Online Learning
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The Online Learning Consortium's premier journal dedicated to the development and dissemination of new knowledge at the intersection of pedagogy, emerging technology, policy, and practice in online environments.
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The Globethics library contains articles of Online Learning as of vol. 1(1997) to current.
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Rising to the Occasion: The Importance of the Pandemic for Faculty Adoption PatternsTechnology adoption patterns, in general, have been shown to have a common set of predictive factors such as performance expectancy, social influence, voluntariness, effort expectancy, and facilitating conditions. However, the significance of such factors varies dramatically by situation and conditions. In the faculty adoption of online teaching modalities, three conditions were investigated in a university case study with 180 faculty respondents. Using the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology model, participants were asked to respond to questions about these factors prior to the pandemic, their perceptions about continuing pre-pandemic use in the future, and their perceptions about increasing pre-pandemic adoption of online teaching in the future. Critical to prior expectations were performance expectancy and level of effort. Continued use relied on all five factors, but only the negative aspects of social influence were significant. Factors affecting increased adoption (assuming voluntariness) were performance expectancy and facilitating conditions. Findings suggest that increased exposure to online teaching may not be as crucial as the quality of faculty experiences during the pandemic. The rationale for these factor shifts is provided, the effects of institutional support are discussed, the threats and limitations to generalizability are reviewed, and the ramifications for institutions trying to enhance faculty adoption are summarized.
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Faculty Transition Strategies from In Person to Online Teaching: Qualitative Investigation for Active LearningIn this qualitative case study, we investigated how active learning strategies discussed and practiced in the face-to-face classroom context were transferred to an online modality by four faculty fellows of Indiana University’s Mosaic Faculty Fellows Program. This program is intended to support faculty members’ perception of how classroom space influences approaches to active learning. In 2020, all faculty members had to transition their courses online, and the semi-structured interview findings of this study showed that faculty members used three online space types to support the continued use of active learning approaches when transitioning to online: (1) core space to replicate existing practices (e.g., video conference and text), (2) shared space to supplement existing practices, and (3) augmented space to transform existing practices (e.g., activities that merge the physical world and online space). We concluded that preparing faculty members to effectively use active learning approaches in in-person classrooms can also guide active learning approaches in online teaching environments. The study also discussed the need for professional development programs that address support for active learning in different modalities by considering augmented space and its impact on student engagement.
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Online Assessment in Higher Education: A Systematic ReviewOnline assessment is defined as a systematic method of gathering information about a learner and learning processes to draw inferences about the learner’s dispositions. Online assessments provide opportunities for meaningful feedback and interactive support for learners as well as possible influences on the engagement of learners and learning outcomes. The purpose of this systematic literature review is to identify and synthesize original research studies focusing on online assessments in higher education. Out of an initial set of 4,290 publications, a final sample of 114 key publications was identified, according to predefined inclusion criteria. The synthesis yielded four main categories of online assessment modes: peer, teacher, automated, and self-assessment. The synthesis of findings supports the assumption that online assessments have promising potential in supporting and improving online learning processes and outcomes. A summary of success factors for implementing online assessments includes instructional support as well as clear-defined assessment criteria. Future research may focus on online assessments harnessing formative and summative data from stakeholders and learning environments to facilitate learning processes in real-time and help decision-makers to improve learning environments, i.e., analytics-
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Online Group Supervision in Graduate Psychology Training During the COVID-19 PandemicGroup supervision, a common method in graduate psychology training, shifted abruptly to online learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to increase understanding of psychology graduate students’ perception of online group supervision during COVID-19 by focusing on the group process and the students’ professional identity formation. Data were collected through an online survey comparing an online COVID-19 group sample with a pre-COVID-19 in-person sample. Our findings showed no difference between online group supervision during COVID-19 and in-person group supervision prior to COVID-19 in students’ reports of group processes and the prevalence of professional identity statuses. However, group processes differed according to students’ professional identity statuses while accounting for the supervision format. We discuss the results of our study and offer several theoretical and practical implications regarding online supervision.
