New book on Web 2.0 and Social Informatics for Tertiary Learning

Lee, M. and McCoughlin, C. (2010) Web 2.0 Based e-Learning: Applying Social Informatics for Tertiary Learning Hershey PA: IGI Global, 415 pp, US$180 hardback

Description (from publisher)

Educational communities today are rapidly increasing their interest in Web 2.0 and e-learning advancements for the enhancement of teaching practices.

Web 2.0-Based E-Learning: [...]

Designing research for the Ontario Online Institute

Toronto Island from the HECQO boardroom

HECQO and the Ontario Online Institute

I spent a very interesting day on July 7 at the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO), discussing a possible research agenda that would support the establishment of the proposed Ontario Online Institute. The creation of this [...]

Comparing apples with oranges: online vs face-to-face learning in community colleges

Smith Jaggars, S. and Bailey, T. (2010) Effectiveness of Fully Online Courses for College Students: Response to a Department of Education Meta-Analysis New York: Community College Research Center, Teachers College, Columbia University.

From the abstract:

Proponents of postsecondary online education were recently buoyed by a meta-analysis sponsored by the U.S. Department of [...]

Another view on research for the Ontario Online Institute

Maxim Jean-Louis, the President of Contact North, was one of the participants in the recent HEQCO meeting to discuss possible areas of research that would inform the development of a new Ontario Online Institute.

Following the meeting, he produced a very interesting document for HEQCO entitled: A Research Framework for the Online Learning Institute [...]

What does 'open' really mean?

Hilton III, J. et al. (2010) Using online technologies to extend a classroom to learners at a distance, Distance Education, Vol. 31, No. 1, pp. 77-92

This team of researchers (including David Wiley) from Brigham Young University, examined the extent to which a face-to-face course can be shared with learners at a distance. Distance [...]