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Information and communication technologies (ICT) have played a pivotal role in facilitating knowledge acquisition and enabling distance education. Yet, knowledge about digital divide in distance education remains limited. This study examines digital barriers that underserved students face in distance education and their coping behaviors during the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19). Informed by distance education and digital divide literature, this study uses qualitative research method to analyze survey data collected from 206 college students in a four-year public university in the United States. Results revealed five major digital barriers and showed that the distribution of these digital barriers varied by student demographic background and socioeconomic status. Further analysis of respondents’ narratives revealed three coping behaviors, including improvising, building technical assets, and building social assets. Practical implications are provided to educators and policymakers to invest in ICT and implement equity-minded teaching practices to enhance digital inclusion. Copyright © 2022, IGI Global.

Mobile devices, primarily cell phones, smartphones, and tablet PCs, have gradually been introduced into the university campus and online education over the past few decades. Does the use of mobile devices in distance learning motivate students and affect the learning process? These are important questions that were raised more than a decade ago, but they are still unanswered. This research aims to answer these vital questions. A total of 323 valid and unduplicated responses from online students at a Midwestern university in the U.S. were used to examine the structural model, using SmartPLS v. 3.3.2. This study shows that the use of mobile devices positively affects the students' intrinsic and extrinsic motivation to learn, which in turn positively affects the cognitive learning process variables (student-student dialogue, student-instructor dialogue, and metacognitive self-regulated learning processes). Furthermore, the learning process variables positively affect the perceived learning outcomes.

Developments in information and communication technologies have reached an all-time high. These improvements have accelerated the transformation of higher education milieus on all sides. Accordingly, higher education institutions have begun to be delineated by these technological developments, activities, and practices. This technoculture era has started a new interaction among communication technologies, teachers, and learners. Herein, transhumanism regards changes in societies through these technological interactions and transformations. The worldwide technological transformation is approximating all societies and cultures to Marshall McLuhan's notion of a global village day by day as a consequence of the technology paradigm. The heydays of the developments in technologies affect all human beings at all points from living, learning, communicating to eating and even thinking styles. Taking these points into account, this chapter will explore how these variables may influence the online distance education milieus in terms of technoculture and transhumanism perspectives.

The purpose of this theoretical chapter is to develop a tool that helps educators develop digitally mediated learning (DML) episodes by systematically applying the principles of four paradigms, namely meaningful learning, ubiquitous learning (u-learning), universal design for learning (UDL), and culturally responsive teaching (CRT). The goal is to harness the affordances of each paradigm and combine them into an approach that systematically enhances and enriches DML. This chapter will be relevant for teachers in higher education wishing to complement their face-to-face teaching with carefully designed digitally mediated content capitalizing collaboration, interaction, personal relevance, and projects that can provide creativity-enhancing learning.

The current study aims to investigate students' attitudes towards the use of distance education during COVID-19 in Morocco. The first cases of COVID-19 starting from the first weeks of March 2020 has obliged educational authorities to suspend face-to-face education. Immediately, distance education was declared the alternative means to complete the academic year. Moroccan TV channels started broadcasting lessons for different levels at different times. Moreover, teachers and students started using social media and university platforms to share lessons. However, not all students agree with distance education in the adopted format. Accordingly, the current study investigates the attitudes of Moroccan English Department students at Moulay Ismail University. A mixed-method design was adopted by triangulating data from five-point Likert scale questionnaires and a focus group. The results showed that students generally prefer face-to-face education rather than distance education. However, part-time students reported positive attitudes towards distance education. It is recommended that both distance education and face-to-face education should be planned by teachers, coordinators, and administrators. © 2021 IGI Global. All rights reserved.

This article presents a research-based study of the role of ePortfolios in the development of vocational students' skills. The authors discuss the process of finding a hybrid learning solution that can address the issues faced by vocational teachers and their students. The authors report on a case study using educational design research (EDR) at the Sámi Education Institute in northern Finland. Data were gathered from students in reindeer herding entrepreneurship and nature guide study programs using interviews, focus group discussions, and the feedback collected from workshops. Based on the findings of the initial workshops, ePortfolios were chosen as a tool for students to develop their vocational proficiency and showcase their academic activities. According to the feedback, ePortfolios potentially promote meaningful vocational study, particularly in the context of changing conditions when the student is far away from campus. The successful use of ePortfolios requires cooperation between students and teachers and commitment to support changes in the learning culture.

