In this "Distance Learning" Special Issue, Errol Craig Sull introduces "Try This," a series of articles to assist distance instructors with Overcoming Teaching Challenges. This article "Teaching the Online Upper Level Student," identifies students who for the most part take courses in their major track and have a…

Much recent STEM research indicates that course integration improves the student learning experience and fosters stronger connections among concepts and skills; this study attempts to evaluate whether or not students learn the design process more fully in the integrated version of a required first-year course, Design Thinking in Technology.…

Teacher educators needing to meet requirements of state licensing bodies and accrediting organizations are in a position similar to that of K-12 teachers: they must adhere to externally imposed standards and curricular requirements while keeping their courses rigorous, interesting, and critical. This article reports results from a self-study…

This qualitative case study explored preservice teachers' (PSTs) beliefs about disciplinary literacy as they engaged in a blog project with middle-school students to discuss historical texts. Twenty-eight PSTs, enrolled in a semester-long social studies methods course and participating in the blog project as a course assignment, constituted the…

Group work, an essential component of learning and teaching in problem-based learning (PBL), is compromised if students' experiences of PBL are colored by dissatisfaction with the process or outcomes. For the potential benefits of PBL to be realized PBL group work must be genuinely collaborative to address students' personal and professional…

This qualitative case study examines one faculty member's approach toward instilling culturally immersive experiences into graduate curriculum. Participants completed course assignments designed to enhance their multicultural understanding and competence. Course assignments culminated in an immersive experience where students embodied an…

In this article, the author describes how she used a commonplace book assignment to help students expand their background knowledge and as a means to formulate mature, informed perspectives regarding issues of importance. In the assignment, the author wanted the students to: (1) investigate issues of the day; (2) develop multiple perspectives…

This study, using mixed methods design research, examined the achievement of third level preservice teachers when advice in the form of text and resources was provided based on students' identified learning styles. In this study, Kolb's learning style inventory was used to identify students' preferred learning style preferences, and an online…

Drawing on portraiture methods, this case study is an exploration of the experiences of pre-service teachers who participated in a music-integrated literacy methods course during their first semester in an elementary teacher preparation program. The study is a response to previous researchers' findings that arts-integrated university courses hold…

The purpose of this teacher action research was twofold: to learn more about preservice teachers' preconceived notions related to listening and to investigate how a listening journal assignment impacted preservice teachers' views of listening as an important aspect of discourse. The participants were enrolled in a mathematics methods course for…

This paper explores the design and assessment of reflective journals in a course on spirituality and management in a tertiary institution. The purpose of reflection in education is to develop students' self-awareness and inner leadership. Yet, such assessment poses challenges in terms of design, content and grading. This paper explores the…

Telecommunications in the classroom helps transform familiar types of assignments into new forms, increasing students' motivation while extending opportunities for critical thinking. This goals of this study were to increase apprentice teachers' technology use and evaluation skills while determining the value of e-mail communication in…

The typical introduction to technology course focuses on helping preservice teachers develop skills for using technology and integrating it into their practice (Downs, 1992; McKenzie, 1994; Niess, 1991; Raiford & Braulick, 1995). Current national standards for technology in teacher preparation also emphasize the importance of developing skills…