Neither an academic tome nor a prescriptive 'how to' guide, "The Theory and Practice of Online Learning" is an illuminating collection of essays by practitioners and scholars active in the complex field of distance education.

Distance education has evolved significantly in its 150 years of existence. For most of this time, it was an individual pursuit defined by infrequent postal communication. But recently, three more developmental generations have emerged, supported by television and radio, teleconferencing, and computer conferencing.

The early 21st century has produced a fifth generation, based on autonomous agents and intelligent, database-assisted learning, that has been referred to as Web 2.0.

The second edition of "The Theory and Practice of Online Learning" features updates in each chapter, plus four new chapters on current distance education issues such as connectivism and social software innovations.

INTRODUCTION
The Online Learning Series is a collection of works by practitioners and scholars actively working in the field of distance education.

The text has been written at a time when the field is undergoing fundamental change. Although not an old discipline by academic standards, distance education practice and theory has evolved through five generations in its 150 years of existence (Taylor, 2001). For most of this time, distance education was an individual pursuit defined by infrequent postal communication between student and teacher.

The last half of the twentieth century witnessed rapid developments and the emergence of three additional generations, one supported by the mass media of television and radio, another by the synchronous tools of video and audio teleconferencing, and yet another based on computer conferencing. ...

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Editors: Terry Anderson & Fathi Elloumi
Athabasca University

CONTENTS
1 Foundations of Educational Theory for Online Learning / 3
Mohamed Ally
2 Toward a Theory of Online Learning / 33
Terry Anderson
3 Value Chain Analysis: A Strategic Approach to Online Learning / 61
Fathi Elloumi
4 Developing an Infrastructure for Online Learning / 97
Alan Davis
5 Technologies of Online Learning (e-Learning) / 115
Rory McGreal & Michael Elliott
6 Media Characteristics and Online Learning Technology / 137
Patrick J. Fahy
7 The Development of Online Courses / 175
Dean Caplan
8 Developing Team Skills and Accomplishing Team Projects Online / 195
Deborah C. Hurst & Janice Thomas
9 Copyright Issues in Online Courses: A Moment in Time / 241
Lori-Ann Claerhout
10 Value Added—The Editor in Design and Development of Online Courses / 259
Jan Thiessen & Vince Ambrock
11 Teaching in an Online Learning Context / 271
Terry Anderson
12 Call Centers in Distance Education / 295
Andrew Woudstra, Colleen Huber, & Kerri Michalczuk
13 Supporting Asynchronous Discussions among Online Learners / 319
Joram Ngwenya, David Annand & Eric Wang
14 Library Support for Online Learners: e-Resources, e-Services, and the Human Factors / 349
Kay Johnson, Houda Trabelsi, & Tony Tin
15 Supporting the Online Learner / 367
Judith A. Hughes
16 The Quality Dilemma in Online Education / 385
Nancy K. Parker

Back in 1982, one reviewer hailed Athabasca University’s book Learning at a Distance: A World Perspective as “a miracle of educational publishing.” Open and distance learning has evolved through several mutations since then, and Athabasca has now brought us up to date with a wonderfully perceptive and complete guide to the theory and practice of online learning.

Most of the authors are from Athabasca University and their shared experience of developing online learning within that extraordinarily successful open university allows them to analyse online learning for the wider world in an admirably coherent manner.

Starting with a comprehensive summary of relevant educational theory, the book revisits, in a lively way, the great dichotomies that have marked the history of open and distance learning. How should we balance the social and individual aspects of study? What is the right mixture between independent and interactive learning? Should courses be paced for cohorts of students, or unpaced for the benefit of individuals? Succeeding chapters give helpful and well-informed guidance on vital aspects of online learning practice, such as copyright, multimedia editing, supporting asynchronous discussion, library support, and quality assurance. The concept of the value chain is used to set online learning in the context of today’s competitive educational marketplace in order to help institutional leaders decide where their own advantage might lie.

I am delighted that educators all over the world will be able to enjoy this book at no cost because, in the true academic spirit of an open university, Athabasca has published it as an open source book under a Creative Commons License. UNESCO strongly encourages this form of publication as a way of bridging the digital divide and thereby helping to bring online learning to all the world’s people.

Sir John Daniel
Assistant Director-General
for Education, UNESCO

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