Quality Standards and Key Areas of Online Education in European Union

Integration of information and communication technology with education science produced new concepts such as distributed learning, integrated learning, blended learning, flexible learning, hybrid learning, open learning and online learning. Learning in the process of information society transformation has become one of the most strategic concepts. The world conjuncture for all disciplines focused on learning to learn and lifelong learning culture. The European Union has gathered various programs such as Erasmus, Leonardo da Vinci, Comenius and Grundtvig under the umbrella of LLP (Lifelong Learning Program). In this context, learning to learn and lifelong learning approaches are defined as the 21st century student characteristics. Online courses shown as a way to teach these skills to the students. Starting from this reality in the world's developed countries, the number of online courses offered increases. Online courses can be counted with activating the accreditation systems by both face to face online training and regular educational institutions. In the USA at college education one of the three students takes an online course. In Europe, there is research on online education in order to develop economy based on information. In Europe, some leading institutes in online education area such as EADTU, EUA, QAA, ENQA, OUUK claim that there are problems and issues in online education, and there is necessity of increasing the quality in online education. For this reason, there are studies on online education by the same institutes regarding how to improve the system and to put regulations of standardization. In the current contribution, we summarized the studies on defining the quality standards of online education. Further, we introduced the quality standards definitions by the online education institutes in Europe, and covered related topics.

Dysfunctional Digital Demeanors

eLearning has been associated with a number of behaviors that are considered dysfunctional. Among these behaviors that form part of the Dark Web are cyber-bullying, plagiarism, hacking and other forms of cheating. This chapter describes, illustrates and typologizes these behaviors with cases observed by the authors among their online students or culled from student disciplinary boards in the past ten years. The elaboration of tales from eLearning's dark side is followed by an exploration of policy implications. Employing the problematique method, the authors attempt to trace the root causes (psychological, sociological and technological) and offer policy options to address these roots.

Metaphors in Interface Design of E-Learning

It is quite important to effectively benefit from e-learning tools and environments which have dynamic structures in order to meet the learning needs of distance learners. E-Learning provides independence of time and space, student-centered, learner-controlled, flexible learning environments and equal educational opportunities. However, this flexibility has increased learners' self-cognition, self-control and self-responsibility for learning. In order for learners to cope with these issues, it is important to use metaphorical interfaces made up of metaphors as structures that provide clues to understand a new and complex concept, system or model. In this study, three main issues are discussed. These issues are e-learning and distance education, interface designs for distance education and metaphors in interface design. In the last part of the study, the advantages and disadvantages of metaphorical interface design in distance education are discussed. Based on these discussions, some important recommendations provided. The main purpose of this study is to discuss three main issues. These issues are e-learning and distance education, interface designs for distance education and metaphors in interface design. In the last part of the study, the advantages and disadvantages of the metaphorical interface design in distance education and e-learning environments will be discussed. Based on these discussions, some important recommendations will be provided.

Connecting Related Online Elements with Maltego Carbon 3.5.3™

With so much of modern life conducted in online spaces, understanding what is knowable through those spaces is a critical aspect of digital literacy and informational awareness. To increase online transparency, Maltego Carbon 3.5.3 (a penetration testing tool) enables powerful exploration of the Surface Web through its “machines” and “transforms.” Maltego enables the exploration of the interconnections between disparate pieces of online information (including technological understructures, documents, aliases, images, phrases, email addresses, telephone numbers, social media accounts, and geographical location coordinates. In the educational context, this tool may be applied in a number of ways. This chapter summarizes six generic “use cases”: Use Case 1: Understanding an Online / Offline Entity; Use Case 2: Exploring a Domain; Use Case 3: From Physical Location to Cyber and Back Again; Use Case 4: Online Conversations on Social Media Sites; Use Case 5: Eventgraphing: Mapping an Event Online, and Use Case 6: Finding Leads to Enhance Research.

Opening up Education

The questions of affordability and sustainability in current educational systems gain importance, as they are expected to provide answers to new extensive challenges and increased needs of rapidly changing society, while facing severe limitations of resources. In this chapter we discuss how Open Education principles and practices might contribute to the solution of this problem. While they have already found their place and demonstrated their advantages in informal education, there is still a considerable potential in combining them with other practices and to gradually introduce them into more formal learning environments. More openness in formal learning could result in more transparency and consequently in more trust, in enhanced cooperation and new connections needed for affordability and sustainability of educational infrastructure, contents, solutions, pedagogical approaches and methodologies. We present the OpeningupSlovenia initiative as a nationwide framework aiming at fostering and enhancing this process.

