bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Creating an Emotionally Resilient Virtual and On-Campus Student Community at K-State through the University Life Café
Authors: Hai-Jew Shalin
Published: June 2012

A vibrant community of learners benefits from the well-being and health of all. The connectedness of today’s students through social media presents a powerful opportunity for K-State, which built the University Life Café to strengthen the emotional health of K-State’s students and to optimally prevent student suicides. This site provides opportunities for student intercommunications and interactivity; it offers access to counseling professionals. The site also provides relevant and original information on a variety of issues that affect students’ lives: methods for handling stress, dealing with Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs), maintaining healthy eating, strengthening social bonds and friendships, and problem-solving. The University Life Café team sponsors on-campus talks and events (including an annual art show). This team reaches out to traditional and non-traditional students and strives to create contents that speak to various demographic niches in the student population. The work of the University Life Café supports student retention by supporting learner well-being and self-efficacy through nonformal and informal learning outreaches. This chapter introduces the work of the University Life Café and the efforts made to understand who its users are in the first few years of the site’s launch. This work shows the limits of the inferences that may be made about the site visitors and their possible needs and suggests more formal and informal channels for information may enhance this situation of limited information.
Connecting First Year Students to Formal and Informal Learning Experiences
Authors: Johnson Melissa L. , Pasquini Laura , Rodems Michelle R.
Published: June 2012

This case study, an honors first year seminar from the University of Florida, USA, demonstrates the benefits and challenges of these developments in education. The case expands the definition of formal, informal, and online learning communities in the context of a first year seminar.
Social Media Encourages Sense of Belonging among Off-Campus University Students
Authors: Dorum Kine , Bartle Craig , Pennington Martin
Published: June 2012

Research has shown that students who live off-campus during the academic year experience greater difficulty with social integration, and are at higher risk of dropping out. The aim of the present study was to explore patterns that may give an indication of the extent to which the use of social media websites can help social and academic integration among students who are living off-campus. A survey was distributed among a cohort of 370 first year undergraduate students, measuring their sense of belonging to the institution and their attitudes towards student life. Students who lived on-campus and who used social media websites reported a stronger sense of belonging than students living off-campus. A significant interaction effect indicated that using social media websites reduced the difference in sense of belonging between students living on- and off-campus. Scores on the attitude scale were significantly related to sense of belonging. The results suggest that online networking can aid social integration among students who do not have the advantage of the face-to-face interaction that takes place in residential life on-campus.
Blending Storytelling with Technology in the Professional Development of Police Officers
Authors: Anderson Kenneth H. , Muirhead William
Published: June 2012

Policing is a storytelling profession. Storytelling is a linguistic medium for the sharing of experiences, values, and culture. Organizations have a need to promote the sharing of experiences from senior to junior members. Organizations desire to ensure that proper values and culture are reinforced during this sharing process. Technology affords a tool for the sharing, and for the mediation of what is shared. This study focuses on a case where technology was used for the direct sharing of experiences. This sharing was done through the use of storytelling in the form of video presentations delivered in an e-learning course. Participants viewing these videos reported feeling a sense of engagement and immersion in the experiences of the teller. Participants reported that stories aid their retention and recall of the content of them. Other storytelling professions will benefit from using similar approaches.
Homeschooling Meets Virtual Schools
Authors: ER S. Nihan
Published: June 2012

This study explores the experiences of homeschooling families with online mathematics instruction. It aims to provide useful information for researchers of distance education, designers of online mathematics instruction, and online educators to improve learning via virtual schools. The data was collected through interviews with parents and their homeschooled children as well as through observation of one of the children. The findings suggest that, even though there are some technical problems concerning the use of online instruction, virtual schools enable homeschooled students to gain responsibility and advance their grade level.
Museum without Walls
Authors: Hsieh Kevin
Published: June 2012

Technology was first implemented in exhibition design and gallery interpretations in the 1950s. Since then, the development and instructional use of technology in museums has increased significantly. With the recent trend in visitor-centered initiatives being encouraged by museum professionals, cultural institutions are arranging exhibitions and displays, offering activities and programs, as well as developing materials to better augment visitors’ on-site and off-site learning experiences. The most ubiquitous augmentations are the utilization of different digital technology and virtual museum (Mediati, 2011). For instance, Lu (1999) pointed out that museums installed flat-screen televisions for presenting exhibition and art object information while Chao and Lai (2008) found that museums used personal portable electronic devices for interpreting articles and developed interactive computer programs for inviting audiences’ active discovery learning. Recently, Buffington (2008) and Lopez, Daneau, Rosoff, and Cogdon (2008) indicated that distance learning and virtual exhibitions through museum websites, podcasts, and electronic networking are becoming more common.
Participatory Architecture
Authors: Morbey Mary Leigh , Villamor Lourdes , Senoga Maureen Muwanga , Griffith Jane A.
Published: June 2012

