Guest Dr. Jean Mandernach joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to discuss how faculty and instructional designers can design more meaningful and engaging learning assignments for students, online or anywhe...
Hosts Kelvin and Tom talk through the importance of consulting trusted sources of data and information as the basis for sound decision making in online education, no matter what role one holds.
Guest Nicolaas Matthijs joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to discuss the emergence of AI-assistance built into educational technology platforms and how this is a departure from past phases of artificial...
In this episode, hosts Tom and Kelvin summarize the current issues surrounding proposed changes to “inclusive access programs” for digital instructional materials and how this affects the aff...
Guest Dr. Carmin Chan joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to consider how we might reframe the typical institutional data that might not present clearly the needs and progress of post-traditional learners...
In this episode, spring-boarding from one of the chapters in the new SAGE Handbook of Online Higher Education, hosts Kelvin and Tom advocate for high-quality online discussions and reflect upon r...
Guest Dr. Anna Porcaro joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to share insights on how higher education institutions can be more effective in meeting workforce needs through digital alternative educational p...
As a follow-up to the pre-2024 call-in show, hosts Tom and Kelvin talk through the need to re-examine, challenge, and change existing institutional structures as we seek to serve learners better ...
Guest Patti O’Sullivan joins hosts Kelvin and Tom to discuss the significance of advance planning for academic continuity and the role that digital teaching and learning can play. Important all...
In this “call-in show” episode, hosts Kelvin and Tom are joined by multiple voices from the online education community to help us all make sense of 2023’s disruptions and make the most of 2...
Guest Dr. Safary Wa-Mbaleka joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to talk about the importance of cultivating a more global perspective on our online higher education field and shares how a new book can hel...
Emerging from the “TOPcast Live” session at OLC Accelerate 2023, join hosts Kelvin and Tom as they discuss how the framing and implementation of our increasingly AI-influenced digital learnin...
Guest Jared Stein joins hosts Kelvin and Tom to discuss the ways that we think about, talk about, and foster innovation in our higher education digital learning context, to the benefit of student...
In this episode, hosts Tom and Kelvin discuss highlights from and reactions to the CHLOE 8 report, including the importance of faculty preparation, other quality assurance practices, and more.
In this second of two back-to-back episodes on AI in higher ed, guest Dr. Rohan Jowallah joins hosts Kelvin and Tom to share his insights and advice after years of evaluating and working with AI ...
About Episode 145: Hosts Tom and Kelvin conclude that “nobody’s through talking about AI” and provide the first of two back-to-back episodes with an update on developments within the digita...
About Episode 144: In this episode, UPCEA CEO Dr. Bob Hansen joins hosts Kelvin and Tom to discuss the intertwined histories of professional/continuing education and online education and the impo...
About Episode 143 Hosts Kelvin and Tom discuss how to talk about the value of online education in various ways that matter to different audiences, including speaking about return on investment (R...
About Episode 142: Guest Dr. Kathy Gosser joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to discuss how faculty, instructional designers, and others can adopt habits of “repurposing” across the multifaceted work...
In this episode coinciding with American Independence Day, hosts Kelvin and Tom invite a consideration of distinctly American contributions to the models of online higher education. These contrib...
Guest Neil Mosley joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to discuss ways to gauge and foster maturity in the way institutions carry out learning design, the core work of online education.
More options to scale efficiencies through automation are available now than ever before. Join hosts Tom and Kelvin for a consideration of how well-intentioned digital teaching automations can go...
As the conversation continues, guest Jarret Cummings joins hosts Tom to unpack the issues surrounding the US Department of Education’s 2023 communications regarding “third-party servicers” ...
In this Season 9 kick-off episode, hosts Thomas Cavanagh and Kelvin Thompson get back to basics with an alphabetical primer of concepts foundational to successful innovations in higher ed digital...
Guest Dr. Bettyjo Bouchey joins hosts Kelvin and Tom to discuss insights gained from leading a book project compiling case studies of successful online learning organizations. Examining similarit...
