Distance Learning/Teaching

Course Management Systems (CMS)

Course Management Systems (by WCET Edu-Tools) <http://www.edutools.info/static.jsp?pj=8&page=HOWTO>   -- Customizable list of comparisons by product name, features, pre-selected group, or developer

Designing Courses (Web Based Course Delivery Tools, Course Management Systems, Virtual Learning Environments, Collaboration Tools <http://www.ibritt.com/resources/dc_management.htm> 

Leslie, Scott (2003).  Important Characteristics of Course Management Systems: Findings from the Edutools.info project <http://www.edtechpost.ca/gems/cms_characteristics.htm>

Lamberson, M., & Lamb, B. Course Management Systems: Trapped Content Silos or Shared Platforms? <http://telr-research.osu.edu/learning_objects/documents/Lamberson-Lamb.pdf>

Moodle open source online course system <http://www.octopus.furg.br/moodle/lang/en/docs/teacher.html> -- The Moodle homesite is www.moodle.org  A server is needed to host a site.

Jo B. Paoletti (2003, November/December).  Wanted: Course Revision Without Pain.  The Technology Source. Retrieved Nov. 24 from http://64.124.14.173/default.asp?show=article&id=1034

Foreman, J. (2001, January/February). Trading mules for tractors: The pros and cons of adopting a course management system. The Technology Source. Retrieved Nov. 24, 2003, from http://ts.mivu.org/default.asp?show=article&id=825

Parke, H., & Ehrmann, S. (2002). Institutional studies of the educational uses of web course management systems. Retrieved Nov. 24, 2003, from http://www.tltgroup.org/WCMS/ LitReview/Abstracts.htm  

Virtual Resource Site for Teaching with Technology <http://www.umuc.edu/virtualteaching/> -- The U of Maryland University College is subsidized by Verizon to promote online education. 

Models of Online Courses

• Module 1: Using the Web to Design Online Courses <http://www.umuc.edu/virtualteaching/module1/mod1.html> -- information about the selection and use of Web-based media, such as text, audio, video, still images, animated graphics, applets, and scripts, to accomplish a number of different learning strategies.

• Module 2: Delivering Online Interactive Courses <http://www.umuc.edu/virtualteaching/module2/mod2.html> -- information about realities and successful practices in online course delivery, with particular attention paid to ways of encouraging interactivity as a key influence on students' learning styles. Prominent emphases include strategies for managing the use of technology in research assignments, small group projects, discussions, and other activities that foster interaction.

Seminal articles on online learning/teaching

Anderson, Terry, & Elloumi, Fathi  (eds.) (2003). Theory and Practice of Online Learning.  <http://cde.athabascau.ca/online_book/> -- This downloadable book (1.8MB) contains a discussion of various educational theories that apply to online learning, as well as administration, tools, and methods of designing and delivering learning online.

Jones, Steve, & Johnson-Yale, Camille (2005, September).  Professors online: The Internet's impact on college faculty. First Monday 10 (9),  <http://www.firstmonday.dk/issues/issue10_9/jones/index.html>

Moloney, Jacqueline, & Tello, Steven (2005, Sept. 6.  Principles for Building Success in Online Education.  Campus Technology <http://campus-technology.com/article.asp?id=7252>  

Sener, John (2005, April).  Are Instructors Essential?  Synthesis of a Sloan-C listserv conversation.  <http://www.aln.org/publications/view/v4n5/blended4.htm> 

Riffee, William H. (Feb. 2003).  Putting a Faculty Face on Distance Education Programs.  Syllabus <http://campus-technology.com/mag.asp?month=2&year=2003> 

The Sloan-C Series of books on online education <http://www.sloan-c.org/publications/books/index.asp>

• Entering the Mainstream: The Quality and Extent of Online Education in the United States, 2003 and 2004 -- study by the Sloan Consortium

• Elements of Quality Online Education: Into the Mainstream: Wisdom from the Sloan Consortium

• Elements of Quality Online Education: Into the Mainstream, Volume 5 in the Sloan-C series (2003)

• Sizing the Opportunity: The Quality and Extent of Online Education in the United States, 2002 and 2003

• Five Pillars of Quality Online Education (Nov. 2002)

Quality on the Line--Benchmarks for Success in Internet-based Distance Education (April 2000).  The Institute for Higher Education Policy.  PDF file: http://www.ihep.com/Pubs/PDF/Quality.pdf;  html version: http://216.239.41.104/search?q=cache:BmLPJleixwJ:www.ihep.com/Pubs/PDF/Quality.pdf+%22quality+on+the+line%22&hl=en&ie=UTF-8