Web 2.0 is currently pressing how museums represent themselves and educate their patrons. Major Western national museums increasingly desire such engagements, merging the digital with the educational and promising unprecedented outreach and scope. In the Global South, however, Information Communications Technology (ICT) challenges abound, including a lack of sustainable contemporary technology and the needed expertise to employ it, but Web 2.0 offers much for the educational possibilities of Global South museums, particularly with respect to oral traditions and cultures. This case study presents both the possibilities and problematics of conceptualizing a Museum Web 2.0 site for the Uganda National Museum (UNM) in Kampala.
Designing a New Performing Arts Education through Constructing a Global Theatre
Authors: Miyakita Goki , Murai Yumiko , Tomine Takashi , Okawa Keiko
Published: June 2012

This chapter proposes a new learning infrastructure of performing arts education called Global Theatre. Global Theatre connects students and theatres over the Internet and creates a unique environment to share performing arts. It enables students to enjoy performing arts together, deepen intercultural understanding, and communicate with a global audience in synchronized time, regardless of location and distance. Global Theatre consists of three basic elements: a learning program focused on performing arts; a collaborative community formed by a university, theatre space, and performing group; and an ICT platform that realizes live appreciation of performing arts. In this chapter, two experimental implementations are carried out. The authors conducted a translated play shared by Thailand and Japan in 2009, and an international collaborative play shared by Thailand, Japan, and Malaysia in 2010. Through those experiments, the effectiveness of this new learning environment for performing arts is discussed from the perspective of the three basic elements of this structure.
Formal, Non-Formal, and Informal E-Learning Experiences with Emerging Technologies
Authors: Czerkawski Betül , Hernández Jessica Nadine
Published: June 2012

In this case study, a group of graduate students in an Educational Technology Program were surveyed in their use of emerging technologies. The purpose of this survey was to examine the extent of emerging technology use and investigate how they aligned with students’ formal, non-formal, and informal e-learning experiences. Suggestions for new technologies and tips for implementation are also provided.
Historical GIS as a Platform for Public Memory at Mammoth Cave National Park
Authors: Algeo Katie , Epperson Ann , Brunt Matthew
Published: June 2012

The Mammoth Cave Historical GIS (MCHGIS) fosters new understandings of a national park landscape as a historic farming community and offers a web-based platform for public memory of pre-park inhabitants. It maps the 1920 manuscript census at the household level over a streaming topographic map and georeferences Civilian Conservation Corps photographs of dwellings for visualization and analysis of the area’s population on the eve of creation of Mammoth Cave National Park. A web interface to the MCHGIS permits broader dissemination of archival holdings. Public participation GIS techniques are adapted to initiate a virtual site of public memory to supplement the history presented by institutionally-held materials with those donated from private holdings.
Cultural Dasymetric Population Mapping with Historical GIS
Authors: Towers George
Published: June 2012

There has been a recent flurry of interest in dasymetric population mapping. However, the ancillary coverages that underlie current dasymetric methods are unconnected to cultural context. The resulting regions may indicate density patterns, but not necessarily the boundaries known to inhabitants. Dasymetric population mapping is capable of capturing the cultural commonality and community interaction that define social spaces. Dasymetric mapping may be improved with methodologies that reflect the ways in which social spaces are established. This research applies a historical GIS methodology for identifying early 20th Century agricultural neighborhoods in southern Appalachia. The case study is intended to encourage discovery of additional methods for mapping population on the scale of lived experience.
Applied Geospatial Perspectives on the Rock Art of the Lake of the Woods Region of Ontario, Canada
Authors: Norder John W. , Carroll Jon W.
Published: June 2012

This study examines the role of rock art in the construction of Woodland Period (300 BC to AD 1700) hunter-gatherer landscapes in the Lake of the Woods region of northwestern Ontario. The authors examine the distribution of documented pictograph sites relative to the locations of rock formations where the geologic conditions would have favored the placement of pictographic rock art but are absent. Point pattern analysis, Monte Carlo simulation, and least cost path analysis were used to analyze the findings. The authors suggest that pictograph sites were placed at points on the landscape along water routes to facilitate information exchange among highly mobile hunter-gatherers.
Showing the Past
Authors: Siabato Willington , Fernández-Wyttenbach Alberto , Bernabé-Poveda Miguel-Ángel
Published: June 2012

