Towards a Theory of Formative Assessment in Online Higher Education

Author(s):  
Joyce W. Gikandi

The affordances of online learning have coincided with increasing demand for higher education across disciplines. The need to provide appropriate learning support while fostering self-regulation in online higher education calls for formative assessment to facilitate meaningful learning. This chapter attempts to conceptually generalize the findings of a recent collective case study and develop a relevant theoretical framework for online formative assessment. The theoretical framework is intended to inform successful implementation of formative assessment in online learning contexts. The collective case study purposefully conceptualized formative assessment from a holistic pedagogical approach. Investigating application of formative assessment in the recent study explored multifaceted elements including provision of a variety of embedded authentic assessment activities. The theoretical framework advanced through this chapter is therefore an attempt to coherently unify the diverse elements and techniques from the collective case study, and explicate how this creates an effective pedagogical design to promote meaningful learning.

Author(s):  
Joyce W. Gikandi

The affordances of online learning have coincided with increasing demand for higher education across disciplines. The need to provide appropriate learning support while fostering self-regulation in online higher education calls for formative assessment to facilitate meaningful learning. This chapter attempts to conceptually generalize the findings of a recent collective case study and develop a relevant theoretical framework for online formative assessment. The theoretical framework is intended to inform successful implementation of formative assessment in online learning contexts. The collective case study purposefully conceptualized formative assessment from a holistic pedagogical approach. Investigating application of formative assessment in the recent study explored multifaceted elements including provision of a variety of embedded authentic assessment activities. The theoretical framework advanced through this chapter is therefore an attempt to coherently unify the diverse elements and techniques from the collective case study, and explicate how this creates an effective pedagogical design to promote meaningful learning.


Author(s):  
Leila Mahmoudi ◽  
Susie Gronseth

Video-based discussion is an emerging technology that can be used in online higher education courses as part of introduction, debate, personal exploration, and reflection activities. The video format bridges the distance gap in course conversations and offers benefits of providing contextual details, emotion, and individual personality while also enabling asynchronous flexibility. This chapter provides an overview of research in this area and describes an exploratory case study in which video-based discussion was used as part of an online graduate course. Data gathered included video postings and follow-up survey responses. Design guidelines and strategy recommendations are offered for planning and implementing video-based discussion activities in online higher education courses.


2018 ◽  
pp. 1363-1398
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Murphy ◽  
María A. Rodríguez-Manzanares

This chapter features a description of three contradictions (i.e., disconnects) in the activity system of international higher education students in online learning. These disconnects are interpreted in relation to the constructs of teaching presence, real presence, and social and cultural presence and analyzed in terms of their origins in face-to-face, time- and place-dependent contexts of learning. Teaching presence is the external (to the student) regulation and management of learning, real presence is the sensory-rich character of learning, and social and cultural presence relate to specific types of interactions and communication that occur in conjunction with learning. Learning presence reflects a constructivist perspective that values socially-constructed forms of knowledge and self-regulation. The chapter follows with a description of how the disconnects can be bridged and the activity system expanded.


Author(s):  
Eric Lou ◽  
Hafez Salleh

Higher education sector is notorious for lagging behind the industrial sector in the application of IT/IS systems and infrastructure. This chapter presents the application of the IT/IS readiness model in a higher education organization. This organisation was established in 1967 and currently has about 2,500 staff and 18,000 students, of which, 3,000 are international students from all over the world. The organization comprises of 14 schools and 13 research institutes and offers programmes various fields, which include virtual reality, magnetic and optics, business, law, genetic algorithms, health-related studies, and building construction. In 1996, Academic Division (AD) identified the need to improve the management of the student database due to the increase of students and programs offered by the organization. AD also identified that the Legacy Student Information System (SIS) was unable to cope with the increasing demand of data administration. This case study presents the overview of issues encountered while assessing the e-readiness of the organisation after most of the systems went live. Post implementation, the system has been able to reduce the redundancies in processes and has been able to provide a more effective support to students and staff. However, still there are several issues and conflicts that need to be resolved, and a radical rethink of the processes supporting the IT system is needed to achieve any further efficiency.


Author(s):  
Maysaa Barakat ◽  
Debra N. Weiss-Randall

Online enrollments have been growing substantially faster than overall higher education enrollments. It is argued that online learning can help address issues of educational inequity, poverty, and social exclusion. The momentum is moving towards online learning, and universities are pressured to develop more online options for their students in order to stay relevant and provide needed flexibility. On average, courses that are delivered online have higher attrition rates than regular face-to-face courses. There are numerous challenges and difficulties in developing online learning environments without sacrificing the quality of learning. This case study examines the development, delivery, and evaluation of online learning through the eyes of students and faculty of an educational leadership department in a Southeast research university.


2019 ◽  
pp. 2-4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Garrett

This article synthesizes the evolution of, and prospects for, online higher education around the world. Different national online higher education models and stages of development are outlined. Online learning is judged by the extent to which the delivery mode has addressed higher education’s core challenges of wider access, quality enhancement, and cost containment.


2020 ◽  
Vol 36 ◽  
pp. 100645 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luis R. Murillo-Zamorano ◽  
José Ángel López Sánchez ◽  
Carmen Bueno Muñoz

2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mathews J. Phiri ◽  
Alistair George Tough

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between corporate governance and records management in the context of higher education in Sub-Saharan Africa. Design/methodology/approach This is a qualitative research taking the form of a collective case study of six institutions. Findings That good records management can and does contribute to effective corporate governance and accountability. However, this relationship is not necessarily present in all circumstances. Research limitations/implications That further corporatisation in higher education is likely to be supported by, and result in, better records management. Originality/value The paper proposes governance record keeping as an approach to managing records and documents in the world of governance, audit and risk.


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