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This thesis researched what characteristics of a training course influenced participants’ professional practice. The training this study evaluated was MarylandOnline’s Certificate for Online Adjunct Teaching (COAT) course. The COAT project began in 2008 when instructional designers from various higher education institutions collaborated on developing training for instructors who were making the transition to online teaching. Using a design-based research methodological approach within an interpretivist research paradigm, this study used mixed methods data collection tools and grounded theory data analysis techniques to evaluate whether the COAT course effectively helped the target audience of higher education adjunct faculty make the transition to online teaching. This study found that not only adjuncts with no online teaching experience, but also experienced online instructors, full-time faculty, and nonteaching professionals completed the COAT course. Research participants identified that the experience of being situated as students in an authentic online course focused on online teaching and learning influenced their later online teaching, campus-based teaching, and nonteaching professional practice. Focus group participants cocreated an observation protocol that was applied to archived courses taught by COAT alumni, and it was found that instructors, as reflective practitioners, took from their COAT experience instructional approaches and competencies that were appropriate for their specific teaching situations. Although limited to a particular context, the original contribution to scholarship of this study was the articulation of design principles and a conceptual framework that may be useful to researchers and practitioners working in the area of online instructor training. / 2013, 04

With the spread of synchronous and asynchronous online teaching tools, it has become necessary to identify factors and challenges influencing faculty member adoption of online teaching into teaching practice at Saudi universities. The parallel convergent mixed method was used as the methodology for this study and was conducted in three Saudi universities; Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University, King Faisal University, and University of Bisha. The total number of responses from the study instrument was about 124; Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University 49, King Faisal University 41, and the University of Bisha 34. The theoretical framework for this study was the Decomposed Theory of Planned Behavior (DTPB) modal. The collection of quantitative and qualitative data as convergent parallel mixed methods was in one phase and concurrently included close-ended and open-ended questions. The data were separately analyzed quantitative and qualitative. The questionnaire instrument was constructed in four parts: (1) faculty demographic information, (2) technologies faculty use most with online teaching, (3) the use of online teaching and learning tools, and (4) utilization of online tools. The first and second sections of the survey instrument were focused on faculty demographics such as gender, age, academic rank, teaching experiences, department or college, nationality, type of contract, and years of experience teaching online courses. Additional information about faculty's most used technologies (such as possession of personal home technology tools, provision of a university office computer, connection to the Internet at a university, and connection to the Internet at home) for online teaching were also collected. Items pertaining to faculty perceptions of challenges associated with using online teaching tools in their teaching practice were also included in the second section of the survey. A 5-point Likert-scale was used for participant responses with 5=Always, 4=Mostly, 3=Moderate, 2=Seldom, and 1=Never. The findings of faculty demographic information and the type of technologies faculty uses most with online teaching that the quantitative findings of the ANOVA for the first part of the analysis, there were no significant differences identified for gender, faculty members' academic rank and experience, nationality, and contract types in relation to the use of university-provided resources for online teaching tools. However, significant differences were found among faculty members based on age, university departments or colleges, and the experience levels of faculty members for using university-provided resources for online teaching tools. In the second part of the ANOVA analysis, which involved comparisons of the variables, there were no significant differences found based on faculty members' age, university, academic rank or experience level, or gender to use a personal digital resource at home. However, the findings from the ANOVA analysis