Dabbage, Nada & Bannan-Ritland, Brenda. (2005). Online Learning: Concepts, Strategies, and Application. Reviewed by David Yearwood, University of North Dakota

Dabbage, Nada & Bannan-Ritland, Brenda. (2005). Online Learning: Concepts, Strategies, and Application. NJ: Pearson Education Pp. xix + 348 $40.00   ISBN 0-13-032546-5 Reviewed by David Yearwood University of North Dakota August 24, 2005 Online Learning is a text that is timely, interesting and thought provoking, logically ordered, relatively easy to read and understand, and provides comprehensive information about a topic of great interest to educators. Those new to the subject of online learning will appreciate the authors’ demonstrated grasp of the content and also the background information provided about the origin and types of online delivery modes (pp. 12-24). While Dabbage and Bannan-Ritland presents a rather succinct summarization about the history of online learning, those wishing to learn more about earlier Instructional Technologies (IT) will find Paul Saettler’s book—A history of Instructional Technologies—a very useful complement to what is provided in the introductory sections of Dabbage and Bannan-Ritland’s text. Not only does the initial chapter serve as a suitable foundation builder of earlier classroom technologies—their strengths, limitations, and weaknesses—but it also sets the stage for the rest of the text with clearly delineated learning goals and activities, all of which lend themselves well to an instructor led or independent study about the subject of online learning. This book should have broad appeal across the educational spectrum thus making it well suited to Schools, Colleges, and Departments of Education because of its practical and theoretical approaches. Thus, it is well suited to higher education students preparing to be college professors—the very people who will be involved in any integration and expansion efforts of online teaching and learning—by sowing the seeds of change from within. Perhaps, one of the most powerful aspects of this book is its frequent mention of the link between technology and pedagogy—which could be referred to as electronic pedagogy—something that is often omitted or inadequately treated by other texts. While a need exist for all instructors to have an understanding of pedagogy, those choosing to teach online must truly appreciate the changes that would be necessary in this environment if they are to be effective in their efforts with students (pp. 36-56). Teaching and learning online involves more than merely clicking on web links, the posting of lecture notes or large sections of text in Course Management System (CMS), and the uploading of bulleted PowerPoint slides to CMS’s. Instructors teaching online courses must also be aware of the importance of creating class community, an understanding about the role that the social process (pp. 9-10) plays in this environment particularly since students’ sense of belonging is likely to impact their learning. Much of what Dabbage and Bannan-Ritland talks about in their text also captures the essence of a paradigm shift emphasized by Huba and Freed—a move away from teacher-centered to learner-centered instruction—that is central to the success of all online courses. One of the significant things that attests to the almost completeness of this text is that it addresses a wide array of issues relating to learning styles, cognition, assessment, learning systems, etc., (pp. 164-194) and it also provides extensive coverage of research (pp. 92-95) on the subject of online learning. The primary emphasis of Dabbage and Bannan-Ritland’s work is clearly on learning, rather than on teaching. If you find yourself frequently having to locate additional resources to address issues not adequately covered in the texts you currently use on the subject of distance education it is my belief that this text will eliminate some additional or foundational readings on the subject. This is not to say that students may not be required to locate other sources, just that they can focus on locating some of the latest journal articles on the topic, i.e., current research, etc., rather than attempting to do both—locate foundational and current content! This text belongs in your library simply because it addresses issues that are either omitted or not adequately addressed by other authors thus making it a vital and comprehensive text on the subject of online learning. What follows are chapter summarizations: Chapter 1—Short historical perspective about IT that is rather interesting and easy to follow Chapter 2—Great chapter for both learner and educator. Very useful information for all to know concerning the characteristics, challenges, and potential pitfalls to avoid when thinking about (planning) online courses or for those thrown into the online world by over-zealot administrators who lacked knowledge about this environment. Chapter 3—Extremely interesting discussion about research conducted on the subject of online learning that is examined in a very systematic manner. Faculty and students will find the information in this chapter to be very useful not only because it advocates for more research but also because of what has been learned from the