1 Glossary of eLearning Terms (drafty)

[use short codes?: https://guide.pressbooks.com/chapter/use-shortcodes/#chapter-1984-section-9]

1. Academic Honesty
2. Accessibility 
3. Accessibility Checker
4. Alignment
5. Ally
6. Alternative Text (Alt Text)
7. Andragogy
8. Assessment
9. Asynchronous
10. Attendance
11. Attribution
12. Badging
13. Big Blue Button
14. Blended Learning
15. Bloom’s Taxonomies
16. Canvas
17. Caption Hub
18. Captions
19. Case Studies
20. Chunking
21. Class Recordings Decisions Tree
22. Cloud
23. Copyright
24. Correspondence Course
25. Course Map
26. Course Quality
27. Creative Commons
28. Descriptive Hyperlinks
29. Digital Literacy
30. Discussion Board
31. Distance Learning
32. Document Camera
33. eLearning
34. Engagement
35. Face-to-Face
36. Feedback
37. FERPA
38. Flipped Classroom
39. Folksonomy
40. Gamification
41. Headings
42. Headset
43. Hybrid Learning
44. HyFlex
45. Instructional Design
46. Instructional Technology
47. Intellectual Property
48. Interaction
49. Intranet
50. Learner-centered Teaching
51. Learning Community
52. Learning Management System (LMS)
53. Learning Object
54. Learning Objective
55. Learning Outcome
56. Lecture Capture
57. Master shell
58. Media/Multimedia
59. Metacognition
60. Mobile Learning
61. Modality
62. Modules (Canvas)
63. Netiquette
64. Open Educational Resources (OER)
65. Online Learning
66. Panopto
67. Participation
68. Pedagogy
69. Plagiarism
70. Presence
71. Privacy
72. Quality Matters (QM)
73. Regular and Substantive Interaction (RSI)
74. Scaffolding
75. Self-efficacy
76. State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC)
77. Student Engagement
78. Syllabus
79. Synchronous
80. Tag
81. Taxonomy
82. Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
83. Virtual classroom
84. Virtual meeting
85. Washington Canvas Conference (WACC)
86. Web Camera
87. Web-enhanced
88. Webinar
89. Zoom

Glossary – Full Definitions

• Academic Honesty

Respecting the integrity of one’s own and others’ work. See Encouraging Academic Honesty Online for information on designing online learning environments that promote academic honesty.

• Accessibility

“Accessible” means a person with a disability is afforded the opportunity to acquire the same information, engage in the same interactions, and enjoy the same services as a person without a disability in an equally effective and equally integrated manner, with substantially equivalent ease of use. The person with a disability must be able to obtain the information as fully, equally, and independently as a person without a disability. From ADA Compliance for online course design.

It is a course design best practice to include links to the Accessibility Statements for all products you use or provide access to in your course. Most product websites provide a link to their accessibility statement. See a sample Publisher Accessibility Statement here.

• Accessibility Checker

Web accessibility evaluation tools are software programs or online services that help you determine if web content meets accessibility guidelines.  From Web Accessibility Evaluation Tools.

• Alignment

“Critical course elements working together to ensure that students achieve the desired learning outcomes.” This means that all course materials, activities and assessments contribute to the achievement of course objectives. From Quality Matters Higher Education Rubric Workbook, Fifth Edition.

• Ally (Blackboard Accessibility Product)

A subscription accessibility checker that integrates with the Learning Management System and scans course files and other content for accessibility issues. It provides on the spot instruction and remediation for errors (visible only to instructors). It also provides alternative document formats for students.

• Alternative Text (Alt Text)

Text added to an image file. WebAim tells us that alt text “serves several functions:

• It is read by screen readers in place of images…
• It is displayed in place of the image in browsers if the image file is not loaded…
• It provides a semantic meaning and description to images which can be read by search engines… ”

• Andragogy

Theory and practice of educating adult learners (see also Pedagogy). Adult learners have distinct characteristics that influence their motivation and ability to learn. Adult learners bring life experiences to their education and tend to do best when they have some autonomy and can apply what they are learning to their own situations.