indicated that there were significant differences found for faculty and using personal digital resources. Differences were found between the three different university contract types. Specifically, faculty with non-renewable contracts were found to use personal resources more than those with renewable contracts. Additionally, differences were also found based on nationality, in that Saudi faculty use significantly more personal resources. For the use of online teaching and learning tool's part based on Decomposed Theory of Planned Behavior (DTPB) modal to the attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. The attitude findings of the qualitative faculty members indicated that their choices to engage with online teaching tools were greatly influenced by the perceived usefulness of online teaching during COVID-19. This was related to their flexible and interactive nature. Additionally, the quantitative findings showed that the perceived usefulness was significantly impacted by faculty attitudes toward using online tools in their teaching practices. The findings that qualitative findings from this study revealed the individual intentions of faculty in terms of selecting online and digital tools for online instruction that was based on their assessments of expected difficulty toward the outcomes of intended behavior. However, the quantitative findings indicated that peer influence, student influence, and superior influence were significant factors affecting faculty members' subjective norms. Finally, the quantitative findings of perceived behavioral control indicated the significance of facilitating conditions, technology, and resources as factors that affect faculty members' behavioral control over online teaching in this study. The qualitative result indicated that faculty members were engaged in online teaching positively despite the difficulties and challenges and perceived significant usefulness in utilizing various online and digital teaching tools. / Doctor of Philosophy / This descriptive study investigated the factors and challenges influencing faculty member adoption of online teaching into teaching practice at Saudi universities. This study aims to (1) identify whether the differences that exist in Saudi faculty members' use of online tools can be associated with factors such as gender, age, academic rank, teaching experience, department or college, nationality, type of contract, possession of personal online and digital tools at home, provision of a university office with online and digital tools, connection to the Internet at a university, and connection to the Internet at home, (2) determine the perceived advantages and disadvantages for faculty members using online teaching in the instructional process, (3) determine perceived challenges for faculty members using online teaching in the instructional process. The parallel convergent mixed method was used as the methodology for this study and was conducted in three Saudi universities; Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University, King Faisal University, and University of Bisha. The total number of responses from the study instrument was about 124; Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University 49, King Faisal University 41, and the University of Bisha 34. The theoretical framework for this study was the Decomposed Theory of Planned Behavior (DTPB) modal. The collection of quantitative and qualitative data as convergent parallel mixed methods was in one phase and concurrently included close-ended and open-ended questions. However, both quantitative and qualitative findings indicated that their choices to engage with online teaching tools were greatly influenced by the perceived usefulness of online teaching during COVID-19 and the perceived usefulness was significantly impacted by faculty members' attitudes. The qualitative findings from this study revealed the individual intentions of faculty in terms of selecting online and digital tools for online instruction. This was based on their assessments of expected difficulty toward the outcomes of intended behavior (Yao et al., 2022). For example, faculty members indicated that they used online teaching tools because such tools were easy to operate and provided ample opportunity to interact with several students at the same time. However, faculty members also indicated perceived difficulty and complexity associated with online digital tools. On the other hand, quantitative findings indicated that peer influence, student influence, and superior influence were significant factors affecting faculty members' subjective norms. Finally, the findings from this study indicated that faculty members were engaged in online teaching positively despite the difficulties and challenges. However, they perceived significant usefulness in utilizing various online and digital teaching tools.

