"This is a book that I am going to have to own, and will work to find contexts in which to recommend. It cuts obliquely through so many important domains of evidence and scholarship that it cannot but be a valuable stimulus" -Hamish Macleod, University of Edinburgh Digital connectivity is a phenomenon of the 21st century and while many have debated its impact on society, few have researched relationship between the changes taking place and the actual impact on learning. Rethinking Learning in an Age of Digital Fluency examines what kind of impact an increasingly connected environment is having on learning and what kind of culture it is creating within learning settings. Engagement with digital media and navigating through digital spaces with ease is something that many young people appear to do well, although the tangible benefits of this are unclear. This book, therefore, will present an overview of current research and practice in the area of digital tethering, whilst examining how it could be used to harness new learning and engagement practices that are fit for the modern age. Questions that the book also addresses include: Is being digital tethered a new learning nexus? Are social networking sites spaces for co-production of knowledge and spaces of inclusive learning? Are students who are digitally tethered creating new learning maps and pedagogies? Does digital tethering enable students to use digital media to create new learning spaces? This fascinating and at times controversial text engages with numerous aspects of digital learning amongst undergraduate students including mobile learning, individual and collaborative learning, viral networking, self-publication and identity dissemination. It will be of enormous interest to researchers and students in education and educational psychology.

This book expands the concept of homeplace with contemporary Black homeschooling positioned as a form of resistance among single Black mothers. Chapters explore each mother's experience and unique context from their own perspectives in deciding to homeschool and developing their practice. It corroborates many of the issues that plague the education of Black children in America, including discipline disproportionality, frequent referrals to special education services, teachers' low expectations, and the marginalization of Black parents as partners in traditional schools. This book demonstrates how single mothers experience the inequity in school choice policies and also provides an understanding of how single Black mothers experience home-school partnerships within traditional schools. Most importantly, this volume challenges stereotypical characterizations of who homeschools and why.

An Education in Facebook? examines and critiques the role of Facebook in the evolving landscape of higher education. At times a mandated part of classroom use, at others an informal network for students, Facebook has become an inevitable component of college life, acting alternately as an advertising, recruitment and learning tool. But what happens when educators use a corporate product, which exists outside of the control of universities, to educate students? An Education in Facebook? provides a broad discussion of the issues educators are already facing on college campuses worldwide, particularly in areas such as privacy, copyright and social media etiquette. By examining current uses of Facebook in university settings, this book offers both a thorough analytical critique as well as practical advice for educators and administrators looking to find ways to thoughtfully integrate Facebook and other digital communication tools into their classrooms and campuses.

Online distance education continues to grow at a fast pace, even outpacing the overall growth of U.S. higher education. Demands for quality are coming from all shareholders involved. As if caught by surprise, a patchwork response to quality is often the typical organizational response. The result can be inconsistent and uncoordinated levels of value to those invested in online learning. This often promotes negative images of the educational experience and institution.Comprised of highly regarded experts in the field, this edited volume provides a comprehensive overview of quality assurance, a snapshot of current practices and proven recommendations for raising standards of quality in online education.Topics discussed include: improving practices for teaching online; using educational analytics for quality assurance and improvement; accessibility an important dimension of quality assurance; assuring quality in online course design; assuring quality in learner support, academic resources, advising and counseling; the role and realities of accreditation.This text clearly answers the call for addressing quality from a broad, deep and coordinated understanding. It addresses the complexities of quality assurance in higher education and offers professionals top-shelf advice and support."

In this companion volume to "Bricks and Mortar," Jeffrey Scarborough and Raymond Ravaglia present a series of essays written by senior instructors and division heads at the Stanford Online High School (SOHS). Written from the perspective of the online-learning practitioner, these essays discuss in detail the challenges of teaching particular disciplines, accomplishing particular pedagogical objectives, and fostering the habits of mind characteristic of students who have received deep education in a given discipline. "Perspectives from the Disciplines" also examines counseling, student services, and student life viewpoints as it discusses how a truly international community has been fostered at SOHS, and how SOHS's student relationships are in many ways deeper and more intimate than those found in traditional secondary schools.