The problem of educational potential and work potential is multifaceted. First, it is necessary to increase their rational use for sustainable development of the country. Secondly, the value components of educational potential and work potential of young people are unstable and contradictory. This fact leads to socio-cultural features and has an impact on the level of development of the social potential of modern youth. This work addresses the status roles of the unemployed, types of their employment behaviour, attitudes to education, training, retraining, self-development of unemployed youth as a specific social group. The features of value components of educational potential and work potential of the Russian unemployed youth in modern conditions are analyzed based on authors' research. The article analyzes the possibility of using various systems and technologies of training, including traditional, electronic, distance; it also reveals modern methods and techniques of training and offers a model of distance learning for young unemployed.

This paper presents some possibilities of distance learning in music teacher education. The research presented two teacher training programs at Kazan Federal University. The distance learning tools allowed to realize some important subject-oriented principles include self-education, self-realization, and creative approach. The result data were collected from tests results and analysis of self-assessment and questionnaires by quantitative and qualitative experimental methods. The results of the level of musical knowledge and creative activity were increased in the second distance learning group, but not in the first traditional group. Based on the experimental research work, the authors concluded that distance learning environment is a perspective way for develop education system. A distance tool allows us to reflect modern society changes where online format became the priority way for getting new competencies including professional skills in music teacher education.

This study analyzed the process through which 37 online courses were transformed using the three pillars course transformation method. The method advanced active learning and engaged learning in order to impact student success. The transformation process began with training of instructors on using the method booklet before they would continue by transforming their courses. During this transformation, instructors worked with an instructional designer assuming the role of a Higher Learning Commission Quality Initiative Project (HLC-QIP) consultant. The study analyzed the transformation process, focusing on the pedagogical support provided to course developers and the actual redesign process, benefits, and challenges.

A teleconferencing learning environment has the potential to increase interaction between educators and learners. Interaction must be designed and continuously supported by the educator. When using teleconferencing in distance education, there is a set of psychological factors which may impact learner involvement. Τhe objective of this study was to identify what psychological factors influence the learner involvement in distance learning courses during teleconferencing sessions. A questionnaire and a semi-structured interview were used as the research tools. The results show that anxiety, learner satisfaction, and expectation of success affect learners and educators in teleconferencing learning environments. Finally, concerning the interconnection of the psychological factors and the effectiveness in teleconferencing sessions as it appears, the main premise of a successful teleconferencing session is laying down the groundwork for adequate planning and preparation taking into account all the influencing psychological factors.

Most undergraduates in Mainland China receive distance education from home because of the COVID-19 outbreak. The unique physical environment of distance learning may have effects not only on student learning but also on student physical and mental health. This study reviewed related studies of the physical learning environment and its influence on learners' physical and mental health. Using factor analysis, the authors developed a questionnaire to measure students' perceptions towards their physical learning environment and their physical and mental health and verified the reliability. Regression analysis was used to explore the influence of physical environment perception on physical health and mental health perception, as well as the predictive ability of these three factors on learning satisfaction. The results of this study provide researchers and educators with insight into learners' perceptions of the physical learning environment and their physical and mental health under COVID-19 and offer suggestions for improving distance-learning satisfaction.

