EDUCAUSE | EDUCAUSE Quarterly Articles and CMS

Open Source Software in Education

elilly — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 13:02:16 -0500

Academia has adopted open source software for some online learning initiatives because it addresses persistent technical challenges

Toolbox or Trap? Course Management Systems and Pedagogy

elilly — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 10:49:15 -0500

The default design of commercial course management systems limits instructional creativity and pedagogical approaches, particularly for novice users

Critical Factors in Selecting a Course Management System for Higher Education in Ghana

ckeller — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 13:02:15 -0600

Emerging technologies for higher educational delivery has provided integrated software applications that have the ability to support both instructors and students. The effect of these technologies is the result of increase students enrollment in most institutions in developed countries as the emphasis on educational delivery has shifted from the traditional classroom face-to-face to more blended learning. Faced with the challenge of high enrolment, institutions and organizations in developed economies have been working on strategic plans to implement online education (Kim & Bonk, 2006). In the case of higher institutions in Ghana, though some infrastructure has been built, these have not been fully integrated to support collaboration, assessment, feedback, students learning and lecture preparation and presentation. Analysing the influence of technology in developing countries, the future of higher educational delivery in the next 10 years would be the use of Course Management Systems (CMS) which is currently driving the educational delivery of most institutions in the developed countries, creating a digital divide. It is therefore crucial to identify factors that would inform the good choice of such a system that would meet the needs of higher education in Ghana.

Key Findings for the Fiscal Year 2006 Core Data Service

ckeller — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 17:04:36 -0600

With data from 960 participating institutions, the EDUCAUSE Core Data Service helps campus planners make informed decisions

Using E-Maps to Organize and Navigate Online Content

ckeller — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 14:02:19 -0600

Many university faculty create their own websites or use a course management system to upload course materials for online instruction. Course content and files are mostly organized and presented in a linear structure and placed in a series of folders and subfolders. An alternative approach to navigate, organize, and sequence Web-based content is to use a computer generated mind map – an E-Map. With its unique storage and organizational capacity, E-Maps not only provide a user-friendly e-learning structure, but also can effectively manage knowledge in a much more efficient manner than using a linear approach to navigate and access Web-based content.

The purpose of this article is to examine how E-Maps can be used as a graphical interface for presenting and organizing Web-based course content and files online. Explored in this article is a brief overview of mind maps , mind mapping software, how using E-Maps as a graphic organizer can facilitate learning, and some instructional application examples of using E-Maps for Web-based instruction.

Current Issues Survey Report, 2007

drupal — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 10:32:19 -0500

Funding IT reemerges as top challenge; Security and Identity/Access Management split as separate issues; Course/Learning Management Systems moves into the top ten.

The Challenges Associated with Laboratory-Based Distance Education

drupal — Fri, 02 Feb 2007 10:50:00 -0600

Computer competence influenced the performance differences between on-campus and distance students taking a lab-based course

MISESS: Web-Based Examination, Evaluation, and Guidance

drupal — Mon, 06 Feb 2006 14:30:47 -0600

The Management Information Systems Electronic Support System (MISESS) gives teachers and students access to courses, related content, and exams on the Web

Uniting Technology and Pedagogy: The Evolution of an Online Teaching Certification Course

drupal — Mon, 06 Feb 2006 13:53:02 -0600

Going online with a certification course for online teaching solved training and delivery problems on and off campus

Changing Course Management Systems: Lessons Learned

drupal — Mon, 25 Apr 2005 16:44:46 -0500

Converting a Blackboard course to Desire2Learn taught us some of the hazards and benefits of changing course management systems.