In this episode hosts Kelvin and Tom discuss the importance of institutional context in how we carry out our common work of societal transformation through online/digital teaching and learning in...
Guest Dr. Dylan Barth joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to discuss the benefits of "self-care" and wellbeing to our students, our organizations, and to ourselves as online education professionals. The i...
Hosts Tom and Kelvin explore the importance of continual growth and professional development across the various roles that make up the online education field and discuss how professional associat...
About Episode 132: Guest Joseph Riquelme joins hosts Kelvin and Tom to discuss insights gained from leading a 100% remote online learning team that was “born during the pandemic.” Success str...
The currently free beta version of the chatbot ChatGPT has captured the imaginations and free time of many in the field of education and elsewhere. Hosts Kelvin and Tom weigh-in on ChatGPT’s pl...
Guest Dr. Tanya Joosten joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to discuss findings from eight years of research data collected at the National Research Center for Distance Education and Technological Advance...
In this episode, hosts Kelvin and Tom discuss the concept of “education deserts” and how a strategic approach to online education can increase educational access in these under-resourced geog...
In this episode, 1EdTech CEO Dr. Rob Abel joins hosts Kelvin and Tom as a guest to discuss the history and role in the online education community of the professional association formerly known as...
In this “call-in show” episode, hosts Tom and Kelvin are joined by multiple voices from the online education community to distill wisdom in making sense of 2022 and preparing to make the most...
Guest Dr. Jocelyn Widmer joins hosts Kelvin and Tom to discuss insights from her interviews of 100+ Chief Online Learning Officers (COLOs). The importance of institutional context in applying les...
In this episode hosts Kelvin and Tom talk through the valuable role alternative (“non-credit”) online learning opportunities can play for the local communities we serve and for the continued ...
Guest Dr. Nicole Johnson joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to discuss research on course modality definitions in Canada and the US and why clarity about course modalities is important for advancing the ...
About Episode 123: In this episode, hosts Kelvin and Tom talk through the insights and predictions from the CHLOE 7 report, with a focus on anticipated widespread hybridity in courses, programs, ...
Guest Katrina Wehr joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to talk about how the role of instructional designer can lead to more equitable outcomes for all students within the work of online/digital teaching ...
elvin for a consideration of the value that in-person engagement has in our work of online education, particularly in the support and professional development of online teaching faculty.
Journalist Jeff Young joins hosts Kelvin and Tom to talk about lessons learned from higher education’s recent academic innovations and whether these ideas bring hope or merely hype to the field...
In this episode, hosts Tom and Kelvin contemplate the potential for chatbots in online education as a benefit to online students and as a support to both faculty and student services staff.
WCET’s Megan Raymond joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to comment on patterns observed in the current job market for online higher education professionals including instructional designers and related...
In this episode, hosts Kelvin and Tom consider the role of asynchronous discussions in online education and discuss how technology platforms/tools might provide some enhancement.
Guest Dr. Stephen C. Ehrmann joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to discuss lessons learned from studying six exemplar higher ed institutions that have achieved “3fold gains” by improving educational ...
Hi this is Kelvin for TOPcast. As an accompaniment to episode 116, Tom and I would like to offer to everyone a brief bonus clip with Dr. Stephen C. Ehrmann from late 2021 in which Steve reflects ...
As a companion piece to episode 113 on “onlineness,” in this episode hosts Tom and Kelvin discuss the related concept of “blendedness” - the deliberate design of a unified in-person + onl...
NPR education correspondent Anya Kamenetz joins hosts Kelvin and Tom to pause for a holistic check-in evaluation of the on-going impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on online higher education.
In this Season 8 opener, Tom and Kelvin share sample student profiles illustrating the varied needs of students enrolling in online courses, and they call for a strategy of integrated data to bet...
Guests Russ Poulin and Cheryl Dowd join hosts Kelvin and Tom to bring some breaking news on governmental regulation that could change the way online higher education works in the US. Listen caref...
