Module 3

Cejda, Brian D. (2007). Distance education in rural community colleges. Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 31, 291-303.

Cejda , affiliated with College of Education and Human Sciences, researched the status of online education offered by rural community colleges in 9 states.  Results show that even though some increases have been made in course offerings, the amount of students receiving online education in rural communities is still behind those in urban communities.  Problems, such as the availability of broadband and income levels were a few of the issues discussed.

Mahnaz, Moallem. (2007). Accommodating individual differences in the design of online learning environments:  A Comparative Study. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 40, 217-245.

The author, a professor from the University of North Carolina, studied the effects various instructional strategies had on students in online classes.  Using results from both quantitative and qualitative data, the researcher came to the conclusion that while utilizing various instructional strategies had only a marginal effect on student achievement; it is worthwhile to continue to study its use in online courses.

Norton, P., Hathaway, Dawn. (2008). Exploring two teacher education online learning designs: A classroom of one or many? Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 40, 475-495.

The authors, two professors from George Mason University, test two different design models in a series of online summer courses for graduate education students attending George Mason University to assess which model is preferred.  The two courses utilized either the Community of Practice Learning System (COPLS) model or the traditional Learning Management System, Blackboard.  While there was no clear cut preference for learning models, students had particular preferences based on the situation of the class.  It therefore becomes important when teaching online classes to use a variety of methods and strategies to help students succeed.