Pictures of Practice: Evaluating, Disseminating, and Supporting Best Practices of Online Teaching
This information was distributed as part of a poster presentation at the ELI 2006 Annual Meeting, Advancing Learning: Insights and Innovations, January 29–31, 2006, San Diego, California.
Faculty members want to see what best practice teaching with online technologies looks like, whereas students and administrators want to see it implemented. Learn strategies for evaluating, disseminating, and supporting exemplary online teaching and hear from key stakeholders as we share findings from a multiyear study of online teaching at the University of Minnesota.
Resources for ELI
Alvarez, D. M., K. Blair, E. Monske, and A. Wolf. "Team Models in Online Course Development: A Unit-Specific Approach." Educational Technology & Society 8, no. 3 (2005): 176–186.
Bell, Philip. "On the Theoretical Breadth of Design-Based Research in Education." Educational Psychologist 39, no. 4 (2004): 243–253.
Boettcher, J., and R. M. Conrad. Faculty Guide for Moving Teaching and Learning to the Web. 2nd ed. Phoenix: League for Innovation in the Community College, 2004.
Bransford, J. D., A. L. Brown, and R. R. Cocking, eds. How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press, 1999. http://www.nap.edu/html/howpeople1/.
Dede, Chris. "If Design-Based Research is the Answer, What is the Question? A Commentary on Collins, Joseph, and Bielaczyc; diSessa and Cobb; and Fishman, Marx, Blumental, Krajicik, and Soloway." Journal of the Learning Sciences 12, no. 1 (2004): 105–114.
Design-Based Research Collective. "Design-Based Research: An Emerging Paradigm for Educational Inquiry." Educational Researcher 32, no. 1 (2003): 5–8.
Ellis, T. J., and W. Hafner. "Engineering an Online Course: Applying the 'Secrets' of Computer Programming to Course Development." British Journal of Educational Technology 34, no. 5 (2003): 639–650.
Engeström, Y. Learning by Expanding: An Activity-Theoretical Approach to Developmental Research. Helsinki: Orienta-Konsultit, 1987. http://lchc.ucsd.edu/MCA/Paper/Engestrom/expanding/toc.htm.
Koehler, M. J., P. Mishra, K. Hershey, and L. Peruski. "With a Little Help From Your Students: A New Model for Faculty Development and Online Course Design." Journal of Technology and Teacher Education 12, no. 1 (2004): 25–55.
Mwanza, D. Towards an Activity-Oriented Design Method for HCI Research and Practice. The Open University, United Kingdom, 2002. http://iet.open.ac.uk/pp/d.mwanza/Phd.htm.
Mwanza, D., and Y. Engeström. "Pedagogical Adeptness in the Design of E-Learning Environments: Experiences from the Lab@Future Project." Paper presented at the E-Learn 2003 International Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Healthcare, & Higher Education, Phoenix, AR, November 7–11, 2003. http://www.edu.helsinki.fi/activity/pages/files/research/lab/Daisy-Yrjo-Elearn03.pdf.
O'Donnell, Angela. "A Commentary on Design Research." Educational Psychologist 39, no. 4 (2004): 255–260.
Reeves, T., J. Herrington, and R. Oliver. "A Development Research Agenda for Online Collaborative Learning." Educational Technology Research and Development 52, no. 4 (2004): 53–65. http://it.coe.uga.edu/~treeves/edit6900/devresearchaect.pdf.
DMC Evaluation and Research Group
Brad Belbas
Research Associate, Digital Media Center (DMC), Office of Information Technology
Brad's educational background includes a B.A. in religious studies and philosophy from Macalester College, an M.A. in education from the University of Colorado, and, in spring 2005, a Ph.D. in education from the University of Minnesota (Department of Work, Community, and Family Education). His research and evaluation work at the DMC involves examining the social interactional and cognitive aspects of technology-enhanced learning (TEL). Areas of inquiry that he finds interesting include instructional design as a collaborative activity, practices that enhance community building and social presence, and approaches to enhancing participation and interaction in online environments.
Christine Greenhow
Research Fellow, Digital Media Center (DMC), Office of Information Technology
Christine holds a B.A. in English literature and government from Dartmouth College and an M.Ed. from Boston College, and she is currently completing her doctorate in learning, teaching, and technology from Harvard University. Christine has taught at both the K-12 and postsecondary levels and is interested in researching models of professional development, teacher change, and pedagogy with networked technologies such as the Internet. Her work at the DMC focuses on helping faculty design, implement, and evaluate technology-enhanced instruction as well as on research and evaluation of DMC-sponsored projects and TEL-related themes.
Linda Jorn
Director, Digital Media Center (DMC), Office of Information Technology
Linda holds a B.A. in nursing, a M.S. in scientific and technical communication, and continues studies in rhetoric and scientific and technical communication. Linda launched the Digital Media Center (DMC), Office of Information Technology (a central educational technology unit) over ten years ago. The DMC helps faculty members use educational technology well; partners with others to support online and blended learning programs, policies, and tools; and evaluates and researches online and blended learning environments. The sixteen DMC educational technology specialists and research associates interact with over 1,200 faculty members a year and support six institution-wide faculty development programs and many other services. Linda is part of the management team that supports learning systems for over 1,700 course Web sites and 34,000 students.
J.D. Walker
Research Associate, Digital Media Center (DMC), Office of Information Technology
Walker earned a Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1996. He taught philosophy and political science at a variety of colleges and universities, including the University of Minnesota, Duluth, and began work at the DMC in 1998. He is interested in the pedagogically constructive use of online communication tools, the integration of educational technology into large-enrollment classes, and the evaluation of technology-enhanced learning. He is currently enrolled in the master's degree program in quantitative methods in education in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Minnesota.
