Jennifer H. Waldeck

Answering the Question: Student Perceptions of Personalized Education and the Construct's Relationship to Learning Outcomes

The primary objective of the present investigation was to learn what college teachers say and do to create student perceptions of “personalized education,” and to identify any meaningful factor structure underlying these categories of personalized education characteristics. Additionally, this study was designed to identify how the personalized education construct, as it is perceived by students, may be conceptually and theoretically linked to other instructional communication variables and to establish concurrent validity of a measure of personalized education. Finally, this study examined the relationship between personalized education and learning outcomes. Results should demonstrate the role of instructional communication scholarship in institutional and faculty efforts to create systematic and effective personalized educational experiences for students.

Organizational Assimilation Theory, Research, and Implications for Multiple Areas of the Discipline: A State of the Art Review

In examining the state of the art in organizational assimilation studies, we explicate specific linkages between work on assimilation in organizational contexts and other areas of the communication discipline. We define the construct, present an overview of the primary theoretical models that have directed research on organizational assimilation since the 1970s, and identify the major areas of research, discussing representative studies within each area. Throughout, we illustrate ways in which communication scholars in the areas of instructional/developmental, technology, mass media, health, intercultural/developmental, and group communication might draw from organizational assimilation research for a heightened understanding of their own variables of interest. Finally, based on an in-depth review of the literature in this area, the authors recommend intensified research attention to the antecedents to particular assimilation processes, development of research methods that would capture the dynamic and interactive nature of assimilation, and conscientious efforts by assimilation scholars to promote the utility of their work to researchers working in other areas of the field.

Communication in a Changing World: Contemporary Perspectives on Business Communication Competence

Communication in and around business organizations has changed due to new technologies, the demand for intercultural communication skills, the changing person–organization relationship, and the global nature of organizing. As a result, new communication competencies may be required. The authors objective was to identify specific communication competencies important in the contemporary business and professional environment. Toward that objective, articles referring to communication from best-selling popular press and practitioner-oriented business periodicals were used as artifacts for a content analysis. Six inductively derived competencies represent a mix of traditional and contemporary communication skills. The influence of collaborative communication and global interconnectivity permeated each theme. Furthermore, the competencies reveal the necessity of a skill set that transcends typical disciplinary divisions—encompassing technology, intergroup relations, nonverbal and chronemic awareness, relational competence, and more. These competencies should be of interest to communication educators and trainers as they design curriculum and training plans for a contemporary audience.

What Does “Personalized Education” Mean for Faculty, and How Should It Serve Our Students?

‘‘Personalized education’’ has become a buzzword in the academic community*on both small, private liberal arts campuses and at large, publicly funded research universities. For example, in its promotional materials, Loyola Marymount University in Southern California describes its brand of personalized education as ensuring ‘‘that students will acquire the knowledge and skills to lead.’’ My own institution’s mission is to ‘‘provide a personalized education of distinction that leads to inquiring, ethical, and productive lives as global citizens.’’ Larger universities such as the University of Wisconsin tout the benefits of personalized education in an effort to quell the fear of many high school graduates and their parents that students become ‘‘numbers’’ at large, state-supported schools. UW Milwaukee’s Honors Program website advertises ‘‘the personalized education of a small liberal arts college without sacrificing the unique opportunities available at a major research university.’’ The University of North Carolina at Asheville, the largest dedicated liberal arts school in the UNC system, emphasizes ‘‘a personalized education characterized by close faculty student interactions, challenging academic programs and service-learning activities.’’ Personalized education is viewed by many faculty, administrators, and researchers as accomplishing a number of important objectives. For example, it may be one way of meeting the needs of a diverse student population (Mancuso, 2001). Concerned about the growing number of nontraditional aged students in U.S. colleges and universities, Mancuso concluded that the most effective institutions ‘‘have a culture in which flexibility, individuation, and student-centered learning drive institutional practice’’ (p. 165). Furthermore, the move toward personalized education may represent academia’s effort to overcome the popular complaint of students reflected

Collaborative communication technologies and learning in college courses: which are used, for what purposes, and to what ends?

Web-based communication technologies that enable collaboration and sharing of information among users – such as podcasts, wikis, blogs, message boards, and others – are used commonly in contemporary organizations to increase and manage employee learning. In this investigation, we identify which of these collaborative communication technologies are used in relation to college courses, and with what frequency; we report student evaluations of their use and reasons why students indicate using them. Next, using Kellers ARCS theoretical framework, we examine the role of course-related communication technology use in four dimensions of course-specific motivation. Results indicate that in courses where students perceive that technology is used effectively, motivation to learn is higher than in courses where students perceive technology is used ineffectively – and that technology-related motivation is substantially related to course-specific learning outcomes. Importantly, students reported higher levels of cognitive learning for courses in which technology was perceived as being used effectively than for courses in which communication technology was perceived by students as ineffectively implemented.

The Development of an Industry-Specific Online Learning Center: Consulting Lessons Learned

This paper describes the development and delivery of a complex and large-scale consulting intervention for a national professional association of landscape professionals. My consulting team worked with this professional association and a third partner to develop an online learning center which provided training, professional development, and the opportunity for professional certification to over 50,000 registered users. Here, I describe the client, the challenges that the client faced, and the ways in which the online learning center addressed the clients’ problems. I also provide seven key lessons which other instructional communication consultants should take away from their reading of my experience. Finally, I discuss how communication theory and scholarship informed this project.