Open and distance learning (ODL) is now a well established complement to traditional campus-based learning and numbers of participating students are on the rise. However, a growing concern for all those involved in recruiting and teaching in ODL is keeping these students. Retention rates for online courses are often worse than for conventional learning, and a recent study has suggested that over 70 percent of distance learning students drop out of courses.;There is increasing recognition that student retention is the responsibility of the actual institutions running the courses, rather than being out of their hands, as previously thought. Institutions need to retain greater numbers of students without compromising academic standards.;Providing an analysis of strategies for increasing retention, this book includes case studies and examples to illustrate how these strategies can change institutional policy and practice.

Making Sense of Lifelong Learning looks beyond the rhetoric about lifelong learning (LLL), and asks long overdue questions such as, Who is actually in need of LLL? What are the motives of institutions, employers and the Government in promoting LLL? and, Who says what is and what is not LLL?
In the context of the previous government attempts to enhance the economic strength of the country, the author also makes suggestions as to what might be done to encourage wider participation in LLL, particularly with regard to the increasing economic and social gaps in today's society. The considerable demographic changes to the workplace have affected the entire population, and yet employers, the government and the individual all have very different expectations from LLL. It is this previously unchallenged 'mismatch' that is one of the central themes to the book.

Distance learning is becoming an increasingly popular way of studying, and most universities now provide courses using these methods. Today's students, though, are demanding high quality, consumer-focused and flexible courses and learning resources and active learner support. This means that providers of distance education need to reconsider key issues about their learner support systems, ensuring that this is delivered appropriately and effectively.
This book considers the changing needs and demands of distance education students. It draws together contributions from the UK, USA, Hong Kong, Australia, Japan, South Africa and Botswana, to offer an international perspective on:
*The challenges and opportunities of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)
*Quality assurance, commercialisation and the learner as consumer
*The impact on learners of cultural differences on internationalised curricula
*The implications for learner support of a wider range of learners
This book should be read by all those involved in developing and delivering distance education courses.

This book brings together a collection of articles that were presented at the Open and Distance Learning Association of Australia (ODLAA) conference in February 2017. The authors share the common agenda of creating meaningful research in the field of distance education. Distinct themes in educational research including open, distance, and flexible education emerged from the conference and this collection addresses each of these themes. The themes explored include: teaching and learning playing an integral role in Open and Distance Learning (ODL) research; ways in which technology is used in the teaching of science subjects; how technology is applied in everyday lives, specifically in the areas of transport, accommodation, and in ordering food; the important and often neglected area of research related to staff development and competencies; research regarding Open Educational Practices (OEP); and the importance of distance education in developing countries, where online interaction is often a challenge - largely because of the lack of stable internet connectivity. This book was originally published as a special issue of Distance Education.

Discover the Rewards of Homeschooling Your Teen
·Create unlimited learning on a limited budget
·Discover teaching methods for teens with different learning styles
·Utilize the best resources and technology
·Prepare your teen for college, career, and adult life
The teen years can be the most exciting time in your child's life. He or she is becoming an independent young adult and beginning to make decisions for the future. Yet growing concern about the negative social pressures, safety, and efficiency of our traditional high schools has prompted many parents just like you to teach their teenagers at home. With Homeschooling: The Teen Years as your guide, you'll discover it's not as daunting a task as you've been led to believe. Using real-life stories from dozens of families, this book reveals the secrets of making homeschooling work for you and your teen. You'll discover how to:
·Work with your teen to create a unique, individual learning experience
·Make coursework interesting, challenging, and fun
·Allow your teen to discover the best vocational path, including selecting a college
·Know when your teen has "completed" high school
·And much more!
"Contains three of the most helpful sentences I've ever read on the question of homeschooling: 'Just start.' 'You will make mistakes.' 'No big deal.' What excellent advice! One of the most thoroughly helpful books I've read in years. If you're homeschooling a teenager you'll want—and need—this outstanding book!" — Helen Hegener, managing editor of Home Education Magazine
"Am I crazy? Homeschool my teen? But how do I do it, when should I do it, where do I find information, and is this really a good choice? If this sounds like you, stop shopping and start reading. This book provides insights and solutions to questions from A to Z. Highly recommended!" — Cindy Stanley, sponsor of the Homeschooling for Everyone Conferences
"Lots of practical tips, examples, and help. I loved the smorgasbord of ideas from other homeschooling parents of teens, showing the wide range of ways to learn and excel." — Judith Waite Allee, coauthor of Homeschooling on a Shoestring

An administrator who knows how to use technology effectively can increase productivity and connection. However, anyone who is not able to harness its power will struggle due to its prevalence. It has become a staple of school administration, from evaluations to communication. Gary and Dana's book Technologies to Lead Schools gets educational leaders started on the path of harnessing the power of technology to effectively impact schools.

