This study focused on investigating the background, experiences, challenges and training of current online language teachers. An online survey was sent and completed by a total of 264 current online language teachers consisting of a total of 40 questions. Findings show online language teachers are highly experienced in face-to-face classrooms as reported by their years of experience and level of their advanced degrees but typically have less than five years of experience teaching online. They also teach in a variety of contexts including grade levels from early childhood education to adult education; in twenty different countries around the world; as well as twenty languages from commonly taught to less-commonly taught languages. The majority of respondents reported participation in some form of training for teaching online with just over half indicating they had participated in training focused on teaching language online. The area respondents reported having the most training in was technology with assistive technology and professional practice as areas where they report the least amount of training. The most common provider of training was an employer with formats that ranged from a one-time session to ongoing training. Data suggest the practice areas current online language teachers struggle with most in teaching language online are: technology, student autonomy and online language pedagogy. Preferences for professional development in meeting challenges were primarily dependent on if a respondent expressed having a challenge ‘to a great extent’ or ‘to some extent’ with respondents in the former generally preferring structured and the latter unstructured professional development. In suggesting recommendations for training individuals to teach language online, respondents reported that online pedagogy and online language pedagogy should be covered in formal teacher preparation programs in addition to the typically covered areas of technology and facilitation. Relationships across grade levels and languages taught are presented using chi-squared and Fisher’s exact tests of significance, independent sample t-tests as well as binary linear regression are utilized in exploring the strength of the relationships among the variables in the present study. The study concludes with a discussion of the educational and theoretical implications and directions for future research.

The purpose of this study was to examine and identify support service needs and preferences of distance learners studying at the Turkish Open Education System (OES). In order to fulfill this purpose, views and perceptions of OES students on importance and accessibility of student support services at the OES were investigated through a mixed-method approach that uses both qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis methods. Data collection took place in three distinct phases. In the first phase, available learner support services were identified through review of the literature, investigation of institutional artifacts, and interviews with the institutional representatives. In the second phase, a questionnaire was administered to OES students in order to collect data about demographic information, students' goals and motivations for participating in the distance education program, their perceptions about the importance and accessibility of support services, and types of support services they needed at different stages of their study. It also included open-ended questions to allow participants to comment on factors that are most assistive and most impeding in their distance learning experience, and also to allow them to offer suggestions for improving and/or expanding the existing learner support services. Out of 450 questionnaires distributed, 311 usable questionnaires were returned. In the third phase, individual and group follow-up interviews were performed with OES students to gain an in-depth understanding of participants' distance learning experience and to triangulate questionnaire data. The results of this study revealed that affective support needs of OES students are largely unmet. A large needs gap was identified for five of the six affective support services included in the questionnaire. The largest needs gap was for the counseling services to promote student motivation. Moreover, a large needs gap was identified for two of the ten cognitive support services included in the questionnaire. These were face-to-face academic counseling and communication with course instructor. In addition to affective and cognitive support services, a greater needs gap was identified for one of the six systemic support services, which is orientation to the course media/delivery format. Statistical tests (t test and ANOVA) revealed significant differences (p < 0.05) in importance and accessibility ratings of several support services based on gender, employment status, and study time.

There has been a significant increase in the level of remote or distance learning using the Internet, often referred to as e-learning or online education. E-learning is often combined with classroom instruction and on-the-job training and this is referred to as blended learning. The purpose of this research is to investigate the impact blended learning has in improving engineering training in the engineering field of industrial automation. This is especially in improving the reaction, achievement and return on investment of learners compared to that of only the traditional classroom or e-learning approaches. One of the gaps in current research is the examination of the impact of blended learning in improving engineering training. The research revealed significant growth in the use of e-learning for engineers and technicians. There would however appear to be a large number of engineers and technicians who were disappointed with their experiences of e-learning. Significant concerns were also identified in the efficacy of e-learning and the lack of hands-on experience in this form of training for engineers and technicians. Suggestions are made as a result of the research into addressing these issues.

