Pervasive internet use in higher education has rendered social anxiety a lesser problem in circumventing interactions. However, the attenuation of vitality in interactions still remains a contentious issue, especially in asynchronous online discussions. This study aims to elucidate how anonymity and social presence affect the relationship between…

Online collaborative discussion (OCD) focuses on promoting individual knowledge inquiry and group knowledge construction through active peer interactions and communications. In practice, it is necessary to explore how different modes of OCD come into play, in which student engagement can function as an evaluating indicator. To identify student…

The purpose of this multiple-case study was to investigate how expert instructors in case-based learning (CBL) conceptualize, structure, facilitate, and assess asynchronous online discussions while addressing challenges. Accordingly, we first interviewed three expert instructors with extensive teaching experience using CBL in higher education in…

Although learning analytics dashboards (LADs) are being recognized as tools that can enhance engagement--a crucial factor for the success of asynchronous online higher education--their impact may be limited without a solid theoretical basis for motivation. Furthermore, the processes through which students make decisions using dashboards and engage…

In this qualitative study, we engaged in a narrative inquiry to examine what graduate students in an online service-learning course grappled with while learning about professional ethics in instructional technology. This study took place in a service-learning partnership between community partners, students, and the course instructor. Students in…

One current focus of research regarding online courses concentrates on identifying effective design and delivery methodologies. This non-experimental comparative research study investigated two types of learner-to-learner interaction techniques: designed and contextual interactions and their effects on learner achievement, social presence,…

The purpose of this paper is to explore and compare learners' critical thinking and interaction during an asynchronous online discussion when peer- or instructor-facilitation was provided. Current literature on online discussion reveals a controversy between peer facilitation and instructor facilitation regarding their strengths and weaknesses.…

This article presents an analysis of the orthographic errors found in university students' asynchronous digital writing. A university and a society belonging to the twenty-first century require students and professionals who can use their language correctly in any context, device and mode of communication. The research was based on a sample of…

In the English as a foreign language (EFL) writing context, most of the research studies on the feedback process are conducted in a face-to-face context and few research studies have been conducted to investigate what actually happens in online feedback conditions. Thus, this study aimed to compare 44 EFL university students' experience of…

After a discussion of the state of both misaligned and informative online and distance education research, the authors in this special issue (hereafter called the collective) extract evidence-based principles about strategies that work. Both are addressed in this article. First, their criticisms centered on the value of comparative research. Those…

This exploratory analysis examined the nature of asynchronous, text-based communication in peer-directed educational discussions. The nature of communication changed over time and women exhibited greater tendency for epistolary communication than men. Initial posts, which were expository in nature, focused on disseminating information whereas…

There is a need for further research to understand the potential uses of asynchronous electronic discussions in higher education courses. Electronic discussion boards were conducted with two different graduate speech-language pathology student cohorts to supplement in-class instruction regarding assistive technology. One year's discussions were…