ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Online Collaborative Learning in Health Care Education
Author: Westbrook, Catherine
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Cooperative Learning,Online Courses,Electronic Learning,Distance Education,Program Effectiveness,Socialization,Communities of Practice,Delivery Systems,Program Implementation,Program Descriptions,Teaching Methods,Health Education

At our University, the Faculty of Health, Social Care and Education has delivered a variety of undergraduate and postgraduate courses via flexible distance learning for many years. Distance learning can be a lonely experience for students who may feel isolated and unsupported. However e-learning provides an opportunity to use technology to motivate students to interact with each other and their tutors and work together towards common goals. If done properly, this provides distance learners specifically with a sense of learning within a community and therefore enables them to learn more effectively. Five years ago, the Faculty of Health, Social Care and Education started using a virtual learning environment (VLE) to expand and develop our materials and provide a variety of resources to support our students. In the postgraduate Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) course this was further developed by implementing several collaborative learning initiatives where students work together online. The purpose of this was to attempt to improve the student experience of distance learning. The aim of this review is to analyze the effectiveness of three online collaborative tools used in the postgraduate distance learning MRI course and make recommendations for the implementation of similar initiatives throughout health care education.
Virtual Virtuosos: A Case Study in Learning Music in Virtual Learning Environments in Spain
Author: Alberich-Artal, Enric
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Educational Technology,Music Education,Electronic Learning,Virtual Classrooms,Online Courses,Musical Composition,Music Teachers,Case Studies,Foreign Countries

In recent years, the development of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) has contributed to the generation of a number of interesting initiatives in the field of music education and training in virtual learning environments. However, music education initiatives employing virtual learning environments have replicated and perpetuated the traditional model, resulting in sub-optimal use of ICT and curricular delivery that contributes little to the fostering of autonomous learning. A review of online music education initiatives reveals generalised behaviour that suggests the existence of a little researched field holding great scope for further investigation. This case study reflects how the instructional paradigm applied to education results in a less than optimal use of technical resources and the web, limiting the capacity of students to manage their own learning. This pedagogic paradigm is invoked not so much as a premeditated strategy but as the result of reliance upon traditional practice. Despite the existence of both individual and collective communication channels, teachers default, with preference, to a one-to-one relationship with the student. The resources are in place and teachers with the requisite technological background exist, however, none of these inputs are exploited sufficiently due to the instructional model implemented. (Contains 1 figure.)
Empowering Teachers to Author Multimedia Learning Resources That Support Students' Critical Thinking
Author: Holley, Debbie
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Teacher Empowerment,Teacher Developed Materials,Critical Thinking,Multimedia Materials,Computer Software,Computer Literacy,Educational Resources,Foreign Students,Cultural Differences,Barriers,Discussion,Student Attitudes,Teaching Methods,Writing (Composition),Feedback (Response),Action Research,Foreign Countries,Clothing Instruction,Marketing,Advertising,Public Relations,Imagery

Students studying Marketing, Fashion, Public Relations, Advertising and similar subjects need to develop a &quot;critical eye&quot; in relation to images, media and digital technologies. This project aims to empower teachers to develop multimedia learning resources that would support students engaging in this essential activity. Developing such resources is usually demanding in terms of time and effort, and staff can be reluctant to take part due to their (perceived) lack of skills in using unfamiliar software. A key aspect is that the resources developed should act as &quot;open educational resources&quot; (OERs) that could be reused and re-purposed easily by other teachers. An action learning methodology is followed to develop two learning resources, embed them in two different classroom contexts, and evaluate student reaction. The evaluation shows that use of the resources across a large module with over 300 students made a difference by the inclusion of theory in the students' written work and that use in a smaller classroom with international students assisted in overcoming cultural barriers of &quot;speaking out&quot; in a discussion setting. The teachers in both class settings report that they, and their students, found these resources relevant, accessible and useful both inside and outside the classroom. (Contains 2 figures.)
Burnout Syndrome in Students of a Distance Learning Program: The Open University of Cyprus Experience
Author: Pavlakis, Andreas
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Open Universities,Measures (Individuals),Depression (Psychology),Foreign Countries,Distance Education,Educational Technology,Stress Variables,Anxiety,Student Attitudes,Well Being,Emotional Response,Questionnaires,Burnout,Age Differences,Stress Management,Gender Differences,Job Satisfaction,Adult Students,Smoking,Drinking,Physical Health,Marital Status,Occupations

