DTheses (Athabasca University)
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Comparing the effect of support on student satisfaction in online and face-to-face universities
Get PDFThe faculty-student relationship is very important in distance education. The effects of faculty support to the student have received less attention in the literature. The purpose of this study was to develop a better understanding of how online distance education faculties can provide better support to increase student satisfaction in an online university. Five participants that attended both face-to-face and online post-secondary education at the undergraduate level were interviewed regarding their level of satisfaction with the support their faculties afforded them. The four themes uncovered surrounding the factors that influenced student levels of satisfaction were faculty service and support, student attitude, auxiliary support, and course design and setup. All four themes exhibited positive correlations with the presence of these categories and the level of student satisfaction. The strongest of these correlations was the positive effect that the timeliness and involvement of the faculty has on the increase in student satisfaction.2014-0
Synchronous web conferencing: Towards a pedagogical model for effective learning
Get PDFPedagogy supported by synchronous web conferencing is the topic of this research study. While
pedagogy for asynchronous online learning has been widely studied, there is little literature on a
coherent pedagogical model that guides teaching and learning practices in a synchronous web-
conferencing environment. The study undertaken here aimed to address this gap by investigating
the extent to which synchronous web conferencing offered a benefit over traditional classroom-
based learning. The action research methodology based on the mixed methods of combining
quantitative and qualitative analyses was adopted to investigate (a) the students’ course
achievement over three semesters, (b) the factors contributed to students’ positive learning
experience, (c) the emergence of a set of pedagogical patterns; (c) the implementation issues of
synchronous web conferencing; (d) the potential of learning analytics; and (e) the development
of a pedagogical model. At an overall level, when the data from the three semesters was
combined, the study revealed that students’ achievement in terms of their examination results
was significant (p = 0.04 < 0.05) between students who experienced synchronous web-
conference learning (Mean = 68.9, SD = 11.8) and those who experienced face-to-face learning
(mean = 65.5, SD = 12.2). However, at the individual semester level, there was no significant
difference in two of the three semesters studied.2014-0
Augmented Reality for Location-Based Adaptive Mobile Learning
Get PDFAugmented Reality (AR) has become a popular interactive technique in the last few years. One of the critical challenges is to identify the real-life objects. Further, how to fully exert the advantages of the AR technique under the limited resources available on the mobile devices is another critical challenge. To resolve the above issue, firstly this thesis reviewed the real-life object tagging and identification techniques. Secondly this thesis studied the Human Computer Interaction (HCI) Interface and the environmental sensors on the mobile phones. Lastly this thesis implemented a Multiple Real-life Object Identification Algorithm along with the development of the Multi Object Identification Augmented Reality (MOIAR) application. Subsequently, the MOIAR application has been implemented in the location-based mobile learning environment, where the Legislative Assembly of Alberta is included as an example real-life learning object. This MOIAR implementation has applied the tagging and identification technique review as well as the HCI and sensors study, to prove the usability and practicability of the MOIAR application.2012-0
Training higher education adjunct faculty to teach online: A design-based research study
Get PDFThis thesis researched what characteristics of a training course influenced participants’ professional practice. The training this study evaluated was MarylandOnline’s Certificate for Online Adjunct Teaching (COAT) course. The COAT project began in 2008 when instructional designers from various higher education institutions collaborated on developing training for instructors who were making the transition to online teaching. Using a design-based research methodological approach within an interpretivist research paradigm, this study used mixed methods data collection tools and grounded theory data analysis techniques to evaluate whether the COAT course effectively helped the target audience of higher education adjunct faculty make the transition to online teaching. This study found that not only adjuncts with no online teaching experience, but also experienced online instructors, full-time faculty, and nonteaching professionals completed the COAT course. Research participants identified that the experience of being situated as students in an authentic online course focused on online teaching and learning influenced their later online teaching, campus-based teaching, and nonteaching professional practice. Focus group participants cocreated an observation protocol that was applied to archived courses taught by COAT alumni, and it was found that instructors, as reflective practitioners, took from their COAT experience instructional approaches and competencies that were appropriate for their specific teaching situations. Although limited to a particular context, the original contribution to scholarship of this study was the articulation of design principles and a conceptual framework that may be useful to researchers and practitioners working in the area of online instructor training.2013, 0
Encouraging deep learning in a blended environment: A study of instructional design approaces
Get PDFThis qualitative research study seeks to answer the question: Which instructional design approaches for blended learning encourage deep learning? This grounded theory research captures the lived experiences of instructional designers and faculty members in converting courses at the post-secondary level from traditional, face-to-face delivery to blended delivery using educational technology. Study results provide insight into the complexities involved in the design and development of blended delivery courses and shed light on the complications that can arise with course conversion. The study also opens a window into design approaches to foster deep learning, clarifying the importance of targeting high levels of learning in the course syllabus / outline, and then aligning every part of the course to the specific learning outcomes identified. Study results culminate in a set of recommended instructional design approaches that foster deep learning in a blended learning environment.2013-0
Essential Practices for Online Instruction: A Study Using Delphi Techniques
Get PDFThe purpose of this study was to develop a set of essential practices for online instruction at a higher education institution. The literature of online learning indicated that traditional classroom-based instructors needed support and professional development to adapt their teaching methods for effective online course delivery. Many instructors at the participant institution for this study were asked to teach online; however, they received very few guidelines for online instruction and minimal support. Using techniques based on the Delphi Method, a group of expert online instructors at the participant institution was asked to agree on a set of practices they considered essential for online instruction. The initial set of practices was developed through a qualitative analysis of 18 references from the literature of online learning. The final set of practices the participants agreed were essential, 37 items in total, may represent an effective starting point for professional development and support of online instructors at the participant institution.2013-1
SME Internationalization: The Influence of Attitude on the Decision to Commit to Advanced Market Entry Modes
Get PDFParticipation and success of small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) in global markets is of strategic interest to business and public policy makers. Despite empirical evidence that generally demonstrates that performance improves with the level of internationalization mode, there is an identified problem in getting SME decision-makers to make a significant commitment to more advanced modes of internationalization.
