Here is an extensive list of resources on various aspects of distance learning.The best way to find information on these or any other topics is to conduct a search using the search tool below. You should also visit our site Journals, Links and Resources for more resources. Categories include:
• academic advising
• academic resources - business,
humanities, math, sciences,
social science
• accessibility issues
• accreditation
• best practices
• blended/hybrid learning
• broadband
• career and technical education
• case studies
• cheating and plagiarism
• computer software
• copyright and fair use
• corporate e-learning
• costs for distance learning
• course management
• the digital divide
• digital libraries and learning object repositories• effectiveness of e-learning
• e-books
• e-portfolios
• faculty compensation and support
• faculty training and education
• gaming and simulations
• Higher Education OpportunitiesAct (HEOA Authentication)
• instructional design
• intellectual property issues
• interactivity and teaching online
• K-12 technology
• marketing
• national data and statistics
• online student orientation
• open source
• quality assessment
• rural distance education• science labs/courses
• second life
• security
• social networking
• statewide virtual colleges
• strategic and policy plans
• student retention
• student services
• students and technology
• technologies
• testing and assessment
• Twitter
• videoconferencing/ITFS
• Web design
• Web tools
• wireless
• wikis
• women and the Web
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Background Discussion of Copyright Law and Potential Liability for Students Engaged in P2P File Sharing on University Networks:(August 2003) by Michael Remington, Esq., for the Education Task Force of the Joint Committee of the Higher Education and Entertainment Communities. Includes a discussion of institutional liability vis a vis students that use campus networks for music file swapping. Web Site | |
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Background Paper on e-Portfolios:May 2008, National symposium on e-portfolios | |
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Balancing Student Privacy and School Safety: A Guide to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act for Colleges and Universities:(October 2007) Department of Education. U.S. Secretary of Education Spellings has announced the availability of new brochures that provide guidance on the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) to enable institutions to better balance students' privacy rights with safety concerns. Three brochures -- for K-12, postsecondary and parents are available. Web site | |
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BBC: Learning English:“This clever website from the BBC aids people learning English, by offering help in the form of ‘Words in the News’, ‘Quizzes’, videos via YouTube, and English ‘makeovers’ in ‘General and Business English’. ‘Words in the News’, ‘The Teacher’, and ‘Keep Your English Up to Date’ help learners with their ‘Grammar, Vocabulary and Pronunciation’. In the ‘Quizzes’ section there are several different types, including ‘Quiznet’, ‘Crossword’, ‘Beat the Keeper’, and ‘Exam Skills’. None are so long that learners will get bored or frustrated. Visitors who teach English or English as a Second Language will find the ‘For Teachers’ section loaded with activities that accompany the many different features on Learning English. In the ?Downloads? section on the far right hand side of the page, learners can get the past seven days of audio, video, and text to take away. ‘Talk About English’ and ‘Ask About English’ are regular features of the site, and can be accessed on the week's schedule at the bottom of the homepage.” – from the Scout Report Web site |
Becoming a "Communal Architect" in the Online Classroom Integrating Cognitive & Affective Learning for Maximum Effect in Web-Based Learning:(2003) Research demonstrates immediacy or pro-social behaviors correlate with affective and cognitive learning in the face-to-face classroom. Early findings suggest similar results may be obtained in the online setting. Understanding how to build and manage a positive social dynamic can encourage knowledge construction in ways that extend learning in the online classroom. Web Site | |
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Best Online Instructional Practices: Report of Phase I of an Ongoing Study:(April 2004) by Morris Keeton. The rapid growth of online instruction promises that online instruction may become the largest source of ongoing higher education. This study examines how best practices in online instruction are the same as, or different from, best practices in face-to-face (F2F) instruction. Web Site | |
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Best Practices for Administrative Evaluation of Online Faculty:(2004) by Thomas Tobin. The author demonstrates ways to evaluate the materials and teaching in online courses and discusses similarities with evaluating face-to-face teaching, factors unique to online courses, technological considerations, helping administrators unfamiliar with online courses, and national standards, rubrics, and benchmarks. Web Site | |
