<p>Interaction is crucial to student satisfaction in online courses. Adding synchronous components (virtual classroom technologies) to online courses can facilitate interaction. In this study, interaction within a synchronous virtual classroom was investigated by surveying 21 graduate students in an instructional technology program in the southeastern United States. The students were asked about learner-learner, learner-instructor, learner-content, and learner-interface interactions. During an interview, the instructor was asked about strategies to promote these different forms of interaction. In addition, the academic, social, and technical aspects of interactions were examined in three course archives using Schullo’s (2005) schema. Participants reported that the Wimba interface was easy to use and that various features, such as text chat and the webcam, facilitated interaction among the students and with the instructor in the virtual classroom. The importance of students’ ability to receive immediate feedback and their experience as presenters was highlighted across the various kinds of interaction. The instructor’s teaching style and visual presence were instrumental in engaging students with the content. The results suggest that student interaction, and hence learning, was aided by the live communication that occurred through the virtual classroom. This study has implications for those who are considering adopting virtual classroom technologies for their online or blended teaching.</p>

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The purpose of this study was to extend the field of motivating language theory (MLT) by providing a conceptual framework and methodology for determining low-ML and high-ML leader levels. This quantitative study, specifically, studied the Motivating Language of Wyoming K-12 superintendents operating in the role of CEOs as perceived by their principals. The results of this study found that Wyoming Superintendents with high-ML levels positively influencing employee outcomes in the areas of communication satisfaction, communication competence as well as organizational outcomes in the area of leader effectiveness. Finally, because of this study, two nascent ideas of leaders and leadership within the context of MLT have emerged: (a) the ML Intensity Score Composition and (b) the 3-D MLT Typology Matrix.