Rena M. Palloff

Rena Palloff and Keith Pratt, building from work which began while they were Ph.D. students in 1993, offer an educators' view of how to create and sustain effective online learning opportunities which lead to communities of learning. Their focus is on "teaching and learning" rather than on technology (p. xvii); the result is rewarding and inspirational. The first of the two sections of the book concentrates on the philosophy and mechanics of developing communities of learning online; the second section explores hands-on methods for producing those communities and includes explicit guidance on how to inspire collaboration by providing learners with clear guidelines as well as effective facilitation and feedback (pp. 111-125). A chapter on transformative learning (pp. 129-143) makes a strong case for how effective online learning can be by providing learners with time for engagement and reflection, and also reminds readers that effective online learning is a learner-centered process (p. 135). Sample course outlines, syllabi, lists of learning objectives, and online course guidelines make this an indispensable tool for anyone involved in online presentations and online learning. (Note: updated edition published in 2007.)… (meer)