Studies of classroom behavior and learning outcomes have demonstrated that student discussion leads to better learner outcomes. Do these effects, which are based on studies of face-to-face interaction, transfer to the virtual classroom? Existing studies of online postings in asynchronous discussion forums have primarily studied the effects on the…

With increasing student numbers and a diverse student body, it is crucial to consider a range of methods to engage students in learning and teaching activities. This project was used to encourage 1st-year undergraduate students to engage in out of class activities between taught sessions. The project used a virtual learning environment (VLE) known…

The popularity and rise in online courses have somewhat taken the author by surprise. Starting as a college instructor three years ago, the author has witnessed the tremendous interest in online programming. In fact, it is the fastest growing enrollment at the kindergarten-12th grade and higher educational levels. At the university level,…

This practical guide is essential for anyone new to or intimidated by online instruction. It distills the wisdom of veteran instructors and program directors who have successfully navigated the transition from face-to-face classroom teaching to the online learning environment. Chapters cover all the bases from skills assessment to instructional…

Virtual charter schools, emerging in the 1990s, are a recent development in the education field and reflect today's technology-oriented society. This study examined existing data to evaluate what, if any, difference existed between students who attended public school and those who were homeschooled prior to entering the virtual charter school. …

Variation in policies virtual schools use to calculate course completion and retention rates impacts the comparability of these quality metrics. This study surveyed 159 U.S. virtual schools examining the variability in trial period and course completion policies--two policies that affect course completion rates. Of the 86 respondents, almost 70%…

There have been a number of frameworks and models developed to support different aspects of interactive learning. Some were developed to deal with course design through the application of authoring tools, whereas others such as conversational, advisory, and ontology-based systems were used in virtual classrooms to improve and support collaborative…

The literature related to online learning programs for K-12 students dates to the mid-1990s and builds upon a century of research and practice from K-12 distance education. While K-12 online learning programs have evolved and grown over the past decade, the amount of published research on virtual schooling practice and policy is limited. The…

This study explored the use of the Web-based virtual environment, Adobe Connect Pro, in a postgraduate online teacher education programme at the University of Waikato. It applied the tenets of Moore's Theory of Transactional Distance (Moore, 1997) in examining the efficacy of using the virtual classroom to promote quality dialogue and explored how…

This paper discusses findings of a study investigating how students, in four online courses, engaged in inquiry-based learning with and without support from a facilitator. The investigation was conducted by analyzing discussions of the online courses using the community of inquiry model. The results of the study imply that students in online…

Research into tutoring at a distance has a fairly long history and the functions of tutors in distance education institutions are well understood. Over the past 20 years research into online tutoring has advanced significantly as such institutions have "gone electronic": in this paper we cite published research from the UK Open…

In learning object design an emphasis on visual attractiveness and high technological impact has seemed to persist while content frequently reflects a lack of clear pedagogical basis for the application of learning objects for online learning. Most apparent is the absence of supportive scaffolding for the student user; interactivity built on an…

This study examined online group discussion from students' perspectives to determine what characteristics students identify as meaningful to their online learning. Participants were 142 graduate students in the Southeast. The multiple regression results revealed that quality of online discussion was positively associated with communication media,…

A few school administrators in Clovis, California, began a quest to introduce online high school courses in their school district, believing it might cost less to teach classes online than it would to teach students face to face in a classroom. They figured instead of having one teacher fielding a load of 150 students per course, an online course…

Virtual schooling is a rapidly growing and, to many, an increasingly troubling phenomenon. In a decade, online education has grown from being a novelty act to an established mode of education, consisting of asynchronous, computer-mediated interaction between a teacher and students over the Internet. Although exact figures are hard to come by,…