Carol’s Bio

Carol Sparkes is an Instructional Designer at Thompson Rivers University (TRU) – Open Learning. She shares her passion for learning with university faculty in designing courses for online delivery. Prior to moving to TRU, Carol designed instruction at the University of Guelph in Guelph, Ontario, and Mount Saint Vincent University (MSVU) in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Carol has a PhD (Educational Technology) from Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec.  Her research involves using meta-analysis to measure the impact of the flipped classroom compared to the traditional classroom on student achievement in higher education.  Carol holds a Master of Information Technology Education from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and two undergraduate degrees (Bachelor of Arts in sociology and Bachelor of Commerce) from Memorial University in St. John’s, Newfoundland.

In the online world, Carol has taken courses in French and cooking, and has taught computer programming.  In the physical world, Carol has been a squash player for many years to keep in shape while making new friends. A joy of travel, people, and new cultures has enticed her to visit countries such as England, New Zealand, Japan, China, Czech Republic, Croatia, Greece, United States, and across Canada. She is delighted to be in Kamloops now and exploring this new territory with her husband Don.