When students are initially immersed into the academic and social community of their program, they are more likely to succeed than if left to navigate graduate school on their own. As such, well-crafted onboarding initiatives are among the highest impact retention practices and key to enhancing the graduate student experience. While George Mason…

Purpose: Digital learning systems are crucial for education and data collected can analyse students learning performances to improve support. The purpose of this study is to design and build an asynchronous hardware and software system that can store data on a local device until able to share. It was developed for staff and students at university…

Large-enrollment, asynchronous, online courses present significant teaching and learning challenges, particularly in implementing evidence-based practices such as building connections with students and offering personalized support. This Quick Hit explores the use of module conditional release, a feature in learning management systems, which can…

Online-only course design has to balance students' needs to experience (1) competence and (2) autonomy as it may affect their motivation. Lecture units can provide structured guidance by being made accessible in a fixed order, or support students' autonomy by providing free access to all lecture units. Online-only courses with lecture units…

We investigated the utility of ChatGPT 3.5 in the creation of a fully online asynchronous higher education course. Our collaborative effort with ChatGPT resulted in developing a Master's level course on Trends and Issues in Instructional Design using the Backward Design Model. Throughout this process, we recognized the critical role of precise…

This study describes how online courses were designed and delivered based on the Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework and how this influenced the online interaction in a Sino-American university in Wenzhou, China during the pandemic. The courses were English composition and Academic oral discourse, and Canvas was used as the learning management…

This study examines the swift shift to online learning prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic, assessing the effectiveness of a faculty distance training program based on the TMOC (Training for the Management of Online Courses) model. The training program aimed to equip faculty with essential skills for online learning, emphasizing a blend of…

Learning in the COVID-19 pandemic era tends to apply online learning both Synchronous and Asynchronous. Method of asynchronous learning such as using Edmodo, students meet with educators in online classes, where they discuss and do assignments and meet educators indirectly. Learning according to the IQF curriculum in tertiary institutions is…

The COVID-19 induced abrupt transition to online learning that occurred in the Spring of 2020 presented particular challenges to the adaptation of hands-on laboratory courses in biomedical engineering. This paper describes the transition of such a course in one undergraduate program, assessment of this transition, and how this assessment has led…

Information and communications technologies offer unprecedented opportunities for innovation in educational practice. Among all the educational technological tools, online discussion forums represent one of the most extensively adopted educational media in higher education. Yet a review of the literature indicates a lack of empirical studies…

The Community of Inquiry framework has been widely supported by research to provide a model of online learning that informs the design and implementation of distance learning courses. However, the relationship between elements of the CoI framework and perceived learning warrants further examination as a predictive model for online graduate student…

This study explores the use of the virtual classroom which has been created in "myVLE", a learning management system used by the Open University Malaysia (OUM). The virtual classroom in "myVLE" is an asynchronous-based online learning environment that delivers course materials to learners and provides collaboration and…

The LMS (learning management system) at many schools for delivering, tracking and managing education relies on TEL (technology-enhanced learning), what Nichols called "pedagogy empowered by digital technology" (Nichols, 2008). It includes the "paperless classroom" in traditional (not online) classes in which faculty and students exchange…

The purpose of this study is to investigate learners' perceptions of the benefits of tasks using voice tools to reinforce their oral skills. Additionally, this study seeks to determine what aspects of task design affected the students' perceptions. Beginner learners aged 18 to 36 with little or no experience in the use of technological tools for…

The US economic downturn has resulted in many professionals, job seekers, and high school graduates heading back to school to develop new skills, but fewer of these students can afford a conventional four-year college education today. Community and technical colleges typically charge tuition fees that are less than half of those at public…