Stephanie Hicklin Research Synthesis June 19, 2012 EDET 755

Annotated Bibliography: Best Practices in Online Professional Development The following research articles offer many great findings related to building online learning courses and modules that are found to be successful and satisfactory to management, instructors, and learners. Many articles had similar results from slightly different studies. There were few differences in results when similar variables were measured. From this information, I feel that I am ready to make recommendations for an LMS that I manage for my current job. These recommendations will be based on sound peer-reviewed research. This information has also inspired in-depth ideas for further research and possibly an internship topic for EDET 650. Becker, K., Fleming, J., Keijsers, W. (2011) E-learning in traditional industries: balancing the preferences of an ageing workforce with the expectations of a technology-savvy generation. In 25th Annual Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management Conference: The Future of Work and Organisations, 7 9 December 2011, Amora Hotel, Wellington, New Zealand. This article addresses issues related to the use of e-learning based on age and experience with technology in the organizational and industrial setting. The research was conducted by the Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia. The study was conducted using the Australian Railway Systems employees. The researchers set out to find if there were strategies that companies could employ that would help them to meet the elearning expectations of younger employees while not alienating older less technology-savvy workers. Researchers found that one solution may be to assess employees technology skills right after hire to see if they need additional support. Both older and younger learners and instructors felt it was very important not to rely on just one form of training and always try to incorporate a blended model of training. Booth, A., Carroll, C., Papaioannou, D., Sutton, A., & Sheffield, R. (2009). Applying findings from a systematic review of workplace-based e-learning . Health Information and Libraries Journal, 26(1), 4-21. This study analyzed data from 19 previous research studies that looked at workplace elearning in the health care field. The study found that users reported across the board 10 factors that lead to successful e-learning experiences. They were applicability, attractiveness, usability, offline working, asynchronous engagement, learner interaction, peer support,

moderated learning, formal support, and assessment. These factors should all be taken into consideration when e-learning is developed and implemented to influence Presentation and course design, Flexibility, Peer communication, support, and knowledge validation. Cheng, B., Wang, M., Yang, S., & Peng, K. J. (2011). Acceptance of competency-based workplace e-learning systems: Effects of individual and peer learning support. Computers & Education, 57(1), 1317-1333. This study was conducted by faculty from three institutes of higher learning, University of Hong Kong, National Central University (Taiwan), and Athabasca University (Canada). It looks at many factors that influence ones intention to use e-learning in the workplace. The sample consisted of 222 survey respondents. Analysis of the survey results found that when learners thought their e-learning experience helped to identify knowledge gaps and learning needs, they were more likely to use e-learning in the future. The results also found that there was no difference in intention to use e-learning based on gender, age, prior use experience, or work experience. This finding differs with other e-learning research (like the Becker, Fleming, Keijsers article). Daley, B. J. (2002). Continuing Professional Education: Creating the Future. Adult Learn, 13(4), 15-17. Continuing Professional Education: Creating the Future was written by Barbara Daley who is an associate professor of adult and continuing education within the Department of Administrative Leadership at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. This article was published 10 years ago and it is quite interesting to see that many of the recommendations for the field of instructional design and e-learning have been implemented. This article discusses the importance of creating the future for e-learning and not just letting it happen naturally. One of the key recommendations was that continuing professional education should incorporate technology and teamwork as much as possible. Looking at all the research in this area, I would say this has at the very least begun to be successfully implemented. The article also emphasizes the importance of focusing on pedagogical standards and practices, a practice that is still recommended today. Garavan, T., Carbery, R., O'Malley, G., & O'Donnell, D. (2012). Understanding participation in e-learning in organizations: a large-scale empirical study of employees. International Journal of Training and Development, 14(3), 155-168. The authors of this study are faculty and private researchers from Ireland. Their study consisted of a survey of 557 participants who had opportunities to participate in voluntary elearning experiences. This study along with the work of Hurtz and Williams (2009) found that factors, such as, general-person characteristics, motivation to learn, self-efficacy, and perceived barriers and enablers, impact ones level of participation in e-learning in the workplace. Motivation to learn was found to be the most important factor in this study. As in other studies, content quality, support, feedback and recognition were all found to also be important