In this episode Tom and Kelvin unpack what it means for online courses to be “online” and why it matters to students if instructional designers or instructors make decisions that negatively i...
Guest Kerlene King joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to discuss what it takes for the learning management system (LMS) to be used strategically at institutions of higher education.
Reports continue of individuals leaving the field of online higher education as part of the Great Resignation (or Reshuffling). In this episode, hosts Kelvin and Tom discuss how to make our onlin...
Guest physics professor Dr. Zhongzhou Chen joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to discuss a compelling vision for transforming the nature of STEM education via digital learning practices and technologies.
In this episode, hosts Tom and Kelvin delve into the online program rankings associated with US News’ “Best Colleges” Rankings and discuss both the problems and the value such rankings brin...
Guest Dr. Shawna Dark joins hosts Kelvin and Tom to discuss the importance of the emerging higher education role of the Chief Academic Technology Officer (CATO) and its relationship to online tea...
The Division of Digital Learning is seeking qualified individuals to fill a variety of positions. If you are excited about serving faculty and students using innovative education technology and p...
Instructional designer Tim McKean pitches a topic that becomes an episode. Join hosts Tom and Kelvin in discussing Tim’s ideas about the balance between lightly or darkly “roasting” a cours...
In this episode, hosts Tom and Kelvin are joined by guest Kristen Eshleman to consider the benefits of scaling liberal arts education to serve and transform our regional communities.
At year’s end, hosts Kelvin and Tom are joined by an interactive group of past guests and regular listeners to identify some lessons learned from 2021 as we plan for the new year ahead. See how...
In this episode, Kelvin and Tom discuss the many build vs. buy decisions that face those responsible for supporting online teaching and learning. From staffing to software development and much in...
Hosts Tom and Kelvin explore the various perspectives represented in the “Cameras-On vs. Cameras-Off Debate” with an eye toward finding common ground and actionable insights for designing eff...
In this episode, Dr. Sasha Thackaberry joins hosts Kelvin and Tom to discuss change management strategies for leading online initiatives.
While specialists in online education, such as instructional designers and administrative leaders, help carry out online courses and programs strategically, it is the faculty whose voice, wisdom,...
Guest Ryan Rogers joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to discuss the experiences of K12 students during remote instruction and the challenges higher education institutions face in re-setting incoming firs...
In this episode, join hosts Kelvin Thompson and Tom Cavanagh for a discussion of the factors affecting institutions’ pursuit of the mix of course modalities that is best for them. Online, blend...
Renowned guest Dr. Patsy Moskal joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to share key insights from 25 years of conducting research studies and impact evaluation on digital teaching and learning. Grounding our...
Join hosts Kelvin and Tom for a consideration of the range of options for post-pandemic work being considered across higher education. As online education professionals, if we can’t figure out ...
Hosts Tom and Kelvin are joined by guest Dr. Julie Mendez to consider how to overcome challenges faced by STEM faculty who might be resistant to teaching online or blended courses. Spoiler: It’...
Hosts Tom and Kelvin discuss themes found in the recent CHLOE 6 report on how higher ed’s remote instruction pandemic response has impacted the landscape of online education. Listeners are enco...
From her time as CAO of Davis College, guest Dr. Cristi Ford joins Kelvin and Tom to talk about the impressive work of Rwanda’s Akilah Institute in providing educational access to women via a c...
Redesigning courses from one modality to another was a rushed necessity in the early days of remote instruction, and it might be an expectation of some administrators post-pandemic. Join hosts To...
President Gregory Fowler of the University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC) joins hosts Kelvin and Tom to discuss distinctive ways that our individual institutions can innovate to create opportun...
In this Season 7 opener, Tom and Kelvin try out seven slogans intended as rallying cries to capture succinctly the aspirational goals of high quality online education and to serve as antidotes to...
The MOST downloaded episode from Season 06. Currently, that episode is Episode 74: “Connecting the Dots: ‘Lessons for Leadership’” with guest Dr. Shubha Kashyap. You can find this episode...
