While technology continues to advance, so do methods of learning. In post-secondary education during the twentieth century, the traditional classroom setting was geared toward auditory instruction and face-to-face peer interaction. Not only was this the most efficient means of instruction for the time period but the only means. Along with the advent of communication technology came the concept of Web courses. Web courses have expanded the means by which students can experience course lectures and have beckoned the use of updated media by which such lectures can take place. Such media include threaded discussions, chat rooms and e-mail. At the University of Central Florida, the gradual change from WebCT to Webcourses offered students more direct contact with updated threaded discussions and more centralized communication on the whole. The quality of such communication measures has been in question, though, and the effectiveness of such online communication methods is the focus of my research.

Blended learning, a combination of traditional face to face (F2f) instruction and computer-mediated communication (CMC), is a popular trend in many universities and corporate settings today. Most universities provide faculty members course management systems, such as Blackboard, Angel, and others as a way to organize and transmit course materials to students. In order to assess the pedagogical value of blended learning in a university-level first year composition (FYC) environment, it is necessary to view the environment through a critical lens and adequately train faculty in the need for and use of the features of the learning management software (LMS). The setting for this study is the Humanities and Communication Dept. of Florida Institute of Technology, a private university on Florida's east coast, consisting of around 6000 students. As I investigate the various pedagogical and theoretical issues of incorporating blended learning into the FYC environment, I critically examine the issues involved in implementing the program. I employ a blended research method to join the tracks of implementing a blended learning program and developing a culture of support together in the Humanities and Communication Department of Florida Tech. In examining program implementation, I use a combination of institutional critique, as advanced by Porter et al., together with an 'ecological' methodology, as outlined by Nardi and O'Day. In examining the feasibility of creating a culture of support through the design of a faculty workshop, I mainly use Richard Selfe's methodology, although elements of the previous two methods operate as well. The results of my study provide a means by which faculty members can experience and realize the benefits, while avoiding the pitfalls, of implementing CMC into a f2f classroom and provide an action plan for other researchers to utilize in their own educational settings.

Online courses and programs are popular with both students and universities, and the COVID-19 pandemic and associated stay-at-home orders highlighted both the need and the importance of high-quality online education options. While this modality is popular, it is not without challenges, including rates of student course and program completion that are 10% to 20% lower than campus counterparts (Seery et al., 2021). Student motivation seems to play a key role in both student success and satisfaction with the online experience (Bawa, 2016). Self-determination theory (SDT) is a theory of motivation that focuses on the importance of meeting key psychological needs for autonomy, competency, and relatedness to increase both internalized forms of motivation and personal well-being (Deci & Ryan, 2000; Ryan & Deci, 2020). SDT suggests that psychological needs must be met for high levels of internal and intrinsic motivation to occur (Ryan & Deci, 2020), but few studies have fully examined the role of needs support and the findings in the current research are mixed (Chen & Jang, 2010; Hsu et al., 2019). This study used a survey to collect data on self-reported perceptions of psychological need support, motivation, and various academic and affective outcomes from students enrolled in fully asynchronous online bachelor's degree programs. Structural equation modeling was used to examine the relationships. In this study, student perceptions of competence were an important predictor of motivation and several affective outcomes, but no predictive relationships were found for academic outcomes such as course grade or GPA. Additionally, perceptions of autonomy were not predictive of motivation, and relatedness was only predictive in a very limited capacity. The findings add to the limited literature on the role of motivation as outlined by SDT in online education. Implications for both theory and practice are discussed.

The switch to online learning during the 2020 Coronavirus pandemic impacted the educational world in many ways. University students were moved from traditional in person classroom settings to an online format. This change may have been accompanied by stress, anxiety, and social isolation. Research suggests that a student’s learning environment can either generate success by contributing to motivational strategies through quality of educational support or a learning environment can generate boredom, stress, and confusion. In addition, research demonstrates that personality plays a factor in many outcomes such as education and mental health. There is a lack of research on connecting different students’ personality traits with their perception of their motivation and engagement in their online courses. To better understand these relationships, 190 university undergraduate students (56.8% female; mean age = 19.90, SD = 3.16) completed the Big Five Inventory (BFI), the Online Distance Learning Questionnaire (ODLQ), the Learning Climate Questionnaire (LCQ), the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ), and a Demographics Survey. The surveys with subscales were totaled and scored separately. These scores were tested in terms of their correlations with each other using the Pearson Correlation Coefficient to test the correlations between the variables to determine if the hypotheses were supported. A significant relationship between the Learning Climate Questionnaire and the Online Distance Learning Questionnaire was found. Moderate relationships were found for the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire and the Online Distance Learning Questionnaire. A weak relationship was found between the Big Five Factor Inventory trait for neuroticism and the Online Distance Learning Questionnaire. No relationship was determined between the Big Five Factor Inventory trait for extraversion and The Online Distance Learning Questionnaire. Further research is needed to clarify if personality traits have a significant relationship between student perception of online learning.

