Caliban’s legacy

The burning of books, which can be traced from antiquity through the twentieth century, is tantamount to the destruction of individuals and the erasure of history. In this essay, Lowenthal focuses on the psychology and symbolism of book burning and reminds us of the need to prevent both the deliberate destruction of memory and its inadvertent neglect.     

Does Class Size Matter? An Exploration into Faculty Perceptions of Teaching High-Enrollment Online Courses

Class size has been a popular topic for decades. There is renewed interest in this topic now with the growth of online learning. Online courses can accommodate hundreds, if not thousands, of students in a single course. Very little research, though, has been conducted recently on class size in online courses and the research that has been conducted is mixed. As the demand for online courses increases, so likely will class size. In this exploratory study, we investigated the perceptions and experiences of 37 faculty teaching high-enrollment online courses. In the following article, we report the results of our inquiry, implications for practice, and areas for additional research.     

Predicting student success by modeling student interaction in asynchronous online courses

Early-warning intervention for students at risk of failing their online courses is increasingly important for higher education institutions. Students who show high levels of engagement appear less likely to be at risk of failing, and how engaged a student is in their online experience can be characterized as factors contributing to their social presence. Social presence begins with teacher-student and student-student interaction in online courses. Fortunately, student interaction data can be gleaned from learning management systems, used to model and predict at-risk students at an early stage. This research addresses an existing model for predicting at-risk students to test a previous hypothesis that a holiday effect is a contributor for failure. A new analysis then presents an alternative approach, one that tests the frequency of student interaction rather than amount of interaction as a preferable indicator.     

Investigating students’ perceptions of instructional strategies to establish social presence

Social presence is a popular construct used to describe how people socially interact in online courses. Online educators continue to try different ways to establish and maintain social presence in online courses. However, research to date has not identified which strategies, or types of strategies, are best for establishing social presence. We investigated student perceptions of various strategies of establishing and maintaining social presence using a mixed methods case study approach in two different fully online courses. Results suggest that students are more interested in connecting with their instructor than their peers; different students like different social presence strategies; and students have different overall social presence needs. Various strategies and implications for practice are addressed throughout.     

Developing an instrument to assess student readiness for online learning: a validation study

Given the continued growth in online learning as well as reports of high attrition rates in it, understanding student readiness for online learning is necessary. Over the years several surveys have been developed to assess student readiness as a predictor of success in online programs; however, a review of the literature yielded limited results of their translation and criterion‐referenced validity. The researchers of this article sought to develop a more rigorous survey instrument for students to self‐assess readiness for online learning. The authors report on findings from a three‐phase study during which the instrument was developed, evaluated, and validated. Through the process of validation, the researchers systematically engaged in an iterative process to refine the instrument, which resulted in not only a more rigorous instrument but one that more clearly defines ready and situates it within the literature on learner characteristics, digital divide, and information and communications technology (ICT) engagement.     

Cluster score performance of learning disabled students on the Woodcock-Johnson psycho-educational battery

Research suggests that the Woodcock-Johnson may be ineffective in its ability to identify learning disabled students, to depict their aptitude accurately, and to highlight processing strengths and deficits. Seventy-one previously identified learning disabled students were given the WJPEB, and their cluster score performance was evaluated. Using three different methods of obtaining discrepancies, only slightly more than half of the LD students were identified. Memory deficits were apparent. Support is given for cautious use of the WJPEB in LD diagnosis.     

Early Childhood Special Educators and the Hospital Ethics Committee

WITH THE advent of PL 99‐457, in the United States, early childhood special educators may be expected to observe and/or serve on Hospital Ethics Committees in order to assist families better who have seriously ill and handicapped infants in the neonatal intensive care units. To fulfil provisions of the new legislation, the educator needs to be aware of some of the issues that could be considered by the Committees. These issues could include alternative viewpoints on infant euthanasia and the right to life, the provisions of current child abuse legislation, and possible effects on families. This article discusses these concerns and suggests some guidelines which may assist in the training of early childhood special educators for such responsibilities.     

Interaction in asynchronous discussion boards: a campus-wide analysis to better understand regular and substantive interaction

Education and Information Technologies - Discussion boards can provide a glimpse into the regular and substantive interaction required in online courses. Advances in technology and an increased...