Zondervan, an Evangelical Christian publishing company, recently interviewed several of their authors whose new books will be released in the near future. In attempts to provide a fun dialogue on unity in the church, Zondervan asked the authors which ice cream flavor is their favorite one. Watch below as several authors share their all time top picks:

We are proud of our very own Joanne Jung for being featured in this video montage as the only woman theologian, and one of the few Asian Americans represented. You may be interested to know that Dr. Joanne Jung's book, Character Formation in Online Education, is set to be released on October 13, 2015. Here is a little background information on Dr. Jung's latest book:

There are a number of excellent resources that describe the philosophy and theory of teaching and structuring an online course. While these remain helpful, Character Formation in Online Education provides the basis and helpful, proven tools for developing learning communities that impact student learning and change.

The reputation of online courses today is one of little or no effort to teach on the professor’s end and little or no learning on the student’s end. A missing element in teaching online courses is the type of mutual engagement between student and instructor that produces not only a higher level of learning but also character formation of the student. Character Formation in Online Education stems from years of teaching online courses and having the ever-present desire to improve the teaching environment for professors and the learning environment for students. Replicating, customizing, and incorporating the best and most effective practices of what a great professor does in his/her on-campus classes for an online delivery system, ensures a higher level of learning through the kind of learning community created. This handy book gives practical, user-friendly guidance, helpful tools, and effective suggestions for growing the kind of learning communities in online classes that are marked by character growth in students.

The primary audience for Character Formation in Online Education is professors in Christian academic institutions who will be or have been teaching students through an online class format and desire high quality, learner-based, learning communities where students become more than recipients of information transfer. The online class becomes an avenue for character formation.

Secondary audiences would include accrediting agencies and associations that desire to see the expansion of distributive learning through online courses of their constituents reach their maximum effectiveness. These might include:

  • The Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada (ATS), which has a membership of over 270 post-baccalaureate institutions granting professional and academic graduate degrees in ministry, biblical studies, and theology.
  • The Association of Biblical Higher Education (ABHE), which has a membership of about 200 postsecondary institutions in North America granting undergraduate degrees in biblical ministry and leadership.
  • Trans-national Association of Christian Colleges and Schools (TRACS), which has a membership of about 50 Christian postsecondary institutions in the United States, U.S. territories, and other locations that offer certificates and diplomas as well as associate, baccalaureate, and graduate degrees.
  • The Council for Christian Colleges & Universities (CCCU), which has a membership of about 110 accredited institutions and professional organizations for the various aspects of institutional leadership, including all the chief academic officers.

Other audiences include the Christian teacher/instructor/professor in a secular institution who is seeking support for improving the quality of an online class by incorporating features that cultivate character formation.

“Dr. Jung has given us the first real pathway to spiritual formation in cyberspace. Congratulations!”
—Michael K. Clifford, Education Entrepreneur, Philanthropist
“This book will bring fresh ideas and new inspiration. Read it. Your students will thank you!”
—Moyer Hubbard, Talbot School of Theology, Chair, New Testament Department
“What a fascinating collage of insights!”
—Evan B. Howard, Fuller Theological Seminary; Founder and Director of Spirituality Shoppe