With the weakening economy, many nonprofit organizations have cut their budget and are investigating cost cutting expenditures to survive from cutting employees, to cutting services, to cutting business travel. Several industry challenges have resulted in reduced business activity. Increased demands have required practitioners to be innovative in…

With the Internet advancements of information systems and social media channels, consumer data has become a valuable source for companies and social networking communities. These Internet businesses are allowed to use and share their customers' information, with minimal regulatory intervention other than in health and financial areas. This…

Some classes of Internet users have specific information needs and specialized information-seeking behaviors. For example, educators who are designing a course might create a syllabus, recommend books, create lecture slides, and use tools as lecture aid. All of these resources are available online, but are scattered across a large number of…

The primary purpose of this study is to test whether dialogic interactions via SNSs can help revive political participation and help citizens to become involved in real-world politics. In a Tocquevillian sense, this study assumes a positive relationship between virtual associational life and political participation and therefore argues that SNSs…

The "Stop.Think.Connect. Community Outreach Toolkit" was adapted from the Federal Trade Commission's "OnGuardOnline.gov," a project that provides practical tips to help guard against Internet fraud and protect your privacy. The kit will help you offer your community information about protecting kids online. It includes "Stop.Think.Connect.," a…

One has heard about personal learning networks (PLNs), but what are they and how are they different than professional learning communities (PLCs)? Find out how PLNs can help a teacher pursue his/her own professional interests and be a better teacher. This article answers questions related to PLNs such as: (1) What are personal learning networks?;…

Proponents of homeownership policies often argue that homeowners participate more actively in community life and civic affairs than renters. Although research suggests higher rates of participation among homeowners, the underlying mechanisms driving this relationship are unclear. On one hand, the locally dependent financial investments homeowners…

Initial studies of learning in massive open online courses (MOOCs) primarily focused on participation patterns and participant experiences. More recently, research has addressed learning theories and offered case studies of different pedagogical designs for MOOCs. Based on a meta-analysis and synthesis of the research literature, this study…

Social community may be a mechanism that explains the success of minority mentoring programs. We define a social community as an environment where like-minded individuals engage in dynamic, multidirectional interactions that facilitate social support. In this conceptual article, we propose a social community model for science, technology,…

Both lecture delivery and Facebook use are ubiquitous aspects of higher education from staff and student points-of-view, respectively. An attempt was made to integrate the two by setting up a Facebook group and delivering contemporary news stories in preparation for in-lecture discussion in a large-scale (1,200 students across 5 sections)…

MemphiSTEP is a five-year STEM Talent Expansion Program (STEP) at the University of Memphis sponsored by the National Science Foundation. The project focuses on retention and persistence to graduation to increase the number of STEM majors and graduates. The project includes a range of student retention programs, including a Summer Mathematics…

This article offers an extract of a qualitative case study focused on collaborative professional development of science teachers in a transformative continuous professional development (TCPD) network, whose aim is the professional development of science teachers with a view to improving praxis. Teacher narratives generated through an iterative…

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) youth have the potential for considerable resilience. Positive media representations may mediate negative experiences and foster self-esteem, yet the relationship between resilience and both traditional offline and new online media remains underaddressed for this population. This…

The study described in this article aims to investigate the use of out-of-class communication between students and instructors using Facebook as a means of interaction for learning. How often/how much students use such an online social network and the clarification as to the reasons for online communication are the two exogenous variables used to…

Social capital is generally considered beneficial for students' school adjustment. This paper argues that social relationships among pupils generate social capital at both the individual and the class levels, and that each has its unique effect on pupils' performance and well-being. The sample in this study consists of 1036 children in 60…