influence the effectiveness of the teaching that it supports?

This paper describes research in progress, to identify and explore the factors that lead to effective online learning and teaching. The primary aim of the research is to investigate whether the features of online software can influence the effectiveness of the teaching that it supports. We describe in more detail our aims and methodology, including the development and trialing of an analytic grid for identifying effective online and blended teaching. We describe some of the problems we have encountered in relation to data gathering and analysis, how we are overcoming these and our progress so far. Keywords analysis of online interactions, effective online learning and teaching, online educational software Research aims Institutions both nationally and internationally continue to invest huge resources into the use of educational technology using various software programs developed for learning and teaching online. While numerous studies have been carried out examining how teachers and students interact online when using such technology, no research to date has explored specifically if and how features of the software itself may influence the effectiveness of the teaching that it supports. How can teachers find the balance between how to teach and what tools to use to help them? The main aim of this research is to explore the factors that lead to effective online teaching, by investigating whether the features of online software can influence the effectiveness of the teaching that it supports. In this context teaching is taken to mean interaction, between and among students and teachers; that is, mediated by the teachers. This form of online interaction is the specific focus of our research. The research questions we are addressing include: • What pedagogical strategies do teachers use online effectively to engage their students? • How does the software used in the online environment impact on these factors