• Assessment

From Quality Matters Higher Education Rubric Workbook, Fifth Edition:

• Process – “An ongoing, systematic process…based on clear expectations for learning…[that] provides sufficient opportunities for learners to achieve the expectations…[and that] gathers evidence that learning has occurred, and…applies the information to improve teaching and learning.”
• Strategies – “Instruments used to identify what students have learned.”

• Asynchronous

Courses that do not require class members to be present in the virtual classroom at a specified time, or at the same time. Students participate in class activities according to their own schedules, as long as the work is completed and/or submitted by deadlines assigned by the teacher.

• Attendance

The Federal Government’s definition: “A student is considered to have begun attendance in all of his or her classes if the student attends at least one day of class for each course in which that student’s enrollment status was determined for Federal Pell Grant eligibility. A student is considered not to have begun attendance in any class in which the school is unable to document that attendance.”

An online class CANNOT count logging in as attendance. Students  must have “academic engagement” such as contributing to an online discussion or submitting a homework assignment that is related to learning objectives/outcomes for the course. At BTC, this must occur within the first two days of an online course. Templates for an Introductory Quiz and an Introductory Discussion Board prompt are available as Learning Objects inside Canvas Commons.

The last day of attendance in a class is the last day the student participated in a course activity.

• Attribution

Providing credit to the creator of a work. The SBCTC has developed an online Open Attribution Builder to help provide credit for works used in teaching. You may also assign a Creative Commons License to your own works, or consult the terms of licenses assigned by others.

•  Badging

A badge is a visual digital representation of an accomplishment, achievement or skill acquisition—more granular than a formal degree, but helps to make incremental learning more visible. From Digital credentials. 

• Big Blue Button

Web-conferencing tool for teaching and learning currently integrated into Canvas LMS.

• Blended Learning

Classes where some traditional face-to-face classroom instruction is replaced by web-based online teaching. See also Hybrid.

• Bloom’s Taxonomy/Bloom’s Digital Taxonomy

A classification system used to identify levels of cognition. Classification categories include: Remembering, Understanding, Applying, Analyzing, Evaluating and Creating. See an infographic of Bloom’s Taxonomy here.

See an infographic of Bloom’s Digital Taxonomy here.

• Canvas

A Learning Management System by Instructure that provides tools and resources for online teaching and learning.

• Caption Hub (SBCTC)

Online resource developed by the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges where institutions can submit digital videos for captions. Contact eLearning with questions.

• Captions

Textual version of a video or audio recording. All BTC instructional recordings must be captioned and may be submitted for captioning through the Caption Hub.

• Case Studies

Investigations of real-life examples for research and practice. Great for group assignments.

• Chunking

Breaking up instructional content into short sections to be manageable and easy to remember for students. BTC recommends chunking most online content, especially video content.

• Class Recordings Decision Tree

It is important to consider the accessibility and privacy rights of your students when you are planning to record instructional sessions. This decision tree may help you determine the best approach for your teaching.

• Cloud

Virtual online spaces where learning and learning resources are accessed from various web-enabled devices.

• Copyright

Federal regulations that address the use, reproduction and sharing of creative works. At BTC, the Copyright Officer is the Library Director. See also Creative Commons.

• Course Map

A visual representation, usually a table or diagram, that shows how course and module/unit level learning objectives align with course activities, materials and assessments.

• Correspondence Course

A course which uses mailed information between instructor and student. Limited or no face-to-face time with the instructor. Correspondence courses do not qualify for federal financial aid. Currently, BTC does not offer correspondence courses, and all classes should include substantial academic interaction between teacher and student. See also Regular and Substantive Interaction.

• Course Quality

The combination of course design, materials, activities, assessments and delivery that support student achievement of measurable learning objectives. See also Quality Matters.

• Creative Commons

Digital content licensing. An organization that provides free licenses to make creative works available for others to legally use and share. See also Open Educational Resources (OER).

• Descriptive Hyperlinks

Links inside content that are written as relevant or meaningful terms or phrases rather than url strands. This helps readers understand the context of the link before it is activated.

