ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Blended Learning Innovations: Leadership and Change in One Australian Institution
Author: Mirriahi, Negin
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Blended Learning,Educational Innovation,Leadership,Higher Education,Educational Experience,Online Courses,Faculty Development,Capacity Building,Teaching Skills,Instructional Design,Consciousness Raising,Open Education,Virtual Classrooms,Change Strategies,Case Studies,Curriculum Development,Educational Principles,Educational Practices,Foreign Countries

This paper reports on the current experience of one higher education institution in Australia embarking on the path towards mainstreaming online learning opportunities by providing three complementary academic development initiatives that can inform strategies undertaken by other institutions internationally. First, an academic development program was redesigned and delivered in blended mode to provide teaching staff with the experience of learning in a blended environment to raise their awareness of effective strategies. Second, an accredited postgraduate course for teaching staff on the subject of educational design was redesigned to focus on strategies for online and blended course design and delivered fully online to raise awareness of online learning benefits. Third, a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC), entitled Learning to Teach Online (LTTO), was developed to offer professional development opportunities to teaching staff at the higher education institution, as well as to a wider international audience of educators. The threefold professional development strategies reported in this paper provide teaching staff with an opportunity to interact, mentor, and share knowledge with one another, alongside experiencing online and blended learning to effectively meet the challenge of improving the digital literacy of teaching staff and enhancing effective online and blended learning opportunities for students.
Evaluating the Implementation of International Computing Curricular in African Universities: A Design-Reality Gap Approach
Author: Dasuki, Salihu Ibrahim
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Developing Nations,Competence,Global Approach,International Cooperation,Design,College Curriculum,Computer Science Education,Foreign Countries,Private Colleges,Information Technology,Capacity Building,Curriculum Development,Case Studies,Observation,Interviews,Documentation,Content Analysis,Stakeholders,Coding,Educational Policy,Technology Uses in Education,Competition,Educational Methods

Efforts are been made by Universities in developing countries to ensure that it's graduate are not left behind in the competitive global information society; thus have adopted international computing curricular for their computing degree programs. However, adopting these international curricula seem to be very challenging for developing countries having in mind that they were developed for developed rather than developing countries realities. In this paper, we use Heeks (2002) design-reality gap as an evaluative space for an international computing curricula assessment. We employed the OPTIMISM concepts of the design reality gap framework to focus on the match or mismatch of implementing such curricula in a developing country setting. We based our evaluation on the design and implementation of an international (British) computing degree programs in a private university in Nigeria. Our analysis shows that significant progress has been made, but that important gaps between design and reality exist, hence, challenges persist. The study concludes with some recommendations for policy makers advancing an agenda for &quot;ICTs for Development&quot; in the education sector.
Success Factors for ICT Implementation in Saudi Secondary Schools: From the Perspective of ICT Directors, Head Teachers, Teachers and Students
Author: Albugami, Sultan
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Educational Technology,Secondary Schools,Technology Uses in Education,Teacher Attitudes,Students,Attitudes,Administrator Attitudes,Secondary School Students,Secondary School Teachers,Qualitative Research,Semi Structured Interviews,Teaching Methods,Barriers,Interviews,School Culture,Role,Educational Policy,Technological Literacy

The role of Information Communication and Technology (ICT) in education is undisputed globally. Therefore, many developed and developing countries have invested heavily in the ICT sector in education. Saudi Arabia is one of these countries. However, although it has invested massively in the ICT sector in education, the progression has often been disappointing--resulting in a number of serious questions being raised for decision-makers and educators alike. One of the most important of these questions is &quot;what factors affect the successful implementation of ICT in schools.&quot; Hence, the importance of this paper is to find an answer to this question and related questions from the participants' perspective. Consequently, the study is primarily concerned with qualitative data, collected in semi-structured interviews with two ICT directors, four headmasters, four teachers and four students, in Saudi secondary schools. Generally, the results showed that ICT was perceived as an important tool in improving performance, collaboration, learning experience and learning outcomes. However, some challenges that affect the application of ICT in Saudi schools are, for example, the lack of space, resources, maintenance, a lack of ICT skills among school along with a lack in ICT training and a lack of clear ICT policies. However, the overcoming of these obstacles could turn these barriers into positive factors to aid in the success of ICT implementation.
Community Outreach Projects as a Sustainable Way of Introducing Information Technology in Developing Countries
Author: Zlotnikova, Irina
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Outreach Programs,Information Technology,Developing Nations,International Cooperation,Sustainability,Models,Case Studies,Elementary Schools,Foreign Countries,Community Programs,Knowledge Level,Technology Integration,Community Needs,Access to Computers,Internet,Telecommunications,Handheld Devices,Program Effectiveness,Higher Education