Spatial Data Infrastructures have become a methodological and technological benchmark enabling distributed access to historical-cartographic archives. However, it is essential to offer enhanced virtual tools that imitate the current processes and methodologies that are carried out by librarians, historians and academics in the existing map libraries around the world. These virtual processes must be supported by a generic framework for managing, querying, and accessing distributed georeferenced resources and other content types such as scientific data or information. The authors have designed and developed support tools to provide enriched browsing, measurement and geometrical analysis capabilities, and dynamical querying methods, based on SDI foundations. The DIGMAP engine and the IBERCARTO collection enable access to georeferenced historical-cartographical archives. Based on lessons learned from the CartoVIRTUAL and DynCoopNet projects, a generic service architecture scheme is proposed. This way, it is possible to achieve the integration of virtual map rooms and SDI technologies bringing support to researchers within the historical and social domains.
A Neural Network for Modeling Multicategorical Parcel Use Change
Authors: Lu Kang Shou , Morgan John , Allen Jeffery
Published: June 2012

This paper presents an artificial neural network (ANN) for modeling multicategorical land use changes. Compared to conventional statistical models and cellular automata models, ANNs have both the architecture appropriate for addressing complex problems and the power for spatio-temporal prediction. The model consists of two layers with multiple input and output units. Bayesian regularization was used for network training in order to select an optimal model that avoids over-fitting problem. When trained and applied to predict changes in parcel use in a coastal county from 1990 to 2008, the ANN model performed well as measured by high prediction accuracy (82.0-98.5%) and high Kappa coefficient (81.4-97.5%) with only slight variation across five different land use categories. ANN also outperformed the benchmark multinomial logistic regression by average 17.5 percentage points in categorical accuracy and by 9.2 percentage points in overall accuracy. The authors used the ANN model to predict future parcel use change from 2007 to 2030.
Rapid Evaluation of Arid Lands (REAL)
Authors: Dugas Daniel P. , DeMers Michael N. , Greenlee Janet C. , Whitford Walter G. , Klimaszewski-Patterson Anna
Published: June 2012

Management of desert grasslands requires rapid, low technology, coarse assessment methods that provide a triage-like prioritization for the manager. Such approaches necessitate the ability to quickly and effectively identify coarse-scale plant communities that provide guidance for this prioritization. Complex, computer intensive digital image classification of Landsat TM data, while marginally successful, requires time, equipment, and expertise not always available in such environments. This study identifies landform boundaries in the Armendaris Ranch, New Mexico by visual inspection of Landsat-7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper imagery and topographic maps using traditional photoreconnaissance techniques. Employing predetermined hierarchical landform classifications, it was possible to map plant communities using ecological relationships that exist between the general physiographic and vegetation settings in the area and representative geomorphic landform-mapping units. The authors’ field work verified the plant community map using a random walk approach and visual inspection. This synthetic expert opinion-based approach proved successful and is repeatable in other arid rangeland settings.
A GIS Methodology for Assessing the Safety Hazards of Abandoned Mine Lands (AMLs)
Authors: Dolney Timothy J.
Published: June 2012

Abandoned mine lands (AMLs) associated with past coal-mining scar Pennsylvania’s landscape with environmental and safety hazards. Reclamation projects eliminate and reduce hazards AMLs pose. Due to the large number of AMLs and limited funds, precedence is given to reclaim the most hazardous sites first. These sites are identified through an assessment process that assigns priorities to AMLs. However, priorities are out-dated and do not accurately reflect the current spatial distribution of land use and census data. This article presents a GIS methodology for the prioritization of AMLs using the process of extrapolation and focal statistics. By incorporating current assessment techniques into GIS with current land use and census data, AML priorities were reassigned to accurately reflect the current spatial landscape. Results indicate that current AML priorities assigned by the state do not accurately reflect current land use and census data and underestimate the safety hazards of many sites, including high priority sites.
Colorado 14ers, Pixel by Pixel
Authors: Vogt Brandon J.
Published: June 2012

