It is now possible to create flexible learning environments without time and distance barriers on the internet. However, research has shown that learners typically experience isolation and alienation in online learning environments. These negative experiences can be reduced by enhancing social presence. In order to better facilitate the perceived…

This study examined a relatively new but growing set of leadership challenges that the leader of the modern organization faces more frequently due to the dynamics of the workplace. The new challenges involve leading a workforce virtually, in that more frequently workers are physically dispersed away from the leader and fellow workers. The second…

Although digital technologies have become commonplace among people who grew up around them, little is known about the effect that such technology will have on learners or its impact on traditional methods of educational delivery. This dissertation examines how certain technologies affect digital natives and seeks to understand specific…

We consider how changing attitudes to computer use may alter the habits of students in the use of location and times of the day. We discover for one community the extent to which they absent themselves from the physical university and see some trends. We suggest that this is a deep change of habit, influenced by the "digital generation",…

Some educational institutions are taking the leap to mobile learning (m-learning) by giving out free iPods. For example, Abilene Christian University gave iPods or iPhones to freshman students and developed 15 Web applications specifically for the mobile devices. The iPod is not the only ubiquitous m-learning device. Any technology that connects…

This study examines the users' experiences with three-dimensional (3D) virtual environments to investigate the areas of development as a learning application. For the investigation, the modified technology acceptance model (TAM) is used with constructs from expectation-confirmation theory (ECT). Users' responses to questions about cognitive…

Distance learners are typically excluded from discussions of student mobility. This paper explores distance student choices and experiences, drawing on a study that included students who enrolled in distance education courses at a university outside of their home province. Findings from this study suggest that program and course considerations…

An analysis of data from the Community College Survey of Student Engagement and multiyear analysis of pretest/posttest scores in introductory criminal justice courses revealed there was a systemic decline in student engagement and achievement. Because of this analysis, a commercial virtual learning tool (CJI) that purported great success in…

With virtual public school initiatives in each of the 50 states, there is an impetus to develop and implement online programs for the elementary grades (Cavanaugh, 2004, pp. 262-266; Oliver et al., p. 56). Yet, learner usability characteristics for successful online schooling for the elementary grades are unknown and/or unspecified. The purpose of…

This national study, which comprehensively reviews 311 virtual schools operating in the United States, finds serious and systemic problems with the nation's full-time cyber schools. Despite virtual schools' track record of students falling behind their peers academically or dropping-out at higher rates, states and districts continue to expand…

This work focuses on the importance of teacher leadership in the virtual environment and the role of managers in the workforce. It depicts student expectations of the virtual classroom, specifically the professor's role in this environment. The study on teachers in the virtual environment is compared and contrasted with generational differences in…

The new normal for local, state and federal governments is fiscal austerity. Although President Obama supported education during his State of the Union address and in his budget proposal to Congress, cash-strapped localities and states--which foot most of the bill for educating America's children--may have to balance their budgets with cuts to…

This study explores tertiary students' interaction with a haptic virtual model representing the specific binding of two biomolecules, a core concept in molecular life science education. Twenty students assigned to a "haptics" (experimental) or "no-haptics" (control) condition performed a "docking" task where users sought the most favourable…

Distance education, particularly online education, is becoming a standard experience in formal learning environments, particularly at the postsecondary level. As more faculty and students have expectations that distance education is a part of the learning experience, we need to build a deeper understanding of how to design effective environments…

Education has long been considered merit good; however, inequitable distribution has made it more akin to a toll good. This was most recently demonstrated by Henry, Fortner, and Thompson (2010). Choice requirements designed to remedy the inequitable distribution of education, have largely been confined to brick and mortar schools. Subsequently,…