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Passive Participation in Collaborative Online Learning Activities: A Scoping Review of Research in Formal School Learning SettingsThis scoping review summarizes studies on passive participation in collaborative online learning activities that used computer-mediated communication tools in school settings. A total of 42 articles spanning about 20 years were explored. ERIC and three main journal indexes from Web of Science were used to locate articles. For each year searched, there were only one to five studies that investigated passive participation, indicating that not many researchers have examined this topic in general. Most studies used mixed methods and were conducted in higher education settings in asynchronous online discussions. Three terms have been used to discuss the notion of passive participation: lurking for read-only behavior, legitimate peripheral participation for low contribution, and free riding for no contribution. Studies on passive participation have mainly explored four topical areas: motivational factors and reasons, participation types and behavioral patterns, effect on learning outcomes, and pedagogical strategies for de-lurking. Most studies have investigated passive participation as one of the behavior patterns among various types of participation. A few studies have solely examined read-only behaviors. The notion of passive participation varies among researchers and should therefore be redefined. Overall, there have been few studies on the topic of passive participation and those that have been conducted reveal some inconsistencies in their findings, indicating the topic requires further investigation. Future studies on this topic are urgently needed due to the forced shift to online courses precipitated by the pandemic. While instructors are also responsible for supporting their learners in this unprecedented context, researchers should investigate ways to help instructors better understand passive participants and encourage active learner participation in collaborative online learning space.
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¬Rising to the Occasion: The Importance of the Pandemic for Faculty Adoption PatternsTechnology adoption patterns, in general, have been shown to have a common set of predictive factors such as performance expectancy, social influence, voluntariness, effort expectancy, and facilitating conditions. However, the significance of such factors varies dramatically by situation and conditions. In the faculty adoption of online teaching modalities, three conditions were investigated in a university case study with 180 faculty respondents. Using the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology model, participants were asked to respond to questions about these factors prior to the pandemic, their perceptions about continuing pre-pandemic use in the future, and their perceptions about increasing pre-pandemic adoption of online teaching in the future. Critical to prior expectations were performance expectancy and level of effort. Continued use relied on all five factors, but only the negative aspects of social influence were significant. Factors affecting increased adoption (assuming voluntariness) were performance expectancy and facilitating conditions. Findings suggest that increased exposure to online teaching may not be as crucial as the quality of faculty experiences during the pandemic. The rationale for these factor shifts is provided, the effects of institutional support are discussed, the threats and limitations to generalizability are reviewed, and the ramifications for institutions trying to enhance faculty adoption are summarized.
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Introduction to the Special Issue: Systematic Reviews of Research on Online LearningIn this introduction to the special issue on systematic reviews of research on online learning, we introduce the need for systematic reviews on online learning. Utilizing a three-tier lens focusing on systems, pedagogical, and people levels, we have selected nine articles for this issue. At the systems level, there are two articles that focus on research trends during COVID-19, and features of high-quality online learning. At the pedagogical level, five articles were included that address online learner collaboration, help-seeking strategies, intersubjectivity, invisible participation, and online assessment. Finally, at the people level, there are two articles. The first focuses on online learning for minoritized and first-generation students. The second examines moderators in asynchronous online discussions. This introductory article provides a short summary of the nine articles and concludes with implications for practitioners and researchers on using and conducting systematic reviews on various topics in online learning.
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Systematic Reviews of Research on Online Learning: An Introductory Look and ReviewIn this introduction to the special issue on systematic reviews of research on online learning, we introduce the need for systematic reviews on online learning. Utilizing a three-tier lens focusing on systems, pedagogical, and people levels, we have selected nine articles for this issue. At the systems level, there are two articles that focus on research trends during COVID-19, and features of high-quality online learning. At the pedagogical level, five articles were included that address online learner collaboration, help-seeking strategies, intersubjectivity, invisible participation, and online assessment. Finally, at the people level, there are two articles. The first focuses on online learning for minoritized and first-generation students. The second examines moderators in asynchronous online discussions. This introductory article provides a short summary of the nine articles and concludes with implications for practitioners and researchers on using and conducting systematic reviews on various topics in online learning.
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Research Trends in the Field of Emergency Remote Teaching: A Bibliometric Analysis of Open Access LiteratureThroughout the period of pandemic, many studies have been conducted on emergency remote teaching (ERT) in different fields and from different perspectives, which reveal that there has been a lack of a comprehensive map showing the rapid and continuous responses of these studies to the process. The purpose of this research is to analyze open access research on ERT using bibliometric method, and to reveal current trends in this field. VOSviewer software was used for data analysis; the data collection process was shaped using the PRISMA framework. 238 studies were included in the analysis. The distribution of the open access studies analyzed in the field of emergency remote teaching by year, type of publication, subject, country, and sources was examined; citation analysis (by journal and publication), authorship patterns and collaboration, common word analyses are included. It was found out that these open access publications mainly consisted of journal articles and were dated 2020 and 2021; most of the publications were in the field of educational sciences. Based on common word analysis, the most important topics that are addressed in studies on the ERT process are the process of pandemic, distance education and higher education, while the challenges experienced regarding teachers and pedagogic issues during the process, teacher education, student-related characteristics (such as self-regulated learning-motivation-academic success) and participation are found to be frequently studied topics. The concepts of instructional design, collaborative learning, social presence, and assessment are also among the topics covered. It is anticipated that the implications for policy and practice based on the examination of research trends will have a significant effect on the structuring of future online learning environments, as well as the ERT designed for emergencies.