This document describes a capstone learning exercise designed for undergraduates enrolled in an introductory geospatial tools course. The overarching theme of the exercise, Colorado 14ers, Pixel by Pixel, is mountain geography. While immersed in a digital mountainous landscape, students explore topics of geomorphology and geomorphometry and discover how it is possible for a summit that rises well above 14,000 feet not to qualify as a true Colorado ’14er’. To address these topics, students examine freely-available digital elevation models (DEMs) using common geospatial analysis tools. The exercise was developed with five purposes in mind: (1) students should be introduced gently to geospatial software; (2) students should enter upper-level geography courses armed with basic computer skills and a diverse geospatial toolkit; (3) students should internalize the fact that invariably digital geographic explorations are influenced by scale; (4) students of geography should be able to identify natural and anthropogenic impacts to a landscape, and; (5) to help students conceptualize what geographers do, learning exercises should include local and interesting case studies. As an exercise intended to synthesize geographic concepts covered throughout a course, the learning objectives range from grasping broad theoretical concepts related to scale and measurement to learning specific computer skills related to directory structures and file naming conventions. Deliverables of the exercise include posting four maps and answers to nine questions to a website. The outcome of the exercise is a confident, geospatial tool-savvy student who is eager to further investigate the field of geography.
Formalizing Cross-Parameter Conditions for Geoprocessing Service Chain Validation
Authors: Fitzner Daniel
Published: June 2012

Geoprocessing operations offered via web services provide the means for building complex web-based geospatial applications. Often, certain postconditions such as the spatial reference system, bounding box, schema or quality that hold on the output dataset after the execution of a geoprocessing service are determined and derived from the properties of the inputs passed to the service. Further, geoprocesses often hold preconditions that relate to more than one input, such as the requirement that all inputs must have the same schema. Within current process descriptions for geoprocessing operations, such conditions which we call cross-parameter conditions, can not be explicitly specified. In this paper, the author gives an approach to formalize such cross input-output and cross input parameter conditions in a rule-based language. Further, the author proposes an algorithm for deriving pre- and postconditions for a service composition or workflow out of the pre- and postconditions of the services involved, allowing a more automated handling of workflows in general.
Target Evaluation and Correlation Method (TECM) as an Assessment Approach to Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS)
Authors: Epelbaum Samuel , Mansouri Mo , Gorod Alex , Sauser Brian , Fridman Alexander
Published: June 2012

The Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) is a ten-year-long Implementation Plan, which commenced in 2005 as a group effort by numerous participating countries and organizations to build a large-scale network to effectively monitor and respond to the increasingly complex web of global environmental and socio-economic issues. This paper proposes the Target Evaluation and Correlation Method (TECM) as an assessment approach to GEOSS with its 241 Targets across the nine “Societal Benefit Areas,” along with a method to identify Target Correlation Levels (TCL). Applying TECM allows concluding whether the chosen targets within the GEOSS fall into the domain of System of Systems (SoS), while using TCLs delineates the extent of inclusion for these targets in the form of a system. Furthermore, this research investigates the possible ways of raising the correlation levels of the targets for the cases in which TCLs are low.
The Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center System
Authors: Blackwell P. R. , McDonald Darrel
Published: June 2012

During the past 20 years, the role of geospatial technology in society has increased dramatically. However, the impact of these technologies in rural areas remains minimal. In Texas, a federally funded project called the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center System (the System) has emerged as a model for bringing the benefits of geospatial technology to all portions of society. The model involves distributed, academically based Centers, each with regional specializations, linked together into a unified system for addressing critical needs in emergency response, economic development, and natural resource management. The Centers operate on three focus areas, i.e., data, applications, and training. The Columbia Center has been in operation for five years and has demonstrated the practical strength of the System through numerous local and statewide projects, responses to natural disasters, and other geospatial activities.
An Examination of Factors Associated with User Acceptance of Social Shopping Websites
Authors: Shen Jia , Eder Lauren B.
Published: June 2012

Social commerce is the latest development in e-commerce to combine the power of online social networking with shopping. While the adoption of information technology is well studied, new theoretical development is needed to account for the specific characteristics of social commerce applications and their interactions with the user. This study examines factors that are associated with user acceptance of social shopping websites, which are sites designed specifically to support social interactions while users shop. This paper augments the Technology Acceptance Model with constructs that enhance the specificity of the model to the social shopping application of social commerce, including social comparison, social engagement, enjoyment as well as perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness. The model was empirically tested, and the results provided strong support. Implications and directions for future research are also discussed.
Graduate Students’ Perceptions of Privacy and Closed Circuit Television Systems in Public Settings
Authors: Walton Abram L. J. , DeVaney Sharon A. , Sandall Darrel L.
Published: June 2012