• Digital Literacy

Competency in using the internet and online resources to locate information, to create digital artifacts, and to solve problems.

• Discussion Board

Digital space for sharing information, viewpoints and ideas. Usually organized by topic. These are often graded assignments in the Learning Management System. See Canvas Discussions for more information. Be sure to let your students know what you are looking for when you evaluate their online discussion posts, including tone, grammar, length, reference to course materials, etc. Avoid asking Yes/No questions in your prompts.

• Distance Learning

Method of study where teachers and students use the Internet rather than or in addition to face-to-face classrooms to have classes.

Distance education, as defined by 34 CFR 600.2.: “education that uses one or more of the technologies listed in paragraphs (1) through (4) of this definition to deliver instruction to students who are separated from the instructor and to support regular and substantive interaction between the students and the instructor, either synchronously or asynchronously. The technologies may include: (1) The internet; (2) One-way and two-way transmissions through open broadcast, closed circuit, cable, microwave, broadband lines, fiber optics, satellite, or wireless communications devices; (3) Audio conferencing; or (4) Video cassettes, DVDs, and CD-ROMs, if the cassettes, DVDs, or CD-ROMs are used in a course in conjunction with any of the technologies listed in paragraphs (1) through (3) of this definition.

• Document Camera

Web cameras that display an object to an audience. These cameras allow teachers to write on a sheet of paper or to display a two or three-dimensional object while the audience watches. Most devices will also digitally record whatever is displayed.

• eLearning

Learning via the internet and electronic technologies to access educational curriculum outside of a traditional physical classroom. See also Online Learning.

• Engagement

See Student Engagement.

• Face-to-Face

Traditional classroom instruction where instructor and students meet for teaching and learning in the same physical place at the same time.

• Feedback

“Specific comments, guidance, and information provided by the course instructor or facilitator in response to a learner activity or assessment.” From Quality Matters Higher Education Rubric Workbook, Fifth Edition.

• FERPA

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. Federal policies that address the confidentiality of student records and information at institutions that receive federal funds. At BTC, the Registrar is the FERPA officer. See the BTC Privacy Statement.

• Flipped Classroom

An instructional strategy and a type of blended learning that reverses the traditional learning environment by delivering instructional content, often online, outside of the classroom. It moves activities, including those that may have traditionally been considered homework, into the classroom. In a flipped classroom, students watch online

lectures, collaborate in online discussions, or carry out research at home while engaging in concepts in the classroom with the guidance of a mentor.

• Folksonomy

A folksonomy is a collaborative and social classification system that uses tags to categorize and organize digital content.

• Gamification

Gamification describes the process of applying game-related principles — particularly those relating to user experience and engagement — to non-game contexts such as education. From Learning Theories.

• Headings

Headings (or “headers”) help organize and highlight certain sections of text to make it easier to read and navigate. In order to make sure your course content is accessible, be sure to use the headings (not just changing the format with bold font or italics) in the styles ribbon.

• Headset

A headset combines a headphone with a microphone and is used to record lectures or to participate in virtual meetings. At BTC, eLearning lends headsets to faculty.

• Hybrid Learning

At BTC, a course is designated as Hybrid if at least 20% of face-to-face content and activity in a course is displaced with online learning (eLearning).

• HyFlex

Hyflex classes combine a face-to-face class with an online class (clustered for enrollment purposes). Check the BTC faculty Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) for enrollment and compensation information.

• Instructional Design

The practice of creating teaching and learning environments that are efficient, engaging and effective. The process consists broadly of determining the needs of the learner, defining the end goal of instruction, and creating pathways for learning and student success.

• Instructional Technology

Instructional Technology is the systematic design, development, utilization, management, and evaluation of processes and technological resources for teaching and learning. BTC eLearning administers and supports instructional technology.  Also called Educational Technology.

• Intellectual Property

Intellectual property is any product of the human intellect that the law protects from unauthorized use by others.  The ownership of intellectual property inherently creates a limited monopoly in the protected property. From Cornell Law. See the BTC Faculty CBA for more information.

