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Faculty Swapna Kumar

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Swapna Kumar 

Clinical Professor, Educational Technology

Swapna Kumar

Phone

352-273-4175

Email

swapnakumar@coe.ufl.edu

Address

PO Box 117048
Gainesville, FL 32611

Connect

@SKEdTech

About

Dr. Kumar is a Clinical Professor of Educational Technology at the University of Florida. She led the design and implementation of UF’s online doctorate in Educational Technology from 2010-2024. Prior to her role at UF, she has held positions in faculty development, learning and performance strategy, and foreign language education.

Dr. Kumar’s research encompasses three major areas. She studies various aspects of online education, with the aim of identifying what constitutes excellence in online education, with a focus on online pedagogy and online program quality. A second strand of her research centers around doctoral education, specifically online and professional doctorates, online supervision/mentoring, and GenAI integration in doctoral research processes. She has led the development of an evidence-based model for a research-focused online professional doctorate (Kumar & Dawson, 2018), and a framework for online research mentoring (Kumar et al., 2018). Third, she explores technology integration in higher education teaching, recently focusing on Generative AI integration in teaching and instructional design.

Dr. Kumar bridges cultures and countries in her work - she was a Fulbright Scholar to Hungary, a Visiting Professor in Germany, and has engaged in several international collaborations.

Affiliations

  • School of Teaching and Learning
  • Institute for Advanced Learning Technologies

Research Interests

Adult Education, Blended Learning, Design and Development of Educational Technology Interventions, Educational / Instructional Design, Emerging Technologies, Faculty Development, Information Literacy, Online Mentoring, Online and Distance Education

Education

  • Ed.D. - Boston University. 2007. Curriculum and Instruction.Ed.M. - Boston University. 2001. Educational Media and Technology.
  • M.A. - Central Institute of English and Foreign Languages, India. 1994. German Literature and Translation
  • B.A. - Jawaharlal Nehru University, India. 1991. German Studies.

Professional Appointments

  • Clinical Professor of Educational Technology, University of Florida, 2021-Present
  • Clinical Associate Professor of Educational Technology, University of Florida, 2015-2021
  • Clinical Assistant Professor of Educational Technology, University of Florida, 2009-2015
  • Instructor & Coordinator of Online Education, School of Education, Boston University, 2007-2009
  • Adjunct Instructor, School of Education, Boston University, 2001-2007
  • Senior Consultant, Learning and Performance Strategy Practice, Productivity Dynamics, Boston, 2001-2007

Activities and Honors

  • Online Educator of the Year Award 2025. University of Florida.
  • 2024 Division of Distance Learning Best Proposal Award for: Kumar, S. & Gunn, A. (2024) Generative AI: Online doctoral students’ use and concerns. Association of Educational Communications and Technology (AECT)
  • 2024 Practical Application Publication Award for: Martin, F., Kumar, S., Ritzhaupt, A. D., & Polly, D. (2023). Bichronous online learning: Award-winning online instructor practices of blending asynchronous and synchronous online modalities. The Internet and Higher Education, 56, 100879. AECT Division of Distance Learning.
  • 2020 Distance Education Best Practice Award for: Marull, C. & Kumar, S. Authentic Language Learning through Telecollaboration in Online Courses. TechTrends, 64, 628-635. AECT Division of Distance Learning,
  • 2020 Best Qualitative Journal Article Award for: Kumar, S., Martin, F., Budhrani, K., & Ritzhaupt, A. (2019). Award-winning faculty online teaching practices: Elements of award-winning courses. Online Learning Journal, 23(4), 160-180. Division of Distance Learning, AECT.
  • Rosser Educator Excellence Award 2019-2020. College of Education, University of Florida.
  • 2019 Best Qualitative Journal Article Award for: Martin, F., Budhrani, K., Kumar, S. & Ritzhaupt, A. (2019). Award-Winning Faculty Online Teaching Practices: Roles and Competencies. Online Learning Journal, 23(1), 184-205. Division of Distance Learning, AECT.
  • Fulbright Scholar Award 2016-2017. Council for International Exchange of Scholars, USA.
  • Superior Accomplishment Award, 2016. Division Three. University of Florida