Introduction: Distance learning seems to have a crucial impact on the social and emotional life of students. Within the framework of distance learning at the Open University of Cyprus, the &quot;Healthcare Management&quot; department conducted a study regarding the levels of stress, anxiety and depression reported by the student population. The aim of the study was to record the emotional state of the students and possible factors affecting it. During the second academic year (2007-8), a questionnaire was disseminated at the first and last student group meetings to all 142 students enrolled in the &quot;Healthcare Management&quot; course. All students present were asked to complete the questionnaire. The response rate at the first meeting was 73% of enrolled students and at the last meeting the response rate was 52%. More than 47% of the participants were 30-45 years of age, female, and married with children. Most were pleased with their course choice but also felt that their enrolment in the course was a source of stress for them. Ten percent of students experienced stress and depression. In addition, more than one third of participants experienced high levels of burnout which subsequently decreases during the academic year and in parallel, there is a decrease in the number of students experiencing high personal achievements. Regardless of age, studying at the OUC is a source of stress to the students, a finding that should be taken into consideration so that measures are taken to address this problem in order to decrease it. There is a clear need for further research using specialized inventory tools and within the wider student population. (Contains 5 tables.)
Assessment Is a Many Splendoured Thing: Fostering Online Community and Lifelong Learning
Author: Phelan, Liam
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Electronic Learning,Online Courses,Interdisciplinary Approach,Environmental Education,Ecology,Sustainability,Lifelong Learning,Community,Peer Relationship,Feedback (Response),Virtual Classrooms,Group Dynamics,Program Effectiveness,Teaching Methods,Formative Evaluation

This paper presents the design and application of a major individual assessment task created in part to develop students' capacity for lifelong assessment, a key element of lifelong learning. Additionally the task contributes to fostering a sense of community in asynchronous online learning environments. The task is a supra disciplinary report, recently trialled and now adopted for two postgraduate environmental studies courses offered online. The task design's theoretical underpinnings are reviewed with reference to (i) lifelong assessment, (ii) the value of lifelong assessment from the perspective of environmental studies, and (iii) the importance of fostering community to support learning in online contexts. The paper describes the task's disaggregation into three discrete stages, and the opportunities this provides for fostering community and for supporting students to engage in critical assessment of the quality of their own and their peers' written work, through a transparent, structured process of giving and receiving peer feedback. (Contains 4 endnotes.)
Web-Based Writing Support: Making It Useable for Distance Teachers
Author: Goodfellow, Robin
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Academic Discourse,Open Universities,Internet,Writing (Composition),Distance Education,College Faculty,Writing Skills,Educational Resources,Writing Assignments,Masters Programs,Writing Across the Curriculum,Educational Technology,Online Courses,Writing Instruction

This paper considers the issues that distance teachers in higher education who are not writing specialists face in supporting their students' academic writing development. We discuss the usefulness of open web-based writing support resources, and propose the need for a system that serves as an interface with these resources. Such a system should help teachers to make quick selections of materials that can be offered to students to address specific problems in the students' assignments. We consider principles for the design of such a system, based on the experience of building and testing a small prototype for tutors on an Open University Masters in Education course. (Contains 2 tables.)
OER, Resources for Learning--Experiences from an OER Project in Sweden
Author: Ossiannilsson, Ebba S. I.
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Learning Experience,Educational Resources,Foreign Countries,Open Source Technology,Program Implementation,Educational Practices,Program Descriptions,Program Development,Metadata,Educational Strategies,Program Effectiveness,Sustainability,Educational Policy,Educational Development,Intellectual History,Educational Improvement,Improvement Programs

This article aims to share experience from a Swedish project on the introduction and implementation of Open Educational Resources (OER) in higher education with both national and international perspectives. The project, "OER--resources for learning", was part of the National Library of Sweden Open Access initiative and aimed at exploring, raising awareness of and disseminating the use of OER and the resulting pedagogical advantages for teaching and learning. Central to the project's activities were a series of regional seminars which all featured a combination of multi-site meetings combined with online participation. This combination proved highly successful and extended the reach of the project. In total the project reached around 1000 participants at its events and many more have seen the recorded sessions. Several unresolved issues beyond the scope of the project became explicit but which are absolutely crucial challenges. Firstly, the evolution from OER towards open educational practices (OEP) and open educational cultures (OEC). OEP and OEC imply the establishment of national and international policies and strategies where the use of OER is officially encouraged, sanctioned and developed. Secondly it became explicit that the issue of metadata is crucial for finding OER and facilitating their use and reuse for teachers and learners. Thirdly, the sustainability of OER must be stimulated by ensuring the creation of material that can easily be adapted and reused by teachers in other countries and contexts. (Contains 3 figures.)
Incorporating 4MAT Model in Distance Instructional Material--An Innovative Design
Author: Nikolaou, Alexandra
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Instructional Materials,Educational Innovation,Instructional Design,Instructional Effectiveness,Distance Education,Learning Strategies,Learning Processes,Cognitive Style,Models,Teaching Methods,Program Descriptions,Change Strategies,Educational Change

