Introduction

Over the past decade, the World Wide Web has become a critical tool for educators to utilize in their teaching and learning experiences. National efforts have been made to encourage technology integration in teacher preparation with expectations for frequent and successful applications with K–12 learners. One consequence of this is that there has been a growing trend in K–12 education to provide students with more online educational opportunities. While online learning has become pervasive in many fields in education, other than for a few states, it has been somewhat slow to catch on in K–12 settings. However, for a variety of reasons (e.g., technological advances, budgeting concerns, technological expectations of students, diversity of course offerings, addressing individualized and specialized student needs, charter school movement), online learning in K–12 settings is becoming increasingly available at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. While this trend is growing, little research has empirically explored the effectiveness of online education in K–12 settings.

Objective

The book aims to promote high-quality research by bringing together researchers and practitioners from academia and industry. This book will present emerging research and practice related to the unique and complex challenges facing K–12 online and blended teaching and learning. This book publication will be comprised of original and invited works, as well as, enhanced, expanded, and updated versions of chapters previously published in Exploring the Effectiveness of Online Education in K–12 Environments and Teacher Education Programs and Online Learning Tools: Innovations in Teacher Preparation.

We define K–12 online and blended learning as technology-mediated learning that enhances learning beyond traditional classroom structures and cultivates students as knowledgeable and skilled digital citizens. Teachers to create authentic, digital-age learning experiences which help students understand their roles as digital citizens and employ research-informed strategies to develop students as intentional and skilled digital citizens. In these innovative learning environments, students engage with academic disciplines and content instruction through both asynchronous and synchronous use of technology. Technological tools include software and hardware used to facilitate virtual learning. Teachers embrace social networking, interactive tools, and other technologies that support the development of an educational community by establishing a cognitive, social, and cultural presence between instructor and pupil and among students. K–12 online and blended learning also includes development of courses and explorations of how content is delivered, as well as how this varies across disciplines. Consideration for how online learning supports current educational initiatives such as Common Core State Standards (http://www.corestandards.org/) , the Partnership for 21st Century Skills (http://www.p21.org/) , and ISTE (https://www.iste.org/) will be addressed. Another more emergent online initiative is the creation of online and blended K–12 schools and learning communities. Examples of such programs and educational environments will be included and explored. Finally, associations between online and blended instruction and student achievement will be a primary focus.

Target Audience

The target audience for this book will include university faculty, university administrators, researchers and practitioners considering online, blended, and technologically innovative teaching and learning issues K-–12 settings. This book will serve as a reference for individuals in teacher education programs or state departments of education, a resource for course developers and online instructors, as well as a course text for courses related to online teaching and learning and other higher education issues. The book is designed to support decision-making about launching and developing online, blended, and technologically innovative teacher education programs.

Recommended Topics

Learning Theory and Online Learning in K–12 Education
Best Practice in Online K–12 Education
Instructional Models in Online K–12 Education
Online Teaching and Learning Initiatives in K–12 Education
Innovative Online Teaching and Learning Practices in K–12 Education
Comparisons of Delivery Options in K–12 Education (Online, Blended, Face to Face)
Promoting Collaborative Learning in Online K–12 Education
Usability and Evaluation of Online Environments in K–12 Education
Institutional Policies for Online K–12 Schools
Internationalization and Cultural Aspects of Online K–12 Education
Issues and Trends in Online K–12 Education
Student Achievement in Online K-12 Environments
The Role of the Teacher in Online K–12 Environments
The Impact of Traditional and/or Emerging Technological Applications in Online K–12 Education
Implications of Online K–12 Education and Future Practice
Relationship between K–12 Student Learning Outcomes and Online Learning
K–12 Online Schools and Program Structures

Submission Procedure

Researchers and practitioners are invited to submit on or before June 15, 2018, a 2-3 page chapter proposal clearly explaining the mission and concerns of his or her proposed chapter. Additionally, authors are invited to enhance, expand, or update versions of previously published chapters or articles related to the overall theme of the book. All interested authors must consult the guidelines for manuscript submissions at http://www.igi-global.com/publish/contributor-resources/before-you-write/ prior to submission. Authors of accepted proposals will be notified by June 30, 2018 about the status of their proposals and sent chapter guidelines. Full chapters of 7,000-10,000 words are expected to be submitted by August 10, 2018. All submitted chapters will be reviewed on a double-blind review basis. Contributors will also be requested to serve as reviewers for this project.

Publisher

This book is scheduled to be published by IGI Global (formerly Idea Group Inc.), publisher of the “Information Science Reference” (formerly Idea Group Reference), “Medical Information Science Reference,” “Business Science Reference,” and “Engineering Science Reference” imprints. For additional information regarding the publisher, please visit www.igi-global.com. This publication is anticipated to be released in 2019.

Important Dates

May 15, 2018: Call for Chapters
May 5-June 15, 2018: Chapter Proposal Submission
August 10, 2018: Full Chapter Submission
September 7, 2018: Review Results Returned
September 30, 2018: Final Chapter Submission

Inquiries

Inquiries can be sent electronically to:

Dr. Tina Heafner
Department of Middle, Secondary, and K–12 Education
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHARLOTTE
Tel.: 1.704.687.8875
E-mail: theafner@uncc.edu

or

Dr. Richard Hartshorne
Department of Learning Sciences & Educational Research
UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA
Tel.: 1.407.823.1861
E-mail: richard.hartshorne@ucf.edu