Jered Borup
George Mason University, Instructional Technology, Faculty Member
- Instructional Technology, Educational Technology, Instructional Design, Online Learning, Distance Education, Education, and 14 moreTeacher Education, Technology, Higher Education, E-learning, Blended Learning, Blended learning in higher education, Virtual Schooling, Asynchronous Video, Online Communities, K-12 Online Learning, Distance Learning, K-12 Distance Learning, Social Presence, and Feedback (Education)edit
Distance education has historically contained little or no learner–learner interactions. Currently the Internet allows for unprecedented levels of learner–learner interaction and has the potential to transform how students learn online.... more
Distance education has historically contained little or no learner–learner interactions. Currently the Internet allows for unprecedented levels of learner–learner interaction and has the potential to transform how students learn online. However, many courses offered online focus more on flexibility and independence than on interaction and collaboration. Often it is up to the teacher to decide how much learner–learner interaction their courses contain. However, little research has examined how online high school teachers perceive, value, and facilitate learner–learner interactions. This case study used teacher surveys and interviews at a full-time online charter high school to examine teacher perceptions of learner–learner interactions. The analysis identified four student behaviors that positively impact student engagement and learning: befriending, motivating, instructing, and collaborating. Teachers also identified several drawbacks to learner–learner interactions such as bullying and cheating. Furthermore, there appeared to be tension between providing for students' individual needs and requiring collaborative learning opportunities.
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A growing number of adolescents are taking all or most of their courses online. This places a greater responsibility on parents to support and facilitate their student's learning. This case study used teacher surveys and interviews to... more
A growing number of adolescents are taking all or most of their courses online. This places a greater responsibility on parents to support and facilitate their student's learning. This case study used teacher surveys and interviews to better understand how teachers perceived and supported parents' attempts to support their online students at a single online charter school. Results showed that parents supported their students by (1) organizing and managing students' schedules, (2) nurturing relationships and interactions, (3) monitoring and motivating student engagement, and (4) instructing students when necessary. Teachers also believed that parents could act as obstacles to their students' learning by being overly engaged in certain types of learning activities. Additional research is needed that examines parent engagement in a variety of online learning environments. Research that identifies best practices could also be especially valuable to online teachers and administrators wishing to improve the quantity and quality of parental engagement in their programs.
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Emerging research suggests that on-site mentors can play an important role in supporting K-12 online learners, yet in practice there is wide variability in what mentoring looks like from program to program. Recently, states like Michi-gan... more
Emerging research suggests that on-site mentors can play an important role in supporting K-12 online learners, yet in practice there is wide variability in what mentoring looks like from program to program. Recently, states like Michi-gan have expanded online course access programs, accelerating the need for better on-ground support models for online learners. Unfortunately, many K-12 personnel have received little training on what different mentoring models could look like or should look like. In the absence of such professional development, many have simply learned by doing. This descriptive study provides insight into established and successful mentoring programs by way of mentor interviews that highlight a range of mentoring program practices, providing points of comparison for mentors, instructors, administrators, parents, and students in regard to alternative support structures and/or strategies for online learners.
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As K-12 online programs mature, it is increasingly important that they work to retain their effective teachers. However, there is little research that has examined teacher satisfaction in K-12 online learning environments. Our analysis of... more
As K-12 online programs mature, it is increasingly important that they work to retain their effective teachers. However, there is little research that has examined teacher satisfaction in K-12 online learning environments. Our analysis of 22 interviews with 11 teachers at an online charter school identified three primary factors that influenced teacher satisfaction. First, teachers enjoyed having flexibility in when, where, and how they taught. The use of open educational resources was especially important because it enabled teachers to make modifications to meet student needs. Second, teachers were most satisfied when they were provided with time to interact individually with students. Third, teachers appeared most satisfied when their efforts positively impacted student performance. Similarly, teachers appreciated administrative support that increased teachers' capacity to impact student performance. We also discuss possible tensions that school administrators may experience as they attempt to balance these factors with other—sometimes competing—forces.