Selected Publications

Books/Guides
  • Kumar, S. & Arnold, P. (Eds.) (2022). Quality in Online Programs: Approaches and Practices in Higher Education. Brill/Sense Publishers and AECT.
  • Kumar, S. & Dawson, K. (2018). An Online Doctorate for Researching Professionals: Program Design, Implementation and Evaluation. Athabasca, Canada: Athabasca University Press. http://www.aupress.ca/index.php/books/120272
Articles
  • Kumar, S., Bolliger, D. U., & Roumell, E. A. (2023). Technologies, Strategies, and Supports Helpful to Faculty in their E-mentoring of dissertations. Online Learning Journal, 27(3). https://doi.org/10.24059/olj.v27i3.3630
  • Kumar, S., Roumell, E. A., & Bolliger, D. U. (2023). Faculty Perceptions of e-Mentoring Doctoral Dissertations: Challenges, Strategies, and Institutional Support. American Journal of Distance Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/08923647.2023.2213137
  • Zhu, J. & Kumar, S. (2023). An Analysis of Online and Hybrid EdD programs in Educational Technology. TechTrends, 67, 693-705. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-023-00848-8
  • Martin, F., Kumar, S., Ritzhaupt, A. D., & Polly, D. (2022). Bichronous Online Learning: Award-Winning Online Instructor Practices of Blending Asynchronous and Synchronous Online Modalities. Internet and Higher Education, 56, 100879. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iheduc.2022.100879
  • Kumar, S., Dawson, K., Pollard, R. & Jeter, G. (2022). Analyzing Theories, Conceptual Frameworks, and Research Methods in EdD Dissertations. TechTrends. 66(4), 721-728. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-022-00739-4
  • Dorner, H. & Kumar, S. (2022). Academic development for doctoral students: Exploring the relevance of teaching-research integration, discipline-sensitivity and collaboration. International Journal for Academic Development. https://doi.org/10.1080/1360144X.2022.2059486
  • Kumar, S., Ritzhaupt, A. D., & Pedro, N. S. (2022). Development and validation of the Online Instructor Support Survey (OISS). Online Learning Journal, 26(1), 221-244 https://doi.org/10.24059/olj.v26i1.2622
  • Pollard, R. & Kumar, S. (2022). Instructional Designers in Higher Education: Roles, Challenges, and Supports. Journal of Applied Instructional Design, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.51869/111/rp
  • Martin, F., Kumar, S. & She, L. (2021). Examining Higher Education Instructor Roles and Competencies in Online Teaching. Online Learning Journal, 25(4), 267-295. https://doi.org/10.24059/olj.v25i4.2570
  • Kumar, S., Pollard, R., Johnson, M. & Dogan, N. (2021). Online Research Group Supervision: Structure, Support, and Community. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 58(6), 647-658. https://doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2021.1991430
  • Kumar, S., & Wisker, G. (2021). Editorial–IETI 58/6. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 58(6), 609-611. https://doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2021.1999093
  • Kellen, K. & Kumar, S. (2021). Types of barriers experienced by online instructors in higher education. Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration, 23(4). https://ojdla.com/articles/types-of-barriers-experienced-by-online-instructors-in-higher-education
  • Pollard, R. & Kumar, S. (2021). Mentoring Graduate Students Online: Strategies and Challenges. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 22(2), 267-284. https://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/article/view/5093
  • Pedro, N. S. & Kumar, S. (2020). Institutional support for online teaching in quality assurance frameworks. Online Learning Journal, 24(3), 50-66. https://doi.org/10.24059/olj.v24i3.2309
  • Marull, C. & Kumar, S. (2020). Authentic language learning through telecollaboration in online courses. TechTrends, 64, 628–635. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-020-00488-2
  • Kumar, S., Martin, F., Budhrani, K., & Ritzhaupt, A. (2019). Award-winning faculty online teaching practices: Elements of award-winning courses. Online Learning Journal, 23(4), 160-180. https://olj.onlinelearningconsortium.org/index.php/olj/article/view/2077
  • Kumar, S. & Johnson, M. (2019). Online mentoring of dissertations: the role of structure and support. Studies in Higher Education, 44(1), 59-71. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2017.1337736
  • Martin, F., Ritzhaupt, A., Kumar, S., & Budhrani, K. (2019). Award-winning faculty online teaching practices: Course design, assessment, and facilitation. Internet and Higher Education, 42, 34-43. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iheduc.2019.04.001