Enrollment in online courses has outpaced overall university enrollment for the past several years. The growth of online courses does not appear to be slowing. The purpose of this study was to examine the origins of online education at Tarleton State University, to compare course completion and student academic performance between online and traditional courses, and to develop a predictive model for students’ successful completion of online courses. Archival data from the Tarleton student records system was collected using the Structured Query Language. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze student characteristics. Chi-square analysis was used to determine if significant differences existed between students enrolled in online and traditional courses when comparing course completion and academic performance. Analysis found significant differences existed in both course completion and academic performance for students enrolled in online vs. traditional courses. Additional analysis indicated significant differences existed in course completion by course discipline. A predictive model was created using binary logistic regression and included the predictor variables age, student classification, term course load, and cumulative GPA. The final model correctly predicted successful completion of 85.5 percent of all cases.

This study examined the perceptions of the Students and the Teachers of METU Development Foundation Schools about the use of e-learning / sharing portal technology in their educational activities. Their perceptions were investigated in terms of three aspects: effects of the use of this technology on their perceived motivation, the perceived usefulness and the perceived ease of use of this technology. A central server was installed for setting up an e-learning / sharing portal environment. Microsoft SharePoint, which is a Sharing Portal Software, was used to access to the central server. The study was conducted in the form of action research. The data were collected from 6th and 7th grade students of METU Development Foundation Schools by using a questionnaire. Also, interviews were conducted with the teachers. Descriptive statistics, frequency distributions and descriptive analysis methods were used to analyze the results. The findings of the study indicated that the students and the teachers perceived that e-learning / sharing portal technology is a useful and also easy to use technology. It was found out that the students and the teachers are satisfied with advantages of the use of this new technology in their learning environment. In the same way, the teachers and the students stated that using the system effected students&rsquo / perceived motivation towards the educational activities in a positive way.

Equivalent and Accessible Parental Education Programs for Autism A Case study on the developmental process, obstacle and factors that promote success in working with improvement

Social interaction is a powerful medium in education. In this report, I discuss how computer supported collaborative learning (CSCL) helps K-12 students to enhance learning. I discussed why socio-constructivism in CSCL is a promising learning method. In addition I suggest that CSCL enhances students’ self-driven learning, motivation, and critical thinking. I also examine how CSCL can be successfully implemented in K-12 schools. In this context, the report identifies the challenges posed by technology implementation and changing teachers’ beliefs in introducing this innovation into schools, and how those challenges can be met. Finally, based on perspectives in support of CSCL, the paper does a critical analysis of the Korean e-learning project, which created a national online leaning network for K-12 students, called Cyber Home Learning System (CHLS), and suggests ways that CSCL may enhance this program. / text