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A Systematic Review of Research on Online Learner Collaboration from 2012–21: Collaboration Technologies, Design, Facilitation, and OutcomesOnline Learner Collaboration (OLC) supports the development of knowledge and skills through social construction. In this systematic review of research spanning a decade, authors examined 63 articles for publication patterns, participant and context trends, and research methodology trends using an online learner collaboration framework consisting of the following elements: collaborative technologies, design, facilitation, and outcomes. The higher education context and education discipline had the most research conducted on OLC among the studies reviewed. All three research methods (quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods) were used equally in the articles. The most commonly used technologies for OLC were learning management systems (LMS), discussion boards, writing tools, and synchronous tools. The most commonly used collaborative methods were group projects and discussions. The most common grouping size was small groups, and groups were commonly formed through random assignment, based on criteria, or student-formed. Instructors mostly assumed roles as designers, facilitators, supporters, and evaluators during OLC. Increased learning, communication and collaboration skills, and relationship building were the top three opportunities that OLC offered. Time, technical issues, and anxiety/fear/stress were challenges that appeared most frequently. Most of the research on OLC focused on cognitive and affective outcomes. The review has implications for online instructors and instructional designers who design and facilitate collaborative online courses.
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Development and Validation of the German Version of the Community of Inquiry SurveyThe Community of Inquiry (CoI) Framework describes success factors for collaborative online-based learning. The CoI Survey is a validated instrument to measure these factors from the perspective of course participants. Until now, no validated translation of this Survey to German was available. The aim of this work was to translate the original English Survey to German and to validate the translated Survey instrument. After a systematic translation process, we validated the German translation in two higher education settings in two countries (entire data set of n=433 Surveys). By conducting item analysis, reliability analysis, exploratory factor analysis, and confirmatory factor analysis, we were able to confirm the reliability and validity of the German CoI Survey. Only one item (CP6) shows cross-loadings on two factors, a finding that was already discussed for the original CoI Survey. To conclude, the validated German version of the CoI Survey is now available.
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OLJ March 2023 27(1)Full Issue of Vol. 27 No. 1
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INTRODUCTION TO SECTION II - VOLUME 27, ISSUE 1In addition to the special issue papers, this first issue of 2023 also includes ten articles from our regular submission process. Topic include access, inclusion, synchronous online learning, student satisfaction, student evaluation of online faculty, student perspectives on engagement, faculty adoption of online teaching and more.
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A Systematic Review of Studies Exploring Help-Seeking Strategies in Online Learning EnvironmentsAdaptive help-seeking as a learning strategy can influence learners' learning outcomes. Learners in online learning environments need more self-regulation and especially more help-seeking strategies. A systematic review was conducted to explore help-seeking strategies in online learning environments. A search on help-seeking strategies in online environments in Educational Research Information Center (ERIC) and PsycInfo yielded 36 peer-reviewed articles that met the inclusion criteria for this study. Karabenick and Knapp’s categories of help-seeking (formal help-seeking, informal help-seeking, instrumental activities, lowering performance aspirations, and altering goals) were used to review the strategies employed by students in online learning. The results show that there is an extreme lack of research on learners’ psychological decision-making process when they lower performance aspirations or alter their goals. Moreover, most studies focus on the learners’ formal and informal help-seeking behaviors in online settings. Since much research has been limited to small case studies that are not always generalizable, future studies are encouraged to include more instructional contexts and personal variables like gender, age, educational background, and mastery of computer skills. To avoid biases that may occur in self-reporting studies, recommendations are made for future studies that use more subjective methods to trace their actual help-seeking behaviors.
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A systematic Review of Research on Intersubjectivity in Online Learning: Illuminating Opportunities for Cohesion and Mutual Understanding in the Research ConversationMany online learning experiences integrate some form of dialogic interaction among instructors and learners. However, the degree to which these individuals come to a mutual understanding of their task and topic, a phenomenon called intersubjectivity, often remains a question. This systematic review of online learning research examines 48 peer-reviewed journal articles published between 2004 and 2021, looking at the overall trajectory of the research conversation across time, disciplines, modality and learning activities; major trends in methods, and focus; and interconnectedness. Findings suggest a dispersed body of literature, with some small groups of interconnected work but little cohesion or traction as a research field. This review has implications for future researchers in this area, who are encouraged to synthesize across this body of research and work together to establish and pursue an agenda for the field that will not only further inquiry in this area but also lead to practical knowledge about learning activity design and facilitation that is useful to online instructors.
