ERIC Number: EJ1150582
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017-Jul
Pages: 19
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1547-500X
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Shared Perceptions of Online Adjunct Faculty in the United States Who Have a High Sense of Community
Ferencz, Tiffany L. S.
Journal of Educators Online, v14 n2 Jul 2017
The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to understand the experiences of online adjunct faculty who have a high sense of community within their respective university. Sense of community was generally defined as feelings of connectedness within the university community. The central question that guided this study was: What are the experiences of online adjunct faculty who have a high sense of community within their respective universities? The research began with the Sense of Community Index, version 2 (Chavis, Lee, & Acosta, 2008), an online questionnaire, used to identify potential participants among online adjunct faculty who work for accredited universities in the United States and have a high sense of community. I also included focus groups and interviews conducted via Adobe Connect video conferencing that describe online adjunct faculty member's perceptions of sense of community in the workplace. Using Moustakas's (1994) approach, the data analysis focused on identifying shared themes experienced by online adjunct faculty who have a high sense of community. An analysis of the data revealed that online adjuncts with a high sense of community initiate collaborative dialogue with other faculty members in order to ensure they are able to clearly support their students, but they often see that leadership's role is to initiate the connections online.
Descriptors: Adjunct Faculty, Sense of Community, Phenomenology, Teacher Attitudes, Measures (Individuals), Videoconferencing, Questionnaires, Focus Groups, Interviews, Work Environment, Leadership Role, Computer Mediated Communication, Teacher Collaboration, Computer Software, Online Courses
Journal of Educators Online. 500 University Drive, Dothan, AL 36303. Web site: http://www.thejeo.com
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
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Audience: N/A
Language: English
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