This article focuses on the multicultural nature of distance learners. To note, the heightened demand for higher education on a global scale, as well as rapid advancements in telecommunication technologies, have rendered online distance education as having potential for worldwide reach online schools in many countries. Because of this, online…

Curriculum has two major approaches, technical and scientific approach and the nontechnical-nonscientific approach. Both are different and distinct. Schools need to distinguish which approach is suited for their students.

Teaching outside one's expertise can be intimidating, but educators can still create an environment where students learn new things. This article provides ways to help educators teach well what they don't know. One way is to consider the principle of backward design. Educators can begin with the end product first: What do they want their students…

Transformative Learning Theory has become one of the leading adult learning theories today and yet students, practitioners, and faculty can find it difficult to use. This useful theory has been applied to a variety of settings, including helping to describe the process which occurs as life mission is related to self directed learning. In the book,…

Research has shown that when Merrill's First Principles of Instruction are used as part of an instructional strategy, student learning increases. Several articles describe these principles of instruction, including specific methods for implementing this theory. However, because teachers and designers often have little time to design instruction,…

In his book "Creating Significant Learning Experiences" (2003), Dee Fink challenges professors to create a deep vision for the courses they teach. Educators often have a vision for what their courses could be, but often lack a model for instituting change. Fink's book provides that model. In this article, the author describes how this model helped…

Reflection is an important yet often-neglected aspect of management performance. This article proposes that management educators take advantage of the contemplative classroom learning process by modeling and teaching reflective practice. A framework for conceptualizing reflective learning is presented. Reflection can result in deeper learning not…

Just as the popular television show "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" targets the demolition and reconstruction of a home so that it better meets the needs of its owners, Fink's approach to integrated course design (ICD; 2003) provides higher education faculty with the tools to deconstruct and do a major remodel of their college courses. Teaching…

This article presents an interdisciplinary approach to course redesign that enhanced student learning across all six categories in Dee Fink's taxonomy. A meta-analysis of the results provides evidence that integrated course design produces significant learning. In this article, the authors tell four connected stories: (1) how Fink's book,…

As research faculty with expertise in the area of host-pathogen interactions (HPI), we used a research group model to effect our professional development as scientific educators. We have established a working hypothesis: The implementation of a curriculum that forms bridges between our seven HPI courses allows our students to achieve deep and…

Affirmative action, a controversial topic about which students have many misconceptions, lends itself especially well to a sociological analysis. This paper describes an approach to teaching that: (1) informs students of different affirmative action programs; (2) gives them the opportunity to apply and integrate a variety of concepts and research…

Teaching about intersecting, fluid and historically contingent identities has been taken up extensively within the sociology of race, class and gender and women's studies. Oddly, the case of Jewish women has been virtually left out of this robust literature. This article explores the challenges raised through teaching the course "Jewish Women in…

Workplace motivation historically has been an HR function, with ID as a training function. This division produces a split between motivation and training, leaving them isolated from one another. Intervention design needs to include motivation throughout its phases, to maximize motivating opportunities for performance improvement. The current…

A student's behavioral performance within the classroom is influenced, in large part, by the interaction that student has with the learning environment and the people in that environment. Identifying antecedent variables that effect student performance enables practitioners to set the stage for prosocial behavior and academic learning. One…