Historically, distance or remote learning has not been a typical instructional model for agencies serving at-risk, nontraditional (noncollege) adult learners (Rosen & Stewart,2015). However, the COVID-19 shutdown compelled adult-serving agencies to explore new instructional models in order to continue teaching their students. Many agencies,…

After a comprehensive review of the major learning management systems (LMS) in 2019--2020, Schoolcraft College began a transition from Anthology's Blackboard Original LMS to the updated Blackboard Ultra Course View. The learning management system impacts or informs the daily work-flows of several key stakeholders. As such, it was imperative to…

During the pandemic, instructional designers in higher education were busy helping the faculty members transition to remote teaching within a matter of days. However, urgent instructional design (ID) support was not uncommon before the pandemic, especially when supporting adjunct faculty members. After all, design constraints tend to exist in ID…

Community colleges are not immune to the challenges faced by the education sector as they try to continue providing quality learning experiences during the ongoing pandemic. Some might argue that COVID-19 exposed vulnerabilities that have long needed attention, such as the 16-week semester model, a heavy reliance on in-person learning, a lack of…

Since the late 1990s, internet-based distance-education programs have attracted students and instructors who could be geographically distributed: they could learn and teach from anywhere. However, the model for the staff who support distance-education programs was overwhelmingly the traditional place-based office with co-located physical and human…

Resolving user access issues is inherent in managing electronic resources in libraries. The University of Maryland University College (UMUC) Library, situated within a predominantly distance learning-centered institution, has developed a series of web-based technical help pages to facilitate resolution of typical issues reported by its…

Nipissing University in North Bay, Ontario, is currently the only post-secondary institution in that province to offer a part-time Baccalaureate of Science in Nursing (BScN) program for Registered Practical Nurses (RPNs) through a blended learning model. This program represents a "bridge" from the nurse's college diploma and offers a…

Computer system is useful for improving real time and interactive distance education activities. Especially in the case that a large number of students participate in one distance lecture together and every student uses their own computer to share teaching materials or control discussions over the virtual classrooms. The problem is that within…

Christian Medical College (CMC), India, and Tufts University School of Medicine, USA, have developed an "institutional hub and spokes" model (campus-based e-learning supporting m-learning in the field) to facilitate clinical education and training at remote secondary hospital sites across India. Iterative research, design, development,…

Searching for relevant information on the web is an important aspect of distance learning. This activity is a challenge for visually impaired distance learners. While sighted people have the ability to filter information in a fast and non sequential way, blind persons rely on tools that process the information in a sequential way. Learning is…

The Great Plains Distance Education Alliance (Great Plains IDEA) emphasizes the importance of a collaborative environment for instructors and students in distance education. The authors highlight a number of important principles for distance-education programs and point out similarities and differences when compared to traditional face-face-to…

Post secondary education leaders and administrators are currently facing two separate but inter-related trends: the growth in online education, and the significant increase in adjunct (part-time) faculty. In order to maximize the educational quality and institutional effectiveness, education leaders must develop an approach that levers the…

This article explores the implementation of effective synchronous voice communication sessions within a graduate level university program in education. Through the analysis of data derived from the multiple perspectives of an instructor, graduate student, program administrator and instructional technology support person, challenges and highlights…

The "Local Technology Plan Guidelines" serve as the basis for the Department's annual technology data collection. This report takes a look at the data submitted by 344 school districts, examining the progress Massachusetts school districts are making in meeting the recommended guidelines. In doing so, it will gauge the degree to which…

Teaching today's students requires an integration of learner-centered pedagogy with innovative technological resources. In this article, Blase Scarnati and Paula Garcia describe the redesign of a junior-level music history course guided by learner-centered principles and driven by a fusion of stimulating technology-based learning tools and…