Top Ten Tips for Implementing e-Learning <http://www.janeknight.com/articles/topten2005.htm>

Smith, Alese, & Rose, Raymond  (2003, April 15).  Build and Teach a Successful Online Course.  techLEARNING <http://www.techlearning.com/db_area/archives/TL/2003/04/online.html>

Kassop, Mark (May/June 2003). Ten Ways Online Education Matches, or Surpasses, Face-to-Face Learning.  The Technology Source <http://distance.wsu.edu/facultyresources/savedfromweb/10ways.htm>

Tips for online learning--visual design. <http://www.wlv.ac.uk/celt/oltips/4design.html>

Tuzun, Hakan (2003, April 25).  Guidelines for converting existing courses into web-based format.  ERIC Clearing House on Information & Technology <http://www.e-mentor.edu.pl/_xml/wydania/2/14.pdf>

Dewar, Tammy (2003). Keyboard Voices: Reflections on Online Facilitation and Community Building. Calliope Learning   The e-book is available at no cost at http://www.calliopelearning.com/resources/papers/Keyboard.pdf,-- The author investigates questions like, "How do people make the transition to facilitating online? What have they learned about it? What issues do they struggle with? Why do they do it?" Tammy Dewar collected their "stories" and presents them in this article.

Young, Jeffrey R. (2002, March 22). 'Hybrid' Teaching Seeks to End the Divide Between Traditional and Online Instruction.  The Chronicle of Higher Education. <http://chronicle.com/free/v48/i28/28a03301.htm>

Seven Principles of Effective Teaching: A Practical Lens for Evaluating Online Courses <http://sln.suny.edu/sln/public/original.nsf/0/b495223246cabd6b85256a090058ab98?OpenDocument> -- In this piece, originally published in The Technology Source, March/April 2001, the authors, Charles Graham, Kursat Cagiltay, Byung-Ro Lim, Joni Craner, and Thomas M. Duffy, used the principles to evaluate four online courses in a professional school at a large Midwestern university. They also generated an excellent list of corresponding "lessons learned" for online instruction.

How Interactive are YOUR Distance Courses? A Rubric for Assessing Interaction in Distance Learning” (M. D. Roblyer, Professor, State University of West Georgia; Leticia Ekhaml, Professor, State University of West Georgia) <http://www.westga.edu/~distance/roblyer32.html>

Criteria for Evaluating the Quality of Online Courses <http://www.imd.macewan.ca/imd/content.php?contentid=36>  Clayton R. Wright; Instructional Media and Design department at Grant MacEwan College, Edmonton, Alberta

Criteria for Evaluating Online Courses (SREB EvaluTech) <http://www.evalutech.sreb.org/criteria/online.asp> in particular Course Content, Teacher Interaction, Evaluation

Evaluating Online Learning <http://www.fastrak-consulting.co.uk/tactix/Features/evaluate/evaluate.htm> Clive Shepherd; includes Evaluation - why bother?, What are we measuring?, Measuring reactions, Measuring learning, Measuring application, Measuring business results, Measuring return on investment, Measuring before and after

“Learning With Technology Profile Tool--Indicators of engaged learning” (North Central Regional Technology in Education Consortium)-- This profile tool will help you to compare your current instructional practices with a set of indicators for engaged learning and high-performance technology. For each category, there is a description of the indicators and examples that fall along a continuum. There are three examples for each indicator. (interactive rubric) <http://www.ncrtec.org/capacity/profile/profwww.htm>  non-interactive/short version:  <http://www.siue.edu/~jandris/engaged/elrubric.html>

New Times Demand New Ways of Learning (North Central Regional Technology in Education Consortium) -- includes table of Indicators of Engaged Learning <http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/edtalk/newtimes.htm>

Seven Principles of Good Teaching Practice <http://www.agron.iastate.edu/nciss/kingsat2.html> -- Here, Dr. James W. King of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln offers a large number of very good suggestions for implementation of the Seven Principles in face-to-face as well as distance education courses.

Implementing the Seven Principles: Technology as Lever <http://www.tltgroup.org/programs/seven.html> -- In this article, which originally appeared in print in the AAHE Bulletin, October 1996, Chickering and Ehrmann (1996) describe some of the most practical and appropriate ways to use computer and Web-based tools to advance the Seven Principles.