With contributions from some of the world's leading practitioners in the field, this volume draws together contemporary experience in the application of technology to distributed learning. It offers an appraisal of the strategies and processes for managing change in open and distance learning and presents a progressive vision for all those involved in this widespread discipline. It can be used as a guide for those implementing Web-based learning.

This new addition to the respected Open and Distance Learning Series is an up-to-the-minute guide for educators wanting to come to terms with their support role in open and distance learning. Covering all aspects of student support from tuition and counselling through to the broad range of delivery methods available, the book offers practical solutions that are set within a sound theoretical framework.

The major shift going on today in the technologies of reading and writing raises important questions about conventional conceptions of literacy and its role in education, society, and culture. What are the important characteristics of electronic forms of reading and writing distinguishing them from printed forms? To what extent and in what ways is literacy being transformed by new technologies? This central question is addressed in this volume from diverse, multidisciplinary perspectives. The contributing authors focus on a guiding question in one of the following areas, which correspond to the major sections of the book: *Transforming Texts. What are the new differences between printed and electronic texts, and what are the implications of new textual forms for defining literacy, especially in regard to teaching and learning in schools? *Transforming Readers and Writers. How do electronic reading and writing change conceptualizations of literacy development from childhood through adulthood? *Transforming Classrooms and Schools. What are the effects of introducing new reading and writing technologies into schools and classrooms? *Transforming Instruction. How can instruction be adapted in response to the changing literacy landscape, and how can teachers and students exploit forms of reading and writing to enhance teaching and learning? *Transforming Society. What are the broad societal implications of the increasing prevalence of electronic forms of reading and writing? *Transforming Literacy Research. What are the questions that must be addressed as digital reading and writing become more common, and what approaches to research will be most useful in addressing those questions? This volume is the result of an interactive process. The contributors met as a group to discuss drafts of their chapters at a one-day meeting convened and sponsored by the National Reading Research Center, and had read each others' chapters prior to this gathering. That meeting was followed by a two-day conference attended by approximately 180 researchers, educators, and policymakers who responded to an open invitation to present papers and to attend sessions focusing on the six major themes of the book. Contributors then revised their chapters based on interactions with fellow contributors, conference participants, and volume editors. Thus, this work is more than just a compilation of the individual authors' views. Rather, it represents a synthesis of a broad range of current thinking about how literacy is being and may be transformed by technology.

Essentials for Blended Learning provides a practical, streamlined approach for creating effective learning experiences by blending online activities and the best of face-to-face teaching. Effective blended learning requires rethinking of teaching practices and a redesign of course structure. Suitable for instructors in any content area, this book simplifies these difficult challenges without neglecting important opportunities to transform teaching. The revised second edition is more streamlined and easier to use, and includes more real-world examples of blended teaching and learning, the latest technologies, and additional research-based learning activities.

Published in Association with the Online Learning Consortium E-learning has entered the mainstream of higher education as an agent of strategic change. This transformation requires e-learning leaders to develop the skills to innovate successfully at a time of heightened competition and rapid technological change. In this environment e-learning leaders must act within their institutions as much more than technology managers and assume the prime role of helping their institutions understand the opportunities that e-learning presents for faculty, for students, and for client organizations in the community. They need to prepare to participate in policy development around these opportunities. They must understand the multiple dimensions of practice in the field-operations, administration, and working within the complex culture of a higher education institution-while also functioning as scholars of the field who can bring the best ideas from other institutions to help shape policy around e-learning. The second edition builds on the success of the first edition and presents both the collective expertise of veterans who have pioneered the field for 20 years, and of a rising generation of e-learning leaders that are transforming online programs at their own institutions, to address these challenges. This edition has been updated and expanded to reflect the increasing complexity of the field. New and updated topics include: The evolving role of the chief online learning officer Issues of diversity as more women and minorities enter leadership roles in the field The increasing role of learning analytics and data-based decisions The potential tensions involved in cohort-based versus individualized instruction. The increasing need for faculty professional development The affordances of cloud computing, adaptive learning, artificial intelligence, the internet of things, and mobile learning to the field The open educational resources movement and the implications for institutional policy and practice The challenges of an increasingly complex competitive environment Accessibility There are few comparable positions in higher education than that of e-learning leaders who work across multiple academic and support units and whose work fundamentally affects the institution as a whole. This volume is written for them.

