Online education is a popular and rapidly expanding format for all educational organizations and learning populations. A study produced through the Sloan Consortium indicates that online education continues to increase at a high rate each year. In 2008, 2.4 million students took one or more online courses, as compared to 1.6 million in 2002. Today's technology enables online courses and complete programs to be delivered electronically—to all types of learning populations.

This book provides an introduction and helpful guide to online education for librarians and educators in the K–12, public, and academic library settings.

Today's librarians must be comfortable working in online learning environments, teaching information literacy courses, and supporting online students across curricula. With the rapid proliferation of the Internet and online technologies in the last decade, however, it is not uncommon for some library professionals to feel left behind. Designing Online Learning: A Primer for Librarians provides best practices for librarians who are unfamiliar with online education and need guidance in either developing an online course or providing support to faculty and students in online courses.

This book offers practical guidance for librarians and educators serving a variety of users, including students and teachers in the K–12, public, and academic library communities. The authors provide a valuable introduction to online teaching and learning that details elementary technologies and technical standards, utilizes case studies that showcase successful programs, and identifies best practices for design, instructor development, and student assessment.

Highlights
• Reviews key technologies and technical standards for online education
• Presents best practices for instructional design, faculty development, and student assessment
• Provides case studies for academic librarians and K–12 librarians

Sue Alman is lecturer at San Jose State University and former director of online education in the University of Pittsburgh's School of Information Sciences. Her published works include Libraries Unlimited's Crash Course in Marketing for Libraries; Introduction to Cloud Computing: A LITA Guide; and Benchmarks in Distance Education.

Christinger Tomer, PhD, is associate professor in the University of Pittsburgh's School of Information Sciences. He received his doctorate at Case Western Reserve University. His published works include Introduction to Cloud Computing: A LITA Guide and Benchmarks in Distance Education.

Margaret L. Lincoln, PhD, is district librarian for Lakeview Schools, Battle Creek, MI, and has served as a Library of Congress American Memory Fellow, a United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Teacher Fellow, and a part-time instructor in the School of Library and Information Science at San José State University. She received her graduate degree in library science from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and earned her doctorate in information science at the University of North Texas, Denton. Her published works include articles in The Book Report, Knowledge Quest, Library Media Connection, Media Spectrum, MultiMedia Schools, and School Library Journal. Lincoln is recipient of a 2008 ALA I Love My Librarian Award.