A review of international business, entrepreneurship and organizational behavior research demonstrated that the attitudes of the SME decision-maker significantly impact the decision-making process to commit to advanced modes of internationalization. Further, the factors that influence and contribute to these attitudes are not well understood. The explicit objective of this research is to determine the important factors that affect a SME decision-maker’s attitude and how they influence the decision to commit to a more advanced foreign market entry mode of internationalization.
A quantitative online survey directed at 3117 Canadian manufacturing SME decision-makers who are in advanced and non-advanced modes of internationalization was undertaken. The responses from 224 participants were used for both hypothesis testing and to extend current theory that only marginally acknowledges the effect of attitude on the decision-making process.
This research has demonstrated support for attitudinal factors being a differentiator between advanced and non-advanced internationalization modes; and hence these factors are supported as influencers in the complex SME decision-making process. In addition, there is full statistical support for two constructs (Knowledge of culture, Perceived benefits) and moderate support for an additional two constructs (International experience, International commitment). Cross validation further validated the results and provided confidence for the conclusions generated.
This research’s conceptual framework and empirical results should make valuable additions to the literature on international business activities, specifically in the context that relates to the importance of attitudes in the decision-making process of mode choice. The research has reinforced some elements of existing international business theories and cast some doubt on the influence of other elements contained within these theories. The empirical results of this study also contribute to business practices and governmental agencies by identifying areas of improvements in internationalization support programs.2013/1
Does Learning Style Influence Student Anxiety During a Human Patient Simulation Experience?
Get PDFHuman patient simulation (HPS) is becoming increasingly popular in nursing education. HPS learning activities can enhance the development of critical thinking, clinical judgment, and decision in an environment that poses no risk to patients. Many studies have been conducted examining the student experience during HPS events and student anxiety has been identified as a challenge. A quantitative correlation design was used to gain an understanding of the relationship between learning style and student anxiety during an HPS event. Thirty nine students completed the Index of Learning Styles Inventory, and wore portable heart rate monitors during an HPS event. There was a statistically significant change in HR from the resting HR during the role assignment, hands-on care and debriefing phases of the HPS event. However, there was no statistically significant relationship between learning style and student anxiety during the HPS experience.2013-1
Teacher Decision Making in a Ubiquitous Learning Environment
Get PDFThe ability for teachers to support students in ubiquitous learning environments has proven to be very challenging due to the limitations caused by physical distance and asynchronous communication methods. This been has been further complicated by the dynamic nature of the learning process and a dramatic rise in the number of digital resources combined with those found in the real world. This has generated a vast amount of information in terms of learning interactions, mobile anywhere, anytime access, peer associations, and demographic materials. This plethora of information has made it extremely difficult to isolate critical facts and refine meaningful patterns. While data mining, adaptive learning systems and other education support techniques have provided a number of tools they have yet to create a universal method of assisting students. These mechanisms have also focused on replicating the expertise provided by teachers rather than supporting them. These techniques also tend to be highly complex requiring specialized skills just to use them thereby limiting accessibility. Given the challenges of automating educational processes this paper proposes a mechanism for reconnecting teachers with their students. To accomplish this, an educational decision support system has been proposed in the form of an interactive dashboard to empower teachers with the ability to access student learning process information along with machine generated recommendations. The design has also focused on ways of expressing data mining outcomes using methods which have highly visual components in order to promote ease of access. This research has developed one potential teacher decision support system design for use in a ubiquitous learning environment. This has been augmented by also identifying the tools suitable for constructing such a dashboard. The prototype from this research has provided a proof of concept which can be used to guide future work and derive feedback from teachers and researchers alike.2013-0
Analyzing the impact of mobile access on learner interactions in a MOOC
Get PDFAs mobile access and massive open online courses (MOOCs) become a global reality, the realm of potential distance learners is expanding rapidly. Mobile learning (mLearning) as well as MOOCs are based on similar characteristics as shown in the literature review of this study. They both enhance a community feeling, increasing networking and collaboration; they strengthen lifelong and informal learning, they use social media to a large extend and they are ideal for setting up communicative dialogues. The focus on learner interactions is of interest, as research has shown that dialogue is an important element for learning and knowledge enhancement, and mobile access increases the opportunities to enter into such interactions. This thesis study used a sequential explanatory mixed methods approach to investigate the impact of mobile accessibility on learner interaction in a MOOC. The study showed that opening up a MOOC for mobile access has immediate impact on learner interactions, as participants with mobile devices tend to interact more with their fellow learners in comparison to their non-mobile colleagues. This was deduced from the mixed methods approach looking at web-based statistics, an online survey, an analysis using the Community of Inquiry framework and one-on-one interviews with volunteers.
The study formulated a set of 20 strategies and possible consequences deriving from the analysis of the impact of mobile accessibility in a MOOC and more specifically how this affects learner interactions. These strategies might optimize the impact of mobile access on learner interactions in an informal, open, online course. Future research needs to support the findings, embracing a larger learner population from a more varied background. Overall, this research hopes to add to the body of knowledge strengthening the field of distance education.2013-0