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This paper describes the Adolescent Community of Engagement (ACE) framework as a guide to research and design in adolescent online learning environments. Several online learning frameworks have emerged from higher education contexts, but... more
This paper describes the Adolescent Community of Engagement (ACE) framework as a guide to research and design in adolescent online learning environments. Several online learning frameworks have emerged from higher education contexts, but these frameworks do not explicitly address the unique student and environmental characteristics of the adolescent online learning environment. The ACE framework consists of four main constructs that make up an adolescent online learning community. The first three (student engagement, teacher engagement, and peer engagement) build on frameworks originally established from higher education contexts. The ACE framework additionally recognizes the role of parents in their children’s learning and introduces a fourth construct, parent engagement, which builds on two
previously established face-to-face frameworks.
previously established face-to-face frameworks.
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This research uses the technological pedagogical and content knowledge (TPACK) framework as a lens for understanding how teacher candidates make decisions about the use of information and communication technology in their teaching. Pre-... more
This research uses the technological pedagogical and content knowledge (TPACK) framework as a lens for understanding how teacher candidates make decisions about the use of information and communication technology in their teaching. Pre- and post-treatment assessments required elementary teacher candidates at Brigham Young University to articulate how and why they would integrate technology in three content teaching design tasks. Researchers identified themes from student rationales that mapped to the TPACK constructs. Rationales simultaneously supported subcategories of knowledge that could be helpful to other researchers trying to understand and measure TPACK. The research showed significant student growth in the use of rationales grounded in content-specific knowledge and general pedagogical knowledge, while rationales related to general technological knowledge remained constant.
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This study used survey data to measure the effect of learners' reported interactions with content, peers, and instructors on several course outcomes in two virtual high school courses that emphasized interactive learning. Surveys found... more
This study used survey data to measure the effect of learners' reported interactions with content, peers, and instructors on several course outcomes in two virtual high school courses that emphasized interactive learning. Surveys found that the large majority of students viewed all investigated types of interaction as educational and motivational. Students perceived learner–instructor and learner–content interactions to have significantly higher educational value (α < 0.01) than learner–learner interactions, and viewed learner–instructor interaction to be significantly more motivational (α < 0.01) than learner–content interaction. Furthermore, nine significant correlations were found involving the time students reported spending on human interaction and course outcomes. Seven of the significant correlations were related to the time students reported spending in human interaction and the more affective outcomes, such as course satisfaction and disposition towards the subject area. Outcomes also indicate that learner–learner interaction had higher correlations with course outcomes than learners' interactions with the content or their instructor. Students' perceived learning was not significantly correlated with any type of interaction, and only students' total reported time spent on learner–learner interaction and students' social learner–learner interaction were significantly correlated with their grade.
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A belief commonly held in the K–12 education community is that parents can have a positive impact on their child's learning. However, little research has examined parental involvement in an online learning environment. In this study,... more
A belief commonly held in the K–12 education community is that parents can have a positive impact on their child's learning. However, little research has examined parental involvement in an online learning environment. In this study, researchers using survey data found that generally students and parents viewed parent–instructor and learner–parent interactions as motivational. Students viewed learner–parent interaction as significantly more motivational than did their parents. The quantity of reported parental interactions was generally negatively correlated with course outcomes. These negative correlations may be the result of parents' tendency to increase interaction levels following poor student performance and may not reflect the actual impact of parental interactions on individual student learning.
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Student disconnectedness remains a serious concern in K-12 online learning. One online high school, Mountain Heights Academy, created a “shepherding program” to encourage a sense of community among teachers and students. Every teacher... more
Student disconnectedness remains a serious concern in K-12 online learning. One online high school, Mountain Heights Academy, created a “shepherding program” to encourage a sense of community among teachers and students. Every teacher is a “shepherd” and is responsible for 20 to 25 students. This article presents a qualitative analysis of how teachers and students perceive that the shepherding program has influenced shepherd-student relationships as seen through the “sense of community” lens. The analysis exposing similarities and differences between teacher and student perspectives of the shepherding program was conducted based on the four dimensions of Rovai’s online sense of community: spirit, trust, interaction, and learning. Findings illustrated shepherd-student relationships consisting of all four elements of community in some degree.