indicators of intention to use e-learning. The last important aspect they examined was, how will designers know that learners were not happy with their e-learning experience? The study reported this would be obvious when those learners would skip future training offerings or spend less time on them. Ghoniemy, S., Fahmy, A., & Aljahdali, S. (2010). A Dedicated Web-Based Learning System. Universal Journal of Computer Science and Engineering Technology, 1(2), 84-92. This study was conducted by faculty from Taif University in Saudi Arabia. It investigates the need for and proposes a prototype LMS that is easier for learners with limited English to use. The authors conclude that an LMS platform should provide many things, including, simple live courses, oriented to the learner, and support rich multimedia formats. The prototype that they suggest reminds me very much of the course design used by EDET instructors in Blackboard. Content is to be divided by topics in individual folders, with assignments, exercises, activities, quizzes, projects, etc all included. They also emphasize the importance of using SCORM to share and track specifications in course content. Gunawardena, C., Linder-VanBerschot, J., LaPointe, D., & Rao, L. (2010). Predictors of Learner Satisfaction and Transfer of Leaning in a Corporate Online Education Program. American Journal of Distance Education, 24(4), 207-226. This article examines the predictors of learner satisfaction and transfer of learning in an corporate online education program. The researchers were all faculty from the University of New Mexico. They set out to answer two questions, What factors predict learner satisfaction in the Corporate Online Education online courses and What factors predict transfer of learning to the workplace? The sample was comprised of 54 respondents who were from the same company but various roles and international locations. The sample participated in surveys, face-to-face interviews and telephone interviews. The highest predictor of learner satisfaction was self-efficacy. This is different from the Garavan study, that found that motivation was the most important factor. Like the Becker study, this study also found that an introductory orientation to technology and e-learning may help prepare users for Corporate Online Education courses. Jia, H., Wang, M., Ran, W., Yang, S., Liao, J., & Chiu, D. (2011). Design of a performanceoriented workplace e-learning system using ontology. Expert Systems with Applications, 38(4), 33723382. This research was conducted by faculty from several universities in China, Taiwan, and the United States. The study discusses the need for key performance indicators (KPIs) to be used in e-learning in workplace learning. Most research in e-learning focuses on e-learning in academic worlds and not the workplace. Many workplace uses of e-learning focus on the organizations needs and not the learners. As in other research, this article states that many times organizations use e-learning for systematic and organizational content (policies, procedures, human resources, etc.), but do not address specific professional development

content needs. The research finds that using a KPI system allows organizations and individuals to better meet stated learning objectives. Mackey, T, Derr, D., OConnor, E. (2009). Cost-Effective Strategies for Developing Formative Assessments in Online Workplace Training [White Paper] http://www.informationexperts.com/wp-content/uploads/CostEffectiveStrategies.pdf This article was written by a faculty member at Northern Virginia Community College and director of a private firm, Information Experts, a Doctoral Student in Instructional Design (University of TX-Austin), and a User Experience Analyst who also works at Information Experts. This article discusses the important functions of formative assessment in e-learning. It offers many cost-effective strategies and technologies employers can use in e-learning to incorporate formative assessment as a way to determine how employees are learning. It also includes previous research that explains how formative assessment can increase motivation to participate in online learning by offering immediate feedback with little to no penalties for errors. Mansvelt, J., Suddaby, G., O'Hara, D., & Gilbert, A. (2009). Professional development: assuring quality in e-learning policy and practice. Quality Assurance in Education, 17(3), 233249. The authors of this study are from universities in New Zealand, Massey University and Victoria University of Wellington. It looks at factors that influence successful online professional development of instructors at tertiary schools in New Zealand. 295 responses were captured and each person was offered a telephone interview. 40 respondents also participated in telephone and/or face-to-face interviews. The results of this study found that there are many factors that tertiary institutions administration must consider when implementing professional development activities through e-learning. They must take into consideration staffs experiences, characteristics, learning styles, and feedback. These results are similar to results of many other studies regarding professional development in the workplace. Payne, A., Stephenson, J., Morris, W., Tempest, H., Mileham, A., & Griffin, D. (2009). The use of an e-learning constructivist solution in workplace learning. International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics, 39(3), 548553. This study looks at workplace professional development that is usually conducted in constructivist-based face-to-face hands-on experience. An interactive e-learning computerbased tutorial is developed to demonstrate and offer a simulated hands-on experience (similar to the face-to-face training). 22 laboratory employees took a pre-test before completing the online simulation and a post-test after the simulation. The results found that the online simulation can have the same results on employees learning a hands-on skill as a face-to-face