This qualitative study used grounded theory to examine how university graduate students felt about closed circuit television (CCTV) as it relates to the privacy and safety of students on campuses. As a result of violence at a few universities, more administrators are considering the implementation of CCTV systems. Because graduate students are an important part of the university population, their views were solicited. A qualitative approach was used because of the lack of previous research on this particular topic. Themes that emerged from interviews with 10 graduate students at a large Midwestern land-grant university were identified as: right to safety, right to privacy, personal privacy responsibilities, post-CCTV sense of privacy, post-CCTV sense of safety, crime displacement, false sense of safety, and international perspectives. The findings provide insight into graduate students’ perceptions of a CCTV system and have implications for implementation decisions regarding such a system. Additionally, the findings were utilized to formulate hypotheses for a larger scale research project.
Antecedents of Consumer Acceptance of Mobile Television Advertising
Authors: Truong Yann
Published: June 2012

Through a questionnaire survey, this study identifies and investigates seven antecedents of consumer acceptance of mobile TV advertising. Negative factors include intrusiveness, lack of trust in the advertiser, and excessive frequency; positive influences include enjoyment, originality, value, and relevance. The study proposes and validates two measurement models of these antecedents and provides insights into the most influential factors of consumer acceptance. Excessive frequency of advertisements and lack of trust in the advertiser present the two largest obstacles to consumer acceptance of this medium, while the entertainment aspects of advertising offer the major positive factors in gaining acceptance. The study recommends that mobile TV advertising stakeholders focus on achieving appropriate frequency, overcoming lack of trust in the advertiser, and providing enjoyment and originality, as these are the largest contributors to higher consumer acceptance.
Student Perceptions and Adoption of University Smart Card Systems
Authors: Murphy Jamie , Lee Richard , Swinger Evan
Published: June 2012

This study investigated student adoption of university campus card (UCC) applications. A review of smart card, technology adoption and Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) literature led to three focus groups and a survey of student perceptions and attitudes towards the university’s campus card. Perceptions of 17 UCC components differed significantly across four student variables – international versus domestic, willingness to load funds, gender, and university level – supporting and extending UTAUT. Willingness to load funds on their UCC differed significantly across 16 out of 17 components, followed by domestic versus overseas students differing on 14 components, university level differing on 13 components and gender on 10. Overall, students reported that extra UCC features would enhance the university’s image, improve their student experience, and encourage them to use UCCs. The results and managerial implications can help universities select and prioritise UCC functions for campus adoption and implementation.
An Office on the Go
Authors: Edenius Mats , Rämö Hans
Published: June 2012

In this paper, the authors examine how senior managers, as professional workers, in a leading ICT company use smartphones, according to new configurations of time and space. Of special interest is how smartphones act as comforting handheld consoles without being rooted in physical location. Three non-physical places, as spatial nodes, are presented: pause in the temporal current, place as a function of the intensity of communication, and place in terms of becoming rooted by felt value. The authors argue that highlighting non-physical places as structures emanating from the use of smartphones is an important variable to account for when studying how professionals use smartphones, both in instrumental and non-instrumental terms.
The Role of Partnership in E-Government Readiness
Authors: Al-Shqairat Zaid I. , Altarawneh Ikhlas I.
Published: June 2012

The Initiative of establishing Information Technology (IT) and Community Service Centers, later renamed Knowledge Stations (KSs) was launched in 2001. The KSs initiative is intended to implement IT in local communities (LCs) and remote areas in preparation for the E-Government process. This study develops a model that explores KSs’ role as a partnership in E-Government readiness in Jordan through answering the following two questions: why is a clearly comprehensive role of KSs needed for the readiness of E-Government in Jordan? How does this role take place practically? The research methodology is the case study that was applied to six KSs as a purposive sample in Amman, the capital of Jordan. Nine semi-structured interviews have been conducted with the director of KSs project, trainers, trainees and volunteers in the KSs project. The findings of the study showed that the role of KSs in E-Government readiness has four pillars: enhancement of community awareness in social and economic fields, development of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) capabilities, lessening computer illiteracy fulfillment of comprehensive development.
How Much Can Computers and Internet Help?
Authors: Tsai Chia-Wen
Published: June 2012

Computing education in Taiwan is ineffective. Most teaching efforts in private vocational schools have been devoted to helping students pass tests through a “spoon-feeding” teaching method. Under such constraints, students may lose their long-term competence in practical terms. In this study, the author conducted a series of quasi-experiments to examine the long-term effects of web-mediated problem-based learning (PBL), self-regulated learning (SRL), and their combinations on students’ computing skills over three years. The author re-examined students’ long-term computing skills three years after the start of the related course. Results reveal that effects of web-mediated PBL, SRL, and their combinations on students’ long-term computing skills are significant. The implications for scholars and teachers engaged in online learning were also discussed.
Modelling Factors Influencing Early Adopters’ Purchase Intention Towards Online Music
Authors: Suki Norazah Mohd
Published: June 2012

