A national survey was conducted to assess student perceptions of the helpfulness of specific instructional development factors in a distance education print-based program. Participants were all students who had successfully completed at least one distance education correspondence course with Global University or were currently enrolled in their first course. Instructional development factors studied included lesson openers, lesson outlines, lesson artwork, written objectives, amount of information presented before a study question is asked, typographical features, graphic art, study questions, answers to study questions, self tests, and unit progress evaluations. Basic demographic information was collected and survey respondents located their perceptions of instructional development factor helpfulness both on a Likert scale and on a rank-order scale. Respondents also were asked for comments on the instructional development factors studied. Differences among respondent groups were examined. Major findings include a tiered ranking by all groups showing formative evaluation factors to be the most helpful, content organization and presentation factors next most helpful, and visual enhancement features (graphic art, typographical design) the least helpful. Overall, perceptions of the facilitative nature of the instructional development factors were similar among most groups. Older students seem to focus more on organization while younger students exhibit a balance between their perceptions of the facilitative nature of content and testing. Students enrolled in their first course perceive several of the formative evaluation factors to be less helpful than do more experienced students while at the same time perceiving content pacing to be more helpful than do more experienced students.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether there were differences in the levels of awareness and perception concerning distance education among the leadership at the seven campuses of the Texas State Technical College (TSTC) System.

Distance education is being used increasingly for both pre and in-service teacher education in both developed and developing countries (Robinson & Latchem, 2003; Kwapong, 2007; Perraton, 2010). In Rwanda, the Kigali Institute of Education (KIE) introduced its first distance education programme in 2001 with the aim of upgrading the qualifications of under-qualified high school teachers, including those who teach English, using printed materials as the main teaching/learning resource. This study has aimed to investigate the role of the 2010 version of these materials in addressing the professional needs of high school English teachers. It was centrally informed by theories of the sociologist of education, Basil Bernstein (1996, 1999), about curriculum and of the sociocultural psychologist, Lev Vygotsky (1978), on mediation, by Shulman’s (1986, 1987) work on pedagogic content knowledge and by literature on English language teaching, on language teacher education and on distance education materials design. The investigation involved textual analysis of a selection of KIE’s distance education materials for English teaching and focused on the content selected for these materials and on the mediation of this content on the page. After this analysis, one section of these was re-designed by the researcher. Nine teacher-learners enrolled in the programme for English teaching were interviewed to determine their responses to both the KIE materials and to the redesigned section. The findings suggest that Kigali Institute of Education’s distance education materials for English do not adequately address the academic and professional needs of high school English teachers for four main reasons. Firstly, the content selected for the materials does not respond sufficiently to the interests and needs of foreign language teachers of English. Secondly, it is not externally aligned to the curriculum at the level that these teachers are supposed to teach. Thirdly, the mediation of this content does not adequately support the development of subject and pedagogic content knowledge and skills of teacher-learners and encourages surface rather than deep learning (Biggs, 1987). Lastly, with the exception of sections on some literary genres, the materials list useful ideas and language teaching approaches and methods but consistently fail to explain to the teacher-learners how to teach different aspects of language. These findings suggest that these materials do not adequately assist teacher-learners to develop pedagogic content knowledge (Shulman, 1987) for the teaching of English. The limitations identified may result from a lack of knowledge, skills and experience in distance education materials and graphic design among the KIE materials designing team and from inadequate resource provision (including time) by the institution and suggest that there is a need for changes to the KIE distance education materials designing process.