activity. This type of simulation is found to be more time and cost-efficient than expensive and timely face-to-face trainings. Power, C., Petrie, H. & Swallow, D. (2009). Who supports the support workers? E-learning for support workers of students with disabilities. In Jemni, M. (Ed.), Proceedings of Second International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies, 7 9 May 2009, Hammamet, Tunisia. The authors of this research are faculty from the University of York (United Kingdom). They question, Who supports the learning of those support workers who work with students with disabilities? 129 educational professionals responded to a survey about the training that was provided to support workers. Results from this study led to the development of an elearning course for these professionals. Results from the course and pilot will are forthcoming. Reeves, T., & Pedulla, J. (2011). Predictors of teacher satisfaction with online professional development: evidence from the USA's e-Learning for Educators Initiative. Professional Development in Education, 37(4), 591-611. This study comes from faculty at Boston College. It looks at predictors of teacher satisfaction with online professional development. This study was a secondary analysis of Elearning for Educators (EfE) initiative. It included survey results from 3998 elementary and secondary education teachers from 9 different states. Teacher online professional development is found to be more satisfying if several factors are considered: expectations are clear, course is well-organized and has a user-friendly interface, content is easily transferrable to the classroom, adequate compensation is provided, and it offers rich discussion. Training facilitators or instructors can help teachers feel more satisfied by offering helpful feedback. These results coincide with many other professional development studies of other fields. Roca, J. C., & Gagne, M. (2008). Understanding e-learning continuance intention in the workplace: A self-determination theory perspective. Computers in Human Behavior, 24(4), 15851604. The researchers in this study were from the University of Huelva, in Huelva, Spain and Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The researchers set out to determine if the self-determination model could help influence an extended Technology Acceptance Model by identifying factors that lead to increases in employees motivation to continue to use elearning. The study found that self-determination theory helps users to conceptualize organizational factors of motivation. Users are more likely to continue to use e-learning in the workplace if they are both extrinsically and intrinsically motivated. They are also more likely to continue use if they feel well-supported by co-workers. Rossett, A., & Marshall, J. (2010). What Corporate Training Professionals Think About eLearning: Practitioners' Views on the Potential of e-Learning in the Workplace. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 14(2), 19-27.

