The COVID-19 pandemic drastically transformed the classroom by keeping students and teachers apart for the sake of safety. As schools emptied, remote learning rapidly expanded through online services and video chatrooms. Unfortunately, this disrupted many students and teachers who were not accustomed to remote classrooms. This challenge has forced K-12 teachers to think differently about teaching. Unexpectedly and with little time to prepare, they have been confronted with redesigning their curriculum and instruction from face-to-face to online virtual classrooms to protect students from the COVID-19 virus while ensuring that these new online initiatives remain sustainable and useful in the post-pandemic world. As teachers learn to take advantage of the affordances and strengths of the multiple technologies available for virtual classroom instruction, their instruction both in online and face-to-face will impact what and how students learn in the 21st century. The Handbook of Research on Transforming Teachers’ Online Pedagogical Reasoning for Engaging K-12 Students in Virtual Learning examines the best practices and pedagogical reasoning for designing online strategies that work for K-12 virtual learning. The initial section provides foundational pedagogical ideas for constructing engaging virtual learning environments that leverage the unique strengths and opportunities while avoiding the weaknesses and threats of the online world. The following chapters present instructional strategies for multiple grade levels and content areas: best practices that work, clearly describing why they work, and the teachers’ pedagogical reasoning that supports online implementations. The chapters provide ways to think about teaching in virtual environments that can be used to guide instructional strategy choices and recognizes the fundamental differences between face-to-face and virtual environments as an essential design component. Covering such topics as K-12 classrooms, pedagogical reasoning, and virtual learning, this text is perfect for professors, teachers, students, educational designers and developers, instructional technology faculty, distance learning faculty, and researchers interested in the subject.

"This book presents actual best practices and pedagogical reasoning for designing online strategies that work for K-12 virtual learning suggesting ways to think about teaching in virtual environments that can be used to guide instructional strategy choices and ultimate decisions"--

To meet the dynamic academic demands of twenty-first century digital learners, many institutions of higher learning are offering more online classes than ever before that are accessible to both traditional and non-traditional learners. As such, a growing demand for online courses implies that participating institutions provide faculty with appropriate professional development programs to ensure the design and delivery of quality online courses. The Handbook of Research on Virtual Training and Mentoring of Online Instructors is a critical scholarly resource that highlights the issues, challenges, and online engagement experiences to enhance effective teaching and learning in this learning environment. Featuring coverage on a broad range of topics such as media literacy, professional development, and virtual learning environments, this book is geared towards educational administrators, educators, and instructional designers interested in quality online instruction.

Online instruction is rapidly expanding the way professors think about and plan instruction. In addition, online instructional practices are expanding and changing as new tools and strategies are adopted. It is imperative that programs and institutions of higher education explore increased online options that align with best practices to develop effective and engaging online courses. The Handbook of Research on Developing Engaging Online Courses is an essential research publication that provides multiple perspectives on improving student engagement and success in online courses. This book includes topics focused on the online learner, online course content, and effective online instruction. The content contained within the title is ideal for curriculum developers, instructional designers, IT consultants, deans, chairs, teachers, administrators, academicians, researchers, and students.

Teaching models that focus on blended and virtual learning have become important during the past year and have become integral for the continuance of learning. The i²Flex classroom model, a variation of blended learning, allows non-interactive teaching activities to take place without teachers’ direct involvement, freeing up time for more meaningful teacher-student and student-student interactions. There is evidence that i²Flex leads to increased student engagement and motivation as well as better exploitation of teachers’ and classroom time leading to the development of higher order cognitive skills as well as study skills for students' future needs related to citizenship, college, and careers. The Handbook of Research on K-12 Blended and Virtual Learning Through the i²Flex Classroom Model focuses not only on how to design, deliver, and evaluate courses, but also on how to assess teacher performance in a blended i2Flex way at the K12 level. The book will discuss the implementation of the i²Flex (isquareFlex), a non-traditional learning methodology, which integrates internet-based delivery of content and instruction with faculty-guided, student-independent learning in combination with face-to-face classroom instruction aiming at developing higher order cognitive skills within a flexible learning design framework. While highlighting new methods for improving the classroom and learning experience in addition to preparing students for higher education and careers, this publication is an essential reference source for pre-service and in-service teachers, researchers, administrators, educational technology developers, and students interested in how the i2Flex model was implemented in classrooms and the effects of this learning model.

Technology is constantly evolving and can now aid society with the quest for knowledge in education systems. It is important to integrate the most recent technological advances into curriculums and classrooms, so the learning process can evolve just as technology has done. The Handbook of Research on Transformative Digital Content and Learning Technologies provides fresh insight into the most recent advancements and issues regarding educational technologies in contemporary classroom environments. Featuring detailed coverage on a variety of topics, such as mobile technology integration, ICT literacy integration, digital wellness, online group counseling, and distance learning, this publication will appeal to researchers and practitioners who are interested in discovering more about technological integration in education.

Are you a K-12 educator who is teaching students over the internet with no face-to-face interaction? Online learning presents new challenges. Author Lindy Hockenbary does not sugarcoat the fact that online learning is different than face-to-face learning. She tackles the most common questions of new online instructors, including:?How do you engage learners in a virtual environment??How do you develop relationships with students whom you never see in person? ?What does classroom management even look like in an online class??How do you assess students when there is no way to know if they are looking up all the answers??How do you ensure clear communication since you cannot stand over a learner's shoulder and ensure a task is accomplished??How do you communicate with and support the families of online learners??How do you ensure equity when students are never in the same physical space?This book addresses each of these questions head-on by presenting key takeaways to guide online learning design. Lindy brings her experience as a classroom teacher and instructional technologist to create a clear picture of online learning strategies. Other classroom teachers, school leaders, and instructional technologists have contributed to the book to provide a well-rounded perspective on the topic of online learning. This book was designed with K-12 teachers in mind, but the majority of information can be applied to higher education/postsecondary learning environments as well.

In this digital age, faculty, teachers, and teacher educators are increasingly expected to adopt and adapt pedagogical perspectives to support student learning in instructional environments featuring online or blended learning. One highly adopted element of online and blended learning involves the use of online learning discussions. Discussion-based learning offers a rich pedagogical context for creating learning opportunities as well as a great deal of flexibility for a wide variety of learning and learner contexts. As post-secondary and, increasingly, K-12 institutions cope with the rapid growth of online learning, and an increase in the cultural diversity of learners, it is critical to understand, at a detailed level, the relationship between online interaction and learning and how educationally-effective interactions might be nurtured, in an inclusive way, by instructors. The Handbook of Research on Online Discussion-Based Teaching Methods is a cutting-edge research publication that seeks to identify promising designs, pedagogical and assessment strategies, conceptual models, and theoretical frameworks that support discussion-based learning in online and blended learning environments. This book provides a better understanding of the effects and both commonalities and differences of new tools that support interaction, such as video, audio, and real-time interaction in discussion-based learning. Featuring a wide range of topics such as gamification, intercultural learning, and digital agency, this book is ideal for teachers, educational software developers, instructional designers, IT consultants, academicians, curriculum designers, researchers, and students.