Randall Dunn has dabbled in multiple disciplines within the field of education, notably special education, educational technology, and theories of leadership and learning. He earned his doctorate from the University of Bath in the United Kingdom with primary research in how professional educators form communities in online environments. His master's degree is in the area of special education, focusing on transition services for mild disabilities. He also holds a teaching licensure in 4-8 regular education and special education (mental retardation, learning disabilities, emotional disturbance). He has taught in both regular and special education classrooms and has enjoyed working with children of all learning abilities and needs. Randall spent five years working as a project manager in the software development industry, using the latest in technology. This strengthened his primary research interest - the use of technology in educational organizations. He has performed original research in the area of online communication and professional educator virtual community formation. Randall has recently taken on the role of coordinating the newly created M.Ed. program in educational technology. He currently teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in educational technology, post-secondary transition for students with special needs, teaching social studies in the elementary school, historical and philosophical foundations of education, and middle education curriculum.
Scholarly Presentations
Virtual Worlds and Student Teaching Communities: Envisioning learning communities in virtual environments for distributed student teaching. (with David E. Holder and Debra B. Hodgson), The Virtual Worlds Best Practices in Education (2009)
Recent technological advances have afforded great opportunities for educators to meet the increasing demands of...
The Virtual Teacher's Lounge: How Teachers Meaningfully Connect Through Online Networks, Sixth International Conference on Networked Learning (2008)
This study seeks to illuminate an understanding of naturally forming online communities of professional educators...
The Efficacy of Service-Learning as Practical Experiences for Pre-service Special Education Teachers (with Christopher K. Shon), Council for Exceptional Children (2007)
This presentation examines recent research performed on a post-secondary transition program for students with moderate...
Family Involvement in Korean Special Education (with Christopher K. Shon), Virginia CEC (2007)
This presentation, made at the Virginia CEC, focused on recent qualitative research performed in the...
Professional Presentations
The Use of LiveText as the Primary Collaboration Tool for Hybrid Methods Courses, The 2008 LiveText Collaboration Conference (2008)
The challenge of using any new system for learning (technologically based or otherwise) is determining...
Harnessing Online Communities for Educational Practice, Association of Christian Schools International (2007)
The rise of the use of the Internet and the subsequent connections among peoples located...
Integrating Technology into Pedagogical Practice, Association of Christian Schools International (2007)
This presentation focuses on the the foundations of considering integrating technology into instruction, the various...
IDEA 2004: Current Special Education Practice, Association of Christian Schools International (2007)
This presentation focuses on the fundamental principles of special education, their origins and their specific...
Special Education & IDEA 2004, Faculty Publications and Presentations (2007)
This presentation was made at the Liberty University School of Law on October 22, 2007,...
Unpublished Manuscripts
Entering the Virtual Teacher’s Lounge: The Efficacy of Community in Computer-Mediated Communication Based Environments for Professional Educators, Faculty Dissertations (2008)
This study seeks to illuminate an understanding of naturally forming online communities of professional educators...
Professional Development and Educational Technology Integration, Faculty Publications and Presentations (2004)
This paper examines a structure for the implementation of technological innovations using business approaches to...
Can Virtual Teacher Communities be a Reality?, Faculty Publications and Presentations (2003)
In this paper I will discuss the effects of online communication on social connectivity and...
An Examination of Online Qualitative Research Methods, Faculty Publications and Presentations (2002)
This paper is meant as an exploration into possible approaches to answering the following research...
Scholarly Publications
Entering the Virtual Teachers' Lounge: Social Connectedness Among Professional Educators in Virtual Environments, Faculty Publications and Presentations (2010)
As communication and connection are essential instruments for professional educators, this chapter seeks to examine...