Critical Design and Effective Tools for E-Learning in Higher Education: Theory into Practice: (Advances in Higher Education and Professional Development)

Introducing change to higher education has always been a difficult and slow process. But over the last two decades, information and communication technologies have served to transform the traditional classroom and break down the barriers to education despite any insecurity educators have felt. Online education is now viewed as an opportunity. Critical Design and Effective Tools for E-Learning in Higher Education: Theory into Practice is a collection of stories that provide those who work in higher education a source of both information and inspiration. The stories are told by some 40 professionals from all across the English-speaking world, detailing their theoretical and practical perspectives on the impact technology has had and will have on the learning experiences of higher education graduates.

About the Author :
Dr. Roisin Donnelly has over 15 years of experience in higher education both as a lecturer and researcher. She has taught in universities in Northern Ireland and was a lecturer and visiting research fellow in the University of New South Wales, Sydney. She is currently Programme Co-ordinator for DIT’s MSc Applied eLearning, and tutors and supervises on the PG Certificate, Diploma and MA in Third Level Learning and Teaching. She has a range of chapter and journal publications to reflect her teaching and research interests, including academic development, designing eLearning, supporting virtual communities, tranformative pedagogies and blended problem-based learning. Dr Jen Harvey is currently the Head of the Learning, Teaching and Technology Centre (LTTC) of the Dublin Institute of Technology. She has been in this role from 2003, prior to this she was the DIT Head of Distance Education. Before moving to Dublin she worked as an Implementation Consultant for the LTDI a SHEFC funded project based in ICBL, Heriot Watt University, Edinburgh. Jen is involved in a number of local and national collaborative Strategic Innovation Projects relating to Work-based Learning, Learning Innovation and Education in Employment. Current research interests relate to the use of technology to support learning, student assessment strategies, practitioner based evaluations and Communities of Practice. Kevin C. O'Rourke is currently Head of eLearning Support and Development at the Dublin Institute of Technology, Ireland. His professional career has spanned advertising, publishing and eLearning in Dublin, New York and London. Before joining DIT in May 2002, he worked in the UK as a senior producer for Fathom.com, the online learning consortium led by Columbia University. He holds a PhD in intellectual history from University College London and is author of *John Stuart Mill and Freedom of Expression: The Genesis of a Theory* (Routledge, 2001), as well as articles on education and eLearning.