In an attempt to improve the effectiveness of distance learning, the present study aims to introduce an innovative way of creating and designing distance learning instructional material incorporating Bernice McCarthy's 4MAT Model based on learning styles. According to McCarthy's theory, all students can learn effectively in a cycle of learning that consists of eight steps, which adapt to all learners' learning styles. For this reason, Bernice McCarthy's 4MAT Model is analysed, its innovative application to distance learning material is discussed, while an example of material directed to teachers for the purposes of a training course concerning the art of Drama of the kindergarten curriculum is presented. (Contains 3 tables and 4 figures.)
Exploring Group Forming Strategies by Examining Participation Behaviours during Whole Class Discussions
Author: Jahng, Namsook
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Group Behavior,Group Discussion,Group Dynamics,Discussion (Teaching Technique),Student Participation,Social Psychology,Class Activities,Heterogeneous Grouping,Aptitude Treatment Interaction,Interaction Process Analysis,Instructional Design,Instructional Effectiveness,Educational Strategies,Active Learning,Student Projects,Online Courses,Educational Technology

The purpose of this study was to explore group forming strategies by examining participation behaviours during whole class discussions associated with active participation in a following small group activity. Written communication data, posted in class discussion forums (843 messages/70,432 words) and small group forums (732 messages/59,394 words), were analyzed quantitatively. The result indicated that individuals' participation quantity in small groups was significantly correlated with their own participation behaviour in whole class discussions. Also, a significant portion of small group participation was explained by their group members' participation (i.e., group member effect). Based on the results, we suggest instructors use the information of participation behaviours during the initial period of whole class activities for allocating students into small groups heterogeneously. (Contains 4 tables and 3 figures.)
A Social Network Analysis Comparison of an Experienced and a Novice Instructor in Online Teaching
Author: Fidalgo, Patricia
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Social Networks,Network Analysis,Comparative Analysis,Experienced Teachers,Novices,Online Courses,Teaching Experience,Aptitude Treatment Interaction,Instructional Effectiveness,Teaching Methods,Distance Education,Electronic Learning,Foreign Countries,Student Characteristics,Teacher Characteristics,Educational Practices,Program Descriptions,Participation,Intermode Differences,Group Dynamics

The most productive learning experience for students whether online or in face-to-face classes can often be the interaction among students and with an instructor. Online teaching and Social Network Analysis (SNA) offer the opportunity to examine intellectual social networking and strategies that promotes student interaction which can enhance learning. This study focuses on two online courses in which we used Social Network Analysis (SNA) techniques to evaluate and compare student and instructor interactions of two online courses (Lesley University, Cambridge, MA and Instituto Piaget, Lisbon, Portugal). One course was taught by an experienced online instructor and the other by an instructor new to the online teaching format. We describe and present some of the main features of SNA such as degree of participation, density of interaction, linkage, formation of subsets, distribution of centrality among the participants as well as network patterns. Although the countries and content of the courses were different, SNA allowed us to make comparisons using objective statistical methods. We found that the instructional approach has a clear effect on interactions. In addition, we noted that under some instructional circumstances a multi-star pattern of interaction was created which is an undocumented SNA pattern. We also observed that SNA can be useful in studying online course interactions leading to enhanced learning. (Contains 2 endnotes, 1 table and 11 figures.)
Problem-Based Learning in an Online Course of Health Education
Author: Chagas, Isabel
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Health Education,Problem Based Learning,Online Courses,Program Implementation,Program Descriptions,Educational Environment,Student Participation,Learner Engagement,Aptitude Treatment Interaction,Content Analysis,Educational Practices,Teaching Methods,Educational Strategies,Learning Strategies,Cooperative Learning,Foreign Countries,Cohort Analysis,Network Analysis

