This article examines Active Engagement, Active Communication, and Peer Engagement learning practices among various student groups. It examines which tools are most important for increasing student satisfaction with web-based and web-enhanced instruction. Second, it looks at how different tools lead to greater satisfaction among different types of students (undergraduate, master’s level, and doctoral level). Data were collected from 491 participants who answered an identical learning styles survey about technology-based pedagogical tools. This study revealed that students enrolled in web-based courses taught by one professor demonstrate high levels of satisfaction in courses that provide active, engaging learning environments.
Tag: Online Learning
Exploring Value Variations in Instructor Presence Techniques for Online Students
This study sought to define and measure online undergraduate students’ perceived value of instructor presence techniques across five communication mediums per pedagogical goal (connection to course content, connection to classmates, connection to the instructor, foster interest, and facilitate immediate feedback). Students found personalized written messages from an instructor (M=4.61) as most valuable due to their ability to provide immediate feedback. Interactive phone calls (M=3.24) were the least valuable in the area of familiarity. Results indicate all instructor presence techniques had value, but some were more valuable than others.
Learning, Course Satisfaction, and Community in the Time of COVID-19: Student Perceptions of the Switch to Emergency Remote Teaching
This multiple descriptive case study explores how university students responded to their Business Communications course’s transitioning to an emergency remote course during the spring semester of 2020. Thirty-nine students completed an end-of-semester questionnaire that recorded their impressions of learning and course satisfaction. Nine of those students also participated in semi-structured interviews about these topics. The data revealed that most students enjoyed and felt they learned more from their in-person course, they missed learning from their peers, and they missed the community that was created during the in-person class sessions that were suspended due to university-sanctioned COVID-19 protocols. This article discusses the need for instructors to integrate continuous interactive community into online courses and the need for universities to provide training for online instructors in this essential component in course preparation and execution.