, using visual, audio, and text elements…

This study examined the relationships among learning styles, study habits, and learning performances in an online programming language course. Sixty-two sophomore students who enrolled in an online introductory programming course participated in the study. Kolb's Learning Style Inventory (LSI) was used to measure the students' learning styles.…

We studied student learning in the MOOC 8.MReV Mechanics ReView, run on the edX.org open source platform. We studied learning in two ways. We administered 13 conceptual questions both before and after instruction, analyzing the results using standard techniques for pre- and posttesting. We also analyzed each week's homework and test questions in…

M-learning is the style of learning for the new millennium. Decreases in cost and increases in capabilities of mobile devices have made this medium attractive for the dissemination of knowledge. Mobile engineers, software developers, and educationists represent the supply side of this technology, whereas students represent the demand side. In…

Many college students and their families are concerned about the high costs of textbooks. A company called Flat World Knowledge both gives away and sells open-source textbooks in a way it believes to be financially sustainable. This article reports on the financial sustainability of the Flat World Knowledge open-source textbook model after one…

While e-learning is now characterized by a past and trends within that past, there continues to be uncertainty about how e-learning is defined and conceptualized, whether or not we like e-learning, and whether or not it is as meaningful to us as face to face learning. The purpose of this study was to document the e-learning perceptions of students…

Online interaction is considered to be a key aspect of effective e-learning and improved academic achievement. However, few studies have examined how effectiveness varies with the degree of interaction intensity. Using data for 17,090 students from three Catalan universities, in this paper we study the productivity associated with five different…

Some authors have stated that university students born after 1982 have been profoundly influenced by digital technologies, showing different characteristics when compared to previous generations. However, it is worth asking if that is a current observable phenomenon. Are those students born after the 80s really more familiar with ICT tools than…

With the growth of online courses and programs in higher education, considerable concerns emerge about student feelings of isolation and disconnectedness in the online learning environment. A research study was conducted to develop and validate an instrument that can be used to measure perceptions of connectedness of students enrolled in online…

Student retention and progression has exercised the HE sector for some time now, and there has been much research into the reasons why students drop out of Higher Education courses. (Allen, 2006; Buglear, 2009;). More recently the Higher Education Academy Grants Programme Briefing (HEFCE, 2010), outlined a number of areas that emergent project…

E-learning has become an increasingly important teaching and learning mode in educational institutions and corporate training. The evaluation of e-learning, however, is essential for the quality assurance of e-learning courses. This paper constructs a four-phase evaluation model for e-learning courses, which includes planning, development,…

Individuals who are self-regulated in their learning appear to achieve more positive academic outcomes than individuals who do not exhibit self-regulated learning behaviors. We suggest that distinct profiles of self-regulated learning behaviors exist across learners. In turn, these profiles appear to be associated with significantly different…