As part of a nationwide effort to increase the postsecondary educational attainment levels of citizens, colleges and universities have expanded offerings of courses and programs to more effectively meet the needs of students. Online courses offer convenience and flexibility that traditional face-to-face classes do not. These features appeal to students with family and work responsibilities that typically make attending classes on campus difficult. However, many of the students who tend to take courses in this instructional format have characteristics that place them at high-risk for academic failure. Because of the traditional mission of community colleges, they generally serve more students who fit this high-risk profile. The purpose of this study was to determine if significant differences existed in student success at the community college level in online courses as compared to face-to-face courses. In addition, the researcher investigated the relationship between selected demographic, academic, enrollment, and external environmental factors and student success in online courses. Success was demonstrated by the final course letter grades earned by students. The identification of factors associated with student success in distance education could help improve online course development, evaluation, instruction, student advisement, and support services. The study involved secondary data analysis of quantitative data relevant to students enrolled in course sections taught by instructors who taught both online and face-to-face sections of the same course within the same semester from fall 2012 through spring 2015 (excluding summer sessions). The target population included 4,604 students enrolled at a public 2-year community college located in southern Middle Tennessee. Results indicated there was a significant difference in success between students taking a course online and students taking a course face-to-face. Also, there was a significant difference in success based on instructional method when the following factors were considered: age group, gender, composite ACT score, student load, student classification, Pell Grant eligibility status, and marital status. There was no significant difference in success based on instructional method when first-generation college student status or dependent child status were considered.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between students' motivational orientations and their perceptions of an electronic distance education (EDE) environment. Subjects were 156 participants (81 women, 75 men; 83 undergraduates, 73 graduate students) enrolled in Utah State University's electronic distance education system, Com-Net. A comparison group was also utilized, that consisted of 85 participants (64 females, 21 males; 34 undergraduates, 51 graduates) from rural Utah enrolled in Utah State University extension programs. These students were from seven classes which were taught by the traditional method with an instructor physically present. Correlation coefficients were computed to test the hypotheses of this study. The independent variables (motivational orientations), as measured by Boshier's Education Participation Scale, were correlated with the dependent variables (satisfaction, material environment, involvement, and extension) as measured by the Learning Environment Inventory and the College and University Classroom Environment Inventory. One-way analyses of variance were computed to explore possible relationships with independent variables not included in the original hypotheses. Multiple regression analysis was used with satisfaction as the independent variable to look for possible explanations of student satisfaction. The participants in this study differ significantly from the norms in their motivational orientations in the areas of professional advancement and cognitive interest. Although the null hypotheses were rejected the relationships were weak, and there appears to be little practical relationship between motivational orientations and participants' satisfaction. These results suggest that participant satisfaction is largely independent of initial motives that impel individuals to participate. Motivational orientations' minimal impact on participant satisfaction suggest that the sources of variation in satisfaction lie elsewhere. There may be other internal variables that affect satisfaction, but more probably there are external variables that greatly influence satisfaction.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Virginia Commonwealth University, 2006. / Prepared for: School of Education. Bibliography: leaves 165-172. Also available online.

Laboratory experimentation plays a critical role in the education of engineers. With the increase of students choosing to obtain their education online through Distance Learning programs, something must be done to allow them to gain practice with experimental techniques. Remote Laboratories (RLs), or laboratory experiments specially constructed for remote use, have the potential to fill this void. In a "traditional" laboratory experiment, students physically interact with an apparatus to obtain experimental data. Remote Laboratories are meant to offer a similar learning experience that is equivalent to, or as close as possible to the physical one, by allowing a user to control the apparatus from a remote location using mechatronic control hardware, integrated with data acquisition software. Studies have shown there is no significant difference with regard to meeting educational outcomes between students who performed an experiment remotely versus those who carried out the same experiment in-person. The focus of this thesis is on the development of a framework for developing and implementing Remote Laboratories. To do this, this research introduces advances in the following areas: a) Identifying the educational differences between traditional and Remote Laboratories. b) Developing a method for comparing student perceptions about RLs and their laboratory reports through surveys and laboratory report grading. c) Creating a standard Information Technology protocol for hosting and conducting remote experiments. d) Investigating alternative uses for RLs. e) Proposing new methods to best mimic the physical interactions of traditional laboratories. f) Creation of functioning Remote Laboratories. g) Analyzing the findings of their use in a classroom setting. A comparison of surveys and laboratory reports between groups that conducted remote experiments and those which conducted traditional experiments over a period of 4 semesters suggest that RLs have the potential to be used to achieve the same educational outcomes as traditional laboratories.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--University of West Florida, 2008. / Title from title page of source document. Document formatted into pages; contains 143 pages. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Central Florida, 2009. / Adviser: Pamela McCauley-Bush. Includes bibliographical references (p. 112-118).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2003. / Title from title page screen (viewed Nov. 11, 2003). Thesis advisor: Edward L. Counts. Document formatted into pages (viii, 132 p. : col. ill.). Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 96-103).