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Best Practices for Electronically Offered Degree and Certificate Programs:(2000) The eight regional accrediting commissions developed these best practices to help institutions plan distance learning activities and provide a self-assessment framework for those already involved. "For the regional accrediting associations they constitute a common understanding of those elements that reflect quality distance education programming. They are intended to inform and facilitate the evaluation policies and processes of each region." Web Site | |
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Best Practices for Online Information-Literacy Courses:(2004) by Thomas J. Tobin. Remote access to resources has become increasingly important in academic libraries, spurred largely by the growth of online education. Through bibliographic instruction courses, librarians must prepare on-site and remote patrons in information literacy. Web Site | |
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Best Practices in Online Captioning:The author provides an extensive review of online captioning. Sept. 8, 2004 by Joe Clark Web Site | |
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Better Yardstick Needed to Measure Digital Divide:(October 2006) by Karine Barzilai-Nahon. “Relying on easy-to-measure factors like how many Internet access points a place has presents a simplistic picture of today's digital divide. A more sophisticated approach is needed to get an honest assessment of who is being left behind, according to Karine Barzilai-Nahon, an assistant professor at the University of Washington Information School.” Web site | |
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Beyond Critical Mass: A Case Study Investigating the Use of WebCT For Course Delivery by Faculty in a Campus Based UK University:This case study investigates the use of WebCT for course delivery by faculty in a campus based UK university. Whilst numerous studies have been carried out which explore the use of online learning technology using indicators of critical mass of adoption, minimal research exists which analyses the use of content management systems (CMS) such as WebCT for course delivery by faculty examining both pace and level of use. The research findings highlight that using traditional models of critical mass in isolation is potentially a misleading indicator of the successful diffusion of a complex innovation. This paper presents the findings of case research study drawn from 60 semi-structured interviews with faculty. The paper builds on the diffusion of innovations literature by applying a conceptual model incorporating indicators of both pace and level of use of WebCT by faculty for course delivery to provide a structure to the findings. The analysis provided a more detailed understanding of the acceptance of WebCT, and from this analysis a series of practical recommendations for achieving more widespread and effective use of CMS for course delivery within higher education have been developed. Website | |
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Beyond Student Perceptions: Issues of Interaction, Presence, and Performance in an Online Course:(2002) by Samuel Ebersole and Robert Woods. This study relates student interaction and sense of presence to performance in an online course. The researchers collected an analyzed data on multiple independent (interaction and presence) and dependent (performance) variables. Web Site | |
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Big Divide Found in Internet Access:“New Yorkers are a diverse bunch, but when it comes to broadband connections at home, there are two distinct groups: The haves and the have-nots. According to a report released today by the city’s Broadband Advisory Committee (http://nycbroadband.blogspot.com/), 26 percent of low income households have broadband connections at home compared to 54 percent in moderate-to-high income households.” Website | |
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Big Illinois Online Degree Program Gets Thumbs-Up:(July 2007) by Josh Fischman for the Chronicle of Higher Education. “The University of Illinois Board of Trustees today set tuition and approved financing for Global Campus, the state system’s major program to offer online degrees and professional-development programs. In January 2008, the university will enroll students in its first four offerings: a bachelor-of-science completion program in nursing, master’s degree in education with a concentration in online learning, a graduate certificate in foundations of online learning, and a graduate certificate in technologies for online learning.” Web site, Press Release | |
