Depicts ways popular song lyrics can stimulate discussion either in music, social studies, humanities, or language arts classes. Considers lyrics' ability to explain social, cultural, and political phenomena. Provides a chronological outline from 1962 correlating political events, personalities, songs, and the artists. songs. Identifies uses of…

This paper relates findings from learning circles held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, with urban Aboriginal men. The purpose of the circles was to determine how an Aboriginal cultural identity is formed in urban spaces. Education settings were mentioned by the research participants as a significant contribution to their cultural identity…

While technology has for many years been a critical component in programs for adults and calls to mind sophisticated gadgetry with expensive price tags, it is often the nexus where technology and humans intersect that proves most critical to the success and quality of adult degree programs.

Universities are increasingly looking toward technology to overcome geographical barriers to access, and this has placed new demands on faculty to explore the potential of technology in their classrooms. As a result, faculty development in the use of appropriate applications for teaching and learning has become a critical issue. In the 2000…

This paper examines how online distance education acts to democratize access to, and suit the ontologies of, Mauritian women who seek to empower themselves for development. Data from semi-structured interviews of 30 middle class couples are presented in this paper. Interviews and analyses are premised on a feminist perspective and conducted within…

Within many educational institutions across the world, the delivery of undergraduate and post-graduate courses is facilitated by online learning technologies. The development and transformation of traditional academic courses for online learning delivery provides a number of opportunities for both the academic institution and prospective students.…

Computer science is becoming increasingly important in our society. Meta skills, such as problem solving and logical and algorithmic thinking, are emphasized in every field, not only in the natural sciences. Still, largely due to gaps in tuition, common misunderstandings exist about the true nature of computer science. These are especially…

This paper reports on the creation of an instrument for use by instructors, students, or researchers to identify, measure or promote critical thinking (CT) in online asynchronous discussions (OADs). Four models of CT were reviewed, synthesised, analysed, and evaluated to clarify the construct. Indicators of specific cognitive processes related to…

This paper discusses a qualitative participatory action research study, which examined the nature of the cohort learning experience in an online master's program, from both faculty and student perspectives. After describing this online master's program in adult education designed from a social constructivist theoretical frame, this paper discusses…

Rural and remote learners are disadvantaged even with online provision due to poor connections. Broadband offers a potential solution. This paper looks at the initial results of a project to install broadband services in the Western Isles of Scotland. It focuses on the educational potential of broadband and the design implications for online…

This is a report of the role of Distance education (DE) in enhancing education and training in developing countries. As countries compete in an ever more challenging international marketplace, they recognize the need to continually train and upgrade their citizenry. As national leaders struggle to cope with increasing populations and decreasing…

Personalized learning: Everyone knows it needs to happen, but how? It is one thing to believe in the importance of high school reform. It is quite another to embrace a system that helps every student leave high school with a diploma and plans for postsecondary education or training that lead to productive and self-sufficient adulthoods. This…

In connection with the changes in the structure of the work force that took place in Russia in the final ten years of the twentieth century and the increase in professional, intersectorial, and other kinds of labor mobility, the problem of the replacement and reproduction of cadres of top qualification (candidates and doctors of science) has come…

This report presents the findings for private four-year colleges that participated in ACT's 2010 What Works in Student Retention survey. The report contains information pertinent to only these institutions. Appended are: (1) Data for Private Four-Year Colleges and Universities; and (2) What Works in Student Retention: Instrument. (Contains 15…

For the thirty-third year, the Research and Theory Division of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) is sponsoring the publication of these Proceedings. This is Volume #2 of the 33rd "Annual Proceedings of Selected Papers on the Practice of Educational Communications and Technology." This volume includes…