Senior Professor Shironica P. Karunanayaka of the Open University of Sri Lanka is a firm believer in the principles of teaching and learning as foundational for online education. Her research into ICT in education, learning experience design, and OER and OEP now extend into a role as a Commonwealth of Learning Chair, following an academic career of almost 30 years in open and distance education.
Karunanayaka, S. P. (2023). Blending innovative pedagogy and technology for capacity development of educators during the pandemic. Journal of Learning for Development, 10(1), 24– 37. https://jl4d.org/index.php/ejl4d/article/view/783
Karunanayaka, S. & Naidu, S. (2017). Impact of integrating OER in teacher education at the Open University of Sri Lanka. In C. Hodgkinson-Williams & P. B. Arinto (Eds.), Adoption and impact of OER in the Global South. (pp. 459–498). African Minds, IDRC & ROER4D. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.600398
Karunanayaka, S. P., & Naidu, S. (2021). Impacts of Authentic Assessment on the Development of Graduate Attributes. Distance Education, 42(2), 231-252. https://doi.org/10.1080/01587919.2021.1920206
Karunanayaka, S. P., & Naidu, S. (2020). Ascertaining impacts of capacity building in open educational practices. Distance Education 41(2), 87-109, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/01587919.2020.1757406
Naidu, S., & Karunanayaka, S.P. (2020). Orchestrating Shifts in Perspectives and Practices about MOOC Design. In Ke Zhang, Curtis J. Bonk, Thomas C. Reeves, and Thomas H. Reynolds (Eds.) MOOCs and open education across emerging economies: Challenges, successes, and opportunities. (pp. 72-80). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429398919
Professor Santosh Panda is Professor of Distance Education since 1997 and Director, Staff Training & Research Institute, Indira Gandhi Open University, India. A former Fulbright Scholar, he has been visiting professor around the globe, has multiple publications, and currently edits the Scopus-indexed Journal of Learning for Development (https://jl4d.org/index.php/ejl4d). He has been the Chief of National Teacher Education Regulatory Council, Government of India; was head of Policy & Research at the Association of Indian Universities; and Director of Centre for Flexible Learning at the University of South Pacific. Santosh is a tireless advocate for blended learning, drawing on proven practices.
Panda, S. & Santosh, S. (2017). Faculty perception of openness and attitude to open sharing at the Indian National Open University. International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 18(7). https://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/article/view/2942
Adhya, D. & Panda, S. (2022). Teacher educators’ attitude towards technology-enabled learning and its incorporation into teaching-learning during and post-pandemic, Educational Media International, 59(2), 131-149. https://doi.org/10.1080/09523987.2022.2101204
Professor Geesje van den Berg is with the Department of Curriculum and Instructional Studies at the University of South Africa. Geesje teaches on a Master’s in Education in Open Distance Learning programme, and is a scholar of teaching and learning across a broad range of areas across online and open distance learning environments.
Scheepers, L. & Van den Berg, G. (2022). The value of providing online students with dedicated affective support, particularly during times of crisis. Open Praxis, 14(3), pp.190-201. http://doi.org/10.55982/openpraxis.14.3.497
Van den Berg, G., & Mudau, P. K. (2022). Postgraduate students’ views on the use of WhatsApp groups as an online communication tool to support teaching and learning during COVID-19. Perspectives in Education, 40(1): 112-128. https://doi.org/10.18820/2519593X/pie.v40.i1.7
Van den Berg, G. (2020). Context matters: student experiences of interaction in open distance learning. Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education, 21(4): 223-236. https://doi.org/10.17718/tojde.803411
Van den Berg, G. (2022). Instructors’ Perceptions of Their Interaction With Students in Online Teaching and Learning. International Journal of Online Pedagogy and Course Design (IJOPCD), 12(1), pp.1-15. https://doi.org/10.4018/IJOPCD.302089
Professor John Traxler is Professor of Digital Learning in the Institute of Education, and a UNESCO and Commonwealth of Learning Chair, based at the University of Wolverhampton. His pioneering and highly cited work on mobile learning is giving way to an increasing focus on policy and strategy.
Dr Maren Deepwell has been Chief Executive Officer of the UK Association of Learning Technology (ALT) for 15 years. Her work in all things open in education as part of this responsibility give her a strategic perspective of online learning and the ongoing need for innovative practice.
Dr Helen Crompton is an Associate Professor of Instructional Technology at Old Dominion University. She has a broad range of contemporary research interests and over 150 publications, including some recent work on the SETI model and pioneering classroom activities related to AI. Her breadth of scholarship linked to effective practice make her a true leader of online learning.