  • Kumar, S. & Ritzhaupt, A. R. (2017). What do instructional designers in higher education really do? International Journal on E-learning, 16(4), 371-393.
  • Kumar, S. & Johnson, M. (2017). Mentoring doctoral students online: Mentor Strategies and Challenges. Mentoring and Tutoring: Partnerships in Learning, 27(2), 202-222. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13611267.2017.1326693
  • Kumar, S. & Coe, C. (2017). Online mentoring and student support in online doctoral programs. American Journal of Distance Education, 31(2), 128-142. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/08923647.2017.1300464
  • Kumar, S. (2014). A systematic approach to the assessment of impact in a professional doctorate. Higher Education, Skills and Work-based Learning 4(2) 171-183. https://doi.org/10.1108/HESWBL-10-2013-0020
  • Kumar, S. (2014). Signature Pedagogy, Implementation and Evaluation of an Online Program that impacts Educational Practice. Internet and Higher Education, 21, 60-67.
Book Chapters
  • Ritzhaupt, A. D., Kumar, S., & Martin, F. (2024). Instructional Designers in Higher Education. In R. A. Reiser, A. A. Carr-Chellman, & J. V. Dempsey (Eds.) Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology, 5th edition (pp. 384-397). Routledge.
  • Kumar, S., Dawson, K., Ritzhaupt, A., Israel, M., & Antonenko, P. (2024). Research curriculum design to connect theory, research, and practice in an online EdD in Educational Technology. In C. Benedetti & A. Covarrubias (Eds.). Teaching Critical Inquiry and Applied Research in Ed.D. Programs: Moving beyond Traditional Methods (pp.157-172). CPED/Myers Education Press.
  • Kumar, S., Johnson, M. L., Dogan, N., & Coe, C. (2022). A Framework for E-mentoring in Doctoral Education. In Information Resources Management Association (Ed.) Research Anthology on Doctoral Student Professional Development (pp. 232-251). Hershey, PA: IGI Global.
  • Martin, F., & Kumar, S. (2021). A Synthesis of Current Research on Graduate Online Education. In K. E. Rudestam, J. Schoenholtz-Read, & M. L. Snowden (Eds). The Handbook of Online Learning in Higher Education. (pp. 105-133). Santa Barbara, CA: Fielding University Press.
Articles
  • Kumar, S., Roumell, E. A., & Bolliger, D. U. (2025). Faculty Perceptions of e-Mentoring Doctoral Dissertations: Challenges, Strategies, and Institutional Support. American Journal of Distance Education, 39(2) 128-148.
  • Kumar, S. & Gunn, A. (2024). Doctoral Students’ Reflections on Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) use in the Literature Review Process. Innovations in Education and Teaching International.
  • Kumar, S., Gunn, A., Rose, R., Pollard, R., Johnson, M. & Ritzhaupt, A. D. (2024). The role of instructional designers in the integration of generative artificial intelligence in online and blended learning in higher education. Online Learning Journal, 28(3), 207-231.
  • Martin, F., Kumar, S., Ritzhaupt, A. D., & Polly, D. (2024). Bichronous Online Learning: Best Practices, Benefits, and Challenges from Award-Winning Online Instructor Perspectives. Online Learning Journal, 28(2), 1-27.
  • Kumar, S., Bolliger, D. U., & Roumell, E. A. (2023). Technologies, Strategies, and Supports Helpful to Faculty in their E-mentoring of dissertations. Online Learning Journal, 27(3).
  • Kumar, S., Dawson, K., Pollard, R. & Jeter, G. (2022). Analyzing Theories, Conceptual Frameworks, and Research Methods in EdD Dissertations. TechTrends, 66(4), 721-728.
  • Kumar, S., Ritzhaupt, A. D., & Pedro, N. S. (2022). Development and validation of the Online Instructor Support Survey (OISS). Online Learning Journal, 26(1), 221-244.
  • Kumar, S., Pollard, R., Johnson, M. & Dogan, N. (2021). Online Research Group Supervision: Structure, Support, and Community. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 58(6), 647-658.
  • Kumar, S., Martin, F., Budhrani, K., & Ritzhaupt, A. (2019). Award-winning faculty online teaching practices: Elements of award-winning courses. Online Learning Journal, 23(4).
Presentations
  • Kumar, S., Gunn, A., Pollard, R., Rose, R., Johnson, M., & Ritzhaupt, A. D. (2024, October). Instructional Designers’ integration of generative AI in their practice. Association of Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) Annual Meeting 2024, USA.
  • Kumar, S. & Gunn, A. (2024, October). Generative AI: Online doctoral students’ use and concerns. Association of Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) Annual Meeting 2024, USA.
Other Publications

Selected Links