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Blackboard as the Learning Management System of a Computer Literacy Course:(June 2008) by Florence Martin for the MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching. "This study reports the evaluation results of using a learning management system (LMS) in a computer literacy course. The goal of the present study was to explore the usefulness of content delivery and how it helped students in learning computing skills. Using Blackboard as the LMS, 145 undergraduate college students enrolled in a computer literacy course in a large southwestern university responded to an online survey and seven instructors who taught the course were surveyed over email to determine value and usefulness of the features in the environment. Overall, assignments, course documents and gradebook were reported as the most useful features. Immediate feedback on quizzes, accessing the materials at all times, and getting comfortable in use of technology were rated as most helpful areas. Both students and instructors responded positively to the LMS experience and provided evidence that numerous learning outcomes can be enhanced by the presence of such a system." Website | |
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Blackboard Buys Angel:“Blackboard on Wednesday announced that it was purchasing Angel Learning for about $95 million, shaking up the course management industry. . . . Fred B. Lokken, associate dean for teaching technologies at Truckee Meadows Community College, said he was stunned and ‘more than devastated’ by Wednesday’s news. Truckee Meadows had been a WebCT client until Blackboard bought that company in 2005. Shortly after that purchase, Truckee Meadows reviewed its options, after finding that customer service — strong under WebCT — declined after the purchase. Angel was also less expensive and a faculty panel that reviewed the options favored Angel, making it ‘an easy choice,’ Lokken said.” “He said that Angel has lived up to all of its promises, and that the system is popular with those who use it — explaining his dismay over the news. He said that Blackboard had promised to maintain the same level of quality WebCT provided, and that the company didn’t follow through. He said that the press release issued Wednesday reminded him of the statements made when the company bought WebCT ‘and that’s why I’m skeptical.’ . . . He stressed that it’s not just the service provided, but a matter of philosophy. He noted that Angel will be the second company popular with community colleges to have been made a subsidiary of Blackboard. Further, he said he objected to the ‘predatory’ way that Blackboard is fighting with Desire2Learn over patents. ‘Is the idea to own the market so that we have no choice?’ he asked.” Website | |
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Blackboard Customers Consider Alternatives:by Jeffrey R. Young, Sept. 12, 2008, Chronicle of Higher Education . . . “Blackboard has become the Microsoft of higher-education technology, say many campus-technology officials, and they don't mean the comparison as a compliment. To them the company is not only big but also pushy, and many of them love to hate it. . . . LeTourneau's contract with Blackboard ends this year, and campus officials may join the growing number of colleges switching to Moodle, a free, open-source course-management system, or Sakai , another free program. Those systems have grown feature-rich enough to pose serious challenges to Blackboard. Giants like the Georgia Institute of Technology and the University of California at Los Angeles , along with smaller colleges, like Louisiana State University at Shreveport , have made the jump.” "There are a lot of institutions right now that are upset with Blackboard, to say the least, and looking for alternatives," says Michael Zastrocky, vice president for research at Gartner Inc., a consulting firm that tracks trends in higher-education technology. "They caused a backlash that's been very difficult for them to overcome. Blackboard is heading for a showdown with the free-software movement, according to some observers. Although Blackboard remains the clear market leader — about 66 percent of American colleges use its software as their standard, says the Campus Computing Project, an annual survey — there are signs that open-source alternatives are starting to gain ground. The survey found that the proportion of colleges using Moodle as their standard rose from 4.2 percent in 2006 to 7.8 percent in 2007, and that about 3 percent of colleges have selected Sakai . A recent survey by the Instructional Technology Council, which promotes distance learning, found that the proportion of its member colleges using Moodle jumped from 4 percent last year to more than 10 percent this year. The proportion using Blackboard fell slightly.” . . . Website (requires subscription) |
Blackboard Management and Professional Development Strategies to Augment Teaching and Learning:In committing to provide a learning management system (LMS) that integrates supplementary uses for campus constituents, a university must analyze the opportunities and challenges associated with technology advancements. In addition to the primary uses of a learning management system, university administrators, faculty and staff have incorporated a diverse array of applications for Blackboard©. This paper introduces the innovative uses of an LMS among the campus community. The LMS resources available include the Content System, Electronic Reserves, e-Portfolios, Building Blocks, and Professional Development and Training provisions. Website | |
