The Michigan Virtual Learning Research Institute™ (MVLRI™), the research arm of Michigan Virtual, has been hard at work cultivating a network where researchers in the field of K-12 online and blended learning can connect, collaborate and disseminate their work.
“The K-12 online research community is still relatively small and fragmented,” said Dr. Joe Freidhoff, Executive Director of MVLRI. “These community-building activities are designed to push the field farther faster through increased dissemination of research, identification of challenges and development of new partnership opportunities.”
To foster this network, MVLRI has expanded their social media presence. You can join them at
Facebook »
LinkedIn »
Twitter »
YouTube »
The MVLRI Blog is another MVLRI communication initiative. This blog is a great space to share research. Anyone in the online research community is invited to contribute. As part of the blog, podcasts and vodcasts will be created to share interviews with researchers, new research in the Research Clearinghouse (a repository of references to research articles and other publications from K-12 online and blended learning) and more. New blog posts will be shared via the MVLRI social media outlets.
MVLRI has also started offering free webinars to share recent research regarding K-12 online and/or blended learning. The webinars will vary in length and topic. Anyone in the online research community is invited to present. Click to keep up-to-date with what webinars are coming up and to view past webinars »
MVLRI was also asked to take on the International Association for K-12 Online Learning’s (iNACOL) Research in Review Webinar series and the Research in Review Blog. These services have been interwoven with MVLRI’s work.
“iNACOL appreciates the mission of MVLRI to provide research-based evidence to the field about K-12 blended and online learning and we are excited to share their work as they produce important content for the research community, practitioners and policymakers,” said Susan Patrick, President and CEO of iNACOL.
Along with the blog and webinars, MVLRI is hosting a virtual quarterly Collaborative meeting for researchers to request critical feedback on current research and share opportunities for collaboration, including but not limited to ongoing research, grant proposals, books, papers, book chapters and conferences. The quarterly meetings start in fall 2014 with the first meeting on October 28. The other three quarterly meetings will occur in January, April and July. Register for the October meeting »
The meetings will take place in Adobe Connect and will be recorded so that those who cannot attend will be able to watch/listen to the recording. The Collaborative meetings include two presentations where presenters have 15 minutes to share their work and five minutes to field questions. There will be a call for presenters issued prior to the collaborative meetings. In addition to the quarterly Collaborative meetings, there will be meet-ups planned at upcoming conferences.
To find out about the Collaborative meetings, webinars, the MVLRI Blog and other online and blended research initiatives, please join MVLRI’s social media accounts mentioned above and/or email [email protected].
About Michigan Virtual
Michigan Virtual® is a private, nonprofit Michigan corporation established by the State of Michigan in 1998 to serve as a champion for online learning. It is the parent organization of the Michigan Virtual®, Michigan LearnPort®, and Michigan Virtual Learning Research Institute™.
About MVLRI
The Michigan Virtual Learning Research Institute™ draws upon recognized state and national leaders from K-12 schools, higher education and the private industry to provide research, evaluation and development expertise that support Michigan’s students, parents, schools, K-12 and postsecondary educators and state and local policymakers. Visit mvlri.org for more information »
