scholarly journals The Retention of Experienced Faculty in Online Distance Education Programs: Understanding Factors that Impact their Involvement

2009 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tim Green ◽  
Jeffery Alejandro ◽  
Abbie H. Brown
Keyword(s):  
Distance Education ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
The United States ◽  
Full Time ◽  
University Administrators ◽  
Education Faculty ◽  
Online Distance Education ◽  
Part Time ◽  
Online Distance ◽  
Survey Responses

The study sought to determine factors that affect faculty decisions regarding their involvement in teaching online distance education courses. A survey was administered to online distance education faculty across the United States to determine those factors that encourage or discourage them from continuing to teach online courses. The factors were examined and reported from the standpoint of each of four faculty groups: (1) tenured, (2) tenure-track, (3) full-time non-tenured/fixed term, and (4) part-time/adjunct. From the survey responses (N = 135), a list of retention strategies that university administrators may use for retention of online distance education faculty are offered.

scholarly journals Athabasca University: Conversion from Traditional Distance Education to Online Courses, Programs and Services

2001 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan Davis
Keyword(s):  
Distance Education ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Online Delivery ◽  
Online Distance Education ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Online Distance ◽  
Undergraduate Programs ◽  
The University

In its 30 years of operation, Athabasca University has witnessed the full impact of the growth of online distance education. Its conversion from mixed media course production and telephone/mail tutoring to a variety of electronic information and communication technologies has been heterogeneous across disciplines and programs. Undergraduate programs in business, computing, and some social science programs have largely led the conversion, and all graduate programs have, since their inception, employed various features of online delivery. The parallel conversion of student services has been equally important to the effectiveness of these processes. The implications of this approach for the quality of offerings, support systems, costing, and the primary mandate of the University (which is to remove barriers, not create them) are discussed.

Windows into Teaching and Learning

2013 ◽  
pp. 454-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tina L. Heafner ◽  
Michelle Plaisance
Keyword(s):  
Distance Education ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
The United States ◽  
Teacher Preparation Programs ◽  
Colleges Of Education ◽  
Clinical Experiences ◽  
Preparation Programs ◽  
Online Distance Education ◽  
School Based ◽  
Online Distance

Windows into Teaching and Learning (WiTL), a project conceived and actualized by authors situated in a large urban university in the southeastern region of the United States, captures the nuisance of online learning as a method for transforming school-based clinical experiences in teacher preparation programs. This chapter introduces and describes the theoretical context in which the project was developed in hopes to convey the potential for uncomplicated and intuitive innovations in teacher education to recalibrate current practices to the demands of the 21st Century classroom. An overview of the challenges facing colleges of education in providing meaningful and relevant clinical experiences to pre-service teachers enrolled in online distance education courses is discussed and serves as the impetus of WiTL. In the chapter, the authors explain the methods and technology used by the researchers to demonstrate the project’s practical duplicability in almost any course with clinical requirements. Furthermore, the authors provide a glimpse into the potential impact of WiTL as a means of facilitating meaningful field experiences in distance education and traditional coursework, as well as corollary benefits realized for student participants and mentor teachers.

scholarly journals Enhancing online distance education in small rural US schools: A hybrid, learner-centred model

2010 ◽  
Vol 26 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire De la Varre ◽  
Julie Keane ◽  
Matthew J. Irvin
Keyword(s):  
Distance Education ◽  
Classroom Environment ◽  
The United States ◽  
Instructional Materials ◽  
School Level ◽  
Local Context ◽  
Online Distance Education ◽  
Local Staff ◽  
Online Distance ◽  
K 12