How to Be a Successful Student is a clear, concise, evidence-based guide to the habits that are scientifically proven to help people learn. Acclaimed educational psychologist Richard Mayer distils cutting edge research to focus on the 20 best study habits for college students, including habits for motivating yourself to learn, managing your learning environment, and effectively applying learning strategies. This accessible, practical book covers all three areas with evidence-based, approachable suggestions to help you become a successful student by developing effective study habits and rejecting ineffective ones.

Universities across the globe are attempting to change assessment practices to address challenges in student engagement and achievement and to respond to a global employability agenda demanding evidence of a broader range of skills and competencies. In the UK this has acquired urgency given the shift of higher education over the last 20 years from the prerogative of an elite minority to mass participation in a highly diversified market system. Integral to this interrogation of objectives for assessment is the identified need to develop and improve academics' assessment practice. Strategies frequently focus on attendance at formal Continuous Professional Development events and/or implementation of institutional blueprints. This book showcases how scholarship as part of academics' practice can be part of an academic toolkit for change that expands awareness and knowledge of the purposes and effects of the pedagogy of assessment. The case studies - ranging from assessment in Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), to assessment design for students whose first language is not English, to the effectiveness of peer learning to support academic integrity and programme-level assessment strategies - are framed by an introduction that explores a 'communities of practice' approach to the institution-wide improvement of assessment. It argues - through a case study from The Open University (OU) - that academics' professional expertise is best deepened through participation in authentic activities of teaching and scholarship. The discussion identifies what is involved in such an approach including the role of an enabling principles-based framework, the constraints on implementation, and the implications for leaders of teaching and learning. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Open Learning journal.

Introduces the Multiple Resource Learning Framework, which explicitly links the learner characteristics and processes jointly involved in learning from both multiple representations and multiple perspectives, the contexts, tasks and resources that shape such learning, and the constructions that are developed as a result. Addresses the factors and mechanisms associated with learning from multiple representations and from multiple perspectives. Covers the characteristics and skills that learners need to be successful at each pursuit and the challenges and opportunities that they may encounter.

This text reviews the strategies adopted in a range of behaviourist approaches to the setting and realization of standards - identifying the background from which they emerged and ways they might be further developed. Examples are included throughout the book, and are taken from such areas as management training, language development and industry lead bodies.

A comprehensive overview of open and distance education. It integrates historical, contemporary and future aspects of distance education. Featuring international case studies, it goes beyond looking at the methods and technology of distance education, giving Otto Peters' visions on the sociological and social impacts of distance education. This new edition includes a new section on virtual universities.

As new digital forms of formal and informal learning proliferate, there is an increasing need to better understand how people in different regions of the world are implementing massive open online courses (MOOCs) and other forms of open educational resources (OERs). Educators, researchers, politicians, and numerous other stakeholders want to grasp what the outcomes of these initiatives are and how they can be improved. Ongoing e-learning developments related to both technology and pedagogy have pushed institutions and organizations to grapple with issues of accreditation, credentialing, quality standards, innovative assessment, and learner motivation and attrition, among other areas of concern. In response, MOOCs and Open Education Around the World explores and illuminates unique implementations of MOOCs and open education across regions and nations. The book also focuses on the various opportunities as well as the dilemmas presented in this rapidly evolving age of technology-enabled learning. What are the different delivery formats, interaction possibilities, assessment schemes, and business models? What are the key controversies or issues that must be discussed and addressed? This edited collection explains MOOCs and open education trends and issues in a variety of contexts, shares key research findings, and provides practical suggestions and recommendations for the near future.

Online Education is a comprehensive exploration of blended and fully online teaching platforms, addressing history, theory, research, planning, and practice. As colleges, universities, and schools around the world adopt large-scale technologies and traditional class models shift into seamless, digitally interactive environments, critical insights are needed into the implications for administration and pedagogy. Written by a major contributor to the field, this book contextualizes online education in the past and present before analyzing its fundamental changes to instruction, program integration, social interaction, content construction, networked media, policy, and more. A provocative concluding chapter speculates on the future of education as the sector becomes increasingly dependent on learning technologies.

