Research Study Title: Learning together: Community and network from the perspective of designers of online learning
Principal Investigator: Brenda Kaulback, Doctoral Student, Fielding Graduate University, Santa Barbara, California
Introduction/Purpose: You are invited to complete a brief survey to confirm your compatibility to participate in a research study conducted by me, Brenda Kaulback, as part of my doctoral research at Fielding Graduate University in Santa Barbara, CA. The purpose of this study is to understand how and why designers include strategies for interaction between learners in their designs and what influences their design decisions. The results of this study will add to knowledge about educators’ conceptions of online learning designs and the influences on those decisions. The study is supervised by my dissertation committee chair, Dr. Jeremy Shapiro. Research results will be published in my dissertation and may also be published in subsequent journals, articles, books or presentations.
Procedures: The survey will collect some background information from you to confirm your compatibility for the study and to ensure that I create a diverse pool of research participants with a range of perspectives. The survey, 18 questions, will take approximately 10-15 minutes to complete. You will be asked questions about typical designs that you have been involved in creating and about your background and experience. Once I have received your completed questionnaire, I will follow up with you by email about your further participation in the study. From the interview pool, 8-10 educators will be selected for interviews. Because this is exploratory research, it is important to obtain a wide a range of perspectives; participants who meet the research criteria will be selected to insure a mix of design perspectives as well as a variety of background and experience. If you are selected, you will be invited to participate in an interview, to submit some documentation on one of your designs (this is optional), and to take part in a brief follow-up call in the spring of 2014.
Interviews I will conduct all interviews. Interviews will take approximately 60-90 minutes and will be recorded using a digital recorder. Telephone calls may also be recorded using a conference service that records the phone call. At the end of the interview, you will be invited to submit a brief description, syllabus, or online overview of a typical course you have been involved in designing. All participants who complete the interview will also be offered the opportunity to review and comment on their interview transcript. Whether or not you chose to review the transcript, you will then receive a request to schedule a follow-up phone call of approximately 30 minutes. This call is to share any additional information you may recall subsequent to the interview and to provide a venue for me to ask clarifying questions that may arise as I analyze the data.
Possible Risks: The risks of participating in this survey are considered minimal and include the possible breach of confidentiality. I have addressed this risk by using a secure online survey provider and by protecting the data as described under “Confidentiality” below.
Benefits: There are no direct benefits to participating in the study. However, by participating in this study you will have an opportunity to reflect on your practices in designing online learning, your values and beliefs about learner interaction, and the way in which institutional, cultural, and technological facilitators and restraints may have played a role in your design decisions.There are also potential societal benefits to this study, including the generation of new knowledge that may help educators understand and support effective interactions between peers in online learning design.
Alternatives: The alternative is not to participate.
Voluntary Participation: Your participation in this study is voluntary, and you have the right to withdraw from the study at any time without penalty or negative consequences. At any time, you may request that previously provided information be removed from the study and destroyed. Should you withdraw, you may also request that any data you have provided will be eliminated from the study and will be destroyed. If you decide to withdraw from the study, please contact me to inform me of your decision.
Financial Considerations: There is no financial remuneration for participating.
Confidentiality: Study related records will be held in confidence. All data collected will be accessible only to me, my supervising faculty, a confidential research assistant who has signed a Professional Assistance Confidentiality Agreement, and members and staff of the Institutional Reviews Board of Fielding Graduate University. The Institutional Review Board of Fielding Graduate University retains the right to access the signed consent forms and study documents.I will protect your confidentiality by coding your interview transcript with a pseudonym and storing this informed consent form and any information linking your identity to the pseudonym separate from the rest of the study data. The collected data, including any documentation you may provide, will be stored in a locked file cabinet in printed format, and electronically on a secure, password protected computer, back-up hard drive or flash memory drive. I will destroy all data gathered within 3 years after the study is completed. I may use direct quotations in publication. If so, your name and any other identifying information will not be used and quotations will be attributed to a pseudonym.
Contact Questions/Persons: If you have any questions about the research, now or in the future, you may contact me, Brenda Kaulback, (347-799-1143) or brendakaulback@gmail.com or my faculty adviser, Dr. Jeremy Shapiro at Fielding Graduate University, 2112 Santa Barbara St., Santa Barbara, CA 93105 or at (800-340-1099). If you have any questions concerning your rights as a research participant, please contact the Fielding Graduate University IRB by mail at irb@fielding.edu or by telephone at 1-805-898-4033.
Your confirmation of your consent to complete this survey is required and respectfully requested below. Thank you for your interest in my research.
Statement of Consent:I have read the above description of this research and I understand it. I have been informed of the risks and benefits involved, and all my questions have been answered to my satisfaction. Furthermore, I have been assured that any future questions that I may have will also be answered by the principal investigator of the research study. I voluntary agree to participate in this study. By indicating my approval I have not waived any of my legal rights to which I would otherwise be entitled. I understand that continuing to the survey acknowledges my consent.
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