Joanne Jung (Associate Professor of Biblical and Theological Studies at Talbot School of Theology) recently finished writing and it will be released on October 13, 2015. We wanted to learn more about this book, so we had Joanne respond to some questions:

We heard that you recently released a new book. What is the book about?

Character Formation in Online Education is a highly practical resource for creating online courses that inspire students and foster their transformation. It starts with the philosophy of good online pedagogy that involves the heart and includes practical steps of working with an instructional designer. Chapters that address practical ways to maximize learning using the features of a Learning Management System make up the midsection of the work. Integration of faith and learning as well as assessment matters are also critical to good online pedagogy.

What is the general topic of this book and what made you feel like a book on this topic was needed?

The satisfaction of seeing transformation in my students taking an online course seemed so different from what I would read or stories I had heard from professors and students alike about their online course experiences. I wanted to present a perspective of online teaching that not only fosters deep learning but transformation.

What’s the most counterintuitive part of your book?

The most counterintuitive part of the book is understanding that character formation can occur, and has already been achieved, through online classes.

If you had to pick one quote (or one takeaway) from your book that everyone would take to heart, what would it be?

Great professors inspire students, and now they get to do it online.

How would you like to see this book used?

I would like to see the ideas presented in this book used by professors who have been challenged to create online courses and are a bit fearful of this endeavor or who want to improve their own experience in teaching online clas