According to the Stalking Resource Center (SRC), "While legal definitions of stalking vary from one jurisdiction to another, a good working definition of stalking is a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to feel fear. Stalking is serious, often violent, and can escalate over time." "Model Campus…

This study is concerned with the challenge of understanding what factors may influence students' higher level knowledge construction. We defined higher level knowledge construction occurrences as the sum of the number of phases II to V measured using Gunawardena et al.'s (J Educ Comput Res 17(4):397-431, "1997") interaction analysis model. This…

Social work students and faculty are increasingly embracing online education and collaborative teaching. Yet models to support these activities have not been adequately developed. This paper describes how a team of instructors developed, delivered, and evaluated an undergraduate gerontological social work course using a collaborative online…

Interactive relationships in online learning communities can influence the process and quality of knowledge building. The aim of this study is to empirically investigate the relationships between network structures and social knowledge building in an asynchronous writing environment through discussion forums in a learning management system. The…

The American Association for Adult and Continuing Education (AAACE) was founded in 1982 as the result of a merger between the National Association for Public and Continuing Adult Education (NAPCAE) and the Adult Education Association (AEA). This prestigious association is dedicated to the belief that lifelong learning contributes to human…

For the forty-fourth time, the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) is sponsoring the publication of these Proceedings. Papers published in this volume were presented online and onsite during the annual AECT Convention. Volume 1 contains papers dealing primarily with research and development topics. Papers dealing with…

With an increasing presence and continual adaptations related to distance learning, there is a recognized need for up-to-date research in the area of effectiveness of online education programs. More specifically, assessing the capacity to attain academic goals by use of asynchronous and synchronous web based tools within Learning Management…

Previous research on blended course offerings focuses on the addition of asynchronous online content to an existing course. While some explore synchronous communication, few control for differences between treatment groups. This study investigates the impact of teaching a blended course, using a virtual, interactive, real-time, instructor-led…

"Circuits and Electronics" (6.002x), which began in March 2012, was the first MOOC developed by edX, the consortium led by MIT and Harvard. Over 155,000 students initially registered for 6.002x, which was composed of video lectures, interactive problems, online laboratories, and a discussion forum. As the course ended in June 2012,…

This study addressed the argument that online courses rarely use discussion strategies that are specifically designed and constructed for soliciting learners' cognitive presence and higher-order thinking. Prompted by this argument, the authors conducted a meta-analysis of the empirical studies that examined the effectiveness of discussion…

One of the most complicated academic endeavours in transmission pedagogies is to generate democratic participation of all students and public expression of silenced voices. While the potential of mobile phones, particularly mobile instant messaging (MIM), to trigger broadened academic participation is increasingly acknowledged in literature,…

Online learning has seen an explosive growth at the K-12 level, however little research has used an experimental design approach to specifically examine the outcomes of delivery methods. This study examines what effect learning in an immersive learning environment (virtual world) has on student achievement and satisfaction with the lesson. To…

Purpose: Today's requirements concerning successful learning support comprise a variety of application scenarios. Therefore, the development of supporting software preferably aims at modular design. This article discusses requirements regarding flexibility of e-learning systems and presents important principles, which should be met by successful…

Asynchronous communication by means of discussion forums plays an essential role in supporting collaborative learning. Online forums allow learners to ask questions, express their thoughts, share resources, and justify their opinions beyond the four walls of the classroom. Proponents of collaborative learning claim that this type of learning can…

Institutions of higher education are realizing the importance of service learning initiatives in developing awareness of students' civic responsibilities, leadership and management skills, and social responsibility. These skills and responsibilities are the foundation of program outcomes in accredited higher education business programs at…