HIGH TECH MEETS HIGH TOUCH:COHORT LEARNING ONLINE IN GRADUATE HIGHER EDUCATION

This paper discusses the results of a qualitative participatory action research study where the purpose was to examine the nature of the cohort learning experience in an online master’s program from both faculty and student perspectives. There has been much discussion in higher and adult education circles in the last decade on distance education, web based and web enhanced learning online, and online degree programs. Nearly all institutions of higher education now offer at least some classes online, and many offer entire degree programs. While many have discussed the plusses and minuses of online education, and considered what online pedagogy offers to adult learners, there has been little discussion of what online education looks like specifically in online cohort programs, from the students’ perspectives. Thus, the purpose of this paper is: (1) to discuss the results of a participatory action research project where the purpose was to examine the nature of the cohort learning experience in an online master’s program that began with a residential component from both faculty and student perspectives; and (2) to consider the implications for the ongoing development of both “high tech” and “high touch” and academically sound degree programs in adult education and related areas

Muses

Utah State University\u27s music therapy students present a concert on Muses.https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/music_programs/1138/thumbnail.jp

Muses

Utah State University\u27s music therapy students present a concert on Muses.https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/music_programs/1138/thumbnail.jp

The stigma turbine:A theoretical framework for conceptualizing and contextualizing marketplace stigma

Stigmas, or discredited personal attributes, emanate from social perceptions of physical characteristics, aspects of character, and “tribal” associations (e.g., race; Goffman 1963). Extant research emphasizes the perspective of the stigma target, with some scholars exploring how social institutions shape stigma. Yet the ways stakeholders within the socio-commercial sphere create, perpetuate, or resist stigma remain overlooked. We introduce and define marketplace stigma as the labeling, stereotyping, and devaluation by and of commercial stakeholders (consumers, companies and their employees, stockholders, institutions) and their offerings (products, services, experiences). We offer the Stigma Turbine (ST) as a unifying conceptual framework that locates marketplace stigma within the broader sociocultural context, and illuminates its relationship to forces that exacerbate or blunt stigma. In unpacking the ST, we reveal the critical role market stakeholders can play in (de)stigmatization, explore implications for marketing practice and public policy, and offer a research agenda to further our understanding of marketplace stigma and stakeholder welfare