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- Title
Perceived Transactional Distance in Graduate: Online Agricultural and Life Sciences Courses.
- Authors
Alotibi, Yahya S.; Miller, Greg
- Abstract
In the last decade, the number of college students enrolled in online courses has continued to climb. While enrollment numbers have increased in online courses, more research is needed to examine the learners’ perceived distance. Using Transactional Distance Theory, this study examined the relationships between perceived distance and course structure (course objectives, teaching strategies, delivery system, and evaluation methods), course interaction (amount of communication between instructor, students, content, and online interface), and learner autonomy (the varying capacity of the student’s ability to make decisions about his or her learning). The majority of participants in the study (67.1%) perceived other online learners as distant or very distant, and 45.7% of the participants perceived the instructor as distant. Online courses were considered highly structured by participants. Participants indicated that their interaction with the website and content in their online courses was very high compared to their interaction with the instructor and other students. Results also showed that online students possessed a high level of autonomy. Students’ perceived distance to the course overall was significantly and negatively correlated with course structure, course interaction, and learner autonomy. The squared multiple correlation coefficient (R²) revealed that 38% of the variance in the overall perceived distance can be predicted from the combination of course structure, course dialogue, and learner autonomy.
- Subjects
LEARNER autonomy; INTERNET content; DISTANCES; COLLEGE students; GRADUATES; LIFE sciences
- Publication
NACTA Journal, 2019, Vol 63, Issue 2, p202
- ISSN
0149-4910
- Publication type
Article