"WEB CENTER FOR LEARNING EFFECTIVENESS RESEARCH" BUILDING
KNOWLEDGE-BASE OF EMPIRICAL STUDIES
"There are thousands of papers now that are related to
online learning, but most of them are not sound empirical
studies," says Starr Roxanne Hiltz, distinguished professor
in the College of Computing Science at the New Jersey
Institute of Technology. Hiltz is also director of the Web
Center for Learning Networks Effectiveness Research, which
is the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation-sponsored online community
for researchers and students in Asynchronous Learning
Networks (ALN).As
noted on the Center’s website, "the goal of this research
program is to increase the quality, quantity, and
dissemination of results of research on the effectiveness of
Asynchronous Learning Networks (ALN). It will synthesize
existing knowledge and create new knowledge about the
methods and findings of research on the determinants of
effectiveness of ALN, and to make the results available
worldwide."
One of the major activities
of the Web Center has been the building of a "papers" online
data base that includes studies that asked research
questions about the effectiveness of learning networks,
collected data (qualitative and quantitative data from at
least 20 subjects), reported results and were published in a
refereed conference proceeding or journal, says Hiltz,
adding that "a steady stream of users" have been downloading
and browsing this section of the Web Center site.
Currently, about 55 studies
are available at the papers section of the Web Center, and
more studies will be added to the database this summer.
Hiltz adds that the Web Center is planning to expand the
papers section to include other types of publications, such
as "papers that provide theoretical or conceptual frameworks
and that have been cited by other researchers, thus
indicating their usefulness; papers on methods for studying
learning networks; and Ph.D. dissertations."
The online Web Center also
includes a research instruments section, a research section,
a tutorial section and a discussions forum. All people
involved in the field of asynchronous learning networks are
encouraged to contribute to the Web Center community.
For more information, visit
http://www.alnresearch.org |
