Peer reviewedERIC Number: EJ725278
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2005
Pages: 7
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0022-0671
EISSN: N/A
Factors Related to Instructors' Willingness to Participate in Distance Education
Lee, Jo Ann; Busch, Patricia Ellen
Journal of Educational Research, v99 n2 p109 Nov-Dec 2005
The Internet is the fastest and easiest way for one to collect and disseminate information to individuals regardless of their location. A number of educational institutions find that the Internet is an attractive method of delivering courses. This study was designed to identify elements of instruction formats that distinguish distance education (DE) methods from traditional face-to-face instruction with respect to instructors' experiences and opinions. The findings from this study should help explain instructors' willingness to participate in DE; and can be used to improve DE formats currently in use. Many students must juggle responsibilities other than academic ones (e.g., those of work and family), and instructional formats that facilitate their ability to do so will appeal to them. Content analysis indicated flexibility as one advantage of DE. Providing more resources for training and improving technology may encourage more instructors to become involved with DE. Instructors are an invaluable source of information with respect to the benefits and pitfalls of different delivery methods, and their feedback should be sought. (Contains 1 note.)
Descriptors: Distance Education, College Faculty, Teaching Methods, Virtual Classrooms, Teacher Attitudes, Curriculum Development, Educational Technology, Online Courses, Teacher Participation, Faculty Development, Higher Education
Heldref Publications, Helen Dwight Reid Educational Foundation, 1319 Eighteenth Street, NW, Washington, DC 20036-1802. Web site: http://www.heldref.org.
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A


