Browsing by Subject "Web-based instruction"

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Higher education faculty satisfaction with online teaching
(2007-12) Heilman, Joanne G., 1954-; Resta, Paul E.
This research explored 19 higher education faculty members' perceptions of satisfaction with their online teaching work, identified elements that enhance or inhibit these higher education faculty members' online teaching satisfaction, and provided a theoretical framework, higher education faculty online teaching satisfaction a conceptual model, to understand the relationship among these elements. The study participants represented eight different university campuses, three academic disciplines, and 10 online programs. Data was collected from multiple sources including an online background questionnaire, semi-structured interviews, and public documents. Data was analyzed using the procedures for developing constructivist grounded theory proposed by Charmaz (2006). The researcher posits that the individual context component in this conceptual model affects, and is affected by the work context component as follows, online teaching work-related experiences are subjectively interpreted by individuals and groups of individuals, i.e., work-related perceptions, which affect, and are affected by individual(s) socially constructed and subjective interpretations of their online teaching work, i.e., individual(s) interpretations of work circumstances. The work-related perceptions and individual interpretations of the online teaching work circumstances reciprocally interact with each other, affecting and being affected by the first two components, individual context and work context, which also reciprocally interact and affect, and are affected by the faculty member(s) affective and cognitive evaluations of their online teaching work. These affective and cognitive evaluations result in a continuum of online teaching satisfaction. The resulting continuum of online teaching satisfaction can reciprocally affect, and be affected by any or all of the previously mentioned components of the conceptual model of this research.
Sense of co-accomplishment in collaborative work as threshold in establishing a sense of community in an online course
(2004) Lee, Dongjoo; Resta, Paul E.
This study explored students’ sense of community in an online collaborative learning environment, focusing on the factors influencing students’ sense of community, the relationships among the factors, and the influences of a sense of community. The setting of this study was a graduate-level online course on Computer Supported Collaborative Learning in which all course activities were conducted collaboratively through online communications. Data were collected from multiple sources including participants’ electronic messages posted in public areas of the computer conferencing system, transcripts of online chats, interviews with the participants, participants’ written reflections on their learning process, and an instrument measuring students’ sense of community. Data were analyzed using the coding procedures for developing grounded theory proposed by Strauss and Corbin (1998). Results of the data analysis indicated that students established their sense of community by experiencing a sense of coaccomplishment through collaboration. Results also indicated that the factors influencing students’ sense of community related to three dimensions: group interaction, course context, and individual differences. Students’ sense of community was influenced primarily by the outcomes of interactions with group members, such as group members’ behaviors showing consideration for others, responding to their contributions, and contributing to the group collaboration. Factors related to the course context, such as the collaborative nature of the course, the technology used for the course, and the instructor’s role, influenced students’ sense of community by either facilitating or interfering with the group interactions. In addition, some factors resulting from individual differences in backgrounds and characteristics, such as personalities and attitudes toward collaborative learning, were critical for students to develop a sense of community. Once a sense of community was established, students developed a sense of camaraderie with their group members, felt more comfortable in working together, developed a greater sense of responsibility, and developed trust in their group members. The consequences of a sense of community, in turn, influenced the factors that promoted a sense of community when the students engaged in the next collaborative task.
Students' perceptions of peer and self assessment in a higher education online collaborative learning environment
(2008-08) Lee, Haekyung, 1973-; Resta, Paul E.
The purpose of the study was to investigate factors that affect students’ perceptions of the use of online peer and self assessment in an online collaborative learning environment, and to explore the impacts of the assessments on the online collaboration of the students. The setting of this study was a university graduate-level online credit course entitled Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL), in which all course activities were conducted collaboratively through online communications and online peer and self assessment was provided at the end of every group project. Data sources included: face-to-face or online video conferencing interviews with 14 participants; participants’ written reflections; their portfolios; messages that each participant posted to their group online discussion board; and peers’ and self comments on the online peer and self assessment. Data were analyzed using Strauss and Corbin’s (1998) grounded theory approach. Results of the data analysis showed that many factors allowed students to have varied perceptions, attitudes, and feelings in conducting the online peer and self assessment. The factors were grouped into three: learning context, individual differences, and online learning community. Learning context encompassed all parts of the CSCL online course strongly related to the peer and self assessment, including course elements, online assessment system, types of assessment feedback, and graduate school environment. Categories under the factor of individual differences included stringency-leniency in ratings, objectivity of ratings, previous assessment experience, purpose of the assessments, and degree of self-confidence in assessing their own contributions to the group activity. Categories related to the online learning community included group composition, engagement of group members, and sense of community. Additionally, the results revealed the impact of the use of peer and self assessment on the group collaboration in terms of understanding others’ perspectives, reflections on themselves, awareness of the assessments, interpersonal skills for collaboration, accountability, participation, personal criteria for the assessments, level of confidence with the assessments, and group collaboration.
Web-based instruction : the effect of design considerations on learner perceptions and achievement
(2000-08) Jones, Colleen McBride; Liu, Min, Ed. D.
Web-based instruction provides a new medium for the presentation of instructional activities. In the development of web-based instruction, the designer must realize that the instructional media are merely vehicles for the exchange of ideas. The medium has the capability of addressing individual preferences and styles of learning through its structure and the use of multiple forms of media. Through careful design and adherence to the objectives of instruction and to learners' needs, web-based instruction can provide a successful environment for a variety of learners. In web-based instruction, the design should not be transferred just from one medium to another, but the experience should be redefined with the capabilities of the new medium utilized. Instructional designers must capitalize on the new opportunities that the web provides to learners--to access information from remote locations, to interact with the instruction, to access the instruction at their own pace, to visualize the instruction, and to see the complex relationships in the instruction (Alexander, 1995). Factors in the hypermedia environment, such as visualization, as well as individual student characteristics, such as goal orientation, achievement, and perception, must be taken into account, so the design of web-based instruction enhances the educational opportunities of the learners. ThermoNet was envisioned as a comprehensive supplement for introductory mechanical engineering students. Utilizing many forms of visual media, such as animations, graphics, and video, students would have unlimited access to an interactive web-based environment. This study had four objectives: (1) to determine what students’ characteristics predicted achievement in thermodynamics, (2) to determine what student characteristics predicted the amount of time students spent engaged in ThermoNet, (3) to determine what characteristics impacted students' perceptions of ThermoNet, and (4) to explain the benefits of a web-based instructional environment. The results of this study reveal that web-based instruction may not have a direct impact on students, but the students' goal orientation and preferred mode of learning may impact their achievement. Also, these student characteristics may impact the learner's perception of web-based instruction. More importantly, the results divulge important insights into how web-based instruction can be designed to be a successful learning environment.