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Blackboard Vows to Press On: An interview with Blackboard Chief Legal Officer Matthew Small:(April 2, 2008) by David Nagel for Campus Technology. “There have been some shockers in the electronic learning world in the last month or so. First, Blackboard won its patent infringement suit against rival Desire2Learn. Then, soon after, the patent itself was rejected by the United States Patent and Trademark Office on reexamination (though that action is not final). But despite the setback in the Patent Office, Blackboard is vowing not to go down without a fight even as Desire2Learn and the Software Freedom Law Center--the two groups that sought to have the patent revoked--celebrate victory.” Web site | |
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Blackboard/Moodle/Sakai - Session Recording Now Available:(Nov. 5, 2009) Educause Stephen Downes writes, “By far the most popular session at EDUCAUSE (at least so far) this discussion on the relative merits of two open source and one commercial learning management system (LMS) is a great listen, especially as they begin to talk about the future, the claim that "the LMS is dead" (or so it has been reported in some of the blogs), personal learning environments and the increasing demand of colleges to focus on outcomes and competencies. Also interesting: "We (Sakai) don't have a financial incentive to own large swaths of the higher education infrastructure." The recording, with slides and video, loads instantly and is beautifully presented.” Link provided by Colleen Luckett. Web site |
Blended Learning - Effective Practices: | |
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Blending In: The Extent and Promise of Blended Education in the United States:Are Blended Courses More Prevalent than Fully Online Courses? Background: With a perception that blended learning is easier to offer than fully online courses, more students at more diversified types of institutions may be taking advantage of these courses. The evidence: Blended courses are not more prevalent than fully online courses. Very similar proportions of schools report offering blended courses as offer online courses, with slightly more citing online offerings than blended. There is also little evidence of growth in blended course offerings. * Only at Baccalaureate institutions, where online education has the smallest penetration rate, are a slightly greater or an equal percent of blended courses offered. * Offerings of blended courses decreased slightly between 2003 and 2005 while online course offerings grew. * There are a slightly larger percent of blended program offerings than online programs across all disciplines. Do Blended Courses Hold More Promise than Fully Online Courses? Background: Perceived by some as a “best of both worlds” approach compared to fully online courses, blended learning may have a higher acceptance and a higher perceived value (closer to face-to-face learning) than online courses. The evidence: Academic leaders do not regard blended courses as holding more promise than fully online courses. This view appears to be true regardless of size and type of school with the only exception being the small number of schools which offer blended courses but not online courses. * Overall, only 38 percent of respondents agreed that “Blended courses hold more promise than online courses” in 2004. This is a decrease from 46 percent agreement in 2003. * Most of the respondents agreeing with the statement were from smaller, private, not-for-profit, and Baccalaureate institutions. * Only schools offering blended but not online courses had a majority likely to agree with this statement and this percentage dropped from 72 percent in 2003 to 68 percent in 2004. Are Blended Courses a Stepping Stone for Institutions on the Way to Fully Online Courses? Background: With faculty less likely to embrace online then face-to-face courses, and with fully developed brick and mortar campuses, are blended courses a good compromise position for the long term, or are these courses just the first step towards online degree programs? The evidence: The answer appears to be that blended courses are not just a stepping stone to offering online courses or programs. There are far more blended courses and programs being offered than would be present if institutions were using them only as a transition to fully online. Schools with established online courses and programs have a smaller percentage of blended courses than schools with no or only a small percentage of courses online. The percentage of reported blended course offerings remained stable from 2002–2005 while the percentage offered online has increased. * Schools report offering an average of 10.6 percent of their course sections online in 2005, up from 6.5 percent in 2003, while the respective percentages for blended offerings shown a steady decline from 2003 (6.8%) to 2005 (5.6%). * The number of institutions that offer blended courses without offering any online