Inaugural issue – “Current issues and future directions in workplace e-learning: Mapping the research landscape”

To read the full-text articles published in the Journal of Applied Research in Workplace E-learning, please click here.

100 Best Education Blogs of 2009

“2009 was a great year for education on the web and each of these blogs was selected for helping lead the charge forward with shared  personal experiences, leadership, and social media.

Every single one of these blogs are worth reading in 2010, so we hope you’ll check them out. The list is categorized into different education subtopics such as education technology, higher education, education reform, and more. To all the blog owners, keep up the good work and congratulations on a great year!”.

100 Best Education Blogs of 2009

e-Report: The impact of digital technology

A review of the evidence of the impact of digital technologies, on formal education. Published in November 2009, it includes sections on what the evidence says, and challenges for the future.

Download the e-version at http://publications.becta.org.uk/display.cfm?resID=41343

Forthcoming Book: Teaching and Learning with Technology: Beyond Constructivism

Stewart, Concetta M. and Schifter, Catherine C. and Selverian, Melissa E. Markaridian, (eds.) Teaching and Learning with Technology : Beyond Constructivism. Routledge (Taylor & Francis Group), London, UK. (In Press)

Description:

Today, new media is both augmenting and extending the traditional classroom with a variety of technology-based tools available to both students and faculty, and has created new virtual classrooms for anywhere, anytime availability to education. Despite the enormous potential for technology to support the educational enterprise in this emerging creative economy, technologies are still not yet fully integrated in the classroom and their association with educational outcomes is as-yet unclear. This book profiles scholarly work from around the world to examine closely the effectiveness of the newest media in education at bridging the gaps among and between teachers, students and subject matter at all levels, from K-12 through adult education. These pieces are theory-based investigations with implications for future research, theory and application. Contributors examine how the fields of education and new media have evolved and are continuing to evolve pedagogically and practically, from predominantly instructivist, with a passive, one-way teaching format; to constructivist, including teacher- and learner-controlled, sensorially immersive and socially interactive exchanges. This book will be of interest to students and faculty in the areas of new media in education, including distance learning, online learning and virtual learning.

Top 100 Tools for Learning 2009

by Jane Hart.

 

Digital trends among Japanese university students: podcasting and wikis as tools for learning

Yayoi Anzai. International Journal on ELearning. Norfolk: 2009. Vol. 8, Iss. 4;

Abstract (Summary)

English education has entered a new era. Bonk (2008) boldly proclaims that “the World is Open” for learning. It is somewhat obvious that opportunities for learning have expanded with the emergence of Web 2.0 technologies. Now we can interact, participate, and collaborate on the Web in “a planetary community” attached to a traditional class. E-learning has become increasingly fruitful and lively. This study consists of two parts. First, it introduces the results of a survey investigating current technology trends among Japanese university students including their digital studying environment as well as their perceptions and experiences related to using podcasting and wikis. The survey was conducted in April, 2008 with 160 Japanese college students. Podcasting was studied since it provides a ubiquitous studying environment as well as authentic English listening and writing materials, while wikis can enhance students’ English writing ability through collaboration with peers, revising, and editing. The second part of this study introduces the survey results of students’ media consumption conducted in November, 2008 with forty-three Japanese college students. The findings can assist in the design and implementation of such technologies in language education. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]

Using Mobile Technologies for Assessment and Learning in Practice Settings: Outcomes of Five Case Studies

Christine Dearnley, Jill Taylor, Scott Hennessy, et al. International Journal on ELearning. Norfolk: 2009 Vol. 8, Iss. 2; pg. 193.

 

Abstract

This article presents the outcomes of the Mobile Technologies Pilot Project for the Assessment and Learning in  Pactice Settings (ALPS) Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL). ALPS is a partnership of five Higher Education Institutions (HEI) that aims to develop and improve assessment, and thereby learning, in practice settings for health and social care students. It is funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). The aim of this project was to identify the readiness of the institutions to adopt mobile technologies for learning and assessment in practice settings, which may include hospitals, health centers, and community locations; and to identify the available and required infrastructure. We report here on five case studies and explore the variety of ways in which mobile technologies were used, highlighting benefits, challenges, and constraints. We conclude that new technologies demand new approaches to learning but remain cognizant of the need to base new approaches firmly
in established pedagogy. Recommendations for practice are provided.
[PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]

Talk the talk: Learner-generated podcasts as catalysts for knowledge creation

by Mark J. W. Lee, Catherine McLoughlin and Anthony Chan. British Journal of Educational Technology, Vol 39 No 3 2008, pages 501–521.

Abstract

Podcasting allows audio content from one or more user-selected feeds or channels to be automatically downloaded to one’s computer as it becomes available, then later transferred to a portable player for consumption at a convenient time and place.   It is enjoying phenomenal growth in mainstream society, alongside other Web 2.0 technologies that enable Internet users to author and distribute rich media content quickly and easily. Instead of using the technology for the mere recording and dissemination of lectures and other instructor-centred information, the project reported on in this article focused on enabling students to create their own podcasts for distribution to their peers. The article describes how engaging in the podcasting exercise promoted collaborative knowledge building among the student-producers, as evidenced through focus-group interviewing and an analysis of the products of their shared dialogue and reflection. The findings suggest that the collaborative development of audio learning objects enabling student conceptualisations of disciplinary content to be shared with peers is a powerful way of stimulating both individual and collective learning, as well as supporting social processes of perspective-taking and negotiation of meaning that underpin knowledge creation.

To view the full-text article, click here.

Online Versus in the Classroom: Student Success in a Hands-On Lab Class

By Ron Reuter. The American Journal of Distance Education. Philadelphia: Jul 2009. Vol. 23, Issue. 3; (p. 151).

Abstract

This study compares learning success of online and on-campus students in a general education soil science course with lab and field components. Two terms of students completed standardized pre- and post assessments designed to test knowledge and skills from the lecture and lab content of the course.

The impact of mobile learning on students’ learning behaviours and performance: Report from a large blended classroom

By Minjuan Wang ¹ , Ruimin Shen ² , Daniel Novak ¹ , Xiaoyan Pan <sup>2

1</sup> San Diego State University
² Shanghai Jiaotong University (SJTU)

British Journal of Educational Technology.  Volume 40 Issue 4, Page 673-695 (Published online)

Abstract

Chinese classrooms, whether on school grounds or online, have long suffered from a lack of interactivity. Many  online classes simply provide recorded instructor lectures, which only reinforces the negative effects of passive nonparticipatory learning. At Shanghai Jiaotong University, researchers and developers actively seek technologic interventions that can greatly increase interactivity in large blended classes. They developed a cutting-edge mobile learning system that can deliver live broadcasts of real-time classroom teaching to students with mobile devices.