The introduction of technology and the widespread use of ICT in the wealthier nations have led teacher-educators to integrate technological applications in their teaching environment. The research investigated the new teaching modes created by teacher-educators in teacher-training colleges in Israel, due to their transition from traditional teaching to distance-teaching through the Internet. This was a qualitative research using case study within an interpretative paradigm that enabled the researcher to consider the viewpoints of the informants together with her own viewpoint. The research tools included: 14 open interviews, a non-participatory observation, documentation reading and the writing of a personal log. The rich variety of research tools enabled triangulation of data. The conceptual framework of the research was based on theories of teacher-training, distance-teaching, academic disciplines, and several teaching dimensions: organisation and representation of data, organisation and management of teaching and different types of interaction. The research findings indicated intrinsic and extrinsic motives for the teacher-educators transition to distance-teaching. The transition created a pedagogy characterised by four teaching modes that corresponded to different academic disciplines. Each discipline harnessed the technology for intensive use in one or more of the teaching dimensions. The Representation mode used by teacher-educators in the natural sciences and statistics used a large variety of data representations and Internet writing characterised by multiple links. The Interactive mode employed by teacher-educators in the field of literacy principally dealt with formative assessment of the students' writing and used virtual communication tools to tighten the teacher-learner inter-personal interaction. The Organisational mode used in education disciplines focused on organisation and management of teaching and learning through the use of computer applications. The Holistic mode employed by teacher-educators in the fields of education and literature, in substance constituted a combination of all the characteristics of the above-mentioned modes with an emphasis given to social presence of both learners and the teacher. Analysis of the teaching modes led to the creation of a typology of four modes positioned at different points along the following scales: organisation of teaching, flexible – fixed, types of interaction few – multiple; data representation, creative – conservative; computer literate – computer users. There was a clear contrast between teacher-educators teaching education disciplines as a continuation of traditional frontal teaching and those who had previously taught in workshops. At the crossroads of pedagogy with technology, the changes in location, time and lesson character have meant that the implementation of the teaching paradigm of Zeichner and the teaching orientations of Feiman-Nemser have taken on fresh dimensions. The new teaching modes necessitate appropriate training for all teacher-educators working in distance-teaching in accordance with their academic disciplines. The research findings contribute to the reduction of a gap in knowledge concerning the new teaching modes of teacher-educators teaching distance-learning in a teacher-training college in Israel.

This qualitative study examined online teaching and learning in a rural community college setting from the instructors' points-of-view. The research questions focused upon what the instructors viewed as the benefits and detriments of online teaching and learning, both for them and their students, their views of the effects of online learning on their students, the nature of teaching online in a rural community college, and the interaction between instructors and students, and among students, in online classes. Constructivist learning theory served as the theoretical framework of this study. The findings are based on an analysis of the data collected from two rounds of in-depth interviews with nine participants, observations of the participants' online courses, and the review of related documents.The key findings related to the rural setting dealt with the lack of sophisticated Internet infrastructure in rural service areas and a lack of student readiness for online instruction. A gap in theory and practice also exists; with one exception, online instruction was not grounded in any theoretical framework. The interaction in online classes varied from class to class, with e-mail correspondence and discussion threads constituting the bulk of the interaction. The lack of face-to-face contact emerged as a troublesome issue, with no instructor believing that the online course was superior to the traditional, seated course. Several instructors cited practical and learning benefits specific to online courses, and all recognized the need to offer courses online.The benefits of online teaching and learning included both practical and learning benefits. Flexibility and convenience were cited as key practical benefits, and learning benefits included additional opportunities to reflect and interact online, to draw from personal experiences, and learn at one's own pace. The acquisition of time-management, reading, writing, research, technological, and problem-solving skills on the parts of the students were also viewed as learning benefits. The negative aspects included feelings of isolation, a lack of academic preparedness to learn online on the part of the students, the problems related to dial-up Internet access in rural areas, and the increased amount of preparation required to teach an online course.The study discusses patterns in the data as well as contradictions to these patterns. Limitations of the study and recommendations for the community college and for future studies are also addressed.

Book Summary: Ever-evolving technological innovation creates both opportunities and challenges for educators aiming to achieve meaningful and effective learning in the classroom and equip students with a well-honed set of technology skills as they enter the professional world. The Handbook of Teaching with Technology in Management, Leadership and Business is written by experienced instructors using technology in novel and impactful ways in their undergraduate and graduate courses, as well as researchers reporting and reflecting on studies and literature that can guide them on the how and why of teaching with technology. Combining insights from research and practice, this comprehensive Handbook provides a state-of-the-art reflection on the role and effectiveness of technology in management, leadership, and business education. It offers a variety of resources and guidelines for the application of technology across different educational contexts and courses, and explores how specific digital tools, software, and applications have been used in the classroom to promote student engagement, assessment, collaboration, learning, and leadership. The broad range of chapters will support educators, administrators, instructional designers, researchers, chief information officers, and teaching technology developers seeking to expand their knowledge on the use of teaching and learning technologies in higher-education level management, leadership, and business programs.

