Dropout is a major concern in networked learning practices, however, little is known about the issue within the perspective of cultural contexts. On this basis, cultural context and dropout patterns were examined through a mixed-methods approach in which social network analysis and two-way between-group comparisons (culture vs. dropout) were…

Humans have always been lured by the idea that they can use data to understand a phenomenon and make predictions about it. Learning analytics, in this sense, promise to understand and optimize learning and the environments in which it occurs by collecting data from learners and learning contexts. In this regard, this study systematically examines…

This study presents a social network analysis of the keywords attached to articles published in the "Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education" ("TOJDE"), a prominent journal in the field of open and distance learning. The social network analysis applied was based on a data mining and analytics approach. A total of 1120…

The field of distance education (DE) is dynamic and constantly evolving; it reflects and adapts according to changes in socio-cultural, demographic, political, and technological domains. Thus, there is a need to understand past and present activities in the field, in order to better inform future research. The main purpose of this study was to…

The blending learning model, a combination of onsite and online learning modalities formulated by relevant pedagogies, modalities, and technologies, offers learning experiences that involve the different factors shaping each modality, such as time, space, path, and pace, through sequential or parallel designs. In its relatively short history, this…

The purpose of this research is to examine the research that has been done on MOOCs by applying data mining and analytic approaches and to depict the current state of MOOC research. The text mining revealed four broad themes: (I) MOOCs as a mainstreaming learning model in HE, (II) motivation and engagement issues in MOOCs, (III) assessment issues…

The purpose of this research is to better understand community formation in MOOCs through employing combined lenses of connectivism, rhizomatic learning, actor-network theory, community of practice, and community of inquiry. In a sequential explanatory mixed methodology design, social network analysis and nethnography were used to analyze and…

The rise of the networked society has not only changed our perceptions but also the definitions, roles, processes and dynamics of online learning networks. From offline to online worlds, networks are everywhere and gatekeepers are an important entity in these networks. In this context, the purpose of this paper is to explore gatekeeping and…

This study intends to explore the current trends in the field of distance education research during the period of 2009-2013. The trends were identified by an extensive review of seven peer reviewed scholarly journals: "The American Journal of Distance Education" (AJDE), "Distance Education" (DE), "The European Journal of…

This mixed methods study addresses a knowledge gap in the nature and effects of networked scholarship. We analyze #DigPed, a Twitter hashtag on critical pedagogy, through the lens of Tufekci's "capacities and signals" framework in order to understand how educational narratives develop and spread on #DigPed. Using social network analysis…

This article contributes to the literature on connectivism, connectivist MOOCs (cMOOCs) and rhizomatic learning by examining participant interactions, community formation and nomadic learner behavior in a particular cMOOC, #rhizo15, facilitated for 6 weeks by Dave Cormier. It further focuses on what we can learn by observing Twitter interactions…