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This paper describes the Adolescent Community of Engagement (ACE) framework as a guide to research and design in adolescent online learning environments. Several online learning frameworks have emerged from higher education contexts, but... more
This paper describes the Adolescent Community of Engagement (ACE) framework as a guide to research and design in adolescent online learning environments. Several online learning frameworks have emerged from higher education contexts, but these frameworks do not explicitly address the unique student and environmental characteristics of the adolescent online learning environment. The ACE framework consists of four main constructs that make up an adolescent online learning community. The first three (student engagement, teacher engagement, and peer engagement) build on frameworks originally established from higher education contexts. The ACE framework additionally recognizes the role of parents in their children’s learning and introduces a fourth construct, parent engagement, which builds on two previously established face-to-face frameworks.
Abstract: As enrollments in cyber charter schools grow, it becomes increasingly important to understand how parents engage in their students’ learning. Researchers have hypothesized that parental engagement is even more critical when... more
Abstract: As enrollments in cyber charter schools grow, it becomes increasingly important to understand how parents engage in their students’ learning. Researchers have hypothesized that parental engagement is even more critical when online students learn from home but few researchers have examined parents’ engagement behavior—especially parents of adolescent learners. In this case study we addressed this gap using parent and student interviews at a full-time online charter school. Our analysis of 19 interviews with nine parents and 10 interviews with 10 students identified five primary types of parental engagement within this setting: (1) nurturing relationships and interactions, (2) advising and mentoring, (3) organizing, (4) monitoring and motivating student engagement, and (5) instructing. We also identified barriers to effective parental engagement and discuss how programs can work with parents to foster more collaborative relationships.
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Distance education courses have historically contained little or no learner-learner interactions. The advent of the Internet was coupled with high levels of learner-learner interaction that has the potential to transform how students... more
Distance education courses have historically contained little or no learner-learner interactions. The advent of the Internet was coupled with high levels of learner-learner interaction that has the potential to transform how students learn online. However, little research has examined how online high school teachers perceive, facilitate, and value learner-learner interactions. This case study used teacher surveys and interviews at a full-time online charter high school to examine teacher perceptions of learner-learner interactions. The analysis identified four student behaviors that positively impact learner engagement: befriending, motivating, instructing, and collaborating. Teachers also identified several drawbacks to learner-learner interactions such as bullying and cheating. Furthermore, there appeared to be tension between providing for students' individual needs and requiring collaborative learning opportunities.
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Research articles and theoretical chapters about online learning for diverse students. Countries represented in this volume include the United States, Canada, and New Zealand. Chapters are divided into sections with introductions.
Research Interests: Multiculturalism, Rhetoric, Educational Technology, Educational Leadership, Teacher Education, and 17 moreDisability Studies, Diversity, Blended E-Learning, John Dewey, Online Learning, Vygotsky, Ecosophy, Blended Learning, Danah Boyd, Online Teaching and Learning, Preservice Teacher Education, North Carolina, Virtual Learning, Cyber Schooling, K-12 Online Learning, Teacher Preparation, and Paulo Friere
This qualitative case study examined student perceptions of video communication with their instructor in an online research and writing course for sport and recreation graduate students. All students participated in two personalized Skype... more
This qualitative case study examined student perceptions of video communication with their instructor in an online research and writing course for sport and recreation graduate students. All students participated in two personalized Skype video calls with the instructor and received two video and text feedback critiques of their written projects. Eight students were interviewed following the course. Despite minor technological and scheduling concerns, students found that their Skype calls helped to form a relationship with their instructor and improved their confidence in the course. Students found that video feedback recordings on their written projects were elaborate and friendly while text feedback comments tended to be more convenient, efficient, and concise. However, all students reported that the advantages of video feedback outweighed the advantages of text. The article concludes with recommendations for future researcher and for online instructors who wish to effectively blend these forms of communication.
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In this study we examined student and instructor perceptions of text and video feedback in technology integration courses that combined face-to-face with online instruction for teacher candidates. Items from the Feedback Environment Scale... more
In this study we examined student and instructor perceptions of text and video feedback in technology integration courses that combined face-to-face with online instruction for teacher candidates. Items from the Feedback Environment Scale (Steelman, Levy, & Snell, 2004) were used to measure student perceptions of feedback quality and delivery. Independent sample t-tests found no significant difference in perceptions of feedback quality and delivery between students who received video feedback and those who received text. End-of-semester student and instructor interviews identified several differences in the instructors’ feedback methods when they were communicating with text as compared to video. In general, students and instructors found that the affordances of text enabled more efficient and organized feedback, while the affordances of video encouraged more supportive and conversational communication. Analysis of actual feedback comments found video comments were longer and more supportive, while text feedback contained more specific critiques. When rating types of feedback, both students and instructors valued the efficiency of text over the more affective benefits of video. The article concludes with possible implications for future research and recommendations for practice that draw on the potential benefits of both feedback forms.
