Theory and Practice of Online Learning This book and the individual Editors: Terry Anderson & chapters are copyright by Athabasca Fathi Elloumi University. However, to maximize Managing editor: Gilda Sanders the distribution and application of Copy editor: David Evans the knowledge contained within, the Visual designer: Ian Grivois complete book and the individual Web site: Ian Grivois & chapters are licensed under the Audrey Krawec Creative Commons License. Printed at Athabasca In brief, this license allows you to University, 2004 read, print and share freely the contents in whole or in part, with Athabasca University the provisions listed below. 1 University Drive • Attribution. You must give the Athabasca, AB T9S3A3 original author credit. Canada • Non-commercial. You may not Enquiries: use this work for commercial Toll free in Canada/U.S. purposes. Use for educational 1-800-788-9041 purposes by public or non-profit [email protected] educational institutions is www.athabascau.ca permitted. • No derivative works. You may Colophon: not alter, transform, or build upon Text: Sabon this work. Numerals: Hoefler Text The formal, human-readable deed Headings: Monotype Lydian that outlines the license is available Paper(text): Becket Concept, at http://creativecommons.org/ 24 lb. writing, glacier licenses/by-nd-nc/1.0 Paper(flysheet): Via Vellum, 80 lb. text, sunflower The license in more formal legal Paper(cover): Productolith Dull, language is available at 80 lb. cover http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by-nd-nc/1.0/legalcode ISBN: 0-919737-59-5 Athabasca University may be interested in expanding licensing provisions beyond the limitations above, but permission to do so must be negotiated by contacting the editors, Terry Anderson, [email protected], or Fathi Elloumi, [email protected]. Theory and Practice of Online Learning Editors: Terry Anderson & Fathi Elloumi cde.athabascau.ca/online_book Athabasca University C O N T E N T S Contributing Authors / i Foreword / ix Dominique Abrioux Introduction / xiii Terry Anderson & Fathi Elloumi 1 Foundations of Educational Theory Part 1– Role and for Online Learning / 3 Function of Theory in Mohamed Ally Online Education Development and 2 Toward a Theory of Online Learning / 33 Delivery Terry Anderson 3 Value Chain Analysis: A Strategic Approach to Online Learning / 61 Fathi Elloumi 4 Developing an Infrastructure Part 2– Infrastructure for Online Learning / 97 and Support for Content Alan Davis Development 5 Technologies of Online Learning (e-Learning) / 115 Rory McGreal & Michael Elliott 6 Media Characteristics and Online Learning Technology / 137 Patrick J. Fahy 7 The Development of Online Courses / 175 Part 3– Design and Dean Caplan Development of Online Courses 8 Developing Team Skills and Accomplishing Team Projects Online / 195 Deborah C. Hurst & Janice Thomas 9 Copyright Issues in Online Courses: A Moment in Time / 241 Lori-Ann Claerhout 10 Value Added—The Editor in Design and Development of Online Courses / 259 Jan Thiessen & Vince Ambrock 11 Teaching in an Online Learning Part 4– Delivery, Context / 271 Quality Control, and Terry Anderson Student Support of Online Courses 12 Call Centers in Distance Education / 295 Andrew Woudstra, Colleen Huber, & Kerri Michalczuk 13 Supporting Asynchronous Discussions among Online Learners / 319 Joram Ngwenya, David Annand & Eric Wang 14 Library Support for Online Learners: e-Resources, e-Services, and the Human Factors/ 349 Kay Johnson, Houda Trabelsi, & Tony Tin 15 Supporting the Online Learner / 367 Judith A. Hughes 16 The Quality Dilemma in Online Education / 385 Nancy K. Parker 8 C O N T R I B U T I N G A U T H O R S Mohamed Ally, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Centre for Distance Education at Athabasca University. He teaches courses in distance education and is involved with research on improving design, development, delivery, and support in distance education. Vincent Ambrock works as a Multimedia Instructional Design Editor in the Athabasca University School of Business. He holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) degree from the University of Alberta and has worked extensively as an editor and writer on an array of electronic and print-based publishing projects. Terry Anderson, Ph.D. ([email protected]), is a professor and Canada Research Chair in Distance Education at Athabasca University, Canada’s Open University. He has published widely in the area of distance education and educational technology and has recently co-authored two new books: Anderson and Kanuka, (2002), eResearch: Methods, Issues and Strategies; and Garrison and Anderson, (2002), Online Learning in the 21st Century: A Frame- work for Research and Practice. David Annand, Ed.D., M.B.A., C.A., is the Director of the School of Business at Athabasca University. His research interests include the educational applications of computer-based instruction and computer-mediated communications to distance learning, and the effects of online learning on the organization of distance-based universities. Dean Caplan is an instructional designer at Bow Valley College in Calgary, Alberta, with a special interest in the design, development, usability, and usage of multimedia in computer-mediated communi- cations. He was, until 2002, employed as an instructional designer at Athabasca University. Mr. Caplan recently designed and oversaw development of a Web-based course helping older adults learn to use the Internet. i Lori-Ann Claerhout ([email protected].), is Copyright Officer in Educational Media Development at Athabasca University. She holds a Bachelor of Arts (English) degree from the University of Calgary, and is currently working toward a Master of Arts (Humanities Computing and English) degree from the University of Alberta. Lori-Ann has been active in organizing other copyright professionals from western and central Canada. Alan Davis, Ph.D., was Vice-President, Academic, at Athabasca University from 1996 to 2003, and before that he directed programs at the BC Open University. His original discipline was Chemistry, and he received his doctorate from Simon Fraser University in 