The continued growth in general studies and liberal arts and science programs online has led to a rise in the number of students whose science learning experiences are web-based. However, little is known about what is actually going on in web-based science courses at the level of the disciplines within liberal arts and sciences or the corresponding course design features. Online Science Learning: Best Practices and Technologies reviews trends and efforts in web-based science instruction and evaluates contemporary philosophies and pedagogies of online science instruction. This title on an emergent and vital area of education clearly demonstrates how to enrich the academic character and quality of web-based science instruction.

Online teaching and learning has surged in recent years, and faculty who normally teach in face-to-face settings are increasingly called upon to teach blended, hybrid, and fully online courses. Best Practices in Online Teaching and Learning across Academic Disciplines provides insights from experienced university teachers and scholars across multiple disciplines—including social sciences, humanities, natural sciences, mathematics, and professional programs such as nursing, education, and business administration—who share innovative practices, pedagogies, and instructional design techniques. This work highlights and features effective, practical, innovative, and engaging best-practices and approaches in online teaching and instructional design that can assist university faculty members and teachers, course designers and developers, and administrators invested and involved in online education. Using a common theme and structure, each chapter is co-authored by faculty members possessing a wealth of experience and credentialing in online teaching and instructional design in the relevant discipline or sub-discipline. Chapters include best-practices, approaches, and techniques within the discipline as well as relevant, innovative, and specific tools and strategies that improve student engagement and outcomes. The book will appeal to faculty members and administrators in higher education teaching or designing online courses or entire online curricula, as well as instructional design staff working with and training faculty. Readers will be especially interested to discover lessons about how contributors have successfully taught and designed courses in disciplines not typically associated with online learning, such as mathematics, composition/writing, drawing, "hard" sciences, and speech, among others. Distributed for George Mason University Press

The use of technology and teaching techniques derived from technology is currently a bourgeoning topic in higher education. Teachers at all levels and types of institutions want to know how these new technologies will affect what happens in and outside of the classroom. Many teachers have already embraced some of these technologies but remain uncertain about their educational efficacy. Other teachers have waited because they are reluctant to try tools or techniques that remain unproven or, as is often the case, lack institutional support. This book is designed to help both groups, so that those with technological expertise can extend their knowledge, while technological novices can "ramp up" at their own pace and for their own purposes. Best Practices for Technology-Enhanced Teaching and Learning brings together expert teacher-scholars who apply and assess technology's impact on traditional, hybrid or blended, or completely on-line courses, relying on technology as a teaching tool for classroom management and interaction (e.g., Blackboard, PowerPoint, student response or "clicker systems," multimedia tools), as well as student-based uses of technology largely independent of instructors (e.g., social networking on popular sites including Facebook and MySpace). Each chapter will address how technological improvements can be connected to assessment initiatives, as is now routinely advocated in psychology and social science education. The book features current scholarship and pedagogy involving innovative technology that impacts on student learning in psychology and related disciplines, focusing also on student reactions to these novel technologies, and proper assessments of how well they promote learning. This text will serve as the standard reference on emerging technologies for undergraduate instructors.

Once considered disruptive to learning, technology has increasingly become an integrated and valued part of the modern classroom. In particular, mobile technologies provide the ability to encourage evocative student learning through new experiences. Promoting Active Learning through the Integration of Mobile and Ubiquitous Technologies showcases the widely varied ways that technology can be applied to enhance classroom learning. Closely examining and critiquing the best methods in assimilating technologies, this publication is a valuable resource for faculty, teachers, administrators, technology staff, directors of learning centers, and other education technology leaders interested in incorporating new technologies within the classroom for engaging student learning.

With the increasing focus on science education, growing attention is being paid to how science is taught. Educators in science and science-related disciplines are recognizing that distance delivery opens up new opportunities for delivering information, providing interactivity, collaborative opportunities and feedback, as well as for increasing access for students. This book presents the guidance of expert science educators from the US and from around the globe. They describe key concepts, delivery modes and emerging technologies, and offer models of practice. The book places particular emphasis on experimentation, lab and field work as they are fundamentally part of the education in most scientific disciplines. Chapters include:* Discipline methodology and teaching strategies in the specific areas of physics, biology, chemistry and earth sciences.* An overview of the important and appropriate learning technologies (ICTs) for each major science.* Best practices for establishing and maintaining a successful course online.* Insights and tips for handling practical components like laboratories and field work.* Coverage of breaking topics, including MOOCs, learning analytics, open educational resources and m-learning.* Strategies for engaging your students online.

The ever-growing creation of new internet technologies has led to a growing trend and use of scenario-based virtual environments and serious games in education. Along with these new technologies, there is an increasing interest in how students can be effectively assessed when using these virtual environments. Cases on the Assessment of Scenario and Game-Based Virtual Worlds in Higher Education is a comprehensive collection that provides aspects of assessment in virtual worlds combined with lessons learned from critical reflection. These case studies present successes, challenges, and innovations to be utilized as a framework for practitioners and researchers to base their own effective forms of scenario-based learning. This publication would be of particular interest to practice-based disciplines such as education, nursing, medicine, and social work.

In the digital age, online courses have progressed as popular modes of learning that provide interactive and collaborative learning in educational settings. The open education movement is enabled by the internet and combines the sharing of ideas, resources, and practices among all people in order to advance ideas and knowledge to a new generation of students. Massive open online courses (MOOC) provide a new way of learning for all levels of education. Emerging Trends, Techniques, and Tools for Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) Management is a critical scholarly resource that addresses the difficulties and challenges in MOOC design, implementation, management, and deployment. This comprehensive and timely publication aims to be an essential reference source, building on the available literature in the field of e-learning and online course management while providing for further research opportunities in this dynamic field. Featuring coverage on a wide variety of topics such as gamification in e-learning, plagiarism detection programs, and language online courses, this book is a valuable resource for instructional designers, IT professionals, software developers, academicians, and education professionals seeking current research on the impact of new methodologies and frameworks used in the lifecycle of open online courses.

The use of media to create and maintain a public presence has become a ubiquitous aspect of daily life. Such interactions should be used to enhance other aspects of life that have become heavily technology-driven, such as education. Enhancing Social Presence in Online Learning Environments is a critical scholarly publication that explores the different perspectives of public latency and the creation of electronic educational formats that mimic the experience of traditional classrooms. Featuring a wide range of coverage on topics that include active learning, teacher authority, and computer-mediated communication, this publication is geared toward educators, professionals, school administrators, researchers, and practitioners in the field of education.

The field of education is in constant flux as new theories and practices emerge to engage students and improve the learning experience. Globalization has created new challenges for mathematics educators as they are compelled to respond to the shifting patterns and practices of everyday life and stay abreast of the latest research in education, curriculum, development, and technologies. Globalized Curriculum Methods for Modern Mathematics Education is a comprehensive and timely publication that contains the latest research in mathematics education and modern globalized curriculum development and technologies. The book examines subjects such as teaching competencies, digital games for teaching and learning mathematics, and the challenges and prospects of globalized science curriculum. This is an ideal resource for educators, academicians, teachers, policy makers, researchers, and graduate-level students seeking to further their research in mathematics education.

Explores current models and issues involved with online course development, assessment, and blended learning.