Journal of Computing in Higher Education 

About: Journal of Computing in Higher Education is an academic journal published by Springer Science+Business Media. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Educational technology & Higher education. It has an ISSN identifier of 1042-1726. Over the lifetime, 601 publications have been published receiving 16059 citations. The journal is also known as: Journal of computing in higher education (Print) & JCHE (Internet).

Classtalk: A classroom communication system for active learning

Abstract: TRADITIONAL METHODS for teaching science courses at the post-secondary level employ a lecture format of instruction in which the majority of students are passively listening to the instructor and jotting down notes. Current views of learning and instruction challenge the wisdom of this traditional pedagogic practice by stressing the need for the learner to play an active role in constructing knowledge. The emerging technology of classroom communication systems offers a promising tool for helping instructors create a more interactive, student-centered classroom, especially when teaching large courses. In this paper we describe our experiences teaching physics with a classroom communication system calledClasstalk. Classtalk facilitated the presentation of questions for small group work as well as the collection of student answers and the display of histograms showing how the class answered, all of which fed into a class-wide discussion of students’ reasoning. We foundClasstalk to be a useful tool not only for engaging students in active learning during the lecture hour but also for enhancing the overall communication within the classroom. Equally important, students were very positive aboutClasstalk-facilitated instruction and believed that they learned more during class than they would have during a traditional lecture.

The Laptop and the Lecture: The Effects of Multitasking in Learning Environments.

Abstract: THE EFFECTS OF MULTITASKING IN THE CLASSROOM were investigated in students in an upper level Communications course. Two groups of students heard the same exact lecture and tested immediately following the lecture. One group of students was allowed to use their laptops to engage in browsing, search, and/or social computing behaviors during the lecture. Students in the second condition were asked to keep their laptops closed for the duration of the lecture. Students in the open laptop condition suffered decrements on traditional measures of memory for lecture content. A second experiment replicated the results of the first. Data were further analyzed by “browsing style.” Results are discussed from Lang’s Limited Process Capacity model in an attempt to better understand the mechanisms involved in the decrement.

A meta-analysis of blended learning and technology use in higher education: from the general to the applied

Abstract: This paper serves several purposes. First and foremost, it is devoted to developing a better understanding of the effectiveness of blended learning (BL) in higher education. This is achieved through a meta-analysis of a sub-collection of comparative studies of BL and classroom instruction (CI) from a larger systematic review of technology integration (Schmid et al. in Comput Educ 72:271–291, 2014). In addition, the methodology of meta-analysis is described and illustrated by examples from the current study. The paper begins with a summary of the experimental research on distance education (DE) and online learning (OL), encapsulated in meta-analyses that have been conducted since 1990. Then it introduces the Bernard et al. (Rev Educ Res 74(3):379–439, 2009) meta-analysis, which attempted to alter the DE research culture of always comparing DE/OL with CI by examining three forms of interaction treatments (i.e., student–student, student–teacher, student–content) within DE, using the theoretical framework of Moore (Am J Distance Educ 3(2):1–6, 1989) and Anderson (Rev Res Open Distance Learn 4(2):9–14, 2003). The rest of the paper revolves around the general steps and procedures (Cooper in Research synthesis and meta-analysis: a step-by-step approach, 4th edn, SAGE, Los Angeles, CA, 2010) involved in conducting a meta-analysis. This section is included to provide researchers with an overview of precisely how meta-analyses can be used to respond to more nuanced questions that speak to underlying theory and inform practice—in other words, not just answers to the “big questions.” In this instance, we know that technology has an overall positive impact on learning (g + = +0.35, p < .01, Tamim et al. in Rev Educ Res 81(3):4–28, 2011), but the sub-questions addressed here concern BL interacting with technology in higher education. The results indicate that, in terms of achievement outcomes, BL conditions exceed CI conditions by about one-third of a standard deviation (g + = 0.334, k = 117, p < .001) and that the kind of computer support used (i.e., cognitive support vs. content/presentational support) and the presence of one or more interaction treatments (e.g., student–student/–teacher/–content interaction) serve to enhance student achievement. We examine the empirical studies that yielded these outcomes, work through the methodology that enables evidence-based decision-making, and explore how this line of research can improve pedagogy and student achievement.

Design research: A socially responsible approach to instructional technology research in higher education

Abstract: DESIGN RESEARCH has grown in importance since it was first conceptualized in the early 90s, but it has not been adopted for research in instructional technology in higher education to any great extent. Many researchers continue to conduct studies that principally seek to determine the effectiveness of the delivery medium, rather than the instructional strategies and tasks. This article explores the various incentives for conducting research on the impact of computing and other technologies in higher education, examines the social relevance of that research, and recommends design research as a particularly appropriate approach to socially responsible inquiry. A description of the characteristics of design research is given, together with an argument for the more widespread adoption of this approach to enhance the quality and usefulness of research in computers and other technologies in education.

Online Learning in Higher Education: Exploring Advantages and Disadvantages for Engagement.

Abstract: As the popularity of online education continues to rise, many colleges and universities are interested in how to best deliver course content for online learners. This study explores the ways in which taking courses through an online medium impacts student engagement, utilizing data from the National Survey of Student Engagement. Data was analyzed using a series of ordinary least squares regression models, also controlling for relevant student and institutional characteristics. The results indicated numerous significant relationships between taking online courses and student engagement for both first-year students and seniors. Those students taking greater numbers of online courses were more likely to engage in quantitative reasoning. However, they were less likely to engage in collaborative learning, student-faculty interactions, and discussions with diverse others, compared to their more traditional classroom counterparts. The students with greater numbers of online courses also reported less exposure to effective teaching practices and lower quality of interactions. The relationship between these engagement indicators and the percentage of classes taken online suggests that an online environment might benefit certain types of engagement, but may also be somewhat of a deterrent to others. Institutions should consider these findings when designing online course content, and encourage faculty to contemplate ways of encouraging student engagement across a variety of delivery types.