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In this study we examined student and instructor perceptions of text and video feedback in technology integration courses that combined face-to-face with online instruction for teacher candidates. Items from the Feedback Environment Scale... more
In this study we examined student and instructor perceptions of text and video feedback in technology integration courses that combined face-to-face with online instruction for teacher candidates. Items from the Feedback Environment Scale (Steelman, Levy, & Snell, 2004) were used to measure student perceptions of feedback quality and delivery. Independent sample t-tests found no significant difference in perceptions of feedback quality and delivery between students who received video feedback and those who received text. End-of-semester student and instructor interviews identified several differences in the instructors’ feedback methods when they were communicating with text as compared to video. In general, students and instructors found that the affordances of text enabled more efficient and organized feedback, while the affordances of video encouraged more supportive and conversational communication. Analysis of actual feedback comments found video comments were longer and more supportive, while text feedback contained more specific critiques. When rating types of feedback, both students and instructors valued the efficiency of text over the more affective benefits of video. The article concludes with possible implications for future research and recommendations for practice that draw on the potential benefits of both feedback forms.
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In this paper, we review findings from an analysis of the past decade (2001-2010) of research in 10 major journals in the field of instructional design and technology. Each research article published in these journals during this decade... more
In this paper, we review findings from an analysis of the past decade (2001-2010) of research in 10 major journals in the field of instructional design and technology. Each research article published in these journals during this decade was categorized according to its focus or methodology, topical keywords, authorship, and citation trends; and the findings were aggregated across all of the journals to show trends over the last decade. We found there is a strong emphasis on technology-related issues, distance education, communication strategies, and instructional methods over cognitive-related topics and learning issues. There is a strong history of theoretical inquiry and and a fairly even balance of qualitative and quantitative research being published, with other research methods emerging. However, there are distinct differences in methodological stances among the journals. We also found some evidence that the ISI Impact Factor may not be the best indicator of impact quality for journals in our field.
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In this study, the authors analyzed all research articles published between 2002 and 2011 in the Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, in order to understand the research topics methods, major contributing authors, and most-cited... more
In this study, the authors analyzed all research articles
published between 2002 and 2011 in the Journal of
Computer Assisted Learning, in order to understand the
research topics methods, major contributing authors, and
most-cited publications. Over the 1 0-year period, they
found the journal has explored educational uses of
computer technologies in a wide variety of contexts, but
most recently the journal has emphasized studies on
online learning. The three most common topics over the
decade have been collaboration, communication technology,
and distance learning. Another prevalent theme
has been mobile learning , with three special issues and
two of the top three most frequently cited JCAL articles
focusing on this topic. Most recently, the topic of social
media in learning has emerged as a common one. The
research published in JCAL is internationally diverse,
with its 15 most frequently published authors representing
nine different countries. Its three most frequently published
authors were Tak-Wai Chan of the National Central
University of Taiwan, Chee-Kit Looi of the National
Institute of Educa tion in Singapore, and Eileen Scanlon of
the UK Open University. About a third of the published
research was inferential and most of the remaining
research was interpretive or combined.
published between 2002 and 2011 in the Journal of
Computer Assisted Learning, in order to understand the
research topics methods, major contributing authors, and
most-cited publications. Over the 1 0-year period, they
found the journal has explored educational uses of
computer technologies in a wide variety of contexts, but
most recently the journal has emphasized studies on
online learning. The three most common topics over the
decade have been collaboration, communication technology,
and distance learning. Another prevalent theme
has been mobile learning , with three special issues and
two of the top three most frequently cited JCAL articles
focusing on this topic. Most recently, the topic of social
media in learning has emerged as a common one. The
research published in JCAL is internationally diverse,
with its 15 most frequently published authors representing
nine different countries. Its three most frequently published
authors were Tak-Wai Chan of the National Central
University of Taiwan, Chee-Kit Looi of the National
Institute of Educa tion in Singapore, and Eileen Scanlon of
the UK Open University. About a third of the published
research was inferential and most of the remaining
research was interpretive or combined.
