James Madison University (JMU) adopted a new Learning Management System in the 2013-2014 academic... more James Madison University (JMU) adopted a new Learning Management System in the 2013-2014 academic year. In the 2014-2015 academic year, a small group of instructors and 2 instructional technologists conducted survey research to evaluate the faculty’s and student body’s experiences with the Canvas learning management system (LMS) roll-out. The results of the study indicated that while faculty and students were generally satisfied with Canvas, there are distinct differences in the way each group uses technology: faculty design their courses for delivery on laptops, but students use smartphones to access Canvas. Unfortunately, the interface, navigation, and features on Canvas for mobile devices are very limited. In addition, the course structure and learning modules cannot be viewed on smartphones. This creates a usability issue for the students, and presents a distinct challenge for instructors who are unaware that their students are not able to see or use the course, as they intended.
21 st Century Skills, including critical thinking, collaboration, communication, creativity and i... more 21 st Century Skills, including critical thinking, collaboration, communication, creativity and innovation, self-direction, global and local connections, and using technology as tools for learning, are considered essential for success in the workplace by employers. To meet these career needs, many universities use a variety of instructional methods to develop these skills in their students and provide professional development for faculty to integrate newer teaching strategies for students' preparedness with 2st Century Skills (Hixson, Ravitz, & Whisman, 2012; Koehler, Mishra, & Yahya, 2007). However, few studies to date have explored the instructional practices used to develop these skills, nor the instructors' perceptions of their teaching practices related to these skills. The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent to which instructors attempted to develop students' 21st Century Skills in class settings (Attempt), believed students developed those skills in their classes (Belief), and felt they effectively assessed these skills in their students (Assessment). As an exploratory study, the multiple regression statistical analysis results revealed that all three aspects of faculty perceived attempt, belief, and assessment could, in combination, significantly predict faculty frequency of teaching for students' 21st Century Skills. The study also discusses the reliability of a newly developed questionnaire for this purpose, related limitations, and provides suggestions for future study.
The purpose of this chapter is to provide a review of the research literature on the use of gamin... more The purpose of this chapter is to provide a review of the research literature on the use of gaming and simulation in adult and professional education. The chapter will describe the difference between games and simulation; provide a review of the history of games in adult education; investigate important audience characteristics, including generational differences; examine how games affect motivation; and discuss the application of learning theories and instructional models to game design. The impact of games on learning, especially for those born after 1980, is profound. Games and simulations delivered using a variety of technologies may be an integral part of the educational mix offered by corporate trainers in the near future.
The problem and the solution. Training program evaluation is an important and culminating phase i... more The problem and the solution. Training program evaluation is an important and culminating phase in the analysis, design, develop, implement, evaluate (ADDIE) process. However, evaluation has often been overlooked or not implemented to its full capacity. To assess and ensure the quality, effectiveness, and the impact of systematic training, this article emphasizes the importance of summative evaluation at the last phase of ADDIE and presents developments toward a summative evaluation framework of training program effectiveness. The focus is the connection of final summative evaluation to the direction provided by the analysis phase and the concerns of the host organization.
Educational Communications and Technology Yearbook, 2019
The learning management system (LMS) has played a crucial role in digital learning environments a... more The learning management system (LMS) has played a crucial role in digital learning environments and has been impacted by both users’ perceptions of its utility and evolving technologies. Knowing the functionalities that faculty utilize in the LMS can inform the decision-making process when selecting and transitioning to a newer platform or LMS. This study, which was grounded in Diffusion of Innovations theory and examined Malikowski et al. (J Educ Comput Res 36(2):149–173, 2007) model for research into learning management systems, has proposed a 3-construct 14-item instrument based on a review of literature and applied research. After a face validity test, the Faculty LMS Functionality Instrument (FLFI) was initially validated with 243 response sets. Principal component analysis (PCA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were performed for testing the initial validation of the instrument, based on the Cronbach alpha of .88 and Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) measure of .87 (Kaiser HF, Educ Psychol Meas 20(1):141–151, 1960). The results initially validated the three-construct instrument. We also provide an instrument reuse and data sharing form to further validate this instrument.