K-12 online learning continues to grow, and with it, the need for well-trained online teachers. This multiple-article dissertation explores K-12 online teaching professional development. A literature review describes research trends regarding unique strategies and competencies related to online teaching. It explores strategies such as acting as a facilitator, developing course knowledge, encouraging student engagement, interacting regularly with students, giving feedback, and developing time management skills. The literature review suggests that there is a lack of specific recommendations about what content should be covered and why professional development is beneficial for both teachers and students. Programs that incorporate online teaching professional development specific to their model may have more satisfied and motivated students and teachers. The second article provides insight into the design process for a K-12 online teaching professional development course that focuses on effectively communicating with online students. The course is designed as a professional development opportunity to enhance teachers' knowledge of online pedagogy and technology skills unique to communicating in the online environment. The course contains hands-on experiences and activities, allowing teachers the opportunity to learn in the role of teacher and student. The professional development was designed using Desimone's five core features commonly used for traditional classroom teacher professional development. This article describes the professional development goals, course structure, evaluation process, and preliminary findings. By sharing the development and design of this professional development course the hope is that other K-12 online designers and administrators will have a framework on which to build. The final article presents the implementation and evaluation results of the professional development course mentioned in article two. This case study shares the learning perspective of 80 teachers that completed the professional development course through pre and post assessments and a course evaluation. Researchers conducted interviews with 11 participants to further explore how the course impacted their pedagogical and technical knowledge in relation to effectively communicating with their online students. Overall, participants reported a satisfactory experience and personal growth in the topics provided. More research is needed on the effects of professional development for online teachers and if it can help lead to student success.

The aim of this study is to analyse the process of teaching on line amongst Swedish high school teachers. The empirical material for the study is based on four one-hour qualitative interviews with high school teachers who taught a range of subjects between them. The teachers interviewed all worked in the same high school in Mid Sweden and they were compelled to teach online as part of a series of measures deployed by the Swedish Government in response to the COVID19 global pandemic. The interview data were analysed with the help of Anselm Strauss’ pragmatist-interactionist notion of work and articulation work, and with the help of the concept of tacit knowledge. The study shows the range and nature of the extra work tasks engaged in by the teachers when teaching online. It also highlights the difficulties teachers had in communicating with students in an online setting, where they were unable to put their tacit classroom skills to use. Teachers felt that their professional practice depended on creative and spontaneous classroom communication, and that such classroom interaction was necessary for successful pupil outcomes. The study highlights that the online environment did not allow for this creative and spontaneous classroom practice. In the online environment teachers could not pick up cues from learners. Teachers’ ability to perform professionally was thereby compromised by the online environment. Further research into teachers’ methods for online teaching is required.

Online instruction is now the prevalent tool for distance learning. Understanding the adaptable role of the instructor in online distance education is pivotal in the work of comprehending its affordances and limitations. Although there are some commonalities between all forms of online teaching, experiences instructors have may vary depending upon the structure of the online course. The ready-to-teach, fixed-content format merited further study because of the degree to which it unbundles or disaggregates traditional instructor responsibilities by removing the work of determining what to teach and how to teach it. This qualitative multiple case study examined the instructional experiences of adjunct online instructors who adapted to a limited teaching role that excluded selecting online course content or developing course design. Study findings revealed that instructor perceptions of ready-to-teach courses varied according to the nature of the subject being taught and personal preferences. Findings also demonstrated that instructors applied previous teaching experiences to the situation when possible but learned new skills that reflected the modified instructional environment as well. Despite varying degrees of contentment or discontentment with the limitations regarding course content, most instructors found the motivation to continue in their employment with their sponsoring institution. This study provided perspectives on the phenomenon of instructional unbundling in higher education, in which roles that traditionally belonged to a single educator are distributed among many individuals for the purpose of greater efficiency or use of expertise.

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