The paper describes an approach to the sustainable introduction of IT in developing countries based on international collaboration between students taking the form of a knowledge bridge. The authors consider the challenges for introducing information technologies in developing countries; one of these is lack of reading materials ultimately leading to lack of reading skills in pupils and poor overall performance. A theoretical framework for the sustainable introduction of IT is proposed. It comprises the following components: (1) the model of a knowledge bridge, (2) the managerial model of the interactions between key stakeholders, and (3) the model of impact of a Community Outreach Project (COP) on target schools. The proposed models have been mapped to the widely adopted DPSIR framework used in sustainable development studies. As a case study, the authors discuss the E-readers Project run in two primary schools in Northern Tanzania. The paper also demonstrates how interaction and collaboration between Tanzanian and Dutch students was organized during preparatory stage and project implementation. The paper concludes with general recommendations on how to run a sustainable IT-based COP. These recommendations have been drawn from the analysis of the COP experience in the developing country, namely Tanzania.
Rules of Engagement: Considering Good Policy and Practice with Online Military Learners
Author: Starr-Glass, David
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Online Courses,Electronic Learning,Military Personnel,Distance Education,Special Needs Students,Cultural Differences,Stereotypes,Student Characteristics,Andragogy,Personal Autonomy,Educational Practices,Educational Strategies,Teaching Experience,College Students,Culturally Relevant Education

In online distance learning environments military learners may not stand out or be particularly distinctive from their non-military peers. However, military learners do possess a degree of difference that needs to be recognized. The military can be considered to possess a Janusian culture--two distinctive cultural patterns that emerge in different situations. The culture military learners display in online distance learning situations is not particularly different from their non-military peers. However, online facilitators should be aware of the cultural dimension and the difficulties military learners encounter when participating online. Drawn from the author's ten years' experience working with military learners, this article explains these different cultural perspectives, explores the negative impacts of stereotyping, and provides practical suggestions for harnessing the strengths of these learners in productive online learning.
Students' Perception of Blended Learning Environment: A Case Study of the University of Education, Winneba, Kumasi-Campus, Ghana
Author: Gyamfi, Samuel Adu
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Educational Technology,Technology Uses in Education,Blended Learning,Intervention,College Freshmen,College Faculty,Barriers,Internet,Access to Computers,Integrated Learning Systems,Formative Evaluation,Qualitative Research,Statistical Analysis,Pretests Posttests,Documentation,Content Analysis,Observation,Interviews,Technological Literacy,Questionnaires,Likert Scales

The increasing utilization of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in addressing various societal needs has catalysed the need to deploy this all important tool in education in developing countries to address the need of the increasing student enrolment in universities. This study was conducted to assess students' perception of blended learning environment. The blended learning environment was designed on a Moodle platform using an adaptation of the practical enquiry model. This intervention was designed to ensure that the benefits of both online and face-to-face learning environment were harnessed for the achievement of set pedagogical goals. The study used formative experiment with 75 first year university students who were studying Communication Skills (CS) and their lecturers as the participants. The experiment was carried out over two semesters at the University of Education, Winneba-Kumasi Campus in Ghana. The findings showed positive perceptions of student on the blended learning environment. However, the problem of slow Internet connectivity and lack of Internet access for some of the students outside the university campus hindered the effectiveness of the blended learning environment for a few students. Improvement in ICT infrastructure and capacity building for lecturers to adopt blended learning approach were recommended.
Supporting Student Veterans: Utilizing Game-Based Role-Plays with Virtual Humans to Build Military Cultural Competency and Helping Behaviors in Faculty and Staff
Author: Cate, Chris A.
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Veterans,College Students,Games,Role Playing,Computer Simulation,Virtual Classrooms,College Faculty,School Personnel,Training,Helping Relationship,Cultural Awareness,Longitudinal Studies,Instructional Effectiveness,Surveys,Quasiexperimental Design