The Internet is an incredible technology, offering users a vast choice of new songs and catalogue that can be browsed, streamed or bought online. This paper aims to provide an explanation of factors influencing purchase intention of early adopters towards online music. An empirical survey was used to test the hypotheses. Data were collected from a total of 200 questionnaires distributed to early adopters of online music and were analysed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) via the Analysis of Moment Structure (AMOS 16) computer program. Results enumerate that perceived ease of use emerges as the important factor which affects perceived value among the respondents followed by perceived playfulness. Perceived value has the only significant impact on the purchase intentions towards online music. The paper rounds off with conclusions and an agenda for future research in this area.
Designing Effective Online Instructor Training and Professional Development
Authors: Banas Jennifer R. , Velez-Solic Angela
Published: June 2012

There are many ways to deliver engaging, effective, and efficient online instruction, but most higher education instructors do not know how. So while the demand for online learning has drastically increased, the efficacious training of instructors into how to deliver online courses lags far behind. In this chapter, the authors demonstrate how adult learning and instructional design principles, coupled with known best practices for online teaching, can facilitate the design of effective training and professional development for online instructors. Case study examples are used to illustrate key concepts, and a sample outline for training is offered. Administrators and trainers of online instructors will form the primary audience; other stake holders in online education will benefit as well.
Professional Development with Graduate Teaching Assistants (TAs) Teaching Online
Authors: Hood Denice Ward , Huang Wen-Hao David
Published: June 2012

As the number of online courses offered continues to increase, teaching online will become a standard expectation and responsibility for graduate teaching assistants (TAs). For TAs who will seek faculty positions, experience and self-efficacy teaching online are critical to their future career. The current and future university landscape and the higher education world these TAs will embody will require qualified individuals to be well trained in online course development and delivery. Of equal importance is the quality of teaching TAs provide for the large number of online undergraduate courses for which they have sole responsibility or provide instructional support. Colleges and universities need to develop professional development for TAs that reflects best practices in online teaching and learning and engages TAs in the instructional design as well as delivery process. The purpose of this chapter is to explore the literature on teaching assistant professional development and the implications for TAs teaching online.
The Networked Learning Framework
Authors: Ostashewski Nathaniel , Reid Doug
Published: June 2012

This chapter describes the Networked Learning Framework (NLF), a networked learning model utilized in the development of a networked teacher professional development (nTPD) program. The NLF is a model which combines the use of social media tools found in common social networking sites with guided online activities to deliver innovative and engaging learning opportunities. One implementation of the NLF, the nTPD Courselet, delivered in a social networking site for Alberta teachers, is described in detail. Teachers report that the sharing of resources, reflective blogs, and collegial discussions are the most valuable outcomes of nTPD Courselets. Design principals and factors for designers of faculty PD developers to follow when using the Networked Learning Framework, as well as descriptions of two other NLF implementations, are presented in the chapter. Further research to identify effective supports for social networking novices and ways to build online facilitator capacity are needed.
A Model for Online Instructor Training, Support, and Professional Development
Authors: Zygouris-Coe Vassiliki I.
Published: June 2012

Online learning is a popular learning option for millions of students in US colleges and universities. Online facilitation plays an important role in student learning. With a growing number of courses offered online, there are many challenges associated with the quality of online instruction. This chapter presents information on a large-scale online project for preK-12 educators. The author presents detailed information on a model for training, support, professional development, and monitoring of online instructors. The author also discusses implications for further development and monitoring of online instructors’ knowledge, skills, and dispositions that promote successful online experiences and learning for students.
Definition and History of Online Professional Development
Authors: Brown Carol A. , Neal Renée E. Weiss
Published: June 2012

There exists a consensus on the importance of teacher professional development. This chapter provides a knowledge base for environments, describes the benefits, best practices, and sources for quality online professional development. The attributes associated with online professional development can be examined within the framework of web conferencing, web cast, and online teaching and learning. An annotated bibliography and extensive glossary related to online professional development are included in this chapter.
Motivation of the E-Learner
Authors: McDonald Lex , McDonald Allie
Published: June 2012