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Research suggests that collaborative learning designs, which require interaction with teachers and peers, can promote engagement and learning for online courses. Many K-12 students seek supplemental online courses to meet graduation... more
Research suggests that collaborative learning designs, which require interaction with teachers and peers, can promote engagement and learning for online courses. Many K-12 students seek supplemental online courses to meet graduation requirements and desire flexibility, which often conflicts with required interactions. This paper asserts that online independent study learners may create a proximate community of engagement (PCE) to provide the benefits of collaboration and interactions. Using the adolescent community of engagement (ACE) framework as a lens for identifying interactions, this study surveyed K-12 independent study students to assess their perception of the need for interaction with a support community while completing an online course. Results showed that students perceive the benefits of such a community and plan to receive support from parents, teachers, and counselors proximate to their location. The perception of the need was significantly greater for students taking a course for credit recovery than those taking the course for the first time. Course providers can coach independent study students and family on how to create a proximate community of engagement.
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Research Interests: Computer Science, Educational Technology, Student Engagement, Online Learning, Community, and 13 moreOnline and Distance Education, Social Presence, Engagement, Instructional media design, Asynchronous Communication, Connection, Asynchronous Video, Zoom, Pandemic, Technology Teacher Education, Flipgrid, coronavirus outbreak, and Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
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This book is your guide to blended teaching in K-12 spaces. It was designed to help both pre-service teachers and in-service teachers prepare their classes for blended teaching. This book begins by orienting you to the foundational... more
This book is your guide to blended teaching in K-12 spaces. It was designed to help both pre-service teachers and in-service teachers prepare their classes for blended teaching. This book begins by orienting you to the foundational dispositions and skills needed to support your blended teaching practice. Then you will be introduced to four key competencies for blended teaching: Online Integration – ability to effectively combine online instruction with in-person instruction. Data Practices – ability to use digital tools to monitor student activity and performance in order to guide student growth. Personalizing Instruction – ability to implement a learning environment that allows for student customization of goals, pace, and/or learning path. Online Interaction – ability to facilitate online interactions with and between students.
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This book is your guide to blended teaching in K-12 spaces. It was designed to help both pre-service teachers and in-service teachers prepare their classes for blended teaching. This book begins by orienting you to the foundational... more
This book is your guide to blended teaching in K-12 spaces. It was designed to help both pre-service teachers and in-service teachers prepare their classes for blended teaching. This book begins by orienting you to the foundational dispositions and skills needed to support your blended teaching practice. Then you will be introduced to four key competencies for blended teaching:Online Integration – ability to effectively combine online instruction with in-person instruction. Data Practices – ability to use digital tools to monitor student activity and performance in order to guide student growth. Personalizing Instruction – ability to implement a learning environment that allows for student customization of goals, pace, and/or learning path. Online Interaction – ability to facilitate online interactions with and between students.
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Research indicates children generally fare better in traditional schools when parents are involved. However, scant research exists in alternative settings such as blended and online schooling. This comprehensive review of the few studies... more
Research indicates children generally fare better in traditional schools when parents are involved. However, scant research exists in alternative settings such as blended and online schooling. This comprehensive review of the few studies in such settings found that: (a) categorization of technologically-mediated schools is ill-defined; (b) levels of parental involvement vary and are influenced by many factors; (c) links between parent involvement and student achievement exist in these alternative settings but further research is needed; (d) there are implications for public policy; and (e) finally, the review provides specific suggestions for further research.
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As school closures require educators to transition to remote teaching, relevant models for supporting students are necessary This article discusses Academic Communities of Engagement (ACE), a framework identifying two communities to help... more
As school closures require educators to transition to remote teaching, relevant models for supporting students are necessary This article discusses Academic Communities of Engagement (ACE), a framework identifying two communities to help support student engagement: (a) the course community associated with course or school (teacher, peers, administrators, counselors) and (b) students' personal community with long-standing relationships (parents, siblings, friends) Within the framework these communities can provide affective, behavioral, and cognitive support in online (remote) settings Examples from two schools that had to go remote demonstrate application of the framework promoting student engagement and success
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Research has suggested that independent study students may benefit from engaging with a proximate community of engagement (PCE) while completing an online course and that they perceive that such engagement will help them succeed.... more
Research has suggested that independent study students may benefit from engaging with a proximate community of engagement (PCE) while completing an online course and that they perceive that such engagement will help them succeed. Independent Study students were surveyed at the completion of their course to assess the level at which they actually interacted with a PCE. Survey findings were confirmed with follow-up interviews with students and their parents to triangulate survey data. Findings revealed that students in the study interacted with a PCE when completing the course. The percentage of students actually engaging with a PCE was lower than the percentages of students from a previous study who perceived that such engagement would be helpful. The research suggests that students made aware of the benefits of a PCE at the beginning of the course, and who receive coaching to curate that community as an assignment in the course, will be more likely to receive the learning benefits o...