courses is very small at private, non-profit institutions (17.1%), public institutions (3.8%), and private, for-profit institutions (6.6%). What is the Consumer Experience and Perception of Online and Blended Delivery Options? Background: Higher Education institutions have been investing in both online and blended courses and programs. Are these decisions supported by consumer preferences? The evidence: The answer is positive, the market for online/blended delivery has a lot of room for growth. Consumer preference for online and blended delivery far exceeds reported experience, and consumer openness to these delivery modes far exceeds preference. * Consumer data does not suggest an endorsement of a particular mode of delivery, but rather reflects both uncertainty as to the inherent value of particular modes and an openness to consider a variety of modes. * The situation is dynamic. As consumer experience grows and becomes more sophisticated, the balance between consumers’ who regard delivery mode as a primary versus secondary consideration may shift. | |
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Blogs as Web-Based Portfolios Part 2:(May 3, 2010) by Jeff Utecht, The Thinking Stick “Web-Based Portfolios (WBP) can come in all shapes and sizes. There are literally hundreds of programs and ways you can create a WBP. The issue then becomes which way is the right way? That I believe, needs to be determined on a school-by-school or district-by-district basis. The most important idea to keep in mind when choosing a WBP is the flexibility it allows you in embedding content from other parts of the web. There are many amazing Web 2.0 programs that are being used in education and have embed codes that allow you to pull content from their sites and services into your WBP. VoiceThread, YouTube, Flickr, SlideShare, are just a few that students can use to create/manage content and pull that content back into their WBP. In the end, what your WBP needs to be is nothing more than a container for content of any kind or variety.” . . . Web site |
Bobby Worldwide:A free comprehensive Windows-based tool that analyzes Web pages for their accessibility to people with disabilities. Web Site | |
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Books for Lending, Data for Taking:(Nov. 20, 2005) Alison Leigh Cowan. "At the library at North Carolina State University, students and faculty will soon be able to sign up for an Internet-based service that will alert them when favorite journals are published, with links to the articles. They will also be able to create home pages with links to databases, books, journals, Web sites and other resources." Web Site | |
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Brain Rules: | |
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Breaking the Barriers of Time and Space: More Effective Teaching Using e-Pedagogy:(2005) Peshe Kurilo. By examining her experience directing an online writing across the curriculum course at the University of Pennsylvania, the author identifies elements of e-pedagogy that can lead to more effective teaching strategies. Web Site | |
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Britain's Oxford Using Facebook to Snoop:(July 2007) by Tariq Panja. “For students at the University of Oxford, Facebook is a great way to keep posted on gossip and parties. For campus officials, it's a new way to find - and fine - troublemakers. After exams, students at the venerable English university traditionally drop their serious ways and indulge in a spasm of "trashings" - rowdy revels that include dousing classmates in foam, eggs and flour. In recent years, students have taken to posting photos of the mess on Facebook, the popular online social networking site. Disciplinary officials at Oxford have caught on - and have begun e-mailing students fines of $80 to $200 for breaking campus rules, said Martin McCluskey, president of the Oxford University Students Union.” Web site | |
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Broadband Internet’s Value for Rural America:(August 2009) by Peter Stenberg, Mitch Morehart, Stephen Vogel, John Cromartie, Vince Breneman, and Dennis Brown, US Department of Agriculture As broadband -- or high-speed -- Internet use has spread, Internet applications requiring high transmission speeds have become an integral part of the “Information Economy,” raising concerns about those who lack broadband access. This report analyzes (1) rural broadband use by consumers, the community-at-large, and businesses; (2) rural broadband availability; and (3) broadband’s social and economic effects on rural areas. It also summarizes results from an ERS-sponsored workshop on rural broadband use, and other ERS-commissioned studies. In general, rural communities have less broadband Internet use than metro communities, with differing degrees of broadband availability across rural communities. Rural communities that had greater broadband Internet access had greater economic growth, which conforms to supplemental research on the benefits that rural businesses, consumers, and communities ascribe to broadband Internet use. Web site |