In educational development, much focus is put on the use of computers and other digital tools to enhance teaching and learning. One of the most used digital communication forms is one-to-one communication using text, images, and video. One-to-one communication for educational purposes has, however, so far received only modest attention in research. The purpose of this thesis is to explore inquiry-based one-to-one online education. An additional purpose is to explore opportunities and limitations with the Community of Inquiry framework, one of the most used models for analysis of online learning, when analyzing one-to-one online education. A particular interest is put on the role of emotions in the analyses. The empirical case used in the thesis is the Math Coach program who employs one-to-one education for k-12 students in mathematics via chat and a shared digital whiteboard. The thesis consists of an introduction and four papers. First, in Paper I online coaching is defined, explained, and discussed through a review of previous research and a study of the establishment and operation of the Math Coach program. Secondly, the Community of Inquiry framework is adapted for use in one-to-one settings forming the Relationship of Inquiry framework. Paper II initiates the adaption using a survey study, Paper III evaluates the role of emotions in the framework, and Paper IV consolidates the Relationship of Inquiry framework with a comprehensive description of its components and a transcript coding procedure. The findings indicate that inquiry-based one-to-one online education can be explored utilizing Online coaching as a Relationship of Inquiry. Online coaching is theoretically grounded in collaborative constructivism, critical thinking, and proximal development. It is defined as an inquiry-based learning activity where a person gets support on a specific subject matter from a more knowledgeable person using the Internet. The Relationship of Inquiry is a conceptual connection that is built between two persons that engage in a critical discourse in order resolve an educational issue. Central for the framework is the elements of cognitive presence, teaching presence, social presence, and emotional presence. Emotional presence is especially examined and confirmed as a critical interdependent element of the framework. / En stor del av det utvecklingsarbete som idag bedrivs inom utbildningsväsendet handlar om hur datorer och annan digital teknik kan användas för att förbättra undervisning och lärande. Digital kommunikation mellan två individer – en-till-en-kommunikation – i form av text, bilder och video har fått stort genomslag i samhället, men det finns begränsat med forskning om dess användning och användbarhet i utbildningssammanhang. Det primära syftet med denna avhandling är att utforska nätbaserad en-till-en-utbildning. Ett ytterligare syfte är att undersöka möjligheter och begränsningar med användandet av ramverket "Community of Inquiry" vid analys av nätbaserad utbildning. I avhandlingen studeras särskilt den emotionella dimensionen av ramverket. Som studieobjekt används Mattecoach på nätet, en verksamhet där grundskole- och gymnasieelever får stöd – coachas – i sina matematikstudier genom att chatta med lärarstudenter via textmeddelanden och en delad digital skrivtavla. Avhandlingen är skriven på engelska och består av en inledning och fyra vetenskapliga artiklar. I artikel I definieras, förklaras och diskuteras läraktiviteten nätcoachning. I artikel II introduceras ramverket "Relationship of Inquiry". Detta bygger på ''Community of Inquiry'', som är ett väletablerat hjälpmedel för att analysera kommunikation inom större grupper, men har anpassats för en-till-en-kommunikation. I artikel III utvecklas ramverket vidare genom att speciellt studera den emotionella aspekten av lärande. I artikel IV bekräftas ramverket genom en fullständig beskrivning av dess ingående delar och en transkriptionsanalys. Studien indikerar att nätbaserad en-till-en-utbildning kan utforskas utifrån läraktiviteten nätcoachning och ramverket ''Relationship of Inquiry'' (Online coaching as a Relationship of Inquiry). Nätcoachning definieras som en undersökande läraktivitet där en person via Internet får stöd i sin kunskapsutveckling från en annan individ som är mer kunnig inom området. Dess teoretiska grund bygger på kollaborativ konstruktivism, kritiskt tänkande och proximal utveckling. I avhandlingen studeras den relation som bildas mellan coach och elev som genom en kritisk och reflekterande dialog löser elevens matematikproblem. Ramverket är uppbyggt kring fyra delar: det kognitiva elementet, lärarelementet, det sociala elementet samt det emotionella elementet. Det emotionella elementet har särskilt studerats och visade sig vara ett viktigt element. – / <p>QC 20150513</p>

This multi-disciplinary study examines the linguistic characteristics which influence communication and social interaction in computer-mediated communication (CMC). We begin by conducting a qualitative data analysis on a group of graduate students taking online courses. Through this, we look more closely at their perception of social interaction in their online learning environment (Knowledge eCommons). We then take individual student notes and analyze their linguistic characteristics. We look at the emotional cues in notes, the use of factual, objective language and other linguistic features. We study these notes through the use of sentiment analysis methodologies – which will be explained in detail in the first and second chapter. We have proposed a method for deducing note objectivity and have computed reliability testing of this method. Our analyses show that there is a high correlation between the use of objective language in a note and the value that students place on that note.

This multi-disciplinary study examines the linguistic characteristics which influence communication and social interaction in computer-mediated communication (CMC). We begin by conducting a qualitative data analysis on a group of graduate students taking online courses. Through this, we look more closely at their perception of social interaction in their online learning environment (Knowledge eCommons). We then take individual student notes and analyze their linguistic characteristics. We look at the emotional cues in notes, the use of factual, objective language and other linguistic features. We study these notes through the use of sentiment analysis methodologies – which will be explained in detail in the first and second chapter. We have proposed a method for deducing note objectivity and have computed reliability testing of this method. Our analyses show that there is a high correlation between the use of objective language in a note and the value that students place on that note.