Abstract
The major research question for this study was –“How do students perceive the enhancement of their own learning through use of eLearning?” The study investigated student teacher’s enjoyment and perceptions of eLearning and how it is enhanced by their use of various eLearning activities – particularly the discussion board. Participants were undergraduate teacher education students who were undertaking a course at the University of Sydney, Australia. Methods included a qualitative examination using focus groups, open-ended written answers and a thematic content analysis of focus group transcripts to investigate how students perceived their learning to be enhanced. Twelve major themes identified how eLearning enhanced perceived student learning. The results revealed that eLearning was found to: facilitate broader and deeper learning; provide a resource management and organisation system; allow 24 hour access and flexibility; facilitate interaction and communication with peers; enable students to work and learn at their own pace; provide a place for students to find advice, tips and assistance; and provide a site for anonymous study-related and social interaction. Positive comments related to the stimulation of thought, discussion, debate and interaction via online discussion boards. Students identified learning from other students’ differing opinions, being enabled to more deeply contextualize and further analyse helped them to develop an understanding of the content material being covered.
Highlights
A student’s perception of their own learning in an online learning environment (OLE) is one of enjoyment and ease (Palmer & Holt, 2009)
The major research question for this study was –“How do students perceive the enhancement of their own learning through use of eLearning?” The study investigated student teacher’s enjoyment and perceptions of eLearning and how it is enhanced by their use of various eLearning activities – the discussion board
The major research question for this study was “How do students perceive the enhancement of their own learning and what do they identify as the benefits of using eLearning?” Student responses were all written on a whiteboard, discussed and ranked in a small focus group environment and a research assistant who used shorthand recorded the discussion verbatim in detail
Summary
A student’s perception of their own learning in an online learning environment (OLE) is one of enjoyment and ease (Palmer & Holt, 2009). Students in higher education today require a blend of assessment tasks, tutorial discussion and lectures in a technology and a collaboratively rich environment, as this mix of technology, pedagogy and design results in more effective learning (Akanbi, 2000; Ellis, Goodyear, O’Hara & Prosser, 2007; Long, 2005). There is an additional requirement today to implement eLearning in teacher education so that the beginning teacher can implement similar strategies within their own classroom environment. It is recognised, that teacher education graduates require experience in using eLearning tools and strategies to be adequately prepared for today’s school classroom. The focus of the study described in this paper was to investigate how the teacher education undergraduates perceive eLearning with a focus on their enjoyment of discussion boards
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