The impact of 151 learning designs on student satisfaction and performance: social learning (analytics) matters

An increasing number of researchers are taking learning design into consideration when predicting learning behavior and outcomes across different modules. This study builds on preliminary learning design work that was presented at LAK2015 by the Open University UK. In this study we linked 151 modules and 111.256 students with students' satisfaction and performance using multiple regression models. Our findings strongly indicate the importance of learning design in predicting and understanding performance of students in blended and online environments. In line with proponents of social learning analytics, our primary predictor for academic retention was the amount of communication activities, controlling for various institutional and disciplinary factors. Where possible, appropriate communication tasks that align with the learning objectives of the course may be a way forward to enhance academic retention

Education Enhanced by Information and Communication Technologies

 In all facets of human life, knowledge and communication technology (ICTs) are becoming indissoluble entities. The utilization of ICT has profoundly modified the processes and methods of nearly any type of job, policy and public services. ICT have started to participate in education although it hasn't had as much impact as compared to other areas of activity. The transition from environment to new medias and information has increased the importance of Information and Communication Technologies in education and will continue to expand and to evolve in the 21st century. ICT is a vital aspect of the new environment. ICT is an integral feature. Society and culture in fact have to be adapted to the difficulties of era of knowledge. The standard and quantity of schooling in tertiary educational establishments has undeniably influenced ICT. There needs to be a clear emphasis on the numerous constraints on ICT usage as a higher education change agent, such that ICT continues to perform its high position in transforming tertiary institutions

The effects of online professional development on higher education teachers' beliefs and intentions towards learning facilitation and technology

An important development in higher education is the increased learning possibilities brought by ICT. Many academics seem reluctant to embrace technology. An online teacher training program was followed by 73 academics from nine higher educational institutions. Data were gathered using the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) model and the Teacher Beliefs and Intentions questionnaire using a pre–post test-design. The results amongst 33 participants who completed both pre- and post-test indicate that TPACK skills increased substantially. Over time academics were less convinced about the merits of knowledge transmission. Disciplines and institutional cultures, time investment and beliefs towards employability influenced training retention

Education 4.0 and Computer Science: A European perspective

This systematic literature review aimed at identifying the pedagogical approaches, aligned with Education 4.0, used to support teaching computer science courses with undergraduate and graduate students in Europe. A three-step coding process was conducted to identify and analyse 20 papers. Quantitative and qualitative analysis of the selected papers revealed a three-cluster solution with common characteristics that could be used to describe those pedagogical approaches. The review also showed that the term Education 4.0 is still relatively new and has not been conceptualised in terms of computer science courses, although the characteristics of Education 4.0 are visible throughout the pedagogical approaches

The role of cultural dimensions of international and Dutch students on academic and social integration and academic performance in the Netherlands

A common belief among educators is that international students are insufficiently adjusted to higher education in their host country, both academically and socially. Furthermore, several groups of international students experience considerable amounts of stress while adapting to the culture of the host-institute, but limited research has addressed whether and how transitional issues influence academic performance. In a cross-institutional comparison among 1275 students at nine higher educational institutes in the Netherlands, differences in academic performance between Dutch and international students were identified by focussing on their levels of academic and social integration. Students’ academic integration was measured with the Students’ Adaptation to College Questionnaire (SACQ), while students’ social integration was measured by the Social Integration Questionnaire. Afterwards, 757 international students from 52 countries were clustered into nine geographical clusters using Hofstede's cultural dimension scores. The results indicate that some groups of international students experience considerable personal–emotional and social adjustment issues, while other groups of international students adjust fairly straightforward. In particular, international students from Confucian Asia score substantially lower on academic integration than their Western peers, with moderate to strong effect sizes. The cultural dimensions of Hofstede significantly predicted academic adjustment and social adjustment, in particular power–distance (negative), masculinity and uncertainty avoidance (both positive). Follow-up multi-level analyses show that academic adjustment is the primary predictor for academic success. The results imply that higher educational institutes should focus on facilitating academic adjustment of (Bachelor) international students, in particular non-Western students

#WedontWantDistanceEducation : a thematic analysis of higher education students’ social media posts about online education during Covid-19 pandemic