Jordan, like other countries in the world, is facing the Coronavirus pandemic and is making a great effort to continue education in Jordanian schools and universities through distance education To evaluate this novel experience, this study aimed at investigating the effectiveness of distance education in Jordanian universities in light of the Coronavirus pandemic and identifying the obstacles faced by university students To reach the research objectives, a questionnaire was developed by the researchers followed by semi-structured interviews A sample of 1000 students was selected randomly from public and private universities The results revealed that the majority of the Jordanian university students are not pleased with this distance learning experience as most of the students encountered some obstacles such as internet speed, technological difficulties, and online content design © 2021 IGI Global All rights reserved

Due to the emergency educational consequences of the COVID-19 epidemic, it is necessary to find an effective and alternative way of learning. Moreover, during this epidemic, the Chinese Ministry of Education announced the “Disrupted Classes, Undisrupted Learning” initiative, offering flexible online learning. With the aim of facilitating a sound learning environment when using online learning systems, various kinds of tools can be applied. Tencent Meeting is one tool that offers various learning features. This study aimed to investigate how students perceived the effect of the Tencent Meeting system features on the two main determinants of the TAM model, namely perceived ease of use (PEOU) and perceived usefulness (PU). The study further analyzed the effects of these two determinants on learning performance. Data were analyzed using regression analysis. The study found the Tencent Meeting system features could account for 55.1% of PEOU and 40% of PU. Another finding shows that PEOU and PU had a significant effect on the students' learning performance. Finally, a discussions and implications are presented.

Nowadays, the virtual learning environment has become an ideal tool for professional self-development and bringing courses for various learner audiences across the world. There is currently an increasing interest in researching the topic of learner dropout and low completion in distance learning, with one of the main concerns being elevated rates of occurrence. Therefore, the early prediction of learner withdrawal has become a major challenge, as well as identifying the factors, which contribute to this increasingly occurring phenomenon. In that regard, this manuscript presents a framework for withdrawal prediction model for the data from The Open University, one of the largest distance learning institutions. For that purpose, we start by pre-processing the dataset and tackling the challenge of discretization process and unbalanced data. Secondly, this paper identifies the semantical issues of raw data by introducing new behavioural indicators. Finally, we reckon on machine learning algorithms for withdrawal prediction model to understand the lack of learners' commitment at an early stage.

In the wake of coronavirus pandemic, social distancing became a mandate that led to the transition from traditional classroom-based lectures to computer-based learning This paper extensively deals with the ranking of the challenges faced by instructors and students Primary data from 624 participants (399 students and 225 instructors) is collected through a questionnaire To assign the ranking to the challenges, Technique of Order Preference Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) is deployed A contextual model is developed by using Interpretive Structural Model (ISM) technique that further provides recommendations for prioritizing the challenges that need to be addressed to mitigate the problems faced in online lectures in coronavirus situation The number of variables is reduced to simplify the interpretation by exploratory factor analysis The study also provides the basis to formulate the strategies for policymakers and administration after identifying which challenges need to be addressed first for mitigating all the other challenges [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of International Journal of Distance Education Technologies is the property of IGI Global and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use This abstract may be abridged No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract (Copyright applies to all Abstracts )

The authors conducted a worldwide survey to explore the experiences of higher education faculty who converted classes to distance learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. Most respondents experienced much higher workloads and stress than in face-to-face classes. Previous experience with Online Distance Learning (ODL) predicted positive faculty response. Less than half used a school-provided LMS, instead using a wide range of other technologies. Respondents said they learned the need for adaptability and good planning, emphasizing doing what it takes to serve their students. There was high variability in most answers, indicating that the experiences of individual teachers ranged widely between positive and negative. The researchers provide recommendations based on the findings, including the need for better ODL instructional design training as part of long-term professional development for faculty and remembering the importance of all student higher education experiences, many of which are beyond the scope of the actual classes.

The transformation in the distance education system has led to the emergence of blended learning approaches that have necessitated effective support to facilitate students learning. This web survey aimed at determining the kinds of support available and accessible to distance education students of the University of Ghana. Data collected from 103 Levels 300 and 400 students and findings from the survey indicated that physical and technological support services were frequently used among the respondents, whereas residential and e-library resources were the least subscribed support services among the students. In terms of social support services, interaction with tutors and interaction with fellow students came up as the main support services available to students while counselling services were absent for these students. It was recommended that the support services that were inadequate, least used, and absent should be provided to enable students to complete their programmes of study successfully.

