Virtual Community of Practice for Globally Dispersed Online Adjunct Faculty
PI Sara Ombres
PI Cristina Cottom
This research study seeks to determine if participation in a virtual community of practice (VCoP) increases online adjunct faculty members’ sense of belonging within the university. This VCoP and the research study will last for 8 weeks. As part of the participation in the VCoP online adjunct faculty will complete several online asynchronous activities, as well as a survey at the beginning and end of their VCoP experience.
This VCoP is funded through a Professional and Organizational Development (POD) Network Grant awarded to the Rothwell Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence. The purpose of this study is to identify and characterize the key elements and characteristics of a Virtual Community of Practice (VCoP) to increase the sense of belonging among globally dispersed online adjunct faculty. This grant will support the implementation of a virtual community of practice (VCoP) with two pilot implementations and the development of an implementation framework for other programs to execute similar initiatives. Using the university Learning Management System (LMS), geographically dispersed adjunct faculty will improve their online instruction by incorporating research-based pedagogical techniques and strategies through peer review and collaborative efforts. The program will be evaluated by analyzing common themes within the artifacts created through the VCoP LMS course site, pre/post reflective questionnaires, and analyzing documents created by the participants.
Research Dates
10/03/2016 to 09/30/2017
Researchers
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- Department
- Department of Management and Technology
- Degrees
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M.S., Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
M.S., Florida State University
B.S., SUNY College at Brockport
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- Department
- Department of Humanities & Communication
- Degrees
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Ed.D., Ed.S., Liberty University
M.A., Lipscomb University
Categories: Faculty-Staff