A 3-D virtual field trip was integrated into an online college entomology course and developed as a trial for the possible incorporation of future virtual environments to supplement online higher education laboratories. This article provides an explanation of the rationale behind creating the virtual experience, the Bug Farm; the method and…

Tighter budgets and lower enrollment are changing traditional higher education. The popularity of the World Wide Web (WWW) coupled with faster access to information provides an opportunity for Colleges and Universities to offer online programs. In most cases, traditional universities are not well prepared for the transition to online format and…

Business communication educators need to realize that as technology changes and evolves, they must also change and evolve their teaching methods and content. Cell phones, email, blogs, wikis, and text messaging are just a few examples of business communication technologies that not so long ago were viewed as entertainment for teens or techies, but…

A classroom lecture at Capistrano Connections Academy in Southern California involves booting up the home computer, logging on to a Web site, and observing a teacher conducting a PowerPoint presentation of that day's lesson entirely online. Through microphone headsets, students can watch on their home computers, respond to the teacher's questions,…

As Internet technology encroached on the public school classroom about a decade ago, Kim Ross, superintendent of the Houston (MN) School District saw an opportunity. The entrepreneurial spirit overtook Ross and his team, and out of that was born the Minnesota Virtual Academy and the Minnesota Center of Online Learning, or MCoOL--two virtual…

The Advanced Virtual Academy Twilight High School (Twilight High School) provides Houston Independent School District (HISD) high school students with opportunities to earn credits toward graduation and targets students who are at risk of not completing courses required to earn a high school diploma. This 2013-2014 Twilight High School program…

In October 2010, the University of Southern California School of Social Work entered the online education environment with the launch of the first national web-based MSW program. After an initial enrollment of 80 students, in just 3 years this state-of-the-art MSW, offered in a technology-advanced synchronous and asynchronous format, has generated…

Would anyone in your network be aware of any states that might provide differentiated funding for virtual programs based on the model used--for example, curriculum-in-a-box vs. one with high student-teacher interaction? Are you aware of any research that examines what factors to consider when developing this type of differentiated funding? This…

Web-based learning progresses as access to the Internet grows. As learners and educators in virtual learning communities, we strive for ways to measure how well teachers teach and learners learn. While the literature is replete with articles and books discussing online learning from the perspective of social and teaching presence, there are few…

This study explored the nature of teacher-student interaction from the perspective of eight virtual school teachers in an asynchronous, self-paced, statewide, supplemental virtual high school. Teacher interviews revealed the majority of interactions were student-initiated and instructional in nature. The main procedural interactions focused on…

Current trends in librarianship in higher education have indicated an increasing tutoring role for librarians in the online environment. This article examines how the role of the e-tutor is outlined in selected online learning literature before progressing to examine the implications for librarians of fulfilling the demanding e-tutoring role by…

We maintain that an understanding of the working contexts of staff is a critical consideration when designing for effective professional development. The process of embedding theory into good practice does not simply depend on the design of a good seminar, because it may also be affected by who else attends, or perhaps by who the participants talk…

Surely "massive open online course" (MOOC) has one of the ugliest acronyms of recent years, lacking the deliberate playfulness of Yahoo (Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle) or the droll shoulder shrug suggested by the word "snafu" (Situation Normal, All Fouled Up). The author is not a complete neophyte to online…

This paper sets out to explore the paradigm shift in learning culture brought about by the advent of online learning in the mostly print-based ODL system at the Mauritius College of the Air (MCA). It delves into the perceptions of learners and MCA staff involved in a range of undergraduate to Master's programmes forming part of the Pan African…

This paper reports a case study series of four related case study lessons, set up as a course using a Virtual Reality Learning Environment (VRLE) to support the students' ideation skills in Innovation Education (IE) in Icelandic conventional classroom. The IE course content and preparation is described. Overall aims, objectives and research…