James Madison University (JMU) adopted a new Learning Management System in the 2013-2014 academic... more James Madison University (JMU) adopted a new Learning Management System in the 2013-2014 academic year. In the 2014-2015 academic year, a small group of instructors and 2 instructional technologists conducted survey research to evaluate the faculty’s and student body’s experiences with the Canvas learning management system (LMS) roll-out. The results of the study indicated that while faculty and students were generally satisfied with Canvas, there are distinct differences in the way each group uses technology: faculty design their courses for delivery on laptops, but students use smartphones to access Canvas. Unfortunately, the interface, navigation, and features on Canvas for mobile devices are very limited. In addition, the course structure and learning modules cannot be viewed on smartphones. This creates a usability issue for the students, and presents a distinct challenge for instructors who are unaware that their students are not able to see or use the course, as they intended.
21 st Century Skills, including critical thinking, collaboration, communication, creativity and i... more 21 st Century Skills, including critical thinking, collaboration, communication, creativity and innovation, self-direction, global and local connections, and using technology as tools for learning, are considered essential for success in the workplace by employers. To meet these career needs, many universities use a variety of instructional methods to develop these skills in their students and provide professional development for faculty to integrate newer teaching strategies for students' preparedness with 2st Century Skills (Hixson, Ravitz, & Whisman, 2012; Koehler, Mishra, & Yahya, 2007). However, few studies to date have explored the instructional practices used to develop these skills, nor the instructors' perceptions of their teaching practices related to these skills. The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent to which instructors attempted to develop students' 21st Century Skills in class settings (Attempt), believed students developed those skills in their classes (Belief), and felt they effectively assessed these skills in their students (Assessment). As an exploratory study, the multiple regression statistical analysis results revealed that all three aspects of faculty perceived attempt, belief, and assessment could, in combination, significantly predict faculty frequency of teaching for students' 21st Century Skills. The study also discusses the reliability of a newly developed questionnaire for this purpose, related limitations, and provides suggestions for future study.
The purpose of this chapter is to provide a review of the research literature on the use of gamin... more The purpose of this chapter is to provide a review of the research literature on the use of gaming and simulation in adult and professional education. The chapter will describe the difference between games and simulation; provide a review of the history of games in adult education; investigate important audience characteristics, including generational differences; examine how games affect motivation; and discuss the application of learning theories and instructional models to game design. The impact of games on learning, especially for those born after 1980, is profound. Games and simulations delivered using a variety of technologies may be an integral part of the educational mix offered by corporate trainers in the near future.
The problem and the solution. Training program evaluation is an important and culminating phase i... more The problem and the solution. Training program evaluation is an important and culminating phase in the analysis, design, develop, implement, evaluate (ADDIE) process. However, evaluation has often been overlooked or not implemented to its full capacity. To assess and ensure the quality, effectiveness, and the impact of systematic training, this article emphasizes the importance of summative evaluation at the last phase of ADDIE and presents developments toward a summative evaluation framework of training program effectiveness. The focus is the connection of final summative evaluation to the direction provided by the analysis phase and the concerns of the host organization.
Educational Communications and Technology Yearbook, 2019
The learning management system (LMS) has played a crucial role in digital learning environments a... more The learning management system (LMS) has played a crucial role in digital learning environments and has been impacted by both users’ perceptions of its utility and evolving technologies. Knowing the functionalities that faculty utilize in the LMS can inform the decision-making process when selecting and transitioning to a newer platform or LMS. This study, which was grounded in Diffusion of Innovations theory and examined Malikowski et al. (J Educ Comput Res 36(2):149–173, 2007) model for research into learning management systems, has proposed a 3-construct 14-item instrument based on a review of literature and applied research. After a face validity test, the Faculty LMS Functionality Instrument (FLFI) was initially validated with 243 response sets. Principal component analysis (PCA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were performed for testing the initial validation of the instrument, based on the Cronbach alpha of .88 and Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) measure of .87 (Kaiser HF, Educ Psychol Meas 20(1):141–151, 1960). The results initially validated the three-construct instrument. We also provide an instrument reuse and data sharing form to further validate this instrument.
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