Research | Distance-Educator.com - Part 108 Distance-Educator.com

Archive for the ‘Research’ Category

Exploring individual, social and organisational effects on Web 2.0-based workplace learning: a research agenda for a systematic approach

Web 2.0-based workplace learning is defined in this article as informal learning that takes place in the workplace through connections and collaborations mediated by Web 2.0 technology. Web 2.0-based workplace learning has the potential to enhance organisational learning and development. However, little systematic research has been published that explores how individual, social and organisational factors […]

Hashtags and retweets: using Twitter to aid Community, Communication and Casual (informal) learning

Since the evolution of Web 2.0, or the Social Web, the way in which users interact with/on the Internet has seen a massive paradigm shift. Web 2.0 tools and technologies have completely changed the dynamics of the Internet, enabling users to create content; be it text, photographs or video; and furthermore share and collaborate across […]

Realigning Higher Education for the 21st-Century Learner through Multi-Access Learning

Twenty-first-century learners have expectations that are not met within the current model of higher education. With the introduction of online learning, the anytime/anywhere mantra taken up by many postsecondary institutions was a first step to meeting learner needs for flexibility; however, the choice and determination of delivery mode still resides with the institution and course […]

Learner Participation and Engagement in Open Online Courses: Insights from the Peer 2 Peer University

Recent developments in massive open online courses (MOOCs) have brought renewed attention to online learning, but most of the attention has been centered on courses offered through platforms such as Coursera and edX. This paper focuses on the importance of examining alternative, large-scale learning initiatives that promote more participatory modes of education production and delivery. […]

Patterns of Engagement in Connectivist MOOCs

Connectivist massive open online courses (cMOOCs) represent an important new pedagogical approach ideally suited to the network age. However, little is known about how the learning experience afforded by cMOOCs is suited to learners with different skills, motivations, and dispositions. In this study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 29 participants on the Change11 cMOOC. These […]

Student engagement with a content-based learning design

While learning is commonly conceptualised as a social, collaborative process in organisations, online courses often provide limited opportunities for communication between people. How do students engage with content-based courses? How do they find answers to their questions? How do they achieve the learning outcomes? This paper aims to answer these questions by focusing on students’ […]

“I don’t think I would be where I am right now”. Pupil perspectives on using mobile devices for learning

Are pupils in the United Kingdom using mobile devices to help their learning? If so, what are they using and why? This article is based on research carried out by questionnaire, observation and pupil interviews at two English academies. One of the academies provides mobile devices for the pupils, and the other bans the use […]

Building global learning communities

Within the background where education is increasingly driven by the economies of scale and research funding, we propose an alternative online open and connected framework (OOC) for building global learning communities using mobile social media. We critique a three year action research case study involving building collaborative global learning communities around a community of practice […]

The FarNet journey: Effective teaching strategies for engaging Māori students on the Virtual Learning Network

The Virtual Learning Network (VLN) provides schools, particularly those in rural and remote areas, with the opportunity to cooperate to expand curricular offerings for their students. Each school that participates in a VLN cluster contributes at least one course delivered by an e-teacher, allowing member schools access to any course offered through the VLN that […]

OtagoNet: One region’s model for virtual schooling

Virtual schools are increasingly common in New Zealand and internationally as schools are challenged to meet the needs of their students. This case study presents an overview of a model used by a group of schools in rural Otago, New Zealand known as OtagoNet and the research conducted to evaluate this model. This OtagoNet group […]