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Online learning provides secondary students with the flexibility to meet learning goals at a time, place, and pace that meets their needs. In order to be successful in online courses, students must exhibit strong levels of self-regulated learning (SRL), including time management, goal setting, and resilience. Understanding the SRL behaviors of secondary online students can help course designers, instructors, and administrators design effective learning environments and provide targeted support to help students be successful in online learning environments. This three-manuscript dissertation analyzes the course pacing behaviors of secondary students enrolled in online courses to attain insight on their self-regulated behaviors. As a proxy for understanding online self-regulated behaviors, temporal variables were examined including the average length of an online study session, the amount of time between study sessions, the average number of study session sand the overall number of study sessions for each participant. The first study investigated the relationships between student demographics and temporal behaviors in relation to their effect on the depth of student understanding on the course midterm exam. The second study explores trends in online temporal behaviors, including the consistency and frequency of engagement in the course, and how these behaviors change over time in relation to student demographics. The final article utilizes student demographics and temporal behaviors to study their effect on academic achievement, as measured by their performance on the Advanced Placement exam. Findings from these studies indicate that online pacing behavior is related to student demographics and previous academic experience while also providing insight into how these variables affect achievement. By understanding the temporal behaviors of online secondary students, personalized support can be provided to strengthen student time management and engagement to promote academic achievement.

Mathematics has been singled out as a challenging discipline to teach fully online (FO). Yet both the demand for and development of FO mathematics courses is increasing with little known about the quality of these courses and many calling for research. Whereas most research has investigated the nature of these courses by examining instructional outputs such as student grades this research seeks the same insight but by examining instructional inputs. Specifically, it seeks to investigate the nature of current assessment practice in FO mathematics courses. To conduct this investigation, deep learning (Marton & S??lj??, 1976a, 1976b) is used as the principle theoretical framework. From the growing body of literature associated with deep learning, two studies are selected to investigate current FO mathematics instructors assessment practices. An additional framework based on empirical findings related to the use of different kinds of feedback is also used. In total, six study measures are used to conduct a mixed methods study in two parts. The target demographic and course context are tertiary instructors from Western nations that teach introductory level mathematics (particularly statistics and calculus). The first study explores current FO mathematics assessment practices using an online survey (n=70) where the majority of participants originate from US higher education institutions. In the second study six of the US survey participants are interviewed about how their assessment practices and approaches used in their FO mathematics courses differ from those used in their face-to-face (F2F) mathematics courses. This study represents the first known attempt to investigate the nature of tertiary FO mathematics instructors assessment practices using appropriate theoretical frameworks. In particular, it investigates mathematics instructors experiences of the affordances and constraints of the FO course context when adapting their F2F practice to this new environment. Findings suggest the FO course context is a challenging environment for instructors to orient their teaching and assessment practice in a way that helps develop students understanding of mathematics. Analysis of interview responses suggests the problem lies with the nature of interactivity provided in the FO course context.

Skills of inquiry are essential outcomes from a baccalaureate nursing education. Students who demonstrate intellectual curiosity can develop effective skills of inquiry. Nurse educators must place emphasis on teaching and learning strategies which engage student intellectual curiosity. However, the concept of intellectual curiosity is not well-studied across multiple contexts of teaching and learning environments within nursing education. In addition, there is little known about the experienced nurse educator and the meaning of student intellectual curiosity across multiple teaching and learning environments. With the increased emphasis on online teaching and learning in nursing education as a solution for expanding student access and capacity, the concept of intellectual curiosity within the context of online learning needs further exploration. Under the assumptions of philosopher Max van Manen (1990, 1997) and Martin Heidegger (1962), the purpose of this qualitative, hermeneutic phenomenological study was to understand the lived experience of baccalaureate nursing student intellectual curiosity for the experienced nurse educator teaching within the online learning environment. The research question was: What does intellectual curiosity mean to experienced nurse educators teaching in the online environment? A total of eight participants from three different institutions of higher education in the southeastern United States were interviewed through a socratic approach. Diekelmann, Allen, and Tanner’s Steps for Data Analysis (1989) are utilized for data analysis. Three constitutive patterns and seven relational themes emerged through the data analysis process. Ontological considerations of findings, implications for nursing education, and future research investigations are identified.

1. Understanding the legal issues regardIng social media and networking sites and their users -- 2. The role of social media and networking in education -- 3. Social media and the freedom of expression -- 4. Social media and faculty privacy rights -- 5. Social media and intellectual property rights -- 6. Social media discipline and suspension -- 7. Social media policies and guidelines for educators -- 8. Case scenarios: Social media and the law. "In "Social Media and the Law: A Practical Guide for Educational Leaders", Dr. Jasmine Renner engages educational leaders, faculty, administrators and students about the legal implications of their use of social networking sites (SNS) and how they can move beyond mere defensive mechanisms when confronted with legal challenges, to proactive measures and initiatives that curb or reduce legal liabilities. / https://dc.etsu.edu/etsu_books/1039/thumbnail.jpg

This training manual serves as a valuable tool to enhance instructional redesign and curriculum development of face-to-face (F2F) courses, materials and platforms into e-learning and mobile learning for all universities and colleges in the continent of Africa. It is designed for aspiring e-learning and mobile learning course developers who are desirous of developing, implementing and sustaining e-learning and m-learning platforms to promote teaching, learning, service and community. / https://dc.etsu.edu/etsu_books/1068/thumbnail.jpg