Emotions are part of human life, and they are present on several occasions, like decision making and in social interactions. Computational identification of emotions in texts can be useful in many applications, especially in distance learning courses. This research introduces an animated pedagogic agent, integrated to a Moodle virtual learning environment, with the objective of assisting the tutor in accompanying students, helping the students to acquire knowledge, identifying their emotions, and motivating the student to participate in activities and discussions. As a way of assessing students' emotional state, an experiment was conducted using real data from a completed course, involving students. The results obtained are promising, evidencing the importance of knowing the emotional state of the students, contributing to the learning process.

In the current context of distance learning, learning management systems (LMSs) make it possible to store large volumes of data on web browsing and completed assignments. To understand student behavior patterns in this type of environment, educators and managers must rethink conventional approaches to the analysis of these data and use appropriate computational solutions, such as educational data mining (EDM). Previous studies have tested the application of EDM on small datasets. The main contribution of the present study is the application of EDM algorithms and the analysis of the results in a massive course delivered by a Brazilian University to 181,677 undergraduate students enrolled in different fields. The use of key algorithms in educational contexts, such as decision trees and clustering, can reveal relevant knowledge, including the attribute type that most significantly contributes to passing a course and the behavior patterns of groups of students who fail.

There has been a growing interest in using an e-portfolio as an alternative method of assessment in an open distance eLearning environment. The use of an e-portfolio as another method of assessment in Environmental Education (EE) has not been sufficiently researched. The purpose of this study was to explore how the use of an e-Portfolio as an alternative method of assessment enhances pre-service teachers' technological pedagogy in an environmental education module. Qualitative data was collected using interviews and document analysis. The study employed interpretive paradigm, connectivism theory, and purposive sampling. A qualitative approach was employed to analyse and identify emerging themes from the data. The qualitative findings are that the e-portfolio was significant in assessing sustainable education, enhanced the pre-service teachers' digital pedagogy. Challenges included a lack of computer skills, connectivity, support during compilation of e-portfolio, and sufficient activities to promote teachers' digital pedagogy.

A systematic review of the literature of e-pedagogical support strategies for an open distance learning context was done to explore the knowledge “gap” on existing scholarly works. This paper investigates the use of pedagogical support strategies employed to support student learning in an online Teaching Methodology of Economics course. The research followed a pragmatic approach—an explanatory mixed-methods design—to conduct the research. An online questionnaire and eDiscussion forum entries were employed to collect data. Convenient and purposive sampling of postgraduate students (n=179) in Teaching Methodology of Economics were selected. Students voluntarily completed the online survey. Findings and practical implications were formulated to advance online pedagogical strategies to support student learning and thus promote essential competencies for the course in the college of education at an open distance learning university. The current study has only examined a small sampling of student views regarding pedagogical strategies employed in a teacher education online course. More research is needed to establish whether a larger sample, comparing similar courses in the teacher education programme, will yield different results.

One of the success factors in online learning is student engagement. Therefore, the use of technology to influence student engagement in meaningful and effective learning experiences is worthy for investigation. Concept mapping is an effective knowledge construction strategy to help students. This study investigates the influence of concept maps as a formative assessment of online learning and its impact on student engagement and learning outcomes. The design of experiment used the non-equivalent comparison group pretest-posttest. It was included in the quasi-experiment to compare two different groups. The results reveal strong evidence that concept mapping not only improves learning outcomes, but also increases student engagement in all types of tested engagements, namely behavioral, emotional, and cognitive.

This work proposes a dropout prediction approach that is able to self-adjust their outcomes at any moment of a degree program timeline. To that end, a rule-based classification technique was used to identify courses, grade thresholds and other attributes that have a high influence on the dropout behavior. This approach, which is generic so that it can be applied to any distance learning degree program, returns different rules that indicate how the predictions are adjusted along with academic terms. Experiments were carried out using four rule-based classification algorithms: JRip, OneR, PART and Ridor. The outcomes show that this approach presents better accuracy according to the progress of students, mainly when the JRip and PART algorithms are used. Furthermore, the use of this method enabled the generation of rules that stress the factors that mainly affect the dropout phenomenon at different degree moments.