Crompton, H., & Burke, D. (in press). Artificial Intelligence in Higher Education: The State of the field. International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 20(22). https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-023-00392-8
Crompton, H., Chigona, A., & Burke, D. (2023). Teacher Resilience During COVID-19: Comparing Teachers’ Shift to Online Learning in South Africa and the United States. TechTrends. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-022-00826-6
Crompton, H., Burke, D., Jordan, K. & Wilson, S. (2021). Learning with technology during emergencies: A systematic review of K-12 education. British Journal of Educational Technology. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.13114
Bozkurt, A., Xiao, J., Lambert, S., Pazurek, A., Crompton, H., Koseoglu, S… (2023). Speculative Futures on ChatGPT and Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI): A collective reflection from the educational landscape. Asian Journal of Distance Education, 18(1). 53-130. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7636568
Nominated work (may require purchase):
Crompton, H., Jones, M., & Burke, D., (2022). Affordances and challenges of artificial intelligence in K-12 education: A systematic review. Journal of Research on Technology in Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/15391523.2022.2121344
Dr Phil Hardman brings a scholar’s perspective to learning design, based on decades of learning science and a dedication to creative online and hybrid education. Phil was recommended by a listener, and after this episode you will both a) see why she was recommended, and b) be motivated to check her DOMS Learning Design Framework and online channels.
Frances Ferreira is Acting Director of Skills with the Commonwealth of Learning. She is a keen advocate for quality, accessible and affordable education as her work in online open schooling testifies. Frances was the first Chief Executive of the Namibian College of Open Learning and Chair of the Distance Education Association of Southern Africa. She is also a prior Distance Learning Experience Award winner with the Commonwealth of Learning.
Ferreira, F. (2019). GIRLS Inspire Final Report: Preventing Child, Early and Forced Marriage (CEFM) Through Open, Distance and Technology-Based Education. Vancouver: Commonwealth of Learning. https://oasis.col.org/items/306bc226-4cc8-400e-babe-1b17f7d7f237
Ferreira, F. (2015). Educational Engagement and Out-of-School Youth in the Commonwealth. https://vimeo.com/129168779
Ferreira, F. (2002). OCL4Ed Frances Ferreira welcome video: Frances Ferreira from the Commonwealth of Learning introduces the Session on Choosing the right license for OCL4Ed. https://vimeo.com/user17299535/review/73195916/4b3d257408
Professor Morten Flate Paulsen’s experience with online learning dates back to pioneering days in the 1980s. His ongoing work is based on his Theory of Cooperative Freedom and Transparency – which still has a very contemporary application.
He is currently writing a blog titled My Online Education World 1980-2020, which to date includes a chronicle of 250 personal anecdotes, experiences and reflections on the people, events, technology and pedagogy that influenced four decades of his online education work. The narrative is based on his international practice with online education as a pioneer, student, teacher, course designer, system developer, administrator, researcher, professor, author, editor, entrepreneur and innovator.
The story progresses along with his work for NKI Distance Education in Norway, the American Centre for the Study of Distance Education, the Athabasca University in Canada, the European Association for Distance Learning (EADL), the European Distance and E-learning Network (EDEN), the Universidade Aberta in Portugal, the Nordic open online Academy (NooA), the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and the International Council for Open and Distance Education (ICDE).
Keegan, D., Lõssenko, J., Mázár, I., Paulsen, M.F., Rekkkedal, T., Toska, J.A., & Zarka, D. (2007). E-learning initiatives that did not reach targeted goals. Norway: NKI Publishing House. Note: this book provides case study articles and analyses of nine prestigious European e-learning initiatives that did not reach their objectives. https://issuu.com/mfpaulsen/docs/book3
Paulsen, M. F. (2003). Online Education and Learning Management Systems – Global education in a Scandinavian Perspective. Norway: NKI Forlaget. https://issuu.com/mfpaulsen/docs/onlineeducation
Paulsen, M. F. (Ed.) (2007). Megaproviders of e-learning in Europe. Norway: NKI Publishing House. Note: this book includes 26 case study articles of European megaproviders of e-learning. https://issuu.com/mfpaulsen/docs/megaproviders
Curtis J. Bonk is Professor in the School of Education at Indiana University (IU) teaching psychology and technology courses and Adjunct in the School of Informatics at IU. He is a former software entrepreneur, certified public accountant, corporate controller, and educational psychologist who presently is an educational technologist, award-winning writer, highly published researcher, statewide and national awardee in innovative teaching with technology, and internationally acclaimed presenter. Curt is the author of nearly 400 publications and has given close to 2,000 talks around the world. In 2020, Curt was awarded the IU President’s Award for Excellence in Teaching and Learning Technology and in 2021, he received the David H. Jonassen Excellence in Research Award. Recently, the American Educational Research Association named him a 2022 AERA Fellow for his exceptional contributions to, and excellence in, education research, and the following week, he was honored with the International Engagement award from the IU School of Education. He co-hosts the weekly award-winning podcast show, Silver Lining for Learning (https://silverliningforlearning.org/). He can be contacted at cjbonk@indiana.edu and his homepage is http://curtbonk.com/.
Bonk, C. J., & Khoo, E. (2014). Adding Some TEC-VARIETY: 100+ Activities for Motivating and Retaining Learners Online. OpenWorldBooks.com and Amazon CreateSpace. Note: Free eBook available at: http://tec-variety.com/;
Bonk, C. J., & Wiley, D. (2020). Preface: Reflections on the waves of emerging learning technology. Educational Technology Research and Development (ETR&D), 68(4), 1595-1612. DOI 10.1007/s11423-020-09809-x. Available: https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s11423-020-09809-x.pdf
