During the pandemic, instructional designers in higher education were busy helping the faculty members transition to remote teaching within a matter of days. However, urgent instructional design (ID) support was not uncommon before the pandemic, especially when supporting adjunct faculty members. After all, design constraints tend to exist in ID…

Instructor performance plays a critical role in fostering student learning. Unlike the postsecondary level, many states in the United States, have substantially regulated class size in the p-12 education system with the aim of enhancing quality learning. Thus, the purpose of this research paper is to examine the correlation between instructor…

Current research indicates that online student grades have dropped at for-profit online institutions, where adjunct online faculty made up for 80-90% of online faculty. Evidence of low online student grades in an era of increased use of adjunct online faculty exists. A quantitative nonexperimental study examined the relationship between adjunct…

Technology and distance education are on the rise in community colleges, four-year institutions, Ivy League colleges, research institutions, and technical colleges. One of the most significant phenomena occurring in Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) today is distance education. Academic leaders can better implement professional…

In this study, the researcher explored the perceptions of adjunct distance education faculty working at a for-profit higher education institution related to their sense of engagement and job satisfaction. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to illustrate the perceived advantages, disadvantages, and areas of consideration for managing…

Online adjunct faculty in Christian higher education have an important role in training students for church and ministry leadership. While their role is critical to many programs, online faculty often feel a sense of isolation from the university community. The purpose of this research was to examine whether a faculty cohort with a focus on…

This paper explores the unlearning and learning undertaken by adjuncts (Associate Lecturers) during the introduction of automated messaging by the university as part replacement of adjunct pastoral support for students. Automated messages were introduced by the University to standardize the student experience in terms of qualification…

This article reports on one institution's efforts to integrate disparate evaluation procedures for face-to-face, hybrid, and online teaching. The resulting peer review of teaching program brings together all stakeholders involved in formative and summative faculty evaluation through an efficient, scalable model. This model utilizes cross-modal…

Institutions of higher learning are expanding their academic reach by offering distance education courses and degree programs. Student demand for distance education continues to grow and so does the need for qualified faculty. The literature presents numerous approaches and best practices regarding new faculty orientation and professional…

With changes in the global economic landscape, universities are employing adjunct staff to instruct their online courses in new and expanding programs. Concomitantly, the growth of information and communication technology worldwide has facilitated the creation of classrooms without walls and universities without borders. The challenge for…

As increasing numbers of higher education students take online courses, there is a corresponding need for additional instructors to teach these students. The research literature indicates that there are different instructor roles, competencies, and attitudes that are required for teaching effectively online than for teaching in campus-based…

This case deals with the redesign of a standard telecourse--printed material, professional studio video recordings and phone tutoring--into an online course. The redesign involved an adjunct professor in the Humanities having some experience in distance education but little with learning technologies. It was a two-year project including the grant…

Significant growth in online programs has created demand for online courses and therefore opportunities for employment for online educators. The vast majority of these employment opportunities have been filled by online adjuncts. A special category of online adjunct has surfaced that leverages the autonomy of working online with freedom from…

Professional development is imperative for the currency and relevancy of a proficient teaching workforce in distance education, and in turn, the quality of programs being delivered. As participation in distance education within Australian universities is growing, with increasing numbers of academics being required to teach, casual employment of…

Massive Open Online Courses ("MOOCs") are free, online courses offered by institutions of higher education to individual users across the world, and in the vast majority of cases, without any admissions criteria. MOOCs are popular with individuals because they offer unprecedented, free access to the best institutions in the world that…