Due to the of use of ICTs and ODL, Virtual University (VU) has become one of leading distance learning university in Pakistan. However, the retention rate among online learners found considerably low. The primary objective of this research was to dig out determinants of retention of MS /MPhil students at VU and modeling their retention by considering important influences. For sampling purpose, three departments with the most students were considered and complete enumeration was done. There were 4,608 students from three departments; Computer Science & Technology, Management Sciences and Education have been included in this study. To dig out the important retention factors, this research has used a Chi-Square test, optimal scaling, a decision tree using CHAID analysis, and then developed a suitable model for student retention. Binary logistic regression techniques were applied. Results have revealed that gender, scholarship, province, location, and division are significant factors and contributing in predicting students' retention at VU. Detailed outputs are shown in respective tables and figures. At the end, different recommendations and suggestions are proposed.

It is almost impossible to perform academic activities, such as accessing study material or contacting lecturers and other teaching and learning processes, at an open distance learning institution without the use of computers and the internet. This article investigates and reports on the time taken by students with and without disabilities to complete certain tasks using the University of South Africa's learning management systems (LMS). The findings of the study indicate that the time taken by students with disabilities to finish tasks is much longer compared to the students without disabilities. The study established that well-developed e-learning platforms guarantee efficient and effective use by both students with and without disabilities. The study suggests that it is significant for all LMS stakeholders to be involved in the development of e-learning websites. This is to ensure that accessibility and usability of these websites are adhered to during the development of e-learning websites.

Distance learners are often referred to as ‘lone wolves' who, as a result of the geographical distance and other system-specific characteristics of distance learning programs, place little emphasis on communicating with the university and, in particular, their fellow students. This article, following a demonstration of the developments in the field of distance learning, focuses on the communication patterns of distance learners. As part of a quantitative study, the students of a German distance university answered a survey on this topic. A significant result was the division of the students into three groups according to their tendency to communicate: Power communicators, regular communicators, and the lone wolves. Moreover, a shift within the student cohorts can be identified: students in later semesters prefer synchronous communication as opposed to the asynchronous use of emails. Learning analytics and a shift in the role of academic support towards mentoring can support an increase in the tendency to communicate and, ultimately, in student motivation and performance.

The purpose of the study was to analyze the experience provided by e-learning in a higher education setting in Kazakhstan as viewed by university administrators and graduate school e-learners. Surveys revealed that the e-learners expressed a high interest in study at remote universities. From the standpoint of the administrators, the main challenges of distance education development are the considerable implementation costs, a lack of technical support, the need to train qualified teachers, and a need for the full-fledged development of new courses. Clarifying the implication of these challenges can help administrators develop e-learning classes in universities nationwide. The research results can be applied towards identifying the resources needed for further developing e-learning initiatives for higher education, with the goal of giving universities a competitive advantage.

The aim of this study is to contribute knowledge about what characterizes students' capabilities to reflect on and self-assess their professional development during four school based vocational training courses in distance higher education. What abilities and challenges appear in their written reflections and self-assessments with critical incidents about a situation, incident, or issue in their log journals, as well as in their discussions online. face-to-face (F2F), supported by a mobile learning hub (MLH) with both mobile and blended activities? Theoretically, the study is based on five major levels of reflection: reporting, responding, relating, reasoning and reconstructing. The results from a group of students' representative excerpts demonstrates the importance of letting student teachers have agency and mediate their subjective experiences during practical vocational training in progression, supported by mobile and blended tools, to understand and make sense of experience in relation to self, others, and contextual conditions for personal and professional learning.

As the COVID-19 disease rapidly transmitted through interpersonal contact, it required people to avoid physical contact. Almost all countries in the world have suspended the education of children and youth, a highly active network, and switched to online education to reduce the spread of the virus. Distance education, unlike the traditional education system, has a structure that does not require students to be on a campus or be in the same environment with instructors. As the global epidemic broke out, the distance education system was reviewed, and a new education order started to be established. Students, parents, and teachers found themselves in a situation they were not used to before. In this study, the advantages and disadvantages of distance education are analyzed, hybrid and hybrid-flexible (hyflex) models are examined, the educational changes during the pandemic period as well as the anticipations of the post-pandemic period are reviewed, and lastly, future educational solutions are proposed.