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Establishing a Student Evaluation of Online Teaching and Learning Framework Through Analysis of Existing InstrumentsThis study aims to establish a framework for student evaluation of online teaching and learning (SEOTL) through an analysis of SEOTL instruments implemented by universities and colleges. From a list of 131 R1 and 135 R2 institutions, we searched, reviewed, and identified 27 instruments for student evaluation of online teaching. A five-dimensional evaluation framework with 24 categories of elements was developed through an analysis of these instruments. There were 278 evaluation elements among the 27 instruments. We found that most instruments focus more on the Course and Instructor dimensions, with Instructor Facilitation and Learning Goals and Objectives elements occurring most frequently. However, Organization and Technology dimensions with Advising Availability and Adequacy, Registration Procedures, Support Services, and Online Help Desk elements were least included. This study has implications for administrators, instructors, instructional designers, and students.
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Online Learning for First-Generation and Underrepresented Minoritized Students: A Literature Review Using a Model of Student EngagementFirst-generation and underrepresented minoritized(URM) studentsmay have greater challenges in online learning than other students. Communities of support can help these highly motivated students be more engaged and successful in the remote learning environment. In this scoping literature review, we identified fifteen categories of first-generation and URM student challenges in online learning as found in peer-reviewed research of the last ten years. We placed these challenges within the Student Engagement model and found them to be barriers of student engagement. The results of our analysis may help guide practitioners and educators in the continuance or creation of theoretically grounded interventions for student support.
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A Systematic Review of Research on Moderators in Asynchronous Online DiscussionsThis systematic review examined research on moderators in asynchronous online discussions (AODs) through a review of 52 sources published over the past four decades. Areas of interest included conceptual frameworks cited in research, publication trends, instructional contexts, research methods and characteristics, and descriptions of the role of the moderator with implications for practice. Results indicate: (1) nearly half of the publications did not cite a conceptual framework focused on moderation; (2) the field is diverse with a wide variety of themes for research designs, outcomes, foci, and questions; (3) half of reviewed publications involved case studies or similarly limited study designs; (4) the majority of publications collected data on students in higher education, but there was a lack of consistency in the reporting of demographic information; (5) research foci tended toward investigating peer moderators or the role of the instructor; (6) research questions tended to focus on strategies of moderators or student performance and discussion quality; (7) most definitions or expectations of a moderator included discussion and social management duties. We conclude by discussing the implications of some of the findings and future research options.
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A Systematic Review of the Research Topics in Online Learning During COVID-19: Documenting the Sudden ShiftSince most schools and learners had no choice but to learn online during the pandemic, online learning became the mainstream learning mode rather than a substitute for traditional face-to-face learning. Given this enormous change in online learning, we conducted a systematic review of 191 of the most recent online learning studies published during the COVID-19 era. The systematic review results indicated that the themes regarding “courses and instructors” became popular during the pandemic, whereas most online learning research has focused on “learners” pre-COVID-19. Notably, the research topics “course and instructors” and “course technology” received more attention than prior to COVID-19. We found that “engagement” remained the most common research theme even after the pandemic. New research topics included parents, technology acceptance or adoption of online learning, and learners’ and instructors’ perceptions of online learning.
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Student Satisfaction and the Future of Online Learning in Higher Education: Lessons from a Natural ExperimentAlthough there is substantial research on the effectiveness of online learning at the individual class level, there is little reliable data on how a shift to a mostly or fully virtual campus would impact undergraduates’ satisfaction, engagement, and academic achievement. Until the COVID-19 pandemic, the limited adoption of widespread online learning at selective schools and challenges of selection bias hindered a reliable assessment of such a shift in selective institutions. After the initial period of “emergency remote learning” in 2020, many selective institutions continued widespread online learning in the second year of the pandemic. Treating the expanded deployment of online learning as a natural experiment, the present study assesses the impact of frequent online learning during the spring semester of 2021 on representative samples of undergraduate students at three selective, four-year universities. The study finds that students who participated in classes that met in person at least once a week had higher evaluations of faculty engagement and higher overall levels of academic satisfaction, compared to those who never or rarely participated in an in-person class. This relationship appears less pronounced for Black and Asian students than for White students but does not vary significantly by gender. Although online learning has great potential, these results suggest a need to better understand the conditions that will support an expansion of online learning that can maintain student satisfaction.