This study investigates how graduate students experience their university websites, or the institutional "virtual face." The sample included graduate students admitted to online and blended higher education programs at Texas Tech University and the University of Memphis. A total of 42 students provided open-ended answers to questions…

The goal of this study was to investigate the effect of integrating "Facebook" and peer assessment with college English writing class instruction through a blended teaching approach. This blended approach consisted of one-third of a semester of classroom instruction and two-thirds of a semester combining "Facebook", peer…

In this article, the author argues that technology use in education has focused on combating instructional problems and inefficiencies. While technology use for such purposes is viable and important, the author proposes that practitioners and researchers in this field utilize emerging technologies as a means to provide opportunities for personally…

Asynchronous discussion technologies offer the advantage of providing time for reflection essential for higher order cognitive thinking. In the context of a ten-week graphic design foundations course in the Digital Graphic Design program at Vancouver Community College, this advantage provides an avenue for advancing critical discussion of design…

Online courses appear to be the future if colleges and universities choose to increase enrollments with students who need more flexibility in scheduling. The challenge has been to create a course that is rigorous with the limitations to physical presence of the instructor and the parameters inherent in technological delivery. This article relates…

This article examines the genre of syllabus in higher education. In particular, it focuses on the intertextuality and interdiscursivity of paper-based and web-mediated syllabi and the ways they are used to promote links between various academic--classroom and research--genres and discourse communities. The corpus consists of ten syllabi with…

There has always been a debate around the issue of what it is that improves learning: the instruction itself or the media used for it (Clark 1983; Kozma 1994). It has also been said (Kulik and Kulik 1991; Andrewartha & Wilmot 2001) that computer mediated learning, as opposed to traditional instruction, positively influences the students'…

This paper highlights the findings of a study examining the contextual factors that mediated distance learners' participation in an online forum (OLF). Contextual factors are elements that emerge as a result of distance learners' interaction with their social environment. The study drew on a sociocultural perspective that encompassed the concepts…

This study examines four induction models and teacher changes in science teaching practices, as a result of several mentoring programs. It explores three different computer-mediated mentoring programs, and a traditional offline induction program--in terms of interactivity, inquiry-based teaching, and topics of knowledge. Fifteen elementary science…

This study examined predictors of students' intentions to access face-to-face (f2f) or online options for lectures and tutorials in a buffet-style blended learning 2nd-year psychology statistics course ("N" = 113; 84% female). Students were aged 18 to 51 years ("M" = 23.16; "SD"= 6.80). Practical and technological…

There is growing discussion among education and government authorities on rethinking education in the 21st century. This increasing area of interest has come in response to the evolution of technology and its effect on the future needs and requirements of society. Online applications and social networking capabilities have accelerated in…

Teaching foreign language writing often lacks adjustments to the requirements of today's students of the "Internet Generation" (iGen): traditionally teachers set a--not very inspiring--topic, a deadline and then return a discouraging, manually underlined and/or annotated text without systematic labeling. The annotated document is then…

Technological advancement has led to significant changes in the way university education is being provided in the developed countries. Whilst their universities have made great strides in addressing issues of access, cost of higher education and quality through e-learning, Africans are in the 21st century still grappling with these issues.…

Since the creation of the Internet in 1991 (Casey, 2008), the use of online tools to deliver academic higher education has continued to grow exponentially (Allen & Seaman, 2010b). The existing base of literature is replete with studies of online education modalities, outcomes and faculty concerns. However, little of this research has focused…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) Moving from Technology Optional to Technology Essential: Alliance President Testifies Before Michigan Senate…