research conducted. Thus, decisions made would be from a position of knowledge rather than on the whim of administrators who might be guided simply by economic opportunities resulting from increased enrollment. Faculty should find the suggested instructional strategies and activities very useful, both for their own practice and as exploratory strategies and activities to further discuss with their students. Chapter 4—This chapter provides a great framework for systematically viewing, thinking about, planning, developing and implementing online instruction. A lot of useful information can be found here for face-to-face or traditional modes of instruction as well. Chapter 5—A very important chapter that provides a fair amount of discussion about the various theories in which faculty practice is, or should be grounded if they (faculty) truly wish to be effective in traditional and online classrooms. However, many professors, maybe with the exception of those in education and psychology, lack an understanding of the concepts that drives their practice and this, may, in effect, reduce their effectiveness in the classroom. The very nature of online learning requires more than cursory knowledge about these theories for those who have students’ best interest at heart. Chapter 6—This chapter is a natural flow from chapter 5—a continuation of the discussion with the added benefit of suggestions about how instructors’ could/should design the learning environment. What is presented here is just the sort of thing that content experts should know about teaching and learning, but often lack knowledge about! The chapter contains useful ideas for some of us who may instinctively try things in our classroom but may not be fully aware of, or have an understanding about the rationale behind what we do—the theoretical framework for some of what we practice Chapter 7—Evaluation is always a critical aspect of any educational endeavor and attempts to do justice to this, particularly in online settings, have always been a challenge, thus the suggestions offered here are very important. The multiple assessment strategies presented are very useful and many online educators may find these helpful in determining what students possibly know at various stages throughout the semester that they did not at the beginning of the semester. Chapter 8—Provides a succinct description of authoring tools, albeit a brief overview without overburdening the reader. The added information in the chapter provides the scaffolding necessary to glean an understanding of what authoring tools are, their purpose, various types, mode of operation, categories, and how they support teaching and learning. The information presented flows logically while still keeping the focus on how best to use the identified systems in a way that makes them user and learner friendly. One would appreciate the fact that the discussion about technology is never allowed to proceed without its twin—pedagogy! Chapter 9—This chapter provides a useful discussion about Course Management Systems (CMS) that would be helpful for educators to understand. Of particular note is the manner in which the information is presented—easily understood even by those with little background on the subject of CMSs. This is definitely one of the strong points of this text! Readers will find that what is presented is easy to follow and accurately describes the features available in both Blackboard and WebCT. Additionally, the constant and strong link to pedagogy is very evident and is a constant reminder to the reader about the importance of this in all aspects of their work with technology. Online Learning: Concepts, Strategies, and Application is an ab initio sort of a text that makes no assumption about the reader’s prior knowledge of online learning, or technology in general, by providing the necessary foundational elements of history, theory, and practice. Read this text if you wish to gain valuable insight into how you can structure the learning environment for effecting online teaching and learning. Other texts provide some practical information much of which can be helpful in preparing to teach online but none does as thorough a job in helping the reader plan, develop, and build online courses with confidence as this text does. This indeed, is a testament to the quality of the work by Dabbage & Bannan-Ritland on the topic. Online Learning is a must read for anyone delving into online education. Reference Saettler, P. (1968) A history of instructional technology. New York: McGraw-Hill. About the Reviewer Dave Yearwood, Ph.D., CSIT is an associate professor, in the department of Teaching & Learning—Higher Education, at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks. His research interest is electronic pedagogy—the art and science of teaching with technology. One of Dave’s main foci revolves around how faculty utilize classroom technologies to enhance or add value to teaching and learning. He is also interested in the design of multimedia modules to aid instruction and how these could be used either for self-study or as add-ons in a course management system. Copyright is retained by the first or sole author, who grants right of first publication to the Education Review.