The study of motivation in E-learning is an emerging field but there is a paucity of data about what learners and facilitators believe are the important factors involving and sustaining the interest of the learner. It is emphasised that more prominence needs to be given to the key players’ perspectives in balancing what is known about E-learning motivation. In this literature review, consideration is given to how E-learning evolved and impacted upon learners. Theoretical approaches to understanding learning and motivation are discussed and the importance of instructional design as a motivating factor identified. Research concerning the motivational matrix of the E-learner, facilitator, and educational environment is then detailed to provide a context for understanding E-learner motivation. Following this, phenomenologically-oriented research related to learner and facilitator perspectives on what motivates the E-learner is discussed and links to the social cognitive theory are acknowledged. Implications and an exploratory model of E-learners’ motivation are detailed followed by recommendations for future research.
Adult Learning Influence on Faculty Learning Cycle
Authors: Skibba Karen
Published: June 2012

The purpose of this chapter is to share results of a qualitative research study that investigated how faculty members learn to teach adult learners using online course delivery. In this study, experienced faculty members needed to learn anew and rethink pedagogical strategies when designing and teaching online delivery formats. Faculty members who are learning to teach are also adult learners who learn through experience. Research themes emerged from interviews regarding how instructors learned to teach adult learners online: (a) adapted to market demand, (b) anchored by adult learning strategies, (c) experimented in online laboratory, (d) evolved from trial and error to collaboration, and (e) rethought pedagogical possibilities. Understanding how faculty members learn to teach adult students online offers great potential to identify the challenges that faculty members face and how they meet these challenges to improve teaching practice. Implications for online professional development practices are discussed.
Strategies for Online Instruction
Authors: Hyatt Kim J. , Noakes Michaela A. , Zinger Carrie
Published: June 2012

With diverse options for teaching and learning, continued professional development is requisite for instructors in order to meet the needs of a growing online population of students. In online learning settings, if students are not engaged through various instructional techniques, students become easily distracted and miss valuable content necessary for learning. In traditional classroom settings, instructors can easily check for levels of engagement via a visual scan of the class. In an online environment, without the use of video, a visual scan is not possible. As a result, a productive way to ensure student engagement in asynchronous or synchronous courses is for instructors to implement modeling, graphic, manipulative, and simulation strategies into the online environment. This chapter reviews a variety of best practice strategies for engaging students in an online learning environment as part of faculty professional development to improve their teaching and learning. These practice strategies will be discussed, along with examples of how they can be implemented.
Instructional Design in Digital Environments and Availability of Mental Resources
Authors: Low Renae , Jin Putai , Sweller John
Published: June 2012

In this digital era, the gap between the elderly and younger generations in their use of computer-based technology is wide, and many researchers in behavioural and social sciences, along with educators, welfare workers, and policy makers, are concerned about this disturbing phenomenon. However, it is not clear whether this discrepancy is due to a lack of previous access to information technology or declining mental ability in the course of aging. The purpose of this chapter is to consider the aged subpopulation’s needs and their ability to use digital technology from the perspectives of human cognitive architecture and the principles of instructional design guided by cognitive load theory. The authors focus on the following critical issues: a) the evolution and formation of human cognitive architecture, b) cognitive functioning as influenced by aging, c) compatibility between elderly people’s available mental resources and the cognitive requirements of digital equipment, and d) guidelines for human-computer multimedia interactions derived from the accumulated experimental evidence on effective instructional design and delivery.
Effective Online Learning for Older People
Authors: Zheng Robert Z.
Published: June 2012

This chapter examines the cognitive constraints related to older people in learning, particularly in e-learning, and proposes a new design approach that: (1) assists the instructional designer and Web development in identifying issues related to older people’s involvement in e-learning; (2) helps reduce the mental load in designing and developing e-learning for older people; and (3) uses heuristics to systematically support the designers in making decisions about meeting the needs of older people in their learning and searching for information online.
Training Older Adults to Improve their Episodic Memory
Authors: Gardner Michael K , Hill Robert D.
Published: June 2012

This chapter reviews the episodic memory difficulties typically encountered by older adults. It presents data that demonstrates that mnemonic interventions can improve episodic memory in the elderly, though such improvements often do not transfer broadly and do not result in improvements in the area of subjective memory assessment. It then presents three approaches to improving episodic memory for numeric information, each based upon a different approach. These approaches demonstrate: (a) that a mnemonic targeted at numeric information can improve number recall; (b) that self-generated strategies can improve recall at nearly the same level as a targeted mnemonic; and (c) that episodic memory can be converted into procedural memory, though this approach did not demonstrate improved episodic memory performance. Future directions for memory remediation are discussed, based upon research findings to date.
A Method for Examining SME Descriptions of Environmental Sustainability Online
Authors: Parker Craig M. , Zutshi Ambika , Fraunholz Bardo , Crofts Merete R.
Published: June 2012

