Mobile devices are increasingly coming to penetrate people's daily lives. Mobile learning (m-learning) is viewed as key to the coming era of electronic learning (e-learning). In the meantime, the use of mobile devices for learning has made a significant contribution to delivering education among higher education students worldwide. However, while m-learning is being widely adopted in developed countries, the adoption of such an approach in developing countries is still immature and underdeveloped. More...

Within a constructivist paradigm, the virtual reality technology focuses on the learner's actively interactive learning processes and attempts to reduce the gap between the learner’s knowledge and a real-life experience. Recently, virtual reality technologies have been developed for a wide range of applications in education, but further research is needed to establish appropriate and effective learning techniques and practices to motivate meaningful learning. Results showed that perceived self-efficacy and perceived interaction are two crucial factors affecting perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness and learning motivation. More...

Semi-formal learning is used to describe learning that is directed towards the goals of a formal learning institution but outside of the learning structure of a specific class. Students studying online may form semi-formal groups to increase their knowledge of the content by interacting with other learners taking the same class. This study of cyber university students (n = 2042) involved looking at the relationship between semi-formal learning groups and levels of germane load. More...

In this research paper, the authors analyse the collected data output during a 36 week cMOOC. Six-week data streams from blogs, Twitter, a Facebook group, and video conferences were tracked from the daily newsletter and the MOOCs’ hashtag (#Change 11). This data was analysed using content analysis and social network analysis within an interpretative research paradigm. The content analysis was used to examine the technology learners used to support their learning while the social network analysis focused on the participant in different spaces and their participation patterns in connectivist learning. More...

Previous studies have described many scales for measuring self-regulation; however, no scale has been developed specifically for self-paced open and distance learning environments. Therefore, the aim of this study is to develop a scale for determining the self-regulated learning skills of distance learners in self-paced open and distance learning courses. Participants of this study were 1279 distance learners who were part of self-paced distance learning courses in a public open and distance teaching university in Turkey. More...

With the advances in mobile network technology, the use of portable devices and mobile networks for learning is not limited by time and space. Such use, in combination with appropriate learning strategies, can achieve a better effect. Despite the effectiveness of mobile learning, students’ learning direction, progress, and achievement may differ. Thus, the enhancement of learners’ opinions on the usability and interactivity during mobile learning are challenging issues to overcome. More...

Although the number of online academic degree programs offered by universities in Turkey has become increasingly significant in recent years, the current lack of understanding of administrators’ motives that contribute to initiating these programs suggests there is much to be learned in this field. This study aimed to investigate administrators’ perceptions of motives for offering online academic degree programs in universities in Turkey in terms of online associate degree programs, online master's degree programs, online bachelor's degree completion programs, and online bachelor's degree programs. More...

Welcome to this first edition of IRRODL for 2018. This issue begins with several articles focusing on learners, including papers on collaborative learning, self-pacing, interaction, and student readiness for m-learning. Other learner-focused papers include those on attrition and retention, group work, and learners' intentions. These papers are followed by a diverse mix of papers investigating applications, quality, videos, MOOCs, and implementations. More...

Table of Contents

Editorial

Research Articles

Field Notes

Book Notes

Full Issue