Investigation of Interaction, Online Support, Course Structure and Flexibility as the Contributing Factors to Students' Satisfaction in an Online Certificate Program

Autor/inn/en	Yukselturk, Erman; Yildirim, Zahide
Titel	Investigation of Interaction, Online Support, Course Structure and Flexibility as the Contributing Factors to Students' Satisfaction in an Online Certificate Program
Quelle	In: Educational Technology & Society, 11 (2008) 4, S.51-65 (15 Seiten)Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1436-4522
Schlagwörter	Educational Technology; Instructional Design; Online Courses; Electronic Learning; Distance Education; Information Technology; Synchronous Communication; Asynchronous Communication; Web Based Instruction; Student Attitudes; Educational Certificates; Group Activities; Interaction; Interviews; Questionnaires; Foreign Countries; College Students; Transcripts (Written Records); Turkey + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Unterrichtsmedien; Lesson concept; Lessonplan; Unterrichtsentwurf; Online course; Online-Kurs; Distance study; Distance learning; Fernunterricht; Informationstechnologie; Web Based Training; Schülerverhalten; Bildungsabschluss; Schulzeugnis; Gruppenaktivität; Interaktion; Interviewing; Interviewtechnik; Fragebogen; Ausland; Collegestudent; Türkei
Abstract	The purpose of the study is to investigate some of the factors that contribute to satisfaction of participants in an online Information Technologies Certificate Program (ITCP). The program includes eight courses and lasts four semesters. The sample consisted of 30 participants who enrolled to the program and 8 instructors who gave the courses in this program in 2004-2005. The data was collected through both qualitative and quantitative methods. An online questionnaire was used to gather data on participants' satisfaction about the program, semi-structured interviews were conducted with both the participants and the instructors to analyze the factors that contribute to satisfaction in the program, and asynchronous and synchronous communication transcripts were examined to support the findings. Descriptive statistics were reported upon the participants' satisfaction in regard to learner-learner interaction, learner-instructor interaction, course structure, institutional support, and flexibility. A repeated measure analysis test was utilized to see the changes in the participants' satisfaction throughout this online program based on semester one, two, three, and four. The results of the study showed that even though the participants' overall satisfaction was generally positive, it decreased significantly toward the final semesters of the program. The findings highlighted some of the critical issues such as "learning community formation through interaction, well structured and guided project or problem-based group activities, considering instructional design and cognitive principles in the design of the program, and flexibility in time and selection of the courses" that should be taken into account in designing online programs. (Contains 3 tables and 1 figure.) (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	International Forum of Educational Technology & Society. Athabasca University, School of Computing & Information Systems, 1 University Drive, Athabasca, AB T9S 3A3, Canada. Tel: 780-675-6812; Fax: 780-675-6973; Web site: http://www.ifets.info
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10