This chapter contributes to green ICT/IS research by presenting a content analysis method for analysing the environmental sustainability descriptions on small and medium enterprise (SME) websites. Past research focuses on large firms, and few past studies have explored how firms of any size describe sustainability online. The chapter presents the method’s four steps: 1) identifying sources of SME websites; 2) determining if websites describe sustainability; 3) archiving the website content for later analysis; and 4) coding the website content using a structured coding framework developed by combining the literature on IS and sustainability. The authors anticipate the method will be useful to researchers and practitioners. The chapter gives examples of these uses such as qualitative and quantitative research objectives and practical outcomes (e.g. SME website design guidelines for incorporating sustainability content) which could result from applying the method.
Green IT Strategies
Authors: Loeser F. , Erek K. , Zarnekow R.
Published: June 2012

This chapter clarifies the linkages of strategy types and levels that relate to Green IT: business, sustainability, and IT strategy. The significance of aligning IT with business and environmental strategies is pointed out. It is emphasized that trade-off decisions are inherent to strategic management and essential for competitive positioning. Following this, a choice-based conceptual framework for the strategic alignment of Green IT is presented. The underlying strategy framework consists of three different strategy levels (corporate, competitive, functional) and domains (business, IT, sustainability). The conceptualized framework facilitates a holistic Green IT alignment with the aid of a five-step process. In the scope of this alignment process, four different Green IT strategies are presented. These strategies are subdivided along two dimensions: competitive advantage and focus. This research is supposed to provide new insights concerning the strategic impact of Green IT and to assist practitioners in identifying the Green IT strategy that corresponds most appropriately to their firm-specific context.
Not Madness but Business
Authors: Çetin Murat
Published: June 2012

This chapter aims to shed light on the nature of the current paradigm shift in the field of architecture and building sector towards a concern for environmental problems, ecological awareness, and thus, sustainable design, green technologies, and materials. Having conceived architecture and building practices as one of the leading economic activities globally, this chapter elucidates the role of architecture in creating business opportunities. The chapter tackles the subject from the perspective of technology and it analyzes the recent debates as well as developments in theory of architecture and building practice in construction industry. This chapter mainly argues that the ongoing paradigm shift moves beyond mere concern with environmental issues and creates an industry and economy of its own. The chapter introduces key concepts in the fields of green building and green architecture.
Green, Sustainable, or Clean
Authors: Antonova Albena
Published: June 2012

Since antiquity, human activity and technological innovations endanger environmental balance. Any new technology generates more business activity, leading to increased resource extraction and waste and directly menacing natural ecosystems. As a result, technological progress and economic growth are based on unsustainable practices. In the last few decades, ICT has accelerated and globalized business activity and many problems emerged as scarcity of natural resources, global warming, and population growth are only few of them. For less than 20 years, information technologies made the world smaller and smarter. ICT transformed all aspects of human life including business processes and practices, communication, logistics and transportation, learning, entertainment, commerce, and many others. The present research aims to outline some of the challenges to new technologies and IT/IS practices. It proposes a practice-oriented framework for adoption of green IT/IS strategy in companies. While literature is dominated by specific technological issues, businesses still miss the general vision of sustainable/green/clean technologies and how to adopt green IT/IS. Therefore, the discussion section of this chapter proposes an analysis of wider practices and initiatives leading to green IT/IS.
Longer Use, Better Use
Authors: Sissa Giovanna
Published: June 2012

An effective insight about ICT environmental sustainability requires to pay attention also to the software features, this being another responsible for the CO2 emissions of the ICT sector. The main concerns of green ICT are related to the energy consumption in the computer’s use phase, which doesn’t depend only on hardware but also on software configuration and from its efficiency. Software is also responsible for the induced hardware obsolescence; the computer lifecycle is shorter than the potential one. A software based approach, as proposed in the chapter, will also allow a longer use for PCs, respecting the environment, saving energy, emissions, and money and, in the meantime, moving toward the cloud computing paradigm. A sustainable balance between innovation, economy, and green aptitude can help to use computers better and longer. Cloud computing, broadband Internet, and thin client are key elements to reach an environmentally sustainable ICT. Environmental benefit starts from a different approach to an old issue, in a re-combination strategy.