Drawing on current literature and a survey of online students and instructors from online institutions, the researchers explored the different types of assignments and assessments required for completion of online courses, the Learning Management Systems utilized, and differences between undergraduate and graduate tasks assigned, according to field of study. While there is a significant amount of available research on instructional efficacy in online classes, there are few studies that account for the types of course activities students must complete in distance learning courses. This study details the variety of online assessments and activities assigned to students attending institutions of higher education that are either fully online or utilizing a blended learning format. Recommendations are made for diverse instructional tasks, which can be assigned based on available technology and curricular flexibility. Key terms used in the study appear at the end of this chapter.

1. Distance Learning Course Activities Dr. Melanie Shaw Mr. Todd Kane

2. Introduction Learning Activities Different types of course activities students must complete in a diverse sampling of online courses.

3. Research Questions Format and length for courses Activities and Assessments Enjoyment Fields of Study and Student Levels Learning Management System (LMS) Student Perceptions based on LMS

4. Survey Participants – N= 166

5. Format of Online Course

6. Course Length

7. Field of Study

8. Learning Management System

9. Types of Assignments

10. Other Types of Assignments Listed Readings Online Surveys Creating spreadsheets Research projects with publication goals Journals Objective testing Role playing Question and answer activities Surveys Simulations Annotated bibliographies Posting to organizational websites Polls Case studies Reading summaries Watching videos youtube.com Tests Interviews Discussion Threads LinkedIn Group participation Debates PDF creation Group presentations Twitter postings Chats Visual diagrams Reflective essays Project proposals Graph Creation Summarizing reports Online homework pages Portfolios Access projects Chapter reviews Interactive learning collaborations Wikis Open Office use Programming activities Virtual worlds immersion experiences Math labs Technical projects Website creation Online lecture attendance

11. Activity Preferences

12. What Activities Best Help You Retain Knowledge?

13. Activity Difficulty

14. Types of Assessments

15. Assignment by Field of Study

16. Most Frequent Activities by LMS

17. Differences between Online Undergraduate Assignments and…

18. Graduate Assignments

19. Conclusion A variety of learning formats and course lengths Diverse Activities Small Variance between fields of study and levels of students The most commonly utilized LMS is Blackboard. Online Discussions and Research Papers

20. Questions