This article will review the importance of effective communication in fully online courses, to the extent that positive culture and climate are established, and healthy faculty-student relationships are cultivated. Online courses require instructors to utilize diverse pedagogical techniques in order to reach the student audience through…

While many students and instructors are transitioning from the brick-and-mortar classrooms to virtual classrooms, labs, and simulations, this requires a higher-level of expertise, control, and perseverance by the instructor. Traditional methods of teaching, leading, managing, and organizing learn activities has changed in terms of the virtual…

The integration of technology in classrooms is rapidly emerging as a way to provide more educational opportunities for students. As virtual learning environments become more popular, evaluating the impact of this technology on student success is vital. "Exploring the Effectiveness of Online Education in K-12 Environments" combines…

With the emergence of innovative technologies, the digital nature of learning environments has changed the face of education. The integration of these technologies into classroom instruction is essential for promoting student learning. "Literacy Enrichment and Technology Integration in Pre-Service Teacher Education" examines the various…

Virtual schools are rising in popularity and presence. Unfortunately, there is a relative dearth of research related to teaching and learning in virtual schools. Although there are numerous handbooks addressing teaching online, there is little research on successful online teaching in the K-12 arena. Much of the existing research focused on…

The popularity and rise in online courses have somewhat taken the author by surprise. Starting as a college instructor three years ago, the author has witnessed the tremendous interest in online programming. In fact, it is the fastest growing enrollment at the kindergarten-12th grade and higher educational levels. At the university level,…

Building and sustaining a school and district culture that has a technology "growth mindset" and the implementation of processes that support a technology-specific culture in which, "the role of the leader is to ensure that the organization develops relationships that help produce desirable results," would ensure that teachers and principals…

The rapid growth in online and virtual learning opportunities has created culturally diverse classes and corporate training sessions. Instruction for these learning opportunities must adjust to meet participant needs. "Online Course Management: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications" is a comprehensive reference source for the…

The Delphi Method of group communication was used with experienced distance education stakeholders in the United States from the areas of research, policy, and practice to identify priorities in K-12 distance education over the next five years. Data from the three rounds of this study were organized and compared using descriptive statistics. The…

Since 2005, the landscape of online teaching and learning has changed as well as the landscape of the academy, and continues to transform before our eyes. These changes are not only a product of technological innovation, but also a result of new and reconceptualized "values" of higher education, and so we must reexamine what changes to…

Online learning is growing rapidly as states and districts are creating new online schools, and existing programs are adding new courses and students. The growth reflects the spreading understanding that online courses and programs can serve a wide variety of students and needs. These include: (1) Creating opportunities for small and rural school…

The number of students taking online courses in K-12 has increased exponentially since the inception of virtual schools in 1996. However, K-12 virtual schooling is a relatively new concept for those involved in teacher education. As teacher education departments build pre-service preparation programs, in-service professional development…

This action research case study examines evidence of deeper learning principles as purposefully designed and evidenced in an online course and corroborated by the Distance Education Learning Environments Survey instrument. Findings indicate that even when deeper learning principles are used to design learning activities, other factors interact…

This paper investigates the correlation between the quality of instructional design and learning outcomes for early childhood students in the online synchronous cyber classroom. Today's generation of e-learners has access to highly engaging and well-designed multi-media synchronous classrooms. However little data exists on what constitutes…

This document describes the mentoring relationship from the perspectives of several virtual schools that have built mentoring programs to assist their new teachers. Each school's mentoring program is unique and has been designed specifically for the school's staff, size, and instructional approach. These schools have learned that a successful…