• Interaction

In online education, interaction is key to student engagement, and is accomplished through email communication, discussion boards, phone messages, texting, feedback on assessments, etc.  Distance education requires teacher-initiated interaction with students, especially interaction of an instructional nature that relates to course learning objectives. In addition to Teacher-Student interaction, online teaching and learning also includes Student-Student and Student-Content interaction.

• Intranet

According to Merriam Webster Dictionary, an intranet is a network with access restricted to a limited group of authorized users (such as employees of a company). BTC’s intranet hosts information important to faculty, staff and administration at BTC. The Instruction/Academic Affairs & Student Learning section is specifically for faculty and provides valuable information and resources.

• Learner-centered Teaching

“An approach to teaching that focuses on the learners and their development rather than on the transmission of content; it addresses the balance of power in teaching and learning, moves toward learners actively constructing their own knowledge, and puts the responsibility for learning on the learners.”  From IGI Global.

• Learning Community

A learning community is a group of people who share common academic goals and attitudes, who meet semi-regularly to collaborate on projects and ideas in order to develop as learners and educators.

• Learning Management System (LMS)

A learning management system is a computer program with a user-friendly interface that enables the creation, delivery and assessment of learning materials and activities.

• Learning Object

A learning object is “a collection of content items, practice items, and assessment items that are combined based on a single learning objective.”  Digital Learning Objects are often saved to a repository for reuse and sharing. Canvas Commons, available as a global navigation link inside Canvas, is one such learning object repository. Access Canvas Commons here. Learn more about Canvas Commons here.

• Learning Objective

Learning objectives are “Specific and measurable knowledge, skills, attributes, and habits learners are expected to achieve and demonstrate as a result of their educational experiences in a program, course or module.”

• Learning objectives should be appropriate to the level of the course.
• Course and unit level learning objectives should be clearly stated in the course syllabus and in other areas of the course as appropriate.
• Connect learning objectives to all course activities and assessments.

From Quality Matters Higher Education Rubric Workbook, Fifth Edition.

• Learning Outcome

“A demonstration of the actual level of attainment of the knowledge, skills, attributes, and habits expected as a result of the educational experiences in a program, course, or module. A learning objective states what learners should be able to do, while a learning outcome is a learner’s demonstration of the actual ability to do so.” From Quality Matters Higher Education Rubric Workbook, Fifth Edition.

• Lecture Capture

Lecture capture is the process of recording classroom or other instructional activities that are made available for review online. Panopto is the lecture capture tool that BTC uses in Canvas.

• Master shell

A master shell is a practice course or “sandbox” where an instructor can test, develop and maintain course materials that are used from quarter to quarter. No students or other users are enrolled into this shell.

• Media/Multimedia

Multimedia technology involves combinations of computerized images, video, sound, and graphics.

• Metacognition

Awareness of one’s own learning or thinking.

• Mobile Learning

Flexible learning via mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones.

• Modality

In referring to instructional modality, at BTC we generally mean the format in which instruction is delivered, i.e. Online, Hybrid, Face-to-face. In preparation for the move to PeopleSoft ctcLInk, the following additional modality descriptions were developed:

Online courses

Online courses are 100% available on the web. In online courses, students use the internet and technology to connect with instructors and classmates and to complete all coursework. Most of BTC’s online courses are offered through Canvas, BTC’s Learning Management System (LMS). Some online courses require students to come to campus for meetings or exams, so be sure to check the requirements for the course when you register.

• Online Asynchronous – The class is taught completely online. There are no scheduled class times that are required; all online work is completed asynchronously. There is no face-to-face instruction.
• Online Synchronous – The class is taught completely online; attendance at scheduled online class meetings at specific times is required. There is no face-to-face instruction.

Hybrid courses

Hybrid courses are a mixture of online and face-to-face teaching and learning, where at least 20% of instruction takes place online. The amount of online work depends on the course, so be sure to check the course description when you register.

• Hybrid Asynchronous – This is a hybrid class. The class meets face-to-face for scheduled classes at specific times; all online work is completed asynchronously.
• Hybrid Synchronous – This is a hybrid class. The class meets both face-to-face and online for scheduled classes at specific times.