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Research Interests: Psychology, Educational Technology, Mathematics Education, Blended E-Learning, Structural Equation Modeling, and 7 moreInformation Communication Technology, Blended Learning, Hybrid Learning, Confirmatory factor analysis, Blended Learning and the Use of Information Technology in Education, Research on Music Technology in Education, and Blended Learning in K-12
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This mixed method research examined instructors’ use of video feedback and its impact on instructor social presence in 12 blended sections of three preservice educational technology courses. An independent samples t-test was conducted and... more
This mixed method research examined instructors’ use of video feedback and its impact on instructor social presence in 12 blended sections of three preservice educational technology courses. An independent samples t-test was conducted and found no significant difference in perceptions of instructor social presence between students who received video feedback (M = 5.77, SD = 0.85) and those who received text (M = 5.62, SD = 0.75); t(178) = 1.23, p = 0.22. The analysis of 22 student and nine teacher interviews found that participants generally viewed video feedback to be more effective at establishing instructor social presence because instructors could better speak with emotions, talk in a conversational manner, and create a sense of closeness with students. Students also explained that the blended learning format lessened the impact of video feedback on instructor social presence, which may help to explain why statistical differences were not found.
Research Interests: Psychology, Higher Education, Computer Mediated Communication, Online Learning, Community, and 10 moreSocial Presence, Blended Learning, Blended learning in higher education, Education Systems, Feedback, Video Feedback, Closeness, Asynchronous Video, Asynchronous Video Communication, and Open Distance Learning
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Research Interests: Psychology, Computer Science, Perception, Instructional Design, Feedback (Education), and 15 moreMultimedia, Community Development, Instructional Technology, Online Learning, Blended Learning, Distance Learning, Blended learning in higher education, Online Video, Corrective feedback, Video Feedback, Affordance, Instructional Video, Peer Feedback, Educational Technology Development, and Instructional Design Technology
Abstract: In this study, the authors examined the" Journal of Research on Technology in Education (JRTE)" to discover trends from 2001-2010 in the topics covered in the articles, article types (including research methods used),... more
Abstract: In this study, the authors examined the" Journal of Research on Technology in Education (JRTE)" to discover trends from 2001-2010 in the topics covered in the articles, article types (including research methods used), authorship, and citation frequency. Articles from the journal dealt mostly with PK-12 settings and focused on technology integration, distance education, teacher education, subject education, and attitudes toward technology. The journal has generally favored inferential, interpretive, and mixed-method research ...
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A commonly held belief in the K-12 education community is that parents can have a positive impact on their child's learning. The parental involvement literature has focused on the traditional face-to-face setting and has virtually... more
A commonly held belief in the K-12 education community is that parents can have a positive impact on their child's learning. The parental involvement literature has focused on the traditional face-to-face setting and has virtually ignored parental impact on online student learning. The parental responsibilities have dramatically changed as students move from brick-and-mortar schools to studying online at home, making parental involvement even more essential in the online learning context. With online enrolments increasing at a ...
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This paper describes the Adolescent Community of Engagement (ACE) framework as a guide to research and design in adolescent online learning environments. Several online learning frameworks have emerged from higher education contexts, but... more
This paper describes the Adolescent Community of Engagement (ACE) framework as a guide to research and design in adolescent online learning environments. Several online learning frameworks have emerged from higher education contexts, but these frameworks do not explicitly address the unique student and environmental characteristics of the adolescent online learning environment. The ACE framework consists of four main constructs that make up an adolescent online learning community. The first three (student engagement, teacher engagement, and peer engagement) build on frameworks originally established from higher education contexts. The ACE framework additionally recognizes the role of parents in their children’s learning and introduces a fourth construct, parent engagement, which builds on two previously established face-to-face frameworks.
