Distance Education The Students Perspective

Discussions Introduce research focus Discuss pros and cons of Distance Education Integrating research into practice Supersizing Distance Ed Future Research

Pros of Distance Education Flexibility / Stress Relief Beard & Riley, 2004; Cereijo, 2006; May et al., 2009; Pastore & Carr-Chellman, 2009; Willging & Johnson, 2009 Curriculum / Web based links: any where, any time learning Gilbert & Rowley, 2007; May et al., 2009; Pastore & Carr Chellman, 2009 Discussion Forums and Support from other students Gilbert & Rowley, 2007; Stein et al., 2009 High Motivation / Positive Attitude = Positive Web based Experience Cereijo, 2006

Cons of Distance Education Challenges with hardware / software Beard & Riley, 2004; Conrad, 2002; Gilbert & Rowley, 2007; May et al., 2009; Thompson & Lynch, 2003; Willging & Johnson, 2009 Lack of Instructor Interaction Beard & Riley, 2004; Gilbert & Rowley, 2007; May et al., 2009 Lack of Interaction with other students Beard & Riley, 2004; May et al., 2009 Too many s; personal / off topic postings Conrad, 2002; May et al., 2009

Integrating Research w/ Practice Thompson & Lynch, 2003 – Largest study: 257 students (98.82% UG); large southeastern university – 93.3% neutral or resistant to WBI Important to consider: – Functionality of software chosen – Demographics of students in class – Facilitating access to course content

Supersizing Distance Ed Online classes with 900 – 2000 students Higher non-completion rates – Lack of social presence, isolation, lack of interaction with instructor Proposed solution – Increase feeling of social presence in online classroom

Strategies for increasing social presence Social Media Web 2.0 tools Digital Narratives Peer Review Shared leadership

Future Research Larger sample sizes Understanding learner’s technology issues More detail about instructors role Evaluation of Web 2.0 integration Does course size matter? Evaluate impact of sense of community

Ideal Classroom Time Creating the floor plan – Technology available – Details – show wikiwiki Excel – Questions and concerns? – Work with creating and embedding charts Next class – work class

Beard, L.A., Harper, C., & Riley, G. (2004). Online versus on-campus: Students attitudes & perceptions. TechTrends: Linking Research & Practice to Improve Learning, 48(6), 29 – 31. Retrieved from Cereijo,M.V.P. (2006). Attitude as predictor on success in online training. International Journal on E-Learning, 5(4), 623 – 639. Retrieved from Conrad, D.L. (2002). Engagement, excitement, anxiety, and fear: Learner’s experiences of starting an online course. The American Journal of Distance Education, 16(4), 205 – 226. Retrieved from Gilbert, J., Morton, S., & Rowley, J. (2007). eLearning: The student experience. British Journal of Educational Technology, 38 (4), doi: /j x Liaw, S.S., Huang, H.M., & Chen, G.D. (2006). Surveying instructor and learner attitudes toward e-learning. Computers & Education, 49, 1066 – doi: /j.compedu May, L., Acquaviva, K.D., Dorfman, A., & Posey, L. (2009). Medical student perceptions of self-paced, web-based electives: A descriptive study. The American Journal of Distance Education, 23, 212 – 223. doi: Pastore, R., & Carr-Chellman, A. (2009). Motivations for residential students to participate in online courses. The Quarterly Review of Distance Education, 10(3), 263 – 277. Stein, D.S., Wanstreet, C.E., & Calvin, J. (2009). How a novice adult online learner experiences transactional distance. The Quarterly Review of Distance Education, 10(3), 305 – 311. Retrieved from Thompson, L.F., & Lynch, B.J. (2003). Web-based instruction: Who is inclined to resist it and why? Journal Educational Computing Research, 29(3), 375 – 385. Retrieved from Willging, P.A., & Johnson, S.D. (2009) Factors that influence students’ decision to dropout of online courses, Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 13(3), 115 – 127. Retrieved from