Web-Enhanced courses

Web-Enhanced courses are face-to-face classes that meet like a traditional class, but some components of the class are available online.

Face-to-Face courses

This class meets face-to-face for scheduled classes at specific times. There is no online instruction, although an online learning platform may be used supplementally.

• Modules

“In education, a ‘module’ is a fractional part of a student’s education experience. In an entire degree program, each class represents a module focused on a given subject. In a single class, a module is a chapter, class meeting or lecture on a specific topic.”  From Reference.com.

In the Learning Management System (LMS), a module is a means of chunking course content and information in order to manage and simplify student navigation in a course.

• Netiquette

Formal or informal rules for communicating online. Faculty are encouraged to include a statement addressing online communication expectations for tone, civility, style, spelling, grammar and cultural sensitivity in their syllabi and/or course introductory content. See Sample Netiquette Statements. See also The Core Rules of Netiquette.

• Open Educational Resources (OER)

Open educational resources (OER) are freely accessible, openly licensed text, media, and other digital assets for teaching, learning, and assessing as well as for research.  OER are publicly accessible materials and resources for any user to use, re-mix, improve and redistribute under some licenses. The development and promotion of open educational resources is often motivated by a desire to provide an alternative to traditional textbooks and course supplements, and to save students money on course materials. BTC eLearning and the BTC Library can provide support and suggestions for working with OER. See SBCTC Open Educational Resources. See also Creative Commons.

• Online Learning

All teaching and learning in a course occurs online. See eLearning.

• Panopto

Panopto is a software company that provides lecture recording, screencasting, video streaming, and video content management software, which is often used in eLearning environments.

See also Instructional Technologies.

• Participation

Participation means giving students a say in their education, listening to them and involving them as much as possible in school life. It means valuing their opinions and ideas and giving them control of their learning.

• Pedagogy

“The discipline that deals with the theory and practice of teaching and how these influence student learning. Pedagogy informs teacher actions, judgments, and teaching strategies by taking into consideration theories of learning, understandings of students and their needs, and the backgrounds and interests of individual students. Pedagogy includes how the teacher interacts with students and the social and intellectual environment the teacher seeks to establish. Its aims may include furthering liberal education (the general development of human potential) to the narrower specifics of vocational education (the imparting and acquisition of specific skills).”

• Plagiarism

Plagiarism is the “wrongful appropriation” and “stealing and publication” of another author’s “language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions” and the representation of them as one’s own original work. Plagiarism is considered academic dishonesty and a breach of journalistic ethics. It is subject to sanctions like penalties, suspension, and even expulsion. Plagiarism is not in itself a crime, but can constitute copyright infringement. Plagiarism and copyright infringement overlap to a considerable extent, but they are not equivalent concepts, and many types of plagiarism do not constitute copyright infringement, which is defined by copyright law and may be adjudicated by courts. Plagiarism is not defined or punished by law, but rather by institutions (including professional associations, educational institutions, and commercial entities, such as publishing companies)

See Sample Plagiarism statement. See Encouraging Academic Honesty Online  faculty guide.

• Presence

Key component of successful online teaching. “Being there.” Core categories of teacher presence include social, cognitive and teaching. See also Teaching Presence.

• Privacy

BTC follows the directives outlined in the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), the federal law governing the protection of educational records. Registered students will be notified of this policy on an annual basis. Others can find the policy in

the Bellingham Technical College catalog. Personally identifiable information will not be released from an education record without the prior written consent of the student, unless an exception has been granted by FERPA. See also FERPA. See also BTC Privacy Statement.

It is a course design best practice to include privacy statements for all online products you use or provide in your courses. Most product websites include a link to their privacy policies. See a few privacy policies here.

• Quality Matters (QM)

Quality Matters is a non-profit quality assurance organization that offers training, tools and support for the course design review process. It is faculty-driven, collegial, and research-based.

