Exploring the Receptiveness of Web-based Learning
Anita Lee-Post
An investigation of the receptiveness of undergraduate business students to Web-based distance learning was conducted as a pilot study at the University of Kentucky. The goal of the study is to ensure a successful development and delivery of a quantitative methods core course for undergraduate business majors and minors using a Web-based distance learning environment. Opinions gathered from these students indicated that other than the flexibility of being able to learn anywhere anytime there was little learner satisfaction with Web-based learning. The students’ lack of an enthusiastic reception of online learning presents a major barrier to successful development of Web-based learning programs that requires further investigation. Click Here for Entire Article
On the Active Learning Curve:
Using Experiments and Activities in the Principles Class
David H. Eaton
This paper describes one Professor’s journey from a “chalk and talk” approach in the principles classroom towards a more active classroom. The paper describes the rationale for the move, a sample of the methods used, as well as lessons learned during the process. The paper concludes with six recommendations for incorporating more active components into the classroom. Click Here for Entire Article
Assessing the Computer Background Knowledge of College Freshmen
George Kontos
This paper describes an instrument to assess the computer knowledge of freshmen in a beginning computer class of a south-central United States community college. The instrument uses a short questionnaire to collect the data, a simple spreadsheet table and Microsoft Excel to analyze the data, and an easy method to interpret the results. The questionnaire was distributed to 21 students in an introductory computer class on the first day of classes. All 21 students answered the eight questions in the questionnaire. The questions covered the course’s major computer literacy areas. The results of the statistical analysis showed the areas of this particular group of students’ weaknesses (Microsoft Access, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint, and Networks) and strengths (Microsoft Word, email, and web searches). Some of the implications and concerns associated with the study are discussed. One implications discussed here is that using the questionnaire in future computer classes may be helpful in modifying the course to better meet the student needs. Another implication is that the instrument can be easily modified to assess basic knowledge of entering freshmen in any subject area. Validity and limitation concerns discussed in this paper should be considered in future research. Click Here for Entire Article
A Mission: Not Impossible
Kathleen Kraemelmeher
Betty Goerss, Ed.D.
This article details our process for developing a mission statement and the evaluation of its effectiveness. The idea of developing a mission seemed an appropriate way to develop collaboration among pre-service teachers, while modeling a process they could follow in their own future classrooms. We wanted a mission that would guide the course and to which pre-service teachers would commit. In several short sessions we introduced the idea of a mission, brainstormed content, categorized ideas, developed a draft, and then finalized the mission that was displayed throughout the semester in our classroom.
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An initial foray into service learning: What was learned?
Amy C. Krull
Service learning is a pedagogy in which students learn in the classroom as well as through “hands on” experience in the community by performing volunteer services. I made my initial foray into service learning in fall 2004, knowing little about the types of students who would enroll in a service learning course, or whether or not they would find a service component beneficial. This study utilizes data from ten students who were enrolled in a service learning course in the fall of 2004. I found that most students had a history of service activities prior to taking the course. They also felt that they benefited from the service component academically and personally. Some students believed they made a difference at their service site. The biggest challenge in the course was establishing each student at a service site in a timely manner.
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White Pre-service Teachers Learning Multiculturalism through Constructivism: An Action Research Case
Dario J. Almarza
This study discusses the results of an action research study in which the content and the implementation of an undergraduate level elementary multicultural education course for pre-service teachers was changed from a traditional approach to a constructivist method of learning. The constructivist course, by providing the students with experiences/prior knowledge, enabled them to construct/deconstruct their vision of people of different cultures as well as of themselves as future teachers. The main implication of the course was that student learning could be enhanced using assignments that provide students with first-hand multicultural experiences. Each pre-service teacher was assigned a culturally and linguistically diverse child to shadow. During the course of study, they interviewed their learner, read about their child’s culture, and then discussed in the college classroom the multicultural issues viewed and experienced. This new method of learning, thinking and knowing seemed to assist pre-service teachers in constructing a functional knowledge of multiculturalism.
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KYVU Online Excellence Award Winners
The Kentucky Virtual University (KYVU) is Kentucky’s official virtual campus. Its mission is to be the state’s student-centered, technology-based utility for the support of lifelong learning. It is the portal to access the Kentucky Virtual Library and offers a variety of online courses to provide opportunity for students who might otherwise be unable to access post secondary education. KYVU serves as a clearinghouse for many online learning opportunities, including adult basic education, high school, and college courses. These courses meet the needs of many Kentucky residents who do not have the opportunity to complete a degree program on a college campus due to work and/or family commitments or physical limitations.
In its desire to foster high-quality, interactive learner-centered course development, KYVU sponsors a competition for online courses and identifies annual Online Excellence Award winners. The winners receive a trophy, a certificate, and a $500 honorarium.
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