Online distance education (ODE) has become pervasive and can potentially transform pedagogical practices across primary, secondary and university-based educational systems. ODE is considered a flexible option for non-traditional students such as adult learners and home-schoolers, and a convenient way to deliver remedial courses. ODE is also a feasible and attractive option for rural schools, which educate 29% of all K–12 students in the United States, and often struggle to provide advanced courses and attract highly qualified teachers. This paper presents qualitative data from both cohorts of a two-year, randomised, controlled research study of online distance learners in US rural high schools. Course providers in K–12 environments often rely on the teacher-facilitator model, which assigns a local staff member in the role of on-site facilitator to operate equipment, distribute instructional materials, and answer questions. In order to address issues of isolation and interaction, and to attend to the local context, our study aimed to develop a learner-centred model of social support at the local, small-school level that emphasises communication and interaction. This expanded role links the local classroom environment more closely with the online environment. The responsibilities for ensuring student success are distributed between online instructor and facilitator: a form of hybrid learning.

scholarly journals Learning in an online distance education course: Experiences of three international students

2010 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zuochen Zhang ◽  
Richard Kenny
Keyword(s):  
Distance Education ◽  
International Students ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
English Language ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Master's Program ◽  
Verbal Cues ◽  
Online Programs ◽  
Online Distance Education ◽  
Online Distance

This case study explores the learning experiences of three international students who were enrolled in an online master’s program offered by a large university in Canada. The aim of the study was to understand the international students’ experiences with, and perspectives on, the online learning environment. Findings indicate that previous education and especially language proficiency strongly impacted the learning of these students in this environment. Non-native English speakers required considerably more time to process readings and postings and to make postings themselves. Their lack of familiarity with the details of North American culture and colloquial language made it difficult to follow much of the course discussion. They also tended to avoid socializing in the course, which left them at the periphery of course activities. Based on these findings, the authors make the following recommendations for designers and instructors of online courses: 1) Raise the English language proficiency requirement for graduate admissions into online programs because the text-based communication in a CMC space requires interpreting messages without non-verbal cues; 2) Ensure that online distance education course designers are aware of the needs and expectations of international students; and 3) Combine the design principles from both traditional and constructivism theories.

scholarly journals Part-time Pediatric Practice: Demographic and Medical Practice Characteristics and Implications for State Medical Boards

2017 ◽  
Vol 103 (4) ◽  
pp. 17-23
Author(s):  
Mary E. Rimsza ◽  
Holly Ruch-Ross ◽  
William B. Moskowitz ◽  
Harold K. Simon ◽  
Kelly Towey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
The United States ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Electronic Survey ◽  
Quality Patient Care ◽  
Practice Characteristics ◽  
Part Time ◽  
Small Cohort ◽  
Appointment Availability ◽  
Survey Responses ◽  
State Medical Boards

The increasing number of part-time physicians in pediatrics and other specialties has major implications for state medical boards. This study examines the demographic and practice characteristics of part-time pediatricians compared to full-time pediatricians and the implications of these characteristics on licensure requirements. An electronic survey on workforce topics was developed by the American Academy of Pediatrics' Committee on Pediatric Workforce. The survey responses of part-time pediatricians were compared to the responses of pediatricians working full-time. Approximately 31% of the part-time pediatricians plan to continue to work part-time for > 10 years. A small cohort of part-time pediatricians (4.7%) were working < 11 hours per week. The demographic and practice characteristics of part-time pediatricians differ significantly from full-time pediatricians but there was no difference in reported appointment availability between part-time and full-time pediatricians. These findings have implications for the regulatory community regarding the number of hours a physician must work to provide quality patient care and be considered an active physician in good standing. They also have important implications for projecting the number of pediatricians needed to ensure that all children have access to care in the United States.

scholarly journals Understanding Faculty Attitudes about Distance Education: The Importance of Excitement and Fear

2015 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Bunk ◽  
Rui Li ◽  
Esther Smidt ◽  
Christopher Bidetti ◽  
Brett Malize
Keyword(s):  
Distance Education ◽  
Online Education ◽  
Online Teaching ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Teaching Experience ◽  
The United States ◽  
Faculty Attitudes ◽  
Full Time ◽  
University Administrators ◽  
The Relationship

The purpose of the present study is to further understand faculty attitudes about distance education by exploring the psychological processes through which these attitudes are influenced. We explored the following research question: Do feelings of excitement versus fear mediate and/or moderate the relationship between online teaching experience and various faculty attitudes about online education? Survey data from 152 part- and full-time faculty from a midsize public university in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States was utilized. Multiple regression analyses revealed that excitement versus fear mediates the relationship between online teaching experience and all of our outcome variables, and that excitement versus fear moderates the relationship between online teaching experience and the extent to which faculty feel that their institution is pushing too much instruction online. Our results demonstrate the importance of excitement versus fear in explaining why some faculty have negative rather than positive attitudes about distance education. Our results suggest that university administrators may find it helpful to implement policies and practices that instill a sense of excitement about distance education in all faculty.