The Mean Failure Cost Cybersecurity Model to Quantify Security in E-Learning Environments

This chapter presents an overview of security challenges in e-Learning systems, and discusses a recent review related research on security risk management approaches in e-Learning to give a proper context to our work. The literature review proves a lack in quantitative security risk management models applied to e-learning system and presents the strengths of the Mean Failure Cost model in quantifying security threats with a financial risk measure. Moreover, we focus on presenting security aspects of e-Learning applications, and analyze its respective stakeholders, security requirements, architectural components and threats. The Mean Failure Cost (MFC) cyber security measure suitable for e-Learning systems is defined and computed. We adapt it to quantify security threats and risk within e-learning systems. It is based on the identification of system's architecture, the well-defined classes of stakeholders, the list of possible threats and vulnerabilities and the specific security requirements related to e-Learning systems and applications.

Organizational Code of Cyber Transparency in E-Learning Environments

The purpose of this chapter is to develop a framework for distance education institutions focusing on organizational code of cyber transparency in e-learning environments. The background of the study is based on the transparency concept as cyber transparency concept is derived from concepts of the cyber and transparency. In this sense, the cyber transparency framework points out two dimensions for distance education institutions as (1) internal transparency and (2) external transparency. The chapter explains these two dimensions in detail in terms of information share with people and amount of information shared. As a consequence, the cyber transparency framework can highlight the promotion of internal and external transparency in e-learning environments. On the other hand, this framework can be developed, customized and updated by the institutions, experts or researchers for different situations.

Development of a Global Policy of All-Pervading E-Learning, Based on Transparency, Strategy, and Model of Cyber Triple H-Avatar

This chapter brings the sciences of services to a new level, to implementation of embedded systems and networks and is becoming to Sciences of Services with the Cyber Control and Engineering (SSCCE). Purpose of chapter is show possible ways of developing global policy all-pervading e-learning, based on transparency, strategy and model of Cyber Triple H-Avatar. Realization of this purpose is the result of interdisciplinary design, which can be roughly divided into three main components. Stage of solving the problem at the application level, when need to find the right methods and algorithms without implementation details. It is the work of specialists of computer science, it is called an architectural, or high-level system design. The implementation phase, during which engineers, programmers and application specialists provide a previously defined requirements such as functionality required dynamic behavior, reliability and safety of operation, size, power consumption, cost and manufacturability of replication, need people equally well versed in technology and business. Us are offered is use aspects method of the designing.

Interactive Media Steer in Educational Television Programs

Most distance education institutions still use traditional media such radio, television, printed materials to provide and support education. The educational materials are designed according to the students' individual necessities. So, students can maintain their own learning. The most important property of digital media is interactivity. Traditional media provide interactivity with the support of digital media. To provide a transparent learning and teaching activity in cyber space can be accomplish with interactive opportunities to all learners. In this case the most effective environment should have open access to everyone, easy to follow, unlimited information access. These specialties can be seen in web-based environments. In these days we can eliminate the noninteractive structure of traditional media with the support of web based environments. With the development of Web 2.0 technology, social media applications have gained great popularity in recent years. This chapter will explain, the contribution of Web 2.0 on television in distance education systems.

Internet Related Current Issues of E-Learner and Recommended Practical Strategies

The complexity of the Internet has increased the requirement of learner's self-cognition, self-control and self-responsibility when using Internet to learn. Thus, responsibility of e-learner to decide on the validity, reliability and meaningfulness of the information steadily increased. This situation has caused internet related issues such as problematic Internet use, Internet addiction, cognitive overload, disorientation, continuous partial attention and information pollution on the Internet. The purpose of this study is to provide practical strategies for e-learners' Internet related current issues. This study presented in three steps. At the first step, problematic Internet use and addiction, cognitive overload, disorientation, continuous partial attention and Internet information pollution was discussed as Internet related current issues of e-learners. At the second step, increase of Internet literacy, Internet search strategies, using computational knowledge engines, and benefit from Semantic Web presented as practical strategies for e-learners. At the end of study related conclusions provided.