More students than ever before are taking online classes, yet higher education is facing an online retention crisis; students are failing and dropping out of online classes at dramatically higher rates than face-to-face classes. Grounded in academic research, original surveys, and experimental studies, "Connecting in the Online…

Two main research problems were addressed in the current study. First, the researcher explored the impact of e-mail prenotification, follow-up reminders and of mixed-mode design on survey response rates in Saudi Arabia among four conditions when applying a 2 (pre-notification: Yes, No) x 2 (Follow-up: E-mail, WhatsApp) between-subjects factorial…

We discuss methods that can improve response rates in large-scale cross-sectional and longitudinal studies. Regardless of the specific study topic, sample member population, or method of contact, data collections should be designed with certain core principles in mind: legitimizing the study to prospective participants; presenting study…

This quantitative study investigated e-mail responsiveness by community colleges in the nine mega-states to an inquiry from a prospective student. Noel-Levitz (2006b) reported that prospective students want to receive an e-mail with information about an institution prior to applying for admission. Specifically, high school juniors and seniors want…

The advent of online learning has created the medium for cyber-bullying in the virtual classroom and also by e-mail. Bullying is usually expected in the workplace and between students in the classroom. Most recently, however, faculty members have become surprising targets of online bullying. For many, there are no established policies nor is…

The Personal Librarian for Aboriginal Students (PLAS) program at the University of Alberta (UofA) is a creative outgrowth of the growing Personal Librarian programs in academic libraries, in which a student is partnered with an individual librarian for the academic year. In the case of the UofA's PLAS program, first-year undergraduate students who…

The intent of this study was to focus on distance learning students' and advisors' perceptions of distance advising at a large, public university. Specifically, this study addressed four questions: what were the perceived performance gaps between distance learning students and distance learning advisors practice, how distance learning students'…

The literature suggests that personal information management is a serious challenge for many computer users. Online faculty are especially challenged because of the large number of electronic files necessitated by teaching online. Those who have experience in this environment may offer valuable insights regarding information management challenges…

Following Rogers's theory of the diffusion of innovations, the author questions whether youth entering the workforce will act as change agents to evolve primary business communication channels from email to text-messaging. Expanding on research performed in 2009, the author investigates three communication scenarios: scheduling meetings,…

This article shares results from a multi-institutional study of the role of writing in college students' lives. Using case studies built from a larger population survey along with interviews, diaries, and a daily SMS texting protocol, we found that students report SMS texting, lecture notes, and emails to be the most frequent writing…

Purpose: The primary purpose of this study was to discover common transfer and articulation practices and to determine what practices aid in the implementation of the STAR Act between California Community Colleges and the California State University. The review of literature revealed a lack of research on the application of practices in transfer…

This white paper reports on findings from the fifth survey of social media in advancement, conducted by CASE, Huron Education and mStoner. Nearly 2,000 respondents provided feedback on the tools they are using, how they use them, which are most successful, and how to measure return on investment. This year the authors focused on three key…

This paper presents a project which was conducted in a capstone course in Information Security. The project focused on conducting research concerning the various aspects of phishing, such as why phishing works and who is more likely to be deceived by phishing. Students were guided through the process of conducting research: finding background and…

Social networks and mobile technologies are transforming learning ecology. In this changing learning environment, we find a variety of new learner needs. The aim of this study is to investigate how to provide scaffolding to the learners in connectivist mobile learning environment: (1) to learn in a networked environment; (2) to manage their…

Even though Material Bookings modules have existed in some form for over 20 years, studies remain curiously absent from the literature. In an effort to begin this dialogue, a case study of implementing Innovative's Material Bookings module at the University of Nebraska at Omaha's Criss Library is presented. A survey assessing user satisfaction and…