• Regular and Substantive Interaction (RSI)

A Distance Education course includes Regular and Substantive Interaction and is financial aid eligible. The Department of Education distinguishes Distance Education from Correspondence education, which is not financial aid eligible and is not offered at BTC. Based on information from the July 2021 OSQR SUNY Online Course Quality Review Rubric (linked below):

• Regular: Scheduled and predictable interaction with tracking and intervention.
• Substantive: The interaction must pertain to the academic subject of the course, not administrative matters. Activities include instruction, assessment, tutoring, and responding to questions.
• Interaction: The conversations should be mostly faculty-initiated and personalized to the student.
• Instructor: Course content is delivered by and instructor who meets the qualifications for instruction established by the institution’s accrediting agency.

OSCQR – SUNY Online Course Quality Review – Regular & Substantive Interaction

See also Attendance

• Scaffolding

“In education, scaffolding refers to a variety of instructional techniques used to move students progressively toward stronger understanding and, ultimately, greater

independence in the learning process. The term itself offers the relevant descriptive metaphor: teachers provide successive levels of temporary support that help students reach higher levels of comprehension and skill acquisition that they would not be able to achieve without assistance.” From EdGlossary.

• Self-efficacy

“Self-efficacy is a personal belief in one’s capability to organize and execute courses of action required to attain designated types of performances. Often described as task-specific self-confidence, self-efficacy has been a key component in theories of motivation and learning in varied contexts.” It is “a key element of social cognitive theory” that “appears to be an important variable because it affects students’ motivation and learning.”  From Anthony R. Artino, Jr.,  Academic self-efficacy: from educational theory to instructional practice.

• State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC)

“The Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges — led by a nine-member governor-appointed board — advocates, coordinates and directs Washington state’s system of 34 public community and technical colleges.”

• Student Engagement

“Student engagement refers to the degree of attention, curiosity, interest, optimism, and passion that students show when they are learning or being taught, which extends to the level of motivation they have to learn and progress in their education. Generally speaking, the concept of ‘student engagement’ is predicated on the belief that learning improves when students are inquisitive, interested, or inspired, and that learning tends to suffer when students are bored, dispassionate, disaffected, or otherwise ‘disengaged.’ Stronger student engagement or improved student engagement are common instructional objectives expressed by educators.”  From EdGlossary.org.

Research by BTC Educators – Engaging Students Online at BTC

Infographic – Fab Five – BTC Infographic for Online Student Engagement (print and keep handy)

• Syllabus

Course contract between faculty and students. A guide to a course’s expectations for students. Includes course policies, rules and regulations, required texts, and a schedule of assignments. BTC uses a required syllabus template, found on the college P drive. You will need your BTC staff credentials to access.

• Synchronous

Synchronous learning is when classes occur on set schedules and time frames. Students and instructors are online at the same time in synchronous classes since lectures, discussions, and presentations take place at specific hours. All students must be online at that exact time in order to participate in the class.

• Tag

“In information systems, a tag is a keyword or term assigned to a piece of information (such as an Internet bookmark, digital image, database record, or computer file). This kind of metadata helps describe an item and allows it to be found again by browsing or searching.” From Wikipedia.org.

• Taxonomy

Framework and classification model for designing learning environments.See examples of Taxonomy.

• Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

Flexible educational learning environment that addresses the needs of multiple learners. More information about UDL..

• Virtual classroom

Teaching and learning environment in an online setting.

• Virtual meeting

A meeting via the internet rather than face-to-face. For information on virtual meeting tools at BTC, contact eLearning.  Google hangouts, Web Ex, Zoom are all examples of virtual meeting spaces.

• Washington Canvas Conference (WACC)

WACC is an annual State Conference organized by the SBCTC eLearning Council focused on the use of the LMS and other instructional technologies. Contact eLearning for more information.

• Web Camera

A video camera that feeds or streams its image in real time to or through a computer to a computer network. All teaching lecterns at BTC are equipped with a webcam.

• Web-enhanced

Traditional face-to-face classes that rely on the internet and technology (such as the LMS) for teaching and learning activities, including interaction, submissions, assessments and research.

• Webinar

Educational or informational online meeting. For information about webinar tools and best practices, contact eLearning.

• Zoom

Online meeting and webinar software. Contact Computer Services for license availability. Talk to eLearning about how to incorporate virtual meetings into your online instruction.