This text offers a perspective on issues suurounding student learning by addresssing questions of quality and learning effectiveness across a broad and diverse range of courses, student populations and contexts. The authors identify major gaps in the understanding and knowledge of the effectiveness of different types of open and flexible based approaches to vocational education and training.

Best Practices in Designing Courses with Open Educational Resources is a practical guide that assists faculty and institutions looking to adopt and implement open educational resources (OER) and to foster meaningful, effective learning experiences through the course design process. Chapters loaded with tips, case examples, and guidance from practitioners advise readers through each step necessary for sustainable OER initiatives, from preliminary planning and course redesign through teaching, learning, and faculty development. Written by two authors with direct experience in training higher education professionals to use OER, this is a comprehensive resource for faculty, instructional designers, course developers, librarians, information technologists, and administrators hoping to rethink and refresh their curricula by moving beyond traditional textbooks. An authors' website expands the book with resources, templates, and examples of implementation models, including faculty development workshop OER materials that can be adopted by readers.

With e-learning technologies evolving and expanding at high rates, organizations and institutions around the world are integrating massive open online courses (MOOCs) and other open educational resources (OERs). MOOCs and Open Education in the Global South explores the initiatives that are leveraging these flexible systems to educate, train, and empower populations previously denied access to such opportunities. Featuring contributors leading efforts in rapidly changing nations and regions, this wide-ranging collection grapples with accreditation, credentialing, quality standards, innovative assessment, learner motivation and attrition, and numerous other issues. The provocative narratives curated in this volume demonstrate how MOOCs and OER can be effectively designed and implemented in vastly different ways in particular settings, as detailed by experts from Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, the Pacific/Oceania, and the Caribbean. This comprehensive text is an essential resource for policy makers, instructional designers, practitioners, administrators, and other MOOC and OER community stakeholders.

The landscape for higher education is changing rapidly and distance learning is a key element in this upheaval. In this practical and timely volume, authors Marcia L. Williams, Kenneth Paprock and Barbara Covington provide clear commentary on the basic issues surrounding distance learning. Distance Learning answers some of the key questions at the heart of new educational technologies: What are the options available to institutions considering the addition of distance learning to their programs? What is the most practical way to integrate new technologies with existing equipment? For teachers, what is the best way to minimize the loss of content and foster a positive learning environment without face-to-face contact? An ideal introduction to the world of new educational technologies, the guide is filled with case studies and built on an intuitive set of "How do I . . . ?" questions. Providing a strong foundation for teachers who need to teach from a distance, it will be an invaluable sourcebook for teachers who need to know more about open and distance learning across any academic discipline.

Mobile Learning and Higher Education provides case studies of mobile learning in higher education settings to showcase how devices can transform learning at the undergraduate and graduate levels. With the rapid diffusion of networked technologies among the adult populations of many countries and the supersession of the once-ubiquitous lecture approach with active learner-centered teaching for deep understanding, mobile devices are increasingly used in higher education classrooms to offer unique and effective new approaches to teaching and learning. A cutting-edge research volume, this collection also provides a springboard for building better practices in higher education institutions.

Mobile Learning and Higher Education provides case studies of mobile learning in higher education settings to showcase how devices can transform learning at the undergraduate and graduate levels. With the rapid diffusion of networked technologies among the adult populations of many countries and the supersession of the once-ubiquitous lecture approach with active learner-centered teaching for deep understanding, mobile devices are increasingly used in higher education classrooms to offer unique and effective new approaches to teaching and learning. A cutting-edge research volume, this collection also provides a springboard for building better practices in higher education institutions.

Globally, universities are challenged to deliver quality learning programs and are forced to respond in a meaningful way. These challenges have led to universities experiencing an increase in self-directed learning by using technologies in teaching and learning modes of delivery for open and distributed environments. Student Support Toward Self-Directed Learning in Open and Distributed Environments is a comprehensive scholarly book that combines theory and practice, reflecting on the dimensions of pedagogical strategies and programs that support student success at primary, secondary, and higher education institutions. It covers the current debates pertaining to student support academically, emotionally, financially, and administratively, along with new kinds of strategies to support the learner through digital technologies. Featuring a wide array of topics including digitalized citizenship, e-learning, and special education, this book is essential for professionals, researchers, educators, administrators, teacher educators, academicians, and instructional designers.