Distance education has become an important instructional method for institutes of higher learning over the last decade. According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES, 2003) , during the 2000-2001 academic year, 56 percent of all 2- and 4-year institutions offered distance education courses, and this represents an increase of…

This paper describes work that was done at Athabasca University as part of the "EduSource Canada" project. This work centered around learning object development based on pre-authored educational content. The major outcomes of the work were the development of an explicit semantic structure with strong educational focus for learning…

Abrami et al. (this issue) provide a review of e-learning in Canada from 2000 onwards by synthesizing information drawn from multiple sources, not only primary research. In total, there were 726 documents included in our review: 235 views expressed in the public printed media (an expression of general public opinion); 131 views from…

The effectiveness of blended learning is dependent upon the combination of learning activities, complemented by information communication technologies and the availability of opportunities for face-to-face communication. This paper proposes a filtering approach to assist lecturers in combining learning activities within a blended learning…

Instructional designers regularly engage in a process of professional and personal transformation that has the potential to transform the culture of institutions through faculty-client relationships. Instructional designers promote new ideas and understandings in social contexts that include other designers and clients, among others. This research…

In this paper, we advance that there are several issues pertaining to the design of research in instructional technology. It is our view that much of the current research taking place may suffer from poor quality, inappropriate design, and lack of social responsibility. We contend that the most appropriate way to research the effectiveness of…

"Assessing the Value of E-Learning Systems" provides an extensive literature review pulling theories from the field of information systems, psychology and cognitive sciences, distance and online learning, as well as marketing and decision sciences. This book provides empirical evidence for the power of measuring value in the context of e-learning…

"Online Assessment, Measurement and Evaluation: Emerging Practices" provides a view of the possibilities and challenges facing online educators and evaluators in the 21st Century. As technology evolves and online measurement and assessment follow, "Online Assessment, Measurement and Evaluation: Emerging Practices" uses…

Problem-based learning (PBL) has been the focus of many developments in teaching and learning facilitation in recent years. It has been claimed that PBL produces independent learners who are motivated, engaged in deep learning, work as a team, and develop effective strategies, skills and knowledge for life-long learning and professional work.…

Distance learning has been widely researched the past few years, nevertheless the focus has been more on its technological dimension. Designing, developing and supporting a large scale e-learning application for Higher Education is still a challenging task in many ways. E-learning is data-intensive, user-driven, and has increasing needs for…

More instructors at every educational level are developing online courses and adding online components to face-to-face courses on an ever-broadening array of topics each semester. This paper provides recommendations for designing and maintaining online learning environments that encourage active learning, interaction, and academic integrity based…

Despite the continued growth of Web-based courses, and the great promise of anytime, any place learning, it appears that Web-based instruction fails to produce the sense of "social connectedness" often highly valued in face-to-face instruction. The purpose of this study was to identify problems instructors face that impede social connectedness…

The rapid growth in online courses continues to spark faculty concern about the quality of instruction related to the lack of interaction, social process, and social presence thought to promote socialization of students into a profession. Courses designed to promote a sense of community in online courses may address these concerns. The purpose of…

In this paper we propose a view of instructional design practice in which the instructional designer is an agent of social change at the personal, relational, and institutional levels. In this view designers are not journeymen workers directed by management, but act in purposeful, value based ways with ethical knowledge, in social relationships…

This paper describes a research project that seeks to explore the experience of faculty with technology-enhanced teaching and learning. A particular focus of this investigation is on how the use of information and communications technology is influencing teaching practices and students' approaches to learning at the University of Melbourne. This…