For the forty-fourth time, the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) is sponsoring the publication of these Proceedings. Papers published in this volume were presented online and onsite during the annual AECT Convention. Volume 1 contains papers dealing primarily with research and development topics. Papers dealing with…

For the forty-first time, the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) is sponsoring the publication of these Proceedings. Papers published in this volume were presented at the annual AECT Convention in Kansas City, Missouri. The Proceedings of AECT's Convention are published in two volumes. Volume 1 contains twenty-seven…

For the fortieth time, 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 annual AECT Convention in Jacksonville, Florida. The Proceedings of AECT's Convention are published in two volumes.…

For the forty-third time, the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) is sponsoring the publication of these Proceedings. Papers published in this volume were presented online during the annual AECT Convention. Volume 1 contains 37 papers dealing primarily with research and development topics. Papers dealing with the…

This study examined how differences in communication style affect how likely particular types of messages (e.g. arguments, evidence, critiques, explanations) were able to elicit critical responses during four online debates. Event sequence analysis was used to compare the response probabilities for each type of message across messages that used…

Interactive activities offer innumerable possibilities within eLearning environments. As such, one possibility within the interactive activity realm is netconferencing, so as to support the learning objectives. Enhancements within the eLearning environment support the learner?s focus upon knowledge and conceptual framework of understanding.…

The Internet was not invented for education at beginning (Pett Grabinger, 1995), but it has influenced educational systems considerably, especially by providing another way for distance learning. This powerful communication function is superior to any other educational media. Students can conduct their own self-directed learning without…

For the thirty-seventh year, the Research and Theory Division and the Division of Instructional Design of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) sponsored the publication of these Proceedings. Papers published in this volume were presented at the annual AECT Convention in Jacksonville, Florida. This year's Proceedings…

Simonson, Schlosser and Hanson (1999) argue that a new theory called "equivalency theory" is needed to account for the unique features of the "teleconferencing" (synchronous) model of DE that is prevalent in many North American universities. Based on a comprehensive meta-analysis of the comparative literature of DE (Bernard,…

The development of technologies enables us to create online learning environments. As online learning is expanding its role in higher education, it becomes one of fundamental issues how to create online learning environments to facilitate online interaction. One of the methods is using a discussion board where learners can interact with other…

The intent of this study is to explore how WAP (wireless application protocol) technology mediates online discussions. The focus of this research is on the implications of WAP technology for online discussions, and the types of discussion topics that are most suitable for WAP-based discussions and the finding of the combination of WAP- and…

This paper considers student use of a web-based discussion forum in a second year, non-major Biology course. The authors discuss how meaningful participation in the forum is a form of public writing and may be an indicator of overall student success in the course. The authors also discuss how this success in the course is not tied to the students?…

Current theories of learning have emphasized the value of dialogue for student engagement and achievement (Cazden, 2001; Bruffee, 1992). Research has also shown that the nature of classroom discourse depends greatly on the teacher (Anderson, Rourke, Garrison, & Archer, W., 2001). These issues are relatively well understood in face-to-face…

This paper considers four aspects of online communities. Design, mechanisms, architecture, and the constructed knowledge. We hypothesize that different designs of communities drive different mechanisms, which give rise to different architectures, which in turn result in different levels of collaborative knowledge construction. To test this chain…

The terms "cooperative" and "collaborative" are sometimes used interchangeably in reference to group learning activities in classrooms and in online settings. However, they can be viewed as differing in terms of characteristics such as pre-structure, task structure, and content structure (Strijbos & Martens, 2001; Panitz,…