Distance Ed: Articles Report #2

As part of an ongoing report in Distance Education, I have selected twelve articles from the International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning to study. I will be looking for trends within these articles and reporting on various aspects of them each week. Today I examine the context of each of these articles.

1. Annand, D. (2007). Re-organizing Universities for the Information Age. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 8(3), 1-9.

Research Question(s):

Will universities need to make significant changes because of external forces in the world today? Digitization of information and the Internet make different forms of education (such as distance education) increasingly feasible. If universities need to change, what sorts of changes might those be? [theory based.]

Context:

This paper focuses on the university as a whole. There is no physical setting nor experimental unit of analysis per se; instead, the authors give a brief history of the university, focusing on the industrialization of education and its implications for learning. They also suggest that distance education is a disruptive innovation that has the potential to help educate the large numbers of individuals in areas without access to face to face education.

2. Barnard, L., Paton, V., & Lan, W. (2008). Online Self-Regulatory Learning Behaviors as a Mediator in the Relationship between Online Course Perceptions with Achievement. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 9(2).

Research Question(s):

Do self-regulatory learning behaviors mediate the relationship between student perceptions of online course communication and their academic achievement?

Context:

The context of this study was a public university in the Southwestern United States. An email survey sent to 628 students enrolled in online (these students are the unit of analysis) . The purpose of the survey was to determine the level of self-regulation that the students had (using a pre-made/validated questionnaire), and how this related to their GPA and feelings about distance learning. The students are the unit of analysis.

3. Bray, E., Aoki, K., & Dlugosh, L. (2008). Predictors of Learning Satisfaction in Japanese Online Distance Learners. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 9(3).

Research Question(s):

Are Japanese students in a specific online distance university satisfied with their experiences in distance education? What factors (if any) affect their satisfaction with distance education?

Context:

This study focuses on student enrolled in one of Japan’s online distance universities. Students at this schools are the unit of analysis.

4. Caswell, T., Henson, S., Jensen, M., & Wiley, D. (2008). Open Educational Resources: Enabling universal education. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 9(1).

Research Question(s):

In what ways do open educational resources have the potential to transform distance education? [theory based.]

Context:

This article does not have a clear physical context. It is more of an historical overview of open educational resources and a discussion of their benefits and challenges.

5. Deka, T. S., & McMurry, P. (2006). Student Success in Face-To-Face and Distance Teleclass Environments: A matter of contact? International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 7(1).

Research Question(s):

Can students succeed in a low-contact distance (versus face to face) environment? What factors might predict a student’s success in distance education?

Context:

The physical location of this study is a mid-sized Midwestern university. Research was conducted with both face to face and distance students. One interesting facet of this study was the face to face students saw the lecture live, while the distance students saw the exact same lecture, but either saw it via distance live, or watched it later. Students were the unit of analysis and were given surveys to measure them in a variety of ways.

6. Eib, B. J., & Miller, P. (2006). Faculty Development as Community Building. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 7(2).

Research Question(s):

How can faculty development increase community building, regardless of the physical distances separating faculty members? [theory based.]

Context:

The setting for this article is a higher educational organization in Western Canada. This article is a case study of sorts as the authors describe how faculty members in this organization developed a strong community of practice, and how this helped their faculty development.


7. Grandzol, C. J., & PhD, J. R. G. (2006). Best Practices for Online Business Education. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 7(1).

Research Question(s):

What does the literature say are the best practices for online business education?

Context:

This article synthesizes several articles on distance-based education in the field of business. The units of analysis are articles on various aspects of distance education.

8. Leslie, P. H., & Murphy, E. (2008). Post-Secondary Students' Purposes For Blogging. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 9(3).

Research Question(s):

What purposes do post-secondary students have for blogging?

Context:

The setting for this study was in the Foundations Department of the Dubai Women’s College. Eight women, along with the blogs they studied, were the units of analysis.

9. Müller, T. (2008). Persistence of Women in Online Degree-Completion Programs. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 9(2).

Research Question(s):

Why do women persist, or fail to persist in distance education, and what are the factors that support or hinder women in completing distance education courses?

Context:

The context of this qualitative study was a college in northeastern United States. This is an “open-admissions” college and offer both undergraduate and graduate degrees. Twenty women were interviewed about their abilities to persist in their education; these women are the units of analysis.

10. Pan, G., & Bonk, C. J. (2007). The Emergence of Open-Source Software in North America. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 8(3).

Research Question(s):

What are the educational implications of open-source software? [theory based.]

Context:

This article does not have a clear physical context nor unit of analysis. It is an historical overview of open software and its educational implications.

11. Shachar, M. (2008). Meta-Analysis: The preferred method of choice for the assessment of distance learning quality factors. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 9(3).

Research Question(s):

What are the advantages of meta-analysis in distance education? [theory based.]

Context:

This article also lacks a clear physical context or unit of analysis. It is rather a treatise on the importance of meta-analysis, and suggestions for how to do meta-analysis.