The objectives of this project were to: i) describe the experience of implementing Problem-Based Learning in an online course over three consecutive academic years, ii) analyse the learning environment generated, iii) discuss impacts on students' active participation, based on the analysis of their interactions. The participants were 30 students, working in five groups, and four tutors. All the interactions of each member of the five groups and their tutors in the discussion forums were identified and counted. The interactions identified were subjected to content analysis. The results showed a great variability in the degree of participation of each member of the group as well as the development of a group dynamic that did not appear to depend on the activity of each tutor. Moreover, in most groups, tutors reduced their participation during the semester. Regarding the ways students participated, and despite the individual variability observed, most students kept actively involved in the work contrarily to what research has shown about the uneven students' participation in online courses. Two categories of interactions were identified in the groups according to the underlying objectives: learning-problem solving and group functioning. Whereas all groups were able to solve the problems under investigation, only a few demonstrated self-regulation capabilities leading to a great cohesion among the group members. The discussion of the results generated some guidelines for future investigations regarding the use of PBL in online environments. (Contains 3 tables and 1 figure.)
Emotive Vocabulary in MOOCs: Context & Participant Retention
Author: Koutropoulos, Apostolos
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Online Courses,Open Education,Electronic Learning,Discussion Groups,Group Discussion,Vocabulary,Emotional Intelligence,Affective Behavior,Inquiry,Participation,Data Analysis,Discourse Analysis,Discourse Communities,Discourse Modes,Persistence,Distance Education,Context Effect

Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) have been growing in popularity with educational researchers, instructors, and learners in online environments. Online discussions are as important in MOOCs as in other online courses. Online discussions that occur in MOOCs are influenced by additional factors resulting from their volatile and voluntary participation structure. This article aims to examine discussions that took place in MobiMOOC in the spring of 2011, a MOOC structured around mobile learning. This line of inquiry focused on language from the discussions that contained emotive vocabulary in the MobiMOOC discussion forums. Emotive vocabulary is words or phrases that are implicitly emotional (happy, sad, frustrated) or relate to emotional contexts (I wasn't able to...). This emotive vocabulary, when present, was examined to determine whether it could serve as a mechanism for predicting future and continued participation in the MOOC. In this research, narrative inquiry approach was used in order to shine a light on the possible predictive qualities of emotive text in both participants who withdrew from the course as well as moderately or moderately active participants. The results indicated that emotive vocabulary usage did not significantly predict or impact participation retention in MobiMOOC. (Contains 5 figures and 4 endnotes.)
The Transition from Distance to Online Education: Perspectives from the Educational Management Horizon
Author: Soderstrom, Tor
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Distance Education,Online Courses,Foreign Countries,Educational Administration,Change Strategies,Educational Change,Higher Education,Educational Experience,Student Development,Economic Development,Educational Development,Teaching Methods,Educational Practices,Delivery Systems,Intermode Differences

In Sweden, higher education has moved away from distance education, including physical meetings, to online education with no physical meetings at all. This article focuses on the shift from distance to online education using an educational management perspective that is based on economic, staff, and student data collected between 1994 and 2010 (Department of Education, Umea University). The results showed that in 2005, the number of distance education students increased significantly. In 2007, when all distance courses shifted to online courses, the number of students increased even further. The online courses attract many more students compared to traditional campus courses. Overall, the transition from distance to online courses has contributed to more students, an economy of scale that makes it possible to increase pedagogic development work. The online courses have also contributed to better working conditions for teachers. Without a deliberate educational management strategy, general educational courses might have been discontinued, a choice that would threaten the study of education as an academic discipline per se. As a result of these conditions, we believe ICT pedagogical development needs technical and pedagogical support as well as strategic leadership. (Contains 1 table and 5 figures.)
An Open Educational Resource Supports a Diversity of Inquiry-Based Learning
Author: Schmidt-Jones, Catherine Anne
Date: 2012-01-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Open Source Technology,Inquiry,Case Studies,Music Education,Online Surveys,Use Studies,Units of Study,Educational Resources,Electronic Libraries,Student Characteristics,Computer Uses in Education,Web Sites,Electronic Learning,Statistical Analysis,Nonschool Educational Programs,Users (Information)

There have been numerous calls for research that demonstrates how open education resources (OERs) are actually being used. This case study sought to shed light on the users of a well-visited set of modular music-education materials published at Connexions. Respondents to a voluntary survey included teachers, students, self-directed learners, music ensemble participants, and casual learners. Most reported accessing individual modules on their own initiative, as part of a specific, immediate inquiry, rather than responding to institutional directives or following entire online courses. This was supported by computer-log records, which showed that most visitors to a module arrived from an Internet search for terms specific to that module. The study suggests that, for teachers and students as well as self-directed learners, one function of OERs is as a resource for just-in-time, inquiry-based learning. (Contains 4 figures.)