The current study is based on thematic analysis of 21,722 tweets posted under the #wedontwantdistanceeducation hashtag within a month after the start of online distance education in Turkish universities due to Covid-19 pandemic. Our findings have revealed that Turkish higher education students have faced multiple challenges in accessing and benefiting from online education due to the swift transformation from face-to-face to online format. These challenges included universities’ poor technical infrastructure, pedagogical and assessment issues, digital inequality in accessing online education, and general negative attitude towards online education. Further, students have expressed issues about financial, health, and social consequences of online education during Covid-19 pandemic. With regards to such challenges and issues, higher education students have criticized government authorities for ignoring their views when making decisions about how online learning is organized during Covid-19 pandemic. Further, students have offered some alternative solutions (e.g. summer courses) to online education.publishedVersionPeer reviewe

Online Versus Face-To-Face Nutrition Courses at a Community College: A Comparative Study of Learning Outcomes

Students have been gravitating towards the Online Learning Environment (OLE). The preference for online learning models (OLM) among students has grown more rapidly than for traditional face-to-face models in community colleges in the United States of America. Research about OLMs has focused on teaching efficiency and effectiveness to support the growth of online education. Administrators and teachers have continually sought to gain more knowledge about this issue, especially with concerns regarding engagement of students in an online learning environment. Increased student dissatisfaction with online learning models, a high withdrawal rate, and inadequate student-learning outcomes are some of the factors that have contributed to this comparative analysis of online versus face-to-face learning models. Of the 541 student records collected for this post hoc study, initial analysis indicated that learning outcomes of students enrolled in an online nutrition class showed a statistically significant difference from the learning outcomes of the face-to-face section of the same class, although the difference was small

Effects of Training on Intent, Ease, Self-Efficacy, Frequency, and Usefulness in Multimedia-Based Feedback for University-Level Instructors Using Canvas® LMS

The purpose of this study was to investigate how training and professional development effected university-level instructors’ perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, behavioral intent to use, perception of self-efficacy, and frequency of use of audio-, video-, and speech-to-text-recognition-based technologies associated with the feedback and assessment process in college-level teaching. Except for usefulness, each dependent variable was divided into two based on whether the item was multimedia or not: (a) use of technology with multimedia and (b) use of technology without multimedia. The convenience sample included 52 university-level instructors who had enrolled in either the Canvas® Essentials (a basics course) or Canvas® Feedback and Assessment (an advanced course) training. The advanced training focused on how to use audio, video, and speech-to-text-recognition features of the learning management system to provide feedback to students. The study commenced in August of 2015 and concluded in April of 2016. A pretest questionnaire was administered prior to each Canvas® training class, and instruction began immediately thereafter lasting 2 hours per class session. The posttest was administered 4 weeks after the training class. Twenty-six instructors represented the treatment group, and 26 represented the comparison group. Means measuring intent, self-efficacy, and usefulness indicated either agreement or strong agreement for both treatment and comparison groups; however, the variables of intent and usefulness resulted in little-to-no change in means from pretest to posttest. For the variable of self-efficacy, both groups’ means increased from pretest to posttest. Higher means indicated stronger agreement with the construct. The variable of self-efficacy also resulted in a statistically significant change from pretest to posttest for both groups. Treatment-group participants’ mean went up .41 of a point from pretest to posttest and had a strong effect (ES = .86), indicating that they were somewhat skilled at posttest. The comparison-group means also reflected increased agreement in self-efficacy, participants on average reported that they were between not very skilled and somewhat skilled at using Canvas® LMS at pretest. At posttest, the comparison group’s mean indicated that they were above the somewhat skilled choice on the rating scale. For both groups, the mean measuring the construct of intent (media) decreased slightly from pretest to posttest, and the results were not statistically significant. Means for ease were higher at posttest for both groups; the independent-samples t test resulted in statistical significance for the comparison group with a moderately strong effect size. The variables of ease (media) and frequency resulted in higher means at posttest for both groups and were statistically significant across four paired-samples t tests. Moderately strong effect sizes were present in the variables of ease and frequency among comparison-group participants. The variables of self-efficacy (media) and frequency (media) resulted in means that signified the lowest levels of agreement among the nine dependent variables. For treatment-group participants, self-efficacy (media) resulted in a large statistically significant effect, and mean increased from pretest to posttest. Self-efficacy (media) for comparison-group participants increased in agreement from pretest to posttest, and the results were statistically significant with a large effect. Frequency (media) decreased in agreement from pretest to posttest for treatment-group participants, and comparison-group participants’ mean increased slightly from pretest to posttest. No independent-samples t tests resulted in statistically significant findings for the variable of frequency (media). This research addressed a gap in the literature and illustrated that instructors are willing participate in research. The study participants gained new skills to support their own day-to-day work teaching courses and grading assignments, which was a benefit to them, the university, and the research community