Benchmarking is an important tool to compare and make deliberate progress in any field of human endeavour. For integration of technology for teaching and learning, this is relatively a new field. The Commonwealth of Learning (COL) promotes the use of technology-enabled learning (TEL) -- also referred to as "digital learning" -- for…

In the race towards achieving the Education 2030 agenda, open educational resources (OER) act as a key enabler for sustainable development goal 4 (SDG4). Leading to the 2014 Regional Focal Points Meeting, Commonwealth of Learning's (COL) Focal Point for Tonga had identified top priorities for the country where COL can further support the national…

How to plan an open and distance learning (ODL) unit in higher education is not clearly described in the literature. A number of ODL facilities at residential universities have not been successful because of a lack of planning or because of failure to ensure that all the different systems for ODL delivery were in place and functioning. This paper…

This paper documents how four Indonesian teacher education institutions (TEIs) engaged in strategic planning to build their capacity in developing pre-service teachers' ICT in education competencies. These TEIs adopted a holistic approach towards strategic planning by drawing upon the six dimensions of the "Capacity Building Toolkit" for…

The dramatic growth of online education over the past two decades is requiring colleges to make a shift from fragmented approaches to program planning and implementation towards a framework integrating both into a coherent support system. This article provides an overview of an emerging holistic framework for planning and implementation of online…

This paper details the advantages of creating a strategic plan in the development and delivery of distance programs at the authors' own institution. The steps involved in the planning process and the three key elements of a successful strategic plan are addressed. The key elements include a program plan explaining the roles/responsibilities of…

This paper traces the genesis of the MIT OpenCourseWare project from its initial strategic precursors in 1999 and 2000, through its launch in 2001 and its subsequent evolution. The story told here illuminates the interplay among institutional leadership, and strategic planning, and with university culture in launching major educational technology…

The purpose of this qualitative research study is to gauge the current state of the academic developments in Educational Technology in order to identify pivotal issues and offer suggestions for future planning in Canada. This article explores the professional literature and the views of 25 senior faculty members from the twelve Canadian…

The University of Sydney is a large, research-intensive, campus-based Australian University. Since 2004 a strategic initiative of project-based eLearning support has been creating teams of non-academic and academic staff, who have worked together to develop online resources to meet identified needs. The University's aims in continuing to provide…

Electronic portfolios are a student-centered outcomes-based assessment regime involving learners in the gathering, selection, and organization of artifacts synthesized into a compilation purposed to demonstrate knowledge, skills, and/or achievements supported by reflections that articulate the relevance, credibility, and meaning of the artifacts…

Presents a planning checklist for staff technology training. Includes forming a committee and developing proposals, contacting pertinent people, handling publicity, sending invitations, distributing schedules/registration information, arranging for equipment, purchasing prizes, conducting preliminary checks on equipment and software, ordering…

Describes three phases, with corresponding characteristics, that emerge as schools plan for technology: (1) Equipment Acquisition; (2) Equipment Acquisition plus Learning; and (3) Results plus Equitable Experiences plus Accountability. Includes a checklist of characteristics of technology planning for each of the three assessment phases. (AEF)

This practitioner-oriented article addresses some of the more commonly overlooked areas of online instructional development. Five sections discuss specific aspects of online program planning and development: (1) Building a Strategic Plan; (2) Technology Planning and Selection; (3) Systemic Instructional Design Considerations; (4) Training and…

Advocates a new form of long-range educational technology planning and presents as an example the North Rockland (Garnerville, New York) Central School District Technology Planning Grid. Describes infrastructure and hardware, and discusses team planning, staff development, and resources. (AEF)

The Information Technology (IT) units at George Mason University (Virginia) work in a dynamic and exciting environment that puts a high value on excellence in IT programs and services. This paper shares some of the challenges of working in that environment and some of the strategies that the senior IT managers have developed to meet those…