Policy Issues in Education Settings AB
Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities (APLU). (2010). "A-P-L-U-Sloan National Commission on Online Learning"
Retrieved from: http://www.aplu.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=311
"The A-P-L-U-Sloan National Commission on Online Learning was formed in May 2007 to engage the A-P-L-U Presidents and Chancellors in a discussion about the utility of online education as a means to achieve broader institutional priorities, such as diversity, retention, internationalization and accountability." This resource specifically examines the policy and infrastructural issues dealt with by four-year colleges and universities experimenting with online learning and/or hybrid courses. The longitudinal study is meant to offer comprehensive data about the specific challenges of integrating online learning into traditional college experiences.
C.J. Bonk, The Perfect E-Storm: Emerging Technologies, Enhanced Pedagogy, Enormous Learner Demand, and Erased Budgets (London: The Observatory on Borderless Higher Education, 2004)
This is a comprehensive publication reviewing the infrastructural challenges, including policy concerns, effecting colleges who integrate e-learning into the traditional post-secondary learning experience. The infrastructural aspect of greatest concern from a policy perspective, according to Bonk, is the tremendous financing challenges facing the expansion of e-learning opportunities, due to the need to have satisfactory technology and faculty/staff training. The grading and integrity policies associated with e-learning in traditional 4-year institutions with hybrid and/or e-learning experiences is also explored.
J. Douglas Toma. "The Law of Higher Education: A Comprehensive Guide to Legal Implications of Administrative Decision Making (review)." The Journal of Higher Education 79.3 (2008): 351-353. Project MUSE. Web. 25 Apr. 2011. .
This is a comprehensive overview of the myriad policy and legal considerations necessary for consideration within higher education. This article functions as a broad policy reference for the framing of the research paper, it provides, "foundational material, reviewing the expanding reach of the law into higher education through their discussion of the governance of higher education, both internal and external."
Levy, S. (2003). Six factors to consider when planning online distance learning programs in higher...
Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration 4(1). Retrieved from http://www.westga.edu/%7Edistance/ojdla/spring61/levy61.htm.
One of the policy considerations that this oft-quoted piece of
literature regarding the integration of e-learning at brick and mortar institutions is the issue of
intellectual property, an issue about which Levy suggest colleges must create sound policy:
"The issues of copyright, fair use, and work for hire are all being reconsidered in this era of online distance learning. Instructors have been accustomed to the idea that they "own" their own work, even if they did not own it legally. Traditionally, when instructors changed colleges, they got to take their lecture notes, too. They could give away their lecture notes freely. Given actual
copyright law, though, a part-time instructor can use the same lecture notes when
teaching at two different institutions, but a full-time instructor legally may not."
Arbaugh, J.B. 2000. Virtual
classroom vs. physical classroom: An exploratory comparison of class discussion patterns and
student learning in an asynchronous Internet-based MBA course. Journal of Management Education 24 (2): 207 -- 227.
This study investigates the specific comparative element of the ways in which discussion-based interaction occurs in brick and mortar-based educational environments vs. In online learning settings. The course example used was for a Masters in Business Administration course requirement.
Tierney, William G.. "Remaking the American University: Market Smart and Mission Centered (review)." The Journal of Higher Education 79.3 (2008): 358-360. Project MUSE.. .
This article is useful for the marketing component of the policy consideration paper and provides a marketing-based context for the paper. The section regarding the scarcity of resources, particularly at 4-year state institutions is particularly useful for the financial and technological barriers portion of the paper as outlined.
Diaz, D., and R. Cartnal. 1999. Students'
learning styles in two classes: Online distance learning and equivalent on-campus. College Teaching 47(4): 130 -- 135.
In this study, the campus was the common denominator and was eliminated as an extraneous variable. It identified many of the same trends in online learning styles that other studies have identified, such as the limitations of interaction with online learning vs. The flexibility of online learning.
Joy, E., and F. Garcia. 2000. Measuring learning effectiveness: A new look at no-significant-difference findings. Journal of Asynchronous 112
Learnings Network 4 (1) [online], 15 May, 2001. Available online at http://www.aln.org/alnweb/journal/Vol4_issue1/joygarcia.htm
This study performs a retrospective analysis of other comparative studies and examines the underlying philosophical tensions between educational theorists who prefer either classroom or online-based learning systems. The study looks at the elimination of differentiating variables to approach a unified learning theory.
Mupinga, D.M., Nora, R.T. & Yaw, D. (2006). The Learning Styles, Expectations,…