Veterans and military service members enter the classroom with valuable life and leadership experience; however, transitioning to student life represents unique challenges. Like the larger veteran population, student veterans may bring to campus the negative aftereffects of their combat experiences in the form of post-traumatic stress, substance abuse, depression, and thoughts of suicide. To better support and retain the nation's 950,000 student veterans, higher-education institutions are beginning to train faculty and staff to more effectively understand and meet the needs of student--veteran populations. This study examines the impact of a new and innovative game-based virtual training simulation where users role-play with emotionally responsive virtual student veterans to understand the unique value veterans bring to campus, the obstacles they face in their pursuit of a college degree, effective tactics for managing challenging conversations, and the best practices for connecting student veterans exhibiting signs of psychological distress with appropriate support services. Longitudinal data showed significant (p &lt; 0.01) and sustained increases in learners' military cultural competency (which included knowledge about the common challenges facing the student veterans), and preparedness to manage classroom discussions around veteran-sensitive issues, to talk with student veterans about their military service, and if necessary to make a referral to the appropriate campus office. Data also showed significant (p &lt; 0.01) and sustained increases in gatekeeper skills, which included the learners' preparedness, likelihood, and self-efficacy to help a student veteran in psychological distress, which resulted in increased referrals to support services.
Bridging the Gap: Technology and Veteran Academic Success
Author: Cass, David
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Success,Educational Technology,Technology Uses in Education,College Students,Veterans,Blended Learning,Best Practices,Barriers,Mentors,Academic Advising,Access to Education,Access to Information,Computer Mediated Communication,Online Courses,Team Training,Skill Development,Training Methods,Educational Practices,Military Service

This paper presents two unique yet confluent perspectives regarding the use of technology to support student veterans in college, and is meant to ignite discussion of the blending of high impact practices with technology to promote their academic success. The authors highlight the historical trends of student veterans in the academy and discuss the barriers to success for this unique population of students. Uvize--an online mentoring and advising platform for student veterans--is introduced, and preliminary results from three forward thinking institutions are discussed. This article further defines why student veterans are a special student population on our campuses and require unique services to support their overall academic success. Theoretical and pragmatic technology-based solutions for student veteran success are presented.
An Analysis of Supports for Persistence for the Military Student Population
Author: Mentzer, Bruce
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Military Personnel,Veterans,Academic Persistence,Correlation,Comparative Analysis,Academic Support Services,Financial Support,Social Support Groups,College Students,Student Surveys,Electronic Learning,Multiple Regression Analysis

This study sought to describe the correlation of academic, financial, and social supports to the persistence of a military student population: veterans, active duty and their families. The study also contrasted these relationships with those of nonmilitary students and looked at the results of both groups together to determine how supports correlated to persistence. Results confirmed the emphasis in the persistence literature on the importance of academic support mechanisms and noted their positive relationship to the military student population. Financial supports varied for the military student population, nonmilitary population and the overall group, with the military student population being negatively impacted by loans, nonmilitary students by university scholarships and the overall group by government grants and aid. An additional finding of this study was that institutional support emerged as a key support mechanism. This study recommends enhancing academic and institutional support for the military student population to reinforce their persistence.
MLCMS Actual Use, Perceived Use, and Experiences of Use
Author: Asiimwe, Edgar Napoleon
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Electronic Learning,Management Systems,Handheld Devices,Educational Technology,Foreign Countries,Use Studies,Usability,Focus Groups,Online Surveys,Data Analysis,College Students,Access to Information,Internet

Mobile learning involves use of mobile devices to participate in learning activities. Most e-learning activities are available to participants through learning systems such as learning content management systems (LCMS). Due to certain challenges, LCMS are not equally accessible on all mobile devices. This study investigates actual use, perceived usefulness and user experiences of LCMS use on mobile phones at Makerere University in Uganda. The study identifies challenges pertaining to use and discusses how to improve LCMS use on mobile phones. Such solutions are a cornerstone in enabling and improving mobile learning. Data was collected by means of focus group discussions, an online survey designed based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), and LCMS log files of user activities. Data was collected from two courses where Moodle was used as a learning platform. The results indicate positive attitudes towards use of LCMS on phones but also huge challenges which are content related and technical in nature.
Planning for Veterans' Success: The Degree Map as an Advising Solution
Author: Richardson, Tracey M.
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Veterans,Success,College Planning,Academic Advising,Mixed Methods Research,Online Courses,Online Surveys,Reentry Students,Help Seeking,Stress Variables,Anxiety,Articulation (Education),Self Management,Academic Persistence,Student Financial Aid,Usability,Participant Satisfaction,Guides,Guidance Programs,Maps,Degree Requirements,Critical Path Method