Transcript Hi. This is Kelvin popping into your podcast feed in anticipation of TOPcast’s upcoming SEVENTH season. For each of the seven weeks leading up to the first episode of Season 07 we ar...
Guest Shannon Riggs joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to discuss her book “Thrive Online” and a key principle that, when pursuing quality, regardless of online, blended, synchronous, or in-person co...
Transcript Hi. This is Kelvin again popping into your podcast feed in anticipation of TOPcast’s upcoming SEVENTH season. For each of the seven weeks leading up to the first episode of Season 07...
Season 04. Currently, the most downloaded episode from Season 04 is Episode 37: “6 Deadly Sins of Online Teaching.” You can find this episode wherever you’re listening to this message or on...
Join hosts Kelvin and Tom for a consideration of the need across higher education to collaboratively wage a campaign of accuracy to repair the damage done to the reputation of online education du...
Currently, the most downloaded episode from Season 02 is Episode 15: “It’s More About the Social than the Media” with guest Dr. Tanya Joosten. You can find this episode wherever you’re li...
Currently, the most downloaded episode from Season 02 is Episode 15: “It’s More About the Social than the Media” with guest Dr. Tanya Joosten. You can find this episode wherever you’re li...
Transcript Hi. This is Kelvin popping into your podcast feed in anticipation of TOPcast’s upcoming SEVENTH season. For each of the seven weeks leading up to the first episode of Season 07 we ar...
Student evaluation of instruction is often contentious. In this episode, guest Dr. Barbara Zorn joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to share findings from a data mining research study of end of term evalu...
In this episode, join Kelvin and Tom for a discussion of how “blended” is likely to permeate higher education institutions far beyond the bounds of blended learning course design. Ponder the ...
Guest Dr. Jessica Knott from OLC joins hosts Kelvin and Tom to discuss the mutual benefits of engaging with our online education community.
Join hosts Tom and Kelvin as they think through the post-COVID role of synchronous online teaching and consider how to ensure the best quality possible.
In this episode, Dr. Tanya Spilovoy joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to discuss the importance of faculty adoption of free or low-cost open educational resources (OER) at scale. This is an important pa...
In this episode, hosts Tom and Kelvin consider how the various technology adoption decisions we make either enable or prevent others from doing “the right thing” in online teaching and learni...
Guest Dr. Luke Dowden joins hosts Kelvin and Tom to remind us all that people are the most valuable part of any online learning organization. He helps us identify how to add value to our team mem...
With a touch of holiday fun and whimsy, hosts Tom and Kelvin are joined by a panel of past guests and a live audience of regular listeners to celebrate the end of 2020 and reflect upon its lastin...
About Episode 78: Calbright College President and CEO Ajita Menon re-joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to discuss the lessons learned from leading a “start-up” public college. This is the second of ...
Tom and Kelvin consider the strategic role blended learning can have during the pandemic as higher ed institutions begin planning for their eventual return to f2f instruction. This episode is the...
Q&A Bonus Session between IELOL participants, guest Dr. Shubha Kashyap, and hosts Tom and Kelvin.
Calbright College President and CEO Ajita Menon joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to discuss the Calbright Model and to consider the place of innovative models in our collective work within online highe...
Hosts Tom and Kelvin discuss principles for effective planning of spring 2021’s continued reliance on the work of online learning professionals. This episode is the seventh in a mini-series of ...
Guest Dr. Shubha Kashyap joins hosts Tom and Kelvin to share some of her leadership lessons learned with an explicit emphasis on the importance of openness to learning and the value of mentoring ...
Stakeholder communications are especially important during a crisis. What do you do when communications are misinterpreted? Hosts Kelvin and Tom talk through COVID-era communication strategies. T...
In this episode, special guest Dr. Richard Zraick joins Tom and Kelvin to discuss how teaching faculty can care for their voices despite inordinate vocal use online and f2f during the COVID-19 er...
Many institutions will be offering at least some f2f instruction this fall. Kelvin and Tom talk through the details of one flexible approach for making fall f2f less disruptable: BlendFlex.