Holly McCracken

Reflective Pedagogy: Making Meaning in Experiential Based Online Courses.

The use of reflective pedagogies has long been considered critical to facilitating meaningful learning through experientially based curricula; however, the use of such methods has not been extensively explored as implemented in virtual environments. The study reviewed utilizes a combination of survey research and individual interviews to examine student perceptions of the meaningful learning which occurred as a result of their participation in two Web-based courses that utilized reflective pedagogies. One course focuses on topics related to service-learning and the second on placement-based internships. Both were instructed using online coursework based in reflective pedagogies to compliment on-site placements within local communities.

Best Practices in Supporting Persistence of Distant Education Students through Integrated Web-Based Systems.

The importance of the interconnectedness of academic, student, and technical support processes intrinsic to the provision of on-line instruction has been frequently depicted as a “service Web,” with students at the center of the infrastructure. However, as programming to support distance learning continues to develop, such service Webs have grown complex; it is increasingly probable that students are becoming “caught in the Web,” unable to navigate an intricate virtual systems of resources, services, and programming. In the absence of clarity, coordination, planning, and ongoing evaluation, institutional resources may evolve to become inaccessible to students. Without the requisite infrastructure the best attempts to retain distant students can actually have the unintended consequence of further isolating them in vast institutional cyber-mazes. The focus of this article includes a discussion of best practices to support persistence of distant students, using Web-based systems as the primary mechanism to promote cohesiveness, consistency, and affiliation.

Reflection: the importance of making meaning in e-service-learning courses

AbstractnThis article explores the use of critical reflection to facilitate the construction of knowledge resulting from participation in e-service-learning courses. Such an instructional approach integrates an interdisciplinary curricular framework with site-specific service-learning opportunities resulting in an environment richer and more accessible through the use of technology. By facilitating the reflection process through this combination of service learning pedagogy and an online course format, students are empowered to both assess individual learning goals as well as collaborate with others to make meaning of their individual service-learning experience. Results from this study indicate that students felt reflection was essential to learning through gaining multiple perspectives and being introduced to a diversity of ideas.