Karen L. Rasmussen

It's a New World: Multiculturalism in a Virtual Environment

The notion of multiculturalism is vital in our global society. The emergence of efficient and effective distance learning technologies has permitted the integration of innovative techniques in the delivery of multicultural content to individuals who need flexible and convenient education and training opportunities. Strategies form the instructional foundation that promotes engagement of learners. Integral to these strategies are those that relate to personal belief systems and extension of those belief systems to behaviors. This article will add new ways of teaching and learning in the areas of diversity and multiculturalism by offering a model for building highly supportive, engaging online environments, where instructors, trainers, and instructional designers use multiple strategies to build virtual environments that foster a sense of dignity, respect, and understanding: all critical elements in a global environment.

Can Technology Be a Transformative Force in Education

The interactive relation between technology and stakeholders creates the framework for a changing classroom culture using technology. Factors that influence a systems transformation include philosophy, stakeholders, access, and goals. A wise choice for the use of technology and best practices for teaching and learning permits a sustained transformation of educational systems that focus on improving student performance.

Situated Learning Online: Assessment Strategies for Online Expeditions

National concerns related to accountability and reform movements greatly influence our classroom presentation and assessment strategies. Online expeditions, situated in authentic, real-world environments, are an effective and exciting way to help students learn in constructivist environments. Traditional paper and pencil tests often do not capture the students entire learning experience as they participate in these virtual, problem-based learning environments. Alternative assessments and aligning those assessments to standards promote successful performance on accountability tests such as the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT).

Strategies to Teach Game Development Across Age Groups

The process of game development can be used as a highly motivating learning experience geared to the teaching and learning of a variety of skills in students of varying ages. This article presents a description of a conceptual framework for teaching and learning based on game creation, including pedagogical foundations, a model of instruction for game development, age-related issues relative to learning tasks, and the basic aspects of game development. The authors compare the expectations for types of concepts and technologies employed with middle and high school students versus those employed with college-level students in game development. Projects that illustrate these differences are then presented, and the article closes with a summary and conclusions.

Considerations for designing Web-based programs

Summary With over two million students projected to be enrolled in higher education distance learning courses by the year 2002, it is imperative that consideration be given to the design of high-quality online programs. Using the framework of grounded design as a context for dealing with the range of design decisions that best facilitate learning outcomes, five areas are discussed: psychological, pedagogical, technical, cultural, and pragmatic (Hannafin, Hannafin, Land, & Oliver, 1997). Examples are provided of how each area of grounded design can be used, as instructional designers, content experts, and others establish Web-based programs in higher education.

Planning the Evaluation of Online Instruction

There are two types of evaluation, formative and summative. At this stage of the WBID Model, formative evaluation plans are fully developed and summative evaluation plans are developed to a preliminary state. The formative evaluation facilitates the revision of the prototype and its website as they are developed. This evaluation is enacted once the concurrent design stage begins and is then carried into the initial implementation of the online instruction, which would be considered a field trial. The second part of planning, the preliminary planning for summative evaluation, is an important feature of the WBID Model. It allows for data about the instructional situation to be collected prior to implementation. Often, valuable information is lost when data on the state of the instructional products or practices is not collected before a new innovation is introduced (Salmon and Gardner, Educational Researcher 15:13-19, 1986). The final planning for and conducting of summative evaluation occurs after full implementation.

Foundations of Online Learning and Instructional Design

The remaining four foundational areas of the Web-Based Instructional Design (WBID) Model are learning theories, systems theories, communication theories, and instructional design (ID) models. Principles within each of the learning paradigms provide the theoretical basis for the integrated, multi-theoretical approach to learning used in the WBID Model. Systems theories identify aspects of systematic and systemic processes that underlie most ID models. Communication theories provide general principles related to message and visual design. Conventional and Alternative ID models are fundamental to the stages within the WBID Model.

Concurrent Design: Preplanning and Design Tasks

The designer’s attention turns to design at this stage in the WBID Model. Essential design tasks move the design and development process from analysis through development. At this point in the WBID Model, project plans are developed, tasks assigned to personnel, and tasks such as writing objectives, creating assessments, and establishing timelines occur. Throughout the process, continuous improvement through evaluation and enhancement occurs.

Implementation: Establishing a Sense of Community

The Implementation Stage of the WBID Model brings the results of previous stages to fruition. After concurrent activities are completed, implementation procedures begin. The major focus of implementation is creating the learning community however it is designed. For implementation to be a success, each member of the learning community must understand online teaching and learning and employ appropriate facilitation and management strategies. Personnel, budget, and time allocations are also critical to successful implementation. Final preparation activities include contacting the learners, checking that the course is functioning correctly, and conducting any necessary participant training on online learning/teaching skills.

Overview of Online Instruction and Learning Environments and Communities

Online instruction is used by a variety of organizations, including business and industry, military and government, higher education, and PK-12 schools to provide learners with training and educational opportunities. Types of online learning communities can vary greatly from one end of a continuum being highly independent forms of learning, in which learners complete the instruction individually and self-paced, with little to no interaction with an instructor or other learners and, at the other end, where learners and instructors form highly interactive and participatory learning environments with a strong sense of community.