The community of inquiry (COI) framework is a theoretical and practical model for creating deep, meaningful online learning experiences through three essential and interconnected elements: teaching presence, social presence, and cognitive presence. Asynchronous online discussions (AODs) are the typical communication medium in a COI; therein, a…

The purpose of this action research was to determine if motivation and perception of adult learners enrolled in a GED program at the Small Town Adult Education Center in South Carolina were affected by the use of communicative technologies and improved student-teacher relationships. This study focused on three overarching research questions. The…

This qualitative case study examines learners' experiences in the development of written complexities during Discussion Board (DB) assignments in an Advanced university level Chinese class. Discussion Board was chosen as the avenue for written complexity development because it provides learners a supplementary space with additional time and…

Studies show that how students think of mathematics is related to their approach to learning and course performance; views that fall into one of two categories, fragmented or cohesive conceptions of math. Students who view mathematics as a complex system that can be used to explain the world around them (cohesive), often adopt deeper approaches to…

The leading characteristics of persons with autism spectrum disorder include challenging communication practices and asocial reactions which are the outcome of uncommon human sensory processes. As a result, adverse learning practices, outcomes, and greater dropout rates often outline the community college experience for students with ASD. The…

The proliferation of information and communication technologies and the prevalence of online social networks have facilitated the opportunities for informal learning of foreign languages. However, little educational research has been conducted on how individuals utilize those social networks to take part in self-initiated language learning without…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the claims made in the popular press about the "digital native" generation as learners. Because students' lives today are saturated with digital media at a time when their brains are still developing, many popular press authors claim that this generation of students thinks and learns…

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the consistent use of metacognitive strategies embedded in an Interactive Student Notebook (ISN) would impact the science process skills of 7th-grade students. In addition, this study explored whether specific teacher written feedback, provided to students in the ISN, further enhanced the use of…

Teacher professional development is a complex enterprise (Sprinthall, Reiman, and Thies-Sprinthall, 1996). While many online professional development programs have been introduced over the past several years that provide continuous, job-embedded support, empirical evidence relating what works and what does not has been limited (Whitehouse, Breit,…

A disconnect exists between how students communicate using their mobile phones outside of school and how they use them in the classroom. Many high schools across the United States ban their use, even though numerous mobile learning strategies are available. Although research pertaining to m-learning has been conducted at the collegiate level, a…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of universally designed (UD) instruction on strategic learning in an online, interactive learning environment (ILE). The research focused on the premise that the customizable, media-based framework of UD instruction might influence diverse online learning strategies. This study…