In The Berenstain Bears Face Up to Bullying, everyone knows Too-Tall Grizzly and his gang are a bunch of bullies. But it turns out that even bullies can be bullied. One gang member, Skuzz, is the group's official victim, and during a trip to Farmer Ben's orchard the gang tries to swipe some apples from his trees. Too-Tall makes Skuzz climb high into the branches to get the juicy fruit. The entire gang makes fun of Skuzz when he loses his grip and hangs down, dangling, yelling for help. The whole scene is witnessed by Mrs. Ben and the cubs. Mrs. Ben swoops in and shares with them the lessons Joseph learned from his brothers and once things settle down, they all enjoy a nice big piece of apple pie.

The International Handbook of e-Learning, Volume 1 provides a comprehensive compendium of research and theory in all aspects of e-learning, one of the most significant ongoing global developments in the entire field of education. Covering history, design models, instructional strategies, best practices, competencies, evaluation, assessment, and more, these twenty-seven contributions tackle the tremendous potential and flexibility inherent to this rapidly growing new paradigm. Past and present empirical research frames each chapter, while future research needs are discussed in relation to both confirmed practice and recent changes in the field. The book will be of interest to anyone seeking to create and sustain meaningful, supportive learning environments within today's anytime, anywhere framework, from teachers, administrators, and policy makers to corporate and government trainers.

The International Handbook of e-Learning, Volume 2 provides a comprehensive compendium of implementation and practice in all aspects of e-learning, one of the most significant ongoing global developments in the entire field of education. Covering the integration, challenges, implications, and context-appropriate use of open education networks, blended learning, mobile technologies, social media, and other platforms in a variety of unique international settings, these thirty contributions illustrate the wide-ranging applications and solutions made possible by this rapidly growing new paradigm. Case studies are driven by empirical research and attention to cultural specificity, while future research needs are discussed in relation to both confirmed practice and recent changes in the field. The book will be of interest to anyone seeking to create and sustain meaningful, supportive learning environments within today's anytime, anywhere framework, from teachers, administrators, and policy makers to corporate and government trainers.

Featuring essays by an international array of literature scholars, this volume examines the challenges and opportunities of teaching literature at Open and Virtual Universities in a wide range of national, cultural and linguistic contexts. It presents cutting-edge explorations of seminal issues, including: literature pedagogy and curriculum building; canon and theory debates; the uses of hypertext and other digital tools for literary instruction; the writing and evaluation of educational material; and the teaching of digital literature. These issues are addressed from various critical and theoretical viewpoints, which reflect the contributors' long educational and administrative involvement with open and distance learning (ODL) in a rich diversity of cultural and academic frameworks. As the first scholarly attempt to bring together questions of literature pedagogy and issues in open and distance, online and blended learning, this book is an essential resource for literature instructors and administrators in ODL, e-learning and b-learning programs. It offers techniques enabling scholars in more traditional academic settings to make literature courses more effective and stimulating by using tools developed for distance learning. >

The higher education sector is being disrupted through the effect that technological innovations have on the educational market. As digital and mobile technologies are developing further, higher education institutions must embrace these developments to meet the needs of their learners and to not become irrelevant. In higher education, disruptive effects are mainly visible on a program/product level, with an increasing number of programs including some element of online education. Disruptive effects also become evident on a pedagogical level, where student engagement, collaboration and social learning, gamification and serious games, competency-based learning, teacher training, and overcoming geosocial divides are high on the agenda. This book considers the effect of online elements and their design on university business models and internationalization, course design, massive open online courses (MOOCs), and the scalability of online programs. It also explores how higher education institutions across the globe respond and react to the challenges and opportunities evolving in online education.

The Wiley Handbook of Home Education is a comprehensive collection of the latest scholarship in all aspects of home education in the United States and abroad. * Presents the latest findings on academic achievement of home-schooled children, issues of socialization, and legal argumentation about home-schooling and government regulation * A truly global perspective on home education, this handbook includes the disparate work of scholars outside of the U.S. * Typically understudied topics are addressed, such as the emotional lives of home educating mothers and the impact of home education on young adults * Writing is accessible to students, scholars, educators, and anyone interested in home schooling issues