Equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) gaps persist in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields, as demonstrated by the discrimination, stereotyping, and inequities that historically and persistently marginalized groups face. Recognition of this gap led a transdisciplinary team to develop foundational-level e-learning modules,…

Delivering physical education teacher education (PETE) programmes through online platforms has been proposed as an alternative (or complementary) to traditional in-person modes of learning. Focusing on empirical studies, this mixed studies review explores the use of online teaching and learning in PETE and synthesises literature published between…

This mixed methods study examined instructors' perceptions of self-directed learning (SDL) and the design of MOOCs to facilitate student SDL. Four instructors were selected for Zoom interviews and their MOOCs were reviewed to inform the questionnaire design. An online questionnaire was completed by 48 MOOC instructors worldwide. The findings…

Massive open online courses (MOOCs) are a relatively new form of education, offered by some of the best-known universities and attracting many hundreds of thousands of students. The authors describe MOOCs and the claims made about them and analyze two major impacts of these programs based on the first MOOC offered by McGill University. The first…

This paper presents the results of an inductive, interpretive analysis of the perspectives of 42 Canadian high school distance education (DE) teachers on asynchronous and synchronous online teaching. The paper includes a conceptual overview of the affordances and constraints of each form of teaching. Findings provided insight into the following…

University students who had completed at least one distance education course were surveyed during their first and fourth year of postsecondary studies. When controlled for those who had previous distance education experience in high school, it was found that self-regulatory learning behaviors, which are frequently linked to positive experiences…

We report findings on the methodological phase of a research project designed to assess the progress of the British Columbia Open University (BCOU) toward a 1997 goal of increasing distance education course completion rates to British Columbia system levels by adapting existing "off-line" courses for online delivery (a virtualization…

In 1997 the British Columbia Open University (BCOU) adopted a virtualization strategy based primarily on twinning off-line independent study distance education courses (textbook-based with study guide and telephone and e-mail tutor support) with alternate online versions (textbook-based with integrated conferencing and communications provided…

Instructional design is the art and science of crafting effective learning environments. The main challenges in instructional design are about content or process. Content should be considered first. A key challenge is ensuring that authors write in a way that is engaging and actively involves learners. Technology is another important challenge,…