Friday 26 June 2015

Why are #IRRODL articles such a pleasure to read? New free issue

There are numerous EdTech related journals out there, but whenever I read the abstracts of most new IRRODL issues, I am intrigued. Is it my love for Canada which makes me more susceptible for possible news? Is it because I like the editors? Is it the determination to offer a platform to international authors that want to share research? Is it their website visuals using people from all ages, looks and combinations? Is it the mix between multiple EdTech options?... I do not know, but it sure happened again this morning while strolling through the abstracts and respectively some of the articles of this new IRRODL issue.

For instance: my first full read was an article entitled "Let's talk about digital learners in the digital era", an article reviewing all reference literature to 'digital natives' and concluding (not surprisingly, yet proving with fact and figures):
The so-called “Digital Native” literature demonstrates that despite students’ high digital confidence and digital skills, their digital competence may be much lower than those of their “digital teachers”. 

Another read of this morning was entitled "Exploring intensive longitudinal measures of student engagement in blended learning" , where the following sentence from the abstract drew me into the full article: "We found that clarity of instruction and relevance of activities influenced student satisfaction more than the medium of instruction.  Student engagement patterns observed in the log data revealed that exploring learning tools and previewing upcoming assignments and learning activities can be useful indicators of a successful learning experience."

And I have another couple of articles ready for reading... joy!
Here is the full list of articles of the new issue, all articles freely available and in HTML PDF MP3 EPUB formats... wonderful:


Editorial
Editorial: Volume 16, Number 3
Rory McGreal
Research Articles
Who studies MOOCs? Interdisciplinarity in MOOC research and its changes over time
George Veletsianos, Peter Shepherdson

Are the most highly cited articles the ones that are the most downloaded? A bibliometric study of IRRODL
Raidell Avello Martínez, Terry Anderson

Developing, using, and interacting in the flipped learning movement: Gaps among subject areas
Hsin-liang Chen, Kevin L. Summers

Exploring students’ intention to use LINE for academic purposes based on technology acceptance model
Willard Van De Bogart, Saovapa Wichadee

Learners’ goal profiles and their learning patterns over an academic year
Clarence Ng

The use of a mobile learning management system at an online university and its effect on learning satisfaction and achievement
Won Sug Shin, Minseok Kang

Exploring intensive longitudinal measures of student engagement in blended learning
Curtis R Henrie, Robert Bodily, Kristine C Manwaring, Charles R Graham

Let’s talk about digital learners in the digital era
Eliana Esther Gallardo-Echenique, Luis Marqués-Molías, Mark Bullen, Jan-Willem Strijbos

Roles of course facilitators, learners, and technology in the flow of information of a cMOOC
Oleksandra Skrypnyk, Srećko Joksimović, Vitomir Kovanović, Dragan Gašević, Shane Dawson

A paradigm shift: Adoption of disruptive learning innovations in an ODL environment: The case of the University of South Africa
Blessing Mbatha

University of Toronto instructors’ experiences with developing MOOCs
Hedieh Najafi, Carol Rolheiser, Laurie Harrison, Stian Håklev

Conceptualizing and investigating instructor presence in online learning environments
Jennifer C Richardson, Adrie A. Koehler, Erin D. Besser, Secil Caskurlu, JiEun Lim, Chad M. Mueller

Exploring the interaction equivalency theorem
Brenda Cecilia Padilla Rodriguez, Alejandro Armellini

In abundance: Networked participatory practices as scholarship
Bonnie E Stewart

Research Notes
Massive open online course completion rates revisited: Assessment, length and attrition
Katy Jordan