Give Your Online Teaching a JOLT Michelle Pilati, PhD Professor of Psychology Rio Hondo College Edward H. Perry, PhD Professor of Mechanical Engineering University of Memphis MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

What IS JOLT? Journal of Online Learning and Teaching Peer-reviewed online journal Published quarterly Papers of interest to the online teaching community MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

A Brief History of JOLT Conceived in January 2003 First Issue Online in July 2005 Twelve issues published to date 104 papers published to date Authors from 6 countries and 4 continents MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

JOLT Growth Trends MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

Current Issue of JOLT Note: Each paper published in both HTML and PDF formats MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

JOLT’s Mission JOLT welcomes papers on all aspects of the use of online multimedia educational resources for learning and teaching. Topics may include, but are not limited to: learning theory and the use of multimedia to improve student learning; instructional design theory and application; online learning and teaching initiatives; use of technology in education; innovative learning and teaching practices. MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

Type of Papers JOLT Seeks Research Papers: Papers concerned with the scholarly use of multimedia educational resources in online learning and teaching. They include some measure of the learning impact on students. Theoretical/Conceptual Papers: Papers that present non-empirical work related to the major issues of importance for future research or put a conceptualized problem in the context of previous research Position Papers: Describe a problem or an issue with a suggested solution or direction. These papers should support the position with both a logical argument and a review of the theory and/or the research literature. Case Studies: Case studies highlight a particular instructional challenge and setting in which multimedia resources were used to address that challenge. Instructional Design Notes: Brief papers that describe a new online learning object and may include a MERLOT peer review or suggestions for use in the classroom. MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

Guidelines for Authors Electronic submission Manuscripts in English Microsoft Word 6000 words maximum APA Style Elements MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

Submission Deadlines February 28 th for June Issue May 31 st for September Issue August 31 st for December Issue November 30 th for March Issue MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

Peer Review Process A minimum of two peer reviewers assigned to each manuscript Blind Reviews Reviewers use a set of published criteria developed by JOLT Editorial Board MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

Review Recommendations Accept without revision Accept with minor revision; does not require reconsideration by peer reviewers Major revision needed; must revise and resubmit for reconsideration by peer reviewers Not suitable for publication in JOLT MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

Review Summary Sent to author of each paper Summarizes the blind reviews Includes a rating on each review criterion and comments from each reviewer Editors also provide a summary of “required revisions” for publication MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

Manuscript Revision Process Review Summary typically sent to authors within two months of submission deadline Once conditional acceptance is received, one month is allotted for final revisions The process moves very quickly due to the use of online submission and reviews MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

Suggestions for Potential Authors Review articles from previous issues for style, approach, appropriate topics etc. Follow JOLT Guidelines Use APA Style for citations, etc. Look over Review Criteria Avoid “first person” (e.g. “I”, “We”, “our”…) Provide a Conclusion section Submit manuscript before deadline passes! MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

JOLT Special Issue – June ‘08 Special Issue on Next Generation Course/Learning Management Systems Nine papers in three themed sections Most popular paper viewed 479 times in first 30 days On average, each paper in issue viewed over 150 times in first 30 days Wiki provided for reader comments MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

JOLT Statistics – Past Year 34,800 visits to site June 08 => visits 78,200 pages viewed 159 countries & 60 languages represented by visitors June ‘08 visits up 150% over June ’ manuscripts received 70 Papers accepted for publication MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

Give Your Life a Big JOLT Become a JOLT Author Become a JOLT Peer Reviewer Become a JOLT Translator Tell Colleagues & Students about JOLT Provide Links to JOLT on websites you manage ( MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

Where Do We Go From Here? More Special Issue Themes within a regular issue (conferences, open calls,…) Abstracts also in Spanish and French? Accept papers in Spanish and French? Bimonthly publication schedule? MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008

Questions? MERLOT International Conference: August 7-10, 2008