This study was conducted by Allison Rossett and James Marshall at San Diego State University. Rossett is a professor of Educational Technology and Marshall is a faculty member at the University. They surveyed 968 training professionals who were members of various Training and Development professional organizations. The survey attempted to gather information on why trainers/respondents decided to adopt e-learning. Every item on the survey, except one, was found to be a positive factor that encouraged trainers to use e-learning in the workplace. It was interesting that many of the same factors that led trainers to adopt elearning were found to be motivators for learners to use e-learning. Saravani, Sarah-Jane and Clayton, John (2009) Ensuring quality and measuring effectiveness, impact and capability of e-learning in the workplace. In: The Cambridge International Conference on Open and Distance Learning 2009: Supporting learning in the digital age: rethinking inclusion, pedagogy and quality. Open and Distance Learning, Cambridge, UK, pp. 135-143. The authors of this study are from the Waikato Institute of Technology in New Zealand. This study looked at ways we can ensure quality and measure the effectiveness, impact, and capability of e-learning in the workplace. The study found that participants, instructors and administrators need to feel confident that e-learning is consistent and measures quality. Several models were found to be very successful at helping organizations complete a selfreview to determine their e-learning needs and the impact of their e-learning system. Schrader, P., Strudler, N. & Asay, L. (2012). The Pathway to Nevadas Future Project: Evaluating Two Years of Online Professional Development. In P. Resta (Ed.), Proceedings of Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference 2012 (pp. 4757-4766). Chesapeake, VA: AACE. The study followed a two year online professional development project with middle school teachers in Nevada. It was conducted by faculty at the University of Nevada and staff of Clark County School District in Nevada. The researchers wanted to know how online professional development impacted teachers attitudes, dispositions, self-efficacy, and TPACK (technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge) scores. It also set out to determine (based on the same outcomes), what trends were evident across modules. Teachers were supplied specific physical tools (laptops, iPod Touches, etc., and applicable software). 135 teachers participated in 4 online modules. The overall effects of the online professional development were found to positively affect teachers attitudes, self-efficacy, and TPACK scores. Clear and positive trends were also identified in this study. Sun, P., Tsai, R., Finger, G., Chen, Y., & Yeh, D. (2008). What drivesasuccessfule-Learning? An empiricalinvestigation of the critical factors influencing learner satisfaction. Computers & Education, 50(4), 11831202. This study was conducted by researchers in several international universities. The study set out to determine factors across categories (learners, instructors, courses, technology,

design, and environment) that yielded satisfaction in e-learning. Many hypotheses are listed within each category. The survey was taken by 295 volunteer e-learners. The variables that were found to have a positive effect on learner satisfaction were, learner computer anxiety, instructors attitudes toward e-learning, e-learning course flexibility, e-learning course quality, learner perceived usefulness and ease of use of the e-learning system and diversity of assessment. The factors found in this study are similar to those in previous surveys. Unneberg, L. (2007). Grand designs for e-learning can e-learning make the grade for our biggest corporates?. Industrial and Commercial Training, 39(4), 201-207. Lars Unneberg authored this article. He is the CEO of Mohive e-Learning Publishing System. This article explains the benefits of rapid e-learning and why it has become so important in todays corporations. Corporations who are located around the world and strive for consistency in training content and structure are relying more on rapid e-learning to quickly train staff across the globe and maintain consistency. Unneberg lists 10 concepts that should be considered when organizations are considering employing rapid e-learning as a means of corporate workplace training/professional development. Vrasidas, C., & Zembylas, M. (2004). Online Professional Development: lessons from the field. Education + Training, 46(6), 326-334. The authors of this study discuss a framework based on constructivism, communities of practice, and situated and distributed cognition. Two models of online learning were used originally, the Teaching and Learning Online (TLO) and the STAR-online project. The TLO taught teachers how to teach online and the STAR provided professional development for teachers to access a variety of learning and communities of practice resources. The article discusses what researchers have learned after the implementation of these two programs. The study found that the more input on design and development instructors and learners have, the more successful the e-learning project will be. Another successful strategy in the TLO project was modeling appropriate strategies for teachers to use in their own online courses. Conclusion There has been much research in the area of online learning as related to the worlds of academia and higher-learning. This research focuses on effective strategies used to create effective online professional development across fields. From continuing education for classroom teachers to rapid e-learning in billion dollar industries, workplace e-learning is making strides to improve the quality of their e-learning systems and content. Workplace elearning is transforming from a system of teaching policies and procedures to an online collaborative learning environment that uses constructivist principles to effectively improve knowledge, skills, and abilities of staff. The effects of this e-learning can be measured in teacher performance and possibly positively raising the bottom dollar in corporations.