Maximising Social Interactions and Effectiveness within Distance Learning Courses: Cases from Construction

Advanced Internet technologies have revolutionised the delivery of distance learning education. As a result, the physical proximity between learners and the learning providers has become less important. However, whilst the pervasiveness of these technological developments has reached unprecedented levels, critics argue that the student learning experience is still not as effective as conventional face-to-face delivery. In this regard, surveys of distance learning courses reveal that there is often a lack of social interaction attributed to this method of delivery, which tends to leave learners feeling isolated due to a lack of engagement, direction, guidance and support by the tutor. This paper defines and conceptualises this phenomenon by investigating the extent to which distance-learning programmes provide the social interactions of an equivalent traditional classroom setting. In this respect, two distance learning case studies were investigated, covering the UK and Slovenian markets respectively. Research findings identified that delivery success is strongly dependent on the particular context to which the specific distance learning course is designed, structured and augmented. It is therefore recommended that designers of distance learning courses should balance the tensions and nuances associated with commercial viability and pedagogic effectiveness

Maximising social interactions and effectiveness within distance learning courses : cases from construction

Advanced Internet technologies have revolutionised the delivery of distance learning education. As a result, the physical proximity between learners and the learning providers has become less important. However, whilst the pervasiveness of these technological developments has reached unprecedented levels, critics argue that the student learning experience is still not as effective as conventional face-to-face delivery. In this regard, surveys of distance learning courses reveal that there is often a lack of social interaction attributed to this method of delivery, which tends to leave learners feeling isolated due to a lack of engagement, direction, guidance and support by the tutor. This paper defines and conceptualises this phenomenon by investigating the extent to which distance-learning programmes provide the social interactions of an equivalent traditional classroom setting. In this respect, two distance learning case studies were investigated, covering the UK and Slovenian markets respectively. Research findings identified that delivery success is strongly dependent on the particular context to which the specific distance learning course is designed, structured and augmented. It is therefore recommended that designers of distance learning courses should balance the tensions and nuances associated with commercial viability and pedagogic effectiveness

Preferred Learning Mode, Instructor Competence and Tuition Reimbursement: What our Faculty and Students are Telling Us

This research examined comments in open response areas from 228 faculty and 659 student surveys regarding learning mode preference (classroom, online, video synchronous) instructor competence with technology and the impact of tuition reimbursement on student choice of learning mode. Most faculty and students viewed traditional classroom as the best option for quality interaction and learning. EagleVision Home (synchronous video learning) courses were noted for increased social presence and online courses were viewed as the most flexible option to take a class. Faculty and students emphasized the need for interaction in distance learning environments. Members of both groups highlighted technical issues that impeded faculty and student interaction which hampered learning effectiveness. Some students indicated that online courses had the highest workload of any learning mode. Faculty and students emphasized the need for faculty training and competence with distance learning technologies. Veteran’s Affairs (VA) funded students stated that they would chose an EagleVision Classroom course over an online or EagleVision Home course specifically due to increased VA reimbursement for in-resident courses. Recommendations included conducting future research as new distance learning technologies are deployed. Additionally, future researchers should use qualitative research tools in conjunction with quantitative analysis to gain a more complete assessment of faculty and student perceptions

Active Learning in Online, Self-Paced Courses

With the growth of online education, questions pertaining to educational quality have arisen. How can faculty encourage engagement in an online course in which students may be separated geographically, even isolated? How can faculty promote an active learning environment that increases higher-order thinking and encourages students to play an active role in their education, particularly when student and teacher may never meet face to face? For Guided Individual Study (GIS), these questions are even more significant as students take courses at their own pace rather than in a semester-based format. Along with university faculty, Academic Outreach has explored these questions, seeking to enhance our curriculum through technological resources available for online coursework. In the 12 years since we have introduced online coursework to our distance learning portfolio, our faculty has learned lessons and adapted as the online world has changed. What began as print-based correspondence courses became online courses using the same content, but a different method of transmission. With evolving technology, online courses are now able to take advantage of multiple ways to transmit information, encourage interaction and engagement. Online courses are no longer identical to print-based courses, or even classroom-based courses, but have the benefit of communicating content in multiple formats. And given the self-paced nature of our courses, we have added elements to create a sense of community among dispersed students who are at different points in their coursework. Our poster will present elements of GIS courses that encourage interaction and higher-order thinking. We will discuss how, because of the self-paced nature of our program, we have adapted technology so that interaction is increased between students and between instructor and student. We will discuss how an online, self-paced format can encourage an active learning environment, challenging students to develop necessary skills not developed through traditional classroom courses.unpublishednot peer reviewe

Accounting Chairpersons Compare Distance Learning Delivery Methodologies

Distance learning delivery methodologies have evolved over the last 100, or so, years since the educational paradigm was formally used in American higher education. Several different approaches to distance learning, where the student is in a location remote from their instructor, have been used. During the decade of the 90s developments in technology offered new delivery vehicles for distance learning and terms like “interactive television” “E mail,” and “Internet courses” have been added to the academic lexicon. Internet courses, where the interaction between faculty and student occurs primarily over the Internet, represent a substantial departure from the traditional learning model

Transactional Distance as a Predictor of Perceived Learner Satisfaction in Distance Learning Courses: A Case Study of Bachelor of Education Arts Program, University of Nairobi, Kenya

There is a long history of study and recognition of the critical role of interaction in supporting and even defining distance education. Interaction has been identified as key to the success of distance learning. It is key in fostering, supporting and engaging in the learning process. Moore (1989) posits that the physical distance that exists in e-learning courses between the teacher and the students may result in a psychological and communicational gap between them. Such a gap will often impede the ability of the teacher and his or her students to achieve the desired level of understanding among them. In the light of this, teachers and students participating in distance-learning courses will generally require “special” behavioral patterns, which are designed to overcome the communication gaps resulting from the transactional distance. This study examined three key distances experienced by students enrolled in distance learning courses as predictors of perceived learner satisfaction. Through a survey analysis, the study sought to answer 3 key questions - to what extent is Leaner-Leaner Transactional Distance (LLTD) predictive of students’ perceived satisfaction (SPS) with a Distance Education (DE) course? Is Learner-Teacher Transactional Distance (LTTD) a predictor of students perceived satisfaction with the DE course? To what extent does Learner-Content Transactional Distance (LCTD) serve as a predictor of perceived learner satisfaction with a DE course? Subjects constituted of a random sample of 168 students enrolled for a Bachelor of education program in 2013 at the University of Nairobi, Kenya. A survey questionnaire measured the predictive constructs of the study namely, Learner-Learner Transactional Distance (LLTD), Learner-Teacher Transactional Distance (LTTD) and Learner-Content Transactional Distance (LCTD). Students’ perceived satisfaction (SPS) was measured by use of a ten item Likert scale instrument. Results of the study indicated the three variables were key predictors of students’ perceived satisfaction with DE courses

Collection Development for Distance Learning

The ACRL Guidelines for Distance Learning Library Services (ACRL 2000) define distance learning library services as, “… those … in support of college, university, or other post-secondary courses and programs offered away from a main campus, or in the absence of a traditional campus, and regardless of where credit is given. These courses may be taught in traditional or non-traditional formats or media, may or may not require physical facilities, and may or may not involve live interaction of teachers and students. The phrase is inclusive of courses in all post-secondary programs designated as extension, extended, off-campus, extended campus, distance, distributed, open, flexible, franchising, virtual, synchronous, or asynchronous.