Call for Chapters: Building Online Communities in Higher Education Institutions: Creating Collaborative Experience
Editors
Carolyn N. Stevenson (Kaplan University, USA)
Joanna C. Bauer (Kaplan University, USA)
Call for Chapters
Proposals Submission Deadline: December 30, 2012
Full Chapters Due: April 30, 2013
Submission Date: August 30, 2013
Introduction
Today’s online educational settings are composed of diverse employees and students, each with varying degrees of technological expertise, career expectations, and professional experience. As such, organizational leaders need to identify differences among all members of the University and develop a strategic plan for communicating and collaborating across all members of the institution. This book will present papers that will assist college administrators, faculty members, and other higher education employees in improving communication and creating collaborative efforts in an online setting. For example, this book will assist members of the online community in improving communication across generations, working collaboratively on cross-discipline projects, designing curriculum that fosters critical thinking for students, and using social networking tools for creating community. This book is intended to answer questions such as:
• In what ways can educational leaders, faculty, and students improve communication and creative collaborative opportunities?
• How can social networking tools build community?
• What are some guidelines for working effectively in virtual teams?
• How can curriculum promote collaboration for students and faculty?
This book will advance the current scope of research in support of communication and collaboration in online settings by focusing on the ways all members of the University can create community fostering personal and professional growth for all. The book will expand existing models of online communication to include use of technology including social networking tools and other forms of computer mediated communication to create collaborative experience for administrators, faculty, students, and other members of the University community.
Objective of the Book
The major objective of this book is to provide administrators, faculty, and other members of the online community with information on effective communication and enhanced collaboration across the online community. Often, members of the online community work in isolation. Collaboration across varying disciplines and departments can foster unique professional development activities as well as create a stronger connection to the entire online community. Effective communication is essential in every organization. Communication topics to be addressed include managing conflict, working effectively in virtual teams, and use of social networking tools, critical thinking, intercultural communication, and online leadership.
Target Audience
The potential audience of this book will come primarily from college administrators, faculty, and other members of the online community. While a major topic includes communication, the book is not geared toward one specific discipline. Since there is a considerable amount of interest in building learning communities, faculty, course designers, student services officers, and other leaders in higher education would be interested in the topic. Collaboration in a virtual setting will also appeal to a wide range of educational leaders and faculty. This book will target those who work in an online setting, manage others from a distance, teach students in an online format, and work together with others across disciplines on collaborative projects. The proposed book will assist the prospective audience (e.g. faculty, students, researchers, practitioners, college administrators) in strengthening communication and collaboration in virtual settings. A wide range of topics will be included in this book. The main emphasis will be on ways to effectively communicate and collaborate with others in an online setting.
Recommended topics include, but are not limited to the following:
• Communication across generations
• Tone and attitude
• Best practices for email and electronic communication
• Virtual meetings
• Interpersonal communication
• Intercultural communication
•Online Collaboration
•Training and mentoring
• Working effective with virtual teams
• Engaging faculty in professional development and collaborative projects
• Cross-discipline initiatives for collaboration
• Use of critical thinking in communication and collaboration
• Leading and managing virtual employees
• Best practices in online presentations
• Learning Communities
•Online learning in a global society
• Ethical standards for online communication
• Joint partnerships and strategic alliances in higher education
• Social networking tools for enhancing communication and collaboration
• Online student support services and activities
• Collaborative course design and assessment
• Technology tools that enhance learning (separate from social networking tools)
• Innovative ways for promoting student success in the online classroom
Submission Procedure
Potential contributors are invited to submit a 2-3 page chapter proposal outlining the proposed topic and/or issue to be discussed on or before December 30, 2012. Authors of accepted proposals will be sent guidelines for submission of chapters and will be asked to submit full chapters by April 30, 2013. Authors will be notified by June 30th, 2013 about the status of their chapters and be provided suggestions for improvement after a double-blinded review process. All final submissions will be expected by August 30th, 2013.
Publisher
This book is scheduled to be published by IGI Global (formerly Idea Group Inc.), publisher of the “Information Science Reference” (formerly Idea Group Reference), “Medical Information Science Reference,” “Business Science Reference,” and “Engineering Science Reference” imprints. For additional information regarding the publisher, please visit www.igi-global.com. This book is anticipated to be released in early 2014.
Important Dates
December 30th, 2012: Proposal Submission Deadline
April 30th, 2013: Full Chapter Submission
April 30th –June 15th, 2013: Peer Review Process
June 30th, 2013: Return review feedback to Authors
July 30th, 2013: Revised Chapter Submission
August 15th, 2013: Final Chapter Acceptance Notification
August 30th, 2013: Final Chapter Submission
Inquiries and submissions can be forwarded electronically (Word document):
Dr. Carolyn N. Stevenson
CStevenson@kaplan.edu
OR
Joanna C. Bauer
JoBauer@kaplan.edu