The Politics of Part-Time Work: Gender, Employment Status, and Preferences for Redistribution

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-38
Author(s):  
David S. Pedulla ◽  
Michael J. Donnelly
Keyword(s):  
Employment Status ◽  
General Social Survey ◽  
The United States ◽  
Limited Attention ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Preferences For Redistribution ◽  
Time Work ◽  
Part Time ◽  
Part Time Work

Abstract The social and economic forces that shape attitudes toward the welfare state are of central concern to social scientists. Scholarship in this area has paid limited attention to how working part-time, the employment status of nearly 20% of the U.S. workforce, affects redistribution preferences. In this article, we theoretically develop and empirically test an argument about the ways that part-time work, and its relationship to gender, shape redistribution preferences. We articulate two gender-differentiated pathways—one material and one about threats to social status—through which part-time work and gender may jointly shape individuals’ preferences for redistribution. We test our argument using cross-sectional and panel data from the General Social Survey in the United States. We find that the positive relationship between part-time employment, compared to full-time employment, and redistribution preferences is stronger for men than for women. Indeed, we do not detect a relationship between part-time work and redistribution preferences among women. Our results provide support for a gendered relationship between part-time employment and redistribution preferences and demonstrate that both material and status-based mechanisms shape this association.

Participation by Women in Annual Meetings, 1970-78

1979 ◽  
Vol 12 (03) ◽  
pp. 318-324 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Gruberg ◽  
Virginia Sapiro
Keyword(s):  
Political Science ◽  
The United States ◽  
Moderate Increase ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Part Time Faculty ◽  
Faculty Teaching ◽  
Previous Decade ◽  
The Status ◽  
Part Time ◽  
Time Faculty

In the late sixties, women in the United States became sensitized to their second-class status and organized to raise their consciousness and change their conditions. At the same time women in academia began to organize within their disciplines to address the problems they faced there. Political science was no exception; in 1969, when women constituted 5 percent of the membership of the APSA and 8 percent of all political science faculty teaching in colleges and universities, the APSA Committee on the Status of Women in the Profession and the Women's Caucus for Political Science formed. Numerous reports have revealed a moderate increase in the presence of women in the profession in recent years. As Table 1 shows, the percentage of degrees in political science awarded to women has increased since 1970. By the academic year 1976–77 women constituted 11 percent of full-time faculty and 18 percent of part-time faculty. Twenty-three percent of the students entering Ph.D. programs in 1977 were women, a downturn of 3 percent from the previous year, although an overall rise from the previous decade.

scholarly journals How well do Canadian distance education students understand plagiarism?

2014 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheryl Ann Kier
Keyword(s):  
Distance Education ◽  
University Students ◽  
Multiple Choice ◽  
Psychology Students ◽  
Education Students ◽  
Online Distance Education ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Poor Understanding ◽  
Online Distance ◽  
Education Courses

<p>This project ascertains how well students taking online, distance education courses at a Canadian university recognize plagiarised material and how well they paraphrase. It also assesses the types of errors made<em>. </em>Slightly more than half of 420 psychology students correctly selected plagiarised phrases from four multiple choice<em> </em>questions. Only a minority was able to rewrite a phrase properly in their own words. A more diverse sample of university students also had difficulty recognizing plagiarised passages from multiple choice options. The poor ability of students to identify plagiarised passages may suggest poor understanding of the concept. Students may benefit from training to improve their understanding of plagiarism.</p>

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