1980. He has special interests learning assessment and accreditation, the management of e-learning, and virtual university consortia. Dr. Davis is now Vice-President, Academic, at Niagra College. Fathi Elloumi, Ph.D. ([email protected]), is an associate professor of Managerial Accounting at Athabasca University. His research focuses on corporate governance, and covers all aspects of effective governance practices. He is also interested in the strategic and managerial aspects of online learning research from two perspectives. The first perspective deals with the strategic decisions of online learning, trying to use the value chain, balanced scorecard, and performance dashboard frameworks to optimize online learning decision initiatives and tie them to organizational vision. The second perspective deals with the operational aspects of online learning and mainly focuses on the internal processes of the online learning institution. Subjects such as strategic costing, value chain analysis, process re-engineering, activity-based management, continuous improvement, value engineering, and quality control are the focus of his research program related to online learning. Patrick J. Fahy, Ph.D. ([email protected]), is an associate professor in the Centre for Distance Education (CDE), Athabasca University. His career has included high school and adult education teaching, and research from basic literacy to graduate levels, private sector management and training experience, and private consulting. Currently, in addition to developing and teaching educational technology courses in the Master of Distance Education (MDE) ii program, Pat coordinates the MDE’s Advanced Graduate Diploma in Distance Education (Technology) program and the CDE’s annual Distance Education Technology Symposium. He is Past-President of the Alberta Distance Education and Training Association (ADETA). His current research interests include measures of efficiency in online and technology-based training, and interaction analysis in online conferencing. Colleen Huber has worked at Athabasca University since 1994, when she was the first facilitator in the Call Centre. Since then, she has moved to the position of Learning Systems Manager where she is responsible for the systems used to deliver courses and manage information within the School of Business at Athabasca University. Now that these systems are available, Colleen spends a great deal of time presenting them to the Athabasca University community and running workshops to train staff on their use, as well as presenting papers and workshops to other educational communities. Dr. Judith Hughes, Ph.D. ([email protected]), Vice-President, Academic, first came to Athabasca University in 1985, when the University was moved from Edmonton, Alberta, to the town of Athabasca, 120 km north of Edmonton. Judith’s history is rooted in adult education, in teaching and research, as well as administrative positions. She has lived in a variety of places in Canada, having completed her bachelor’s degree at Carleton University (Ottawa), her master’s degree at Queen’s University (Kingston), and her Ph.D. at University of Alberta (Emonton). At Athabasca University, Dr. Hughes oversees all graduate and undergraduate academic units within the University, including academic centres, library, educational media development, counseling and advising, and other student support units. She previously served as Vice-President, Students Services, at Athabasca University for seven years, overseeing the development of student support resources on the Web. Dr. Hughes also served as Vice-President, External Relations for a brief period, when she was responsible for executive communi- cations outside the University, international collaborations, university development, fundraising, corporate partnerships, etc. iii Dr. Hughes’s research interests include the school-to-work nexus, in which she conducted research at Queen’s University in the 1980s; access to university education, in which she first undertook research at the University of Alberta, and in which she continues to work at Athabasca University; intellectual honesty as institutional culture, in which she is now working at Athabasca University; and the use of technology in addressing equality of access to university education, in which she is conducting research with partners from institutions such as Indira Gandhi University and the University of the Arctic. Deborah C. Hurst, Ph.D. ([email protected]), is an Associate Professor with the Centre for Innovative Management, Athabasca University in Alberta, Canada. Her area of specialization is the study of cultural organization change, with an interest in knowledge work and development of intellectual capital through on-going competency development and virtual learning. Her work is a balance of applied and academic research that draws from a diverse background in her pursuit of this specialization. Her current research program is concerned the experiences of contingent knowledge workers, the development, retention and valuation of intellectual capital, the use of virtual learning environments to enhance intellectual capital, transmission and alignment of cultural values, and the de-institutionalization of the psychological employment contract. For more information regarding Deborah’s work or background check the Athabasca University Centre for Innovative Management Web site. Kay Johnson ([email protected]), is Head, Reference and Circulation Services at the Athabasca University Library. Kay received her Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in History from University of Ottawa and her Master of Library and Information Studies from McGill University. In addition to providing reference and instructional services to Athabasca University learners, she has been actively involved in the development of the digital library at Athabasca University, and serves as a consultant for the Digital Reading Room project. Kerri Michalczuk has been with Athabasca University since 1984. For the last five years, as Course Production and Delivery Manager, she has managed the day-to-day operation of the School of Business iv