Tucker, S. (2001). Distance education: Better, worse, or as good as traditional education? Journal of Distance Learning Administration, 4 (4). Retrieved from http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/winter44/tucker44.html

Kahler, E.  (T.H.E. Journal, Sept. 2003).  Maintaining the integrity of a Web-based music course  <http://www.thejournal.com/magazine/vault/A4454B.cfm> -- discusses adaptation of an on-campus course for Internet delivery (accessed 9/26/03)

Chickering, A., & Gamson, Z. (March 1987).  Seven principles for good practice in undergraduate education. originally published in the AAHE Bulletin.com; Available at http://www.cord.edu/dept/assessment/sevenprin.htm or http://crunchie.tedi.uq.edu.au:200/blendedlearning/pdfs/fall1987.pdf  -- summarizes several fundamental strategies that, according to 50 years of educational research, are essential to good practice

Applying the Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education <http://www.msu.edu/user/coddejos/seven.htm> -- Associate Professor Joseph R. Codde of Michigan State University elaborates on some specific practices he uses in implementing the principles. This was based in part on Chickering and Gamson's (1991) book of the same name published by Jossey-Bass Inc.

What’s in it for Me? Incentives for Faculty Participation in Distance Education <http://cade.athabascau.ca/vol14.2/wolcott_et_al.html> Wolcott, Linda, & Betts, Kristen (Journal of Distance Education 1999)  

Bourne, John R. et al. (1997, August). Paradigms for On-Line Learning: A Case Study in the Design and Implementation of an Asynchronous Learning Networks (ALN) Course.  Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks (JALN), Volume 1, Issue 2. <http://www.aln.org/publications/jaln/v1n2/v1n2_bourne.asp> -- discusses the paradigm shift for learning and teaching from traditional to online courses

The "No Significant Difference Phenomenon"<http://nt.media.hku.hk/no_sig_diff/phenom1.html>

Saul Carliner's Resources on e-learning for Academic Courses <http://saulcarliner.home.att.net/oll/academiclearningresources.htm>
Saul Carliner, An Overview of Online Learning (whitepaper) <http://www.vnulearning.com/whitepaper1.htm>

Carnevale, Dan (Chronicle of Higher Education, December 16, 1999).  Instructor Cuts Dropout Rate by Giving Extra Attention to On-Line Students <http://chronicle.com/free/99/12/99121601u.htm>

Carnevale, Dan, & Young, Jeffrey R.  (Chronicle of Higher Education, December 17, 1999).  Who Owns On-Line Courses? Colleges and Professors Start to Sort It Out <http://chronicle.com/free/v46/i17/17a04501.htm>

Young, Jeffrey R. (Chronicle of Higher Education, December 8, 1999).  An On-Line Student Enjoys Class Flexibility but Misses Social Contact <http://chronicle.com/free/99/12/99120801u.htm>

Evaluating What Really Matters in Computer-Based Education (1997) <http://www.educationau.edu.au/archives/cp/reeves.htm> Dr. Tom Reeves, U. of Georgia; includes epistemology; pedagogical philosophy; underlying psychology; goal orientation; experiential value; teacher role; program flexibility; value of errors; motivation; accommodation of individual differences; learner control; user activity; cooperative learning; cultural sensitivity.

The Chronicle of Higher Education - Distance Education <http://chronicle.com/indepth/distance/issues.htm#intellectualproperty> -- A collection of up-to-date articles on issues such as accreditation, impact on traditional universities, intellectual property and ownership, teaching with technology, regulation and quality control, sources of funds, student aid, and student life.

Distance Education Articles <http://chronicle.com/distance/> -- At The Chronicle Of Higher Education

Occasional Papers In Open And Distance Learning <http://www.csu.edu.au/division/oli/pubs/> -- Published by The Open Learning Institute at Charles Sturt

Ehrmann, Stephen C. Asking the Right Question (March/April 1995, Change).  What Does Research Tell Us About Technology and Higher Learning?  <http://www.learner.org/edtech/rscheval/rightquestion.html>

Berge, Z. (2001). The Role of the Online Instructor/Facilitator. Retrieved March 23, 2004 from http://www.emoderators.com/moderators/teach_online.html

