Learning Through Sharing and Regulation

Many studies investigate the effects of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) and also explore how learning processes and social interaction contribute to learning outcomes in online learning environments. This study provides an appropriate design of web-supported collaborative learning (CL) with teacher’s initiation and self-regulated learning (SRL), and demonstrates the effects of this design on improving students’ involvement and helping students attain course goals in a blended course. The authors conducted an experiment with an intervention of web-supported CL with initiation and SRL in a course titled ‘Applied Information Technology: Networking’ that included 112 sophomores from two classes at an academic university in Taiwan. The class of web-supported CL with initiation and SRL was the experimental group, and online CL without initiation or SRL served the control group. The results illustrate that web-supported CL with initiation and SRL could significantly improve students’ involvement in this course. In addition, interviewed students also expressed their positive appreciation for web-supported CL with initiation and SRL. The authors expect the innovative learning activities and teaching method in this study could provide insights for online teachers.

The Future of Immersive Instructional Design for the Global Knowledge Economy

Instructional design has not kept pace with the growth of the globalized knowledge economy. In the area of project management, a volatile global economy requires immersive learning and training exercises targeted to expert learners that have not yet been widely adopted. The authors developed a 16-hour, immersive collective learning experience for mid- to high-level project managers. The exercise was carried out in the Second Life Virtual Worlds platform and aimed to accelerate learning among participants. In addition, the authors tested a number of questions about the capacity of Virtual Worlds to be used for running complex, immersive learning and training. Results indicate that participants experienced high levels of engagement with exercise and, in the second iteration, were able to achieve goals within the exercise. Various technological breakdowns pointed to both the downsides as well as the opportunities for Virtual Worlds to be used for immersive rehearsal engagements.

Supporting Mobile Learners

Mobile learning (mLearning) is a form of technology supported learning that may meet the needs of learners who frequently change their physical location (‘mobile learners’). Ubiquitous mobile data technologies like SMS (Short Text messaging Service) allow designing learning and communications services that support student-centered teaching and learning. This paper presents the results of an action research (AR) project in which an SMS based mLearning service was integrated with classroom teaching in the context of international students studying English before enrolling in regular academic courses with English as the language of instruction. The findings of the two AR cycles suggest that the mLearning approach has added flexibility to the course design and has motivated students to improve academically. The concept and the methodology can be extended to other contexts.

Design and Evaluation of a Web-Based Tool for Teaching Computer Network Design to Undergraduates

Previous studies have shown that motivating students to learn about local area network (LAN) design can be difficult when presented in the traditional lecture format. To overcome this problem, a Web-based tool (“WebLan-Designer”) was developed as an aid in teaching and learning of LAN design at the introductory level. A WebLan-Designer provides a set of learning resources (tutorials, quizzes, network modeling, network design scenarios, key terms and definitions, and review questions and answers) and assists undergraduate students in learning the basics of both wired and wireless LAN design. The tool is Internet-based and can be accessed at any time so that students can study LAN design at their own pace and convenience. This flexible learning approach contributes positively to distance education and e-learning. The effectiveness of WebLan-Designer is evaluated both formally and informally; positive student and peer feedback indicates that the design and implementation of the tool has been successful and that using WebLan-Designer may have a positive impact on student learning and comprehension.

Evaluating e-Learning Initiatives

Evaluation aspects, in relation to e-learning initiatives, are gaining substantial attention. As technology continuously influences learning, technical as well as organizational requirements need to be thoroughly investigated across a variety of stakeholders. In this paper, an outline of those aspects is presented, which occurred from a literature review on methods and research frameworks utilized toward the evaluation of e-learning initiatives. The review identified a series of studies that take advantage of well-established theories in the area of users’ acceptance of technology combined with additional, e-learning context-specific factors. Results of the review are presented, according to the adopted research model, to ease the process of locating and retrieving e-learning evaluation paradigms per theoretical model. In addition, research findings are discussed and future implications for e-learning evaluation initiatives as well as potential stakeholders are highlighted.

An Exploratory Study of Blended Learning Activities in Two Classes

Though there are a number of research studies on the adoption of a blended learning approach to enhance learning, few comparative studies have examined the use of this approach for inter-class activities. Two undergraduate classes at different levels of study participated in an online discussion, an online debate, and two face-to-face debates. Data were gathered for triangulated analysis from a questionnaire that solicited participants’ opinions, from focus group meetings, and from tracked statistics provided by the learning platform. The tracked statistics showed that the participants often read online postings but not many of them expressed their opinions online. Both the responses to the questionnaire and the opinions expressed in the focus group meetings showed that they preferred a face-to-face approach to an online learning approach. Furthermore, the students embraced the opportunity to interact with another class when preparing and having face-to-face debate.

Crowdsourcing and Education with Relation to the Knowledge Economy

Crowdsourcing in the development and use of educational materials involves Web 2.0 tools to leverage collaboration and produce materials from user groups and stakeholders. Such a community-based design, sometimes called a participatory design, can help capture, refine, carry out, systematize or evaluate aspects of online learning materials. Here the use of crowdsourcing is discussed in educational assessments. This paper presents new evidence on how examinees respond to use of crowdsourcing. It shows how a “modify” option in the content can lead to the generation of new materials, and new knowledge, through tapping into the wisdom of the group.

Learning and Teaching Styles for Teaching Effectiveness

Students do not have homogeneous learning patterns, their learning styles and preferences vary, their cognitive abilities vary; similarly instructors employ different teaching methods. This research explores the linkages between learning and teaching styles by using the Felder-Solomon Index of Learning Styles and CORD’s teaching style inventories to match and expand the learning and teaching styles interpretation from the learners’ perspective. This research provides practical implications for educators to think about how their students learn and what would be the best instructional methods for their learners.

Learning Management Systems and Learning 2.0

The unprecedented growth of Web 2.0 has affected learning and has made the growth of learning networks possible. Learning networks are shaped by communities to help their members acquire knowledge in specific areas and are the most notable feature of Learning 2.0, the new learning era that focuses on individual learning needs. The evolution of learning forces traditional Learning Management Systems (LMS) to incorporate more Web 2.0 features and slowly transform to Personal Learning Environments (PLEs). A Personal Learning Environment is a loosely structured collection of tools with strong social networking characteristics, which gives users the ability to create, maintain, and redistribute their own learning content. This paper is a field study of the most well-known and established LMSs and their support for specific features within several categories of tools of Web 2.0. The incorporation of Web 2.0 features within those LMSs differentiates them regarding their ability and potential to be used as PLEs.

The Effects of Combined Training of Web-Based Problem-Based Learning and Self-Regulated Learning

This study explored, via quasi-experiments, the effects of the combined training in web-based problem-based learning (PBL) and self-regulated learning (SRL) on low achieving students’ skill development. Two classes of 76 undergraduates in a one-semester course titled ‘Web Page Programming and Website Planning’ were chosen for this study. Results were generally positive, showing enhanced skills of website planning and higher levels of involvement. This study provided an illustration of a promising course design and its associated implementations in the specific context of low achieving students, for which there is lack of research in the current literature.