Due to the expected influx of veterans attending college, it is critical that higher education not only be cognizant of the projected growth but also take a proactive stand and properly plan for these students' success. Academic planning begins with advising professionals developing open communications and becoming equipped to guide veteran students through the matriculation process. Veteran students often have difficulty interpreting university scheduling and frequently have access to only a limited advising staff for course selection information, which may prompt some to not persist in an online degree program. This study's findings suggest the degree map is a powerful tool to help students through class selection and sequencing. The degree map data provides transparency that will contribute to institutional and governmental monitoring for ongoing outreach to student veterans.
The Evolving Military Learner Population: A Review of the Literature
Author: Ford, Kate
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Military Personnel,Literature Reviews,Online Courses,Veterans,Synthesis,Demography,Educational Experience,Outcomes of Education,Academic Achievement,Adult Students,Academic Persistence,Institutional Characteristics,Student Characteristics,Achievement Need,Profiles,Enrollment Trends,School Registration,Interpersonal Relationship,Academic Support Services,Student Personnel Services,College Students

This literature review examines the evolving online military learner population with emphasis on current generation military learners, who are most frequently Post-9/11 veterans. The review synthesizes recent scholarly and grey literature on military learner demographics and attributes, college experiences, and academic outcomes against a backdrop of conceptual frameworks addressing adult transition theory, learner persistence, and institutional responsiveness. Military learner demographics and academic risk profiles are most similar to nontraditional, first generation learners, although military learners face additional challenges associated with service-connected injuries and disabilities. Like other nontraditional learners juggling work, family, and academic responsibilities, military learners have become increasingly reliant on online learning. Intersecting community memberships, role identities, and commitments often complicate the transition to college and perceived sense of fit, a finding more pronounced in studies involving military learners attending campuses predominately serving traditional students. The significant lack of research examining online military learners limited further comparative analysis.
Building an Accelerated Online Graduate Program for Military Officers
Author: Collins, Royce Ann
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Acceleration (Education),Military Personnel,Online Courses,Graduate Students,Administrator Education,Instructional Development,Special Needs Students,Program Development,Military Training,Organizational Culture,Safety,Program Descriptions

Because of the intense and unique nature of their military life, military officers face stresses that other students do not need to be concerned about when taking courses online. An institution's ability to understand these military officer students, design online programs to meet their unique learning needs and deliver valuable online curricula to advance their learning is instrumental to the long-term success of both the military student and the institution. Reflecting on our more than twenty years of experience teaching and mentoring military officer students, this article tells the story behind the development of an accelerated online program and shares the challenges brought along with having military officers in our online classes, including unpredictable deployment schedules, unannounced military exercises, security concerns and military values and culture. How our faculty creatively and pedagogically addresses these issues while still maintaining the rigor of our academic program is also discussed.
A Core Course on Veterans' Health in an Online RN to BSN Program: Preparing Nurses to Work with Veterans
Author: Keavney, Elaine C.
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Nursing Education,Veterans,Online Courses,Bachelors Degrees,Knowledge Level,Nurses,Curriculum Development,Course Content,Program Effectiveness,Student Surveys,Student Attitudes,Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

The Joining Forces Initiative challenges nursing programs throughout the country to develop curriculum that addresses the unique healthcare issues facing veterans. It is imperative that Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) students acquire the knowledge that will help them to care for veterans in all areas of nursing practice. This article describes a retrospective evaluation of the effectiveness of a dedicated core curricular course in increasing awareness of the unique issues facing today's veteran. It also discusses whether nursing students gain an appreciation for their role in helping veterans gain access to available resources and achieve maximum health and wellness.
Online Training for Working with Student Veterans: A Social Work Elective Course
Author: Selber, Katherine
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Social Work,Elective Courses,Veterans,Online Courses,Training Methods,Educational Innovation,Educational Practices,Program Descriptions,Masters Programs,Military Personnel,College Students,Best Practices,Electronic Learning,Educational Strategies,Capacity Building,Student Attitudes,Teacher Attitudes,Course Evaluation,Instructional Effectiveness

This article describes one school of social work's innovative online elective course to prepare Masters of Social Work (MSW) students for practice with the military, veterans and their families. Developed as part of a university-wide Veterans Initiative, this online course keeps the focus on the student veteran and uses the best practices of online education. The authors share their strategies and make recommendations for future trainings.