Electronic Newsletters about Educational Technology

T.H.E. Journal <http://www.thejournal.com/>

T.H.E. Journal's Electronic Newsletter <http://www.thejournal.com/newsletters/>   T.H.E.'s Newsletter is a weekly bulletin comprised of recent announcements that affect the education community. Click here to subscribe to T.H.E. Newsletter.  Also see T.H.E. Journal's Focus http://www.thejournal.com/thefocus/subscribermaint.cfm -- T.H.E. Focus is a bi-weekly interactive online newsletter that offers an in-depth look at a specific area of educational technology through articles written by technology experts.  In addition, T.H.E. Focus will allow you to ask questions of the authors. This newsletter is published periodically as topics dictate, but not more than twice a month.  Click here to subscribe to T.H.E. Focus.

techLEARNING--The Resource for Education Technology Leaders <http://www.techlearning.com/> -- for teachers, technology coordinators, and administrators; includes T&L Magazine

Syllabus <http://lists.101com.com/nl/main.asp?NL=Syllabus> -- newsletters, trends, eLearning dialogue (on e-learning and learning management systems)

ALN Magazine <http://www.sloan-c.org/publications/magazine/index.asp> -- The ALN Magazine was devoted to topics in Asynchronous Learning Networks that did not fall in the traditional journal format. These topics included reports of uses of technology, experiences with online courses, reports of activities on various campuses or in industry and summaries of online activities.

Learning Circuits <http://www.learningcircuits.org/> -- ASTD's publication, launched in Jan. 2003; goal: promote and aid the use of e-learning, creating a body of knowledge about how to use technology efficiently and effectively for learning. It delivers a fully interactive Website with discussions, demos and resources, and articles on a weekly basis. A bi-weekly opt-in email newsletter, LC Express, sends news, teasers, and links to subscribers.

Educational Technology Conferences

T.H.E. Conference Calendar <http://www.theconferencecalendar.com/> -- a searchable calendar of all national and international educational technology conferences; set your parameters for date/state/country/organization. 

Online Courses--ESL/EFL

Resource Guide for Distance Education <http://home.twcny.rr.com/lonniechu/DLbkmks.html> -- by Lonnie Turbee         
EdUSA Online <http://www.edusaonline.com/> -- EdUSA offers an ever-growing number of teacher-guided Internet-based courses which make learning English easy, personalized, and affordable. Our courses are packed with useful up-to-date information and resources and are taught by native English-speaking English as a Foreign Language specialists with masters degrees from leading American universities.
GlobalEnglish <www.globalenglish.com> -- focuses on online English courses for professionals and corporations
UVic Online English Writing Course <http://www.englishworld.ca/>
EnglishMaze <www.englishmaze.com> -- free lessons for General English and Business English; includes beginner - advanced levels (Flash required)
englishtown.com <www.englishtown.com> -- "Every Englishtown course includes a structured, step-by-step series of interactive course materials. Our lessons use rich, interactive media to help you learn REAL English in real-life situations."
EnglishSpace <http://www.englishspace.ort.org/> -- EnglishSpace is a free English language course on the Internet. In EnglishSpace there are puzzles, games, exercises and projects to help you practice your English skills.
EnglishJet.com <http://www.englishjet.com> -- UK site

Collaboration in Online Learning Communities

Collaborative Learning Environments Sourcebook <http://www.criticalmethods.org/collab/index.htm> -- contains links to articles and resources on online learning, with particular emphasis on collaborative learning
Boettcher, Judith V. (2005, May).  Designing for the Virtual Interactive Classroom.  Campus Technology 8 (9), pp. 20, 22-3).  Available online at http://www.campus-technology.com/article.asp?id=11046.  The author reviews several synchronous collaboration tools used for Web or video conferencing, interactive classrooms, and screen sharing. She presents several scenarios and which tools are most appropriate for each situation.
Merlot  -- free and open resource designed primarily for faculty and students of higher education. Links to online learning materials are collected here along with annotations such as peer reviews and assignments.
Online Collaborative Learning in Higher Education

• Online Articles: <http://clp.cqu.edu.au/online_articles.htm>

• Offline Articles A-K <http://clp.cqu.edu.au/offline_articles_A-K.htm> and L-Z <http://clp.cqu.edu.au/offline_articles_L-Z.htm>

• Books: http://clp.cqu.edu.au/call_for_chapters.htm

Kim, Kyung-Sun, & Moore, J. (Nov. 2005).  Web-based learning: Factors affecting students' satisfaction and learning experience.  First Monday 10 (11). <http://firstmonday.org/issues/issue10_11/kim/>
Verhaart, M., & Kinshuk (2004).  Creating a virtual face-to-face delivery environment. <http://infosys.massey.ac.nz/~kinshuk/papers/deanz2004_michael_verhaart.pdf>