This column posits enhancing professional development through uses of digital tools to create professional learning communities (PLCs) designed to support collective inquiry and action research leading to schoolwide improvement. These digital tools include a social networking/discussion forum for teacher collaboration; teachers' individual…

This paper describes a new social networking site, Cloudworks, which aims to provide a dynamic environment for finding, sharing and discussing learning and teaching ideas and designs. The paper begins by discussing the mismatch between the potential application of technologies in education and their actual use in practice. It considers some of the…

Successful operation of videoconferencing technology for interactive learning demands preparation and scheduling. Well-organized strategies for interaction assist faculty in meeting individual student needs and developing the "social presence" necessary to facilitate quality online learning. Organizations can be proactive by offering…

In recent years, terms such as "social media" and "social networking" have become staples in the university continuing education marketer's vocabulary. This article provides both a working knowledge of the social media landscape and practical applications of the concepts using a case study approach from a Midwestern university.…

Computer-Assisted Foreign Language Teaching and Learning: Technological Advances highlights new research and an original framework that brings together foreign language teaching, experiments and testing practices that utilize the most recent and widely used e-learning resources. This comprehensive collection of research will offer linguistic…

When asked what they would find most helpful to enable them to use technologies more in their teaching, most teachers say "give me examples, in my subject area" and "point me to relevant people I can discuss these issues with". Web 2.0 technologies--with their emphasis on sharing, networking and user production--seem to offer a…

Can we apply the best of Web 2.0 principles to an educational context? More specifically can we use this as a means of shifting teaching practice to a culture of sharing learning ideas and designs? This paper describes a new social networking site, "Cloudworks", which aims to provide a mechanism for sharing, discussing and finding…