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In this article we share the Academic Communities of Engagement (ACE) framework, which describes a student’s ability to engage affectively, behaviorally, and cognitively in an online or blended course independently and with support. Based... more
In this article we share the Academic Communities of Engagement (ACE) framework, which describes a student’s ability to engage affectively, behaviorally, and cognitively in an online or blended course independently and with support. Based on Vygotsky’s (1978) zone of proximal development, the framework examines how a student’s ability to engage in online or blended courses increases with support from two types of communities. The course community is organized and facilitated by those associated with the course or program. The personal community is comprised of actors not officially associated with the course who have typically formed relationships with the student before the course or program began and may extend well beyond its boundaries. Actors within each community have varying skills and abilities to support student engagement, and a student is most likely to reach the necessary engagement for academic success with active support from both. The framework identifies the community actors most likely to provide specific support elements, aligning them to the different types of student engagement. The article outlines implications for practice and research, concluding with illustrative examples.
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Executive Summary Blended learning is on the rise in K-12 schools (Picciano & Seaman, 2009; Miron & Gulosino, 2016; Molnar, 2017). With this growth in demand for blended learning, there is a greater need to prepare teachers who can... more
Executive Summary
Blended learning is on the rise in K-12 schools (Picciano & Seaman, 2009; Miron & Gulosino, 2016; Molnar, 2017). With this growth in demand for blended learning, there is a greater need to prepare teachers who can facilitate successful learning in these environments.
In order for educator preparation programs, districts, and schools to conduct effective professional development for future blended teachers, the unique competencies of blended teaching need to be identified. Additionally, organizations and teachers need to have an easy way to assess teacher readiness and be able to diagnose what knowledge and skills they should focus on first in order to have the greatest impact with their limited professional development time and resources.
In this manuscript, we report on Phase 1 of a project intended to create a scientifically validated, openly-available blended teaching readiness instrument that can be freely used by districts, schools, and individual teachers to assess core knowledge and skills needed for successful blended teaching. During Phase 1, we report on the following progress toward our goal:
We report on the major patterns that we found in the existing competencies and identify limitations of the existing work.
We used the literature and expertise of current researchers and practitioners in the field to develop an initial instrument for testing.
We tested the instrument with over 200 teachers of various backgrounds in a large school district in the eastern United States.
We used confirmatory factor analysis to test the fitness of two models using four common structural equation modeling (SEM) analyses and found good fit for one model and poor fit for a second model.
We make recommendations for Phase 2 of the study which includes adding an additional section to the model that focuses on management of blended classrooms as well as pursuing the development and testing of a second shorter instrument focused on pedagogy for organizations and individuals not willing to invest time to complete the longer instrument.
Blended learning is on the rise in K-12 schools (Picciano & Seaman, 2009; Miron & Gulosino, 2016; Molnar, 2017). With this growth in demand for blended learning, there is a greater need to prepare teachers who can facilitate successful learning in these environments.
In order for educator preparation programs, districts, and schools to conduct effective professional development for future blended teachers, the unique competencies of blended teaching need to be identified. Additionally, organizations and teachers need to have an easy way to assess teacher readiness and be able to diagnose what knowledge and skills they should focus on first in order to have the greatest impact with their limited professional development time and resources.
In this manuscript, we report on Phase 1 of a project intended to create a scientifically validated, openly-available blended teaching readiness instrument that can be freely used by districts, schools, and individual teachers to assess core knowledge and skills needed for successful blended teaching. During Phase 1, we report on the following progress toward our goal:
We report on the major patterns that we found in the existing competencies and identify limitations of the existing work.
We used the literature and expertise of current researchers and practitioners in the field to develop an initial instrument for testing.
We tested the instrument with over 200 teachers of various backgrounds in a large school district in the eastern United States.
We used confirmatory factor analysis to test the fitness of two models using four common structural equation modeling (SEM) analyses and found good fit for one model and poor fit for a second model.
We make recommendations for Phase 2 of the study which includes adding an additional section to the model that focuses on management of blended classrooms as well as pursuing the development and testing of a second shorter instrument focused on pedagogy for organizations and individuals not willing to invest time to complete the longer instrument.