Projeto eMentoria integrado no GT GT Transferência de Conhecimento + Inovação (GT TC + I), parceria DEED/LE@D Different higher education institutions (HEI) have broadly adopted peer mentoring as a strategy to pro vide initial and continuous support for new students, to promote their academic inclusion. In Distance Education HEI, peer e-mentoring assumes a crucial role in the promotion and maintenance of social and cognitive presence and in the creation of a sense of belonging to the academic community. Thus, it is assumed as a crucial support for the overcoming of online students’ specific difficulties and as a fac tor for his success. After a theoretical framework, this chapter presents the case of a pilot e-mentoring project implemented in a European open university based on the paradigms of virtual learning commu nities and the model of the community of inquiry (CoI). To conclude, it presents a set of assumptions for the construction of an e-mentoring model adapted to online DE and further research to be conducted Financed national funds through FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, I.P., under the projects UIDB/04372/2016 info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Contemporary society increasingly demands the use of digital tools in different areas of life, including in the teaching and learning process. The virtuality generated by cyberspace was even more evident in the current pandemic context, which caused the interruption of classroom classes and imposed a new educational model based on online education methodologies. Teachers had to adapt and reinvent their pedagogical practices and teaching methodologies in a virtual learning environment, often without guidance and without essential digital skills to promote quality learning. In this context, this chapter presents an excerpt from a bibliographical study that aimed to understand how distance education can contribute to promote the development of digital skills. Here, the results regarding the development of digital teaching skills are portrayed, with the indication of references and models that can be used to enable training proposals in this regard in addition to contributing to a reflection on the lack of institutional policies and programs for training teachers for online teaching. info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

During the COVID-19 pandemic, platforms that support remote working and distance education have gained great importance. Video conferencing features became crucial. In these platforms, it is possible to hold meetings and do collaborations without having to go to a physical milieu. These platforms include various features such as online meetings, group conferences, file sharing, and office integration. Systems such as Google Classroom and Microsoft Teams, which include both a learning management system and a video conference application in distance education, have gained equal importance. Video conference applications have become important tools for students to feel themselves in a social environment, as they were isolated at homes for a long time due to pandemic. In this chapter, features of integrated systems in distance education will be investigated with related literature, and the popular integrated systems will be introduced and compared.

This chapter will address results of LE@D’s project “Teaching in Times of Emergency: Digital Transition,” which focused on the experience of rapid digital transition to an “emergency teaching,” a scenario quite different from distance education. Through a mixed methods approach, data was collected through an online questionnaire applied to students and videoconference interviews conducted with both higher education faculty and students. Participants in this research are students and faculty from eight Portuguese higher education institutions, four from universities (three public and one private) and four from polytechnic insti tutes (three public and one private), covering the regions of Lisbon and Tagus Valley, Alentejo and Algarve (Central and Southern Portugal). In this chapter, the authors present a preliminary analysis of the results obtained related to the psychological aspects experienced during this period, aiming at understanding the impact this shift has had on students’ cognitive adaptation and social and emotional processes. Projeto de Investigação integrado no LE@D. This research was supported by Foundation of Science and Technology - financed national funds through FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, I.P., in the projects UIDB/04372/2020 with Project number PTIN/UID4372-LE@D/032020. info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

In distance education, instructor control over learners is limited compared to traditional settings. Learning in distance education includes the process of developing the virtual identity of the individual. Learners and instructors use their virtual identities to share ideas and promote themselves by participating in social. Therefore, this research aims to evaluate self-regulation skills in the context of virtual identity use strategies in distance education and to evaluate them in a conceptual framework. Considering the literature, self-regulation skills need to be rearranged according to virtual learning to achieve academic success in distance education environments. It should be accepted that virtual identities are crucial to create participation in the classroom and support knowledge construction, and instructors should guide this. It is recommended to provide training to instructors and learners on the effective use of virtual identity and to carry out incentive activities to reflect self-regulation skills in the use of virtual identity and lessons.