Distance Education Opportunities Research Articles

Investigation of Primary School Teachers' Experiences on Teaching Science in Distance Education Process

Background: The rapid progress in technology brings about changes in the field of education as well as in many other fields. Thanks to the diversity in instructional technologies, it is easier for students to learn concepts and they are enabled to be active in the teaching process. In addition to this, distance education opportunities can be provided so that students can continue their education under extraordinary conditions.
 Purposes: In this research, it is aimed to examine the experiences of primary teachers in teaching science in the distance education process. 
 Approach: In the research, which was carried out using the case study design, which is one of the qualitative research methods, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 primary school teachers who were determined based on the purposive sampling method. Content analysis was used in the analysis of the data. 
 Findings: According to the research findings, in the distance education process, the teachers adapted the strategy-method-techniques they used before according to the distance education process. Teachers have taken various measures to increase permanent learning, student motivation and interest. However, they also needed support during this process and had limited content development experience.
 Discussion: It is extremely important that teacher candidates are trained in terms of instructional technologies in classroom teacher training programs. In addition, if teachers need technological support, it is thought that appointing information technology teachers not only at secondary school level but also at primary school level institutions will contribute to the process in order to meet these needs.

INTEGRATED LEARNING IN A MODERN SCHOOL IN THE CONTEXT OF DISTANCE EDUCATION

The article is aimed at defining the concept of integrated learning and features of the implementation of this educational technology in modern general education institutions. In defining the key concept, the mechanisms of integration between the basic disciplines, which are appropriate for the use of integrated learning in the modern school, are considered. It is noted that integration can be carried out by two key mechanisms, each of which is aimed at the perception of pupils of the surrounding world as a whole, regardless of which aspect of science is its knowledge.The article reveals the essence of the integrated approach to education, its significance and impact on changing the structure of a particular subject, which is an important element in improving the effectiveness of the educational process. In addition, the article describes in detail the action of mechanisms in the implementation of the basics of an integrated lesson, as well as the content and operation of didactic principles for implementing an integrated approach.The main research methods are: Analysis of literature sources, observation, survey, generalization and statistical analysis.The article focuses on identifying opportunities for introducing distance learning into Ukrainian education using an integrative approach.The main results of the study give grounds for asserting that the active and professional use of distance education opportunities by teachers will contribute to solving the educational problems that have arisen in modern Ukraine. These changes will help build new ways of development and prospects for Ukrainian educators, based on the relevance and widespread use of online education.The authors proposed their own definitions of the concepts "value orientations", "personal values", "value orientations of Ukrainian youth".

Exploring the Role of Virtual Reality in STEM Distance Education and Remote Outreach Opportunities

Distance education is essential to modern education; it is therefore crucial to evaluate pedagogical techniques that provide exceptional and equitable education to remote students. Major challenges of online learning include social isolation, feelings of disconnection, and elevated distraction, resulting in lower engagement, motivation, and performance. The present study utilized virtual reality (VR) to remotely connect rural high school students to graduate student mentors to learn human anatomy. Qualitative data assessed student and mentor motivation, engagement, satisfaction, and overall perceptions while utilizing VR compared to traditional online methods. Quantitative data assessed changes in student critical thinking ability throughout the semester. Results indicated increased motivation, engagement, and satisfaction while learning in VR compared to traditional online methods. Focus group interviews further revealed that participants viewed VR as uniquely valuable for applying knowledge and intuitively understanding spatial relationships. Although modality (VR vs online) did not have a significant effect on critical thinking ability between individual units, further analysis suggested that VR may improve student critical thinking skills longitudinally. Research on the implementation of VR in remote education is in its early stages, but there is a growing need to investigate the effectiveness of immersive technologies in overcoming barriers to distance learning.

From Theory to Practice: The Enacted Curriculum of a Successful Master's Program in Quality Improvement and Leadership.

Blended learning has taken on new prominence in the fields of higher and continuing education, especially as programs have shifted in response to teaching in a global pandemic. The faculty at the Jönköping Academy's Masters in Quality Improvement and Leadership program has been offering a blended learning curriculum, based on four core design principles, since 2009. We studied key features of the enacted curriculum to understand conditions that can support an effective blended learning model. We used a case study approach underpinned by interactive research. Document analysis, a focus group, individual interviews, and stimulated recall interviews were used for data collection. Themes were identified through qualitative content analysis and data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing. We grouped data into six emergent themes that clarify the enacted curriculum of an established Master's program: focusing on a common purpose, developing technical and relational knowledge and skills, linking theory and practice in the workplace, leveraging collaboration for mutual benefit, concentrating on leadership and coaching, and applying a blended and interprofessional learning model. Educators faced with increased demands to be flexible and to offer opportunities for distance education can learn from this case example of effective teaching of quality improvement and leadership in a blended format.

Инклюзивное образование в вузе: проблемы и перспективы развития

The article presents an analysis of the results of a comprehensive sociological study conducted with the aim of identifying the problems of introducing inclusive education in universities and determining ways to solve them. This study was conducted taking into account the opinions of three groups of participants in the inclusive educational process: teachers, students and disabled people. To collect empirical information, the methods of a questionnaire survey and in-depth interviews were used, the study was conducted on the basis of the Volgograd Institute of Management, a branch of the RANEPA. The results of the questioning of teachers showed that the majority of respondents have a positive attitude towards inclusive education, however, negative stereotypes remain in their perception regarding certain groups of students with various types of disabilities. An analysis of the data from in-depth interviews with students showed that most of them have a positive attitude towards creating an inclusive environment at the university. However, it turned out that most of the interview participants are poorly informed about the goals, objectives, educational technologies, the planned results of inclusive education, about the rules and basics of interaction with students with disabilities. 71.1% of the surveyed disabled people showed a desire to study at a university, which indicates the social demand of this group of the population for higher education. Co-education with students without disabilities, according to 53.3% of survey participants, will provide an opportunity to receive a quality education and will allow them to participate in the life of the team. The majority of the surveyed disabled people generally positively assess the prospects for the development of higher inclusive education. The analysis of the collected empirical information made it possible to identify a set of problems in the development of inclusive education at the university: worldview, information, social and labor, organizational and educational. The solution of these problems can be carried out by creating an effective system of professional training of university teachers, organizing a student volunteer movement to accompany students with disabilities, forming support staff at the university to work with people with disabilities, and using distance education opportunities along with traditional forms of education.

Detection of Students’ Problems in Distance Education Using Topic Modeling and Machine Learning

Following the rapid spread of COVID-19 to all the world, most countries decided to temporarily close their educational institutions. Consequently, distance education opportunities have been created for education continuity. The abrupt change presented educational challenges and issues. The aim of this study is to investigate the content of Twitter posts to detect the arising topics regarding the challenges of distance education. We focus on students in Saudi Arabia to identify the problems they faced in their distance education experience. We developed a workflow that integrates unsupervised and supervised machine learning techniques in two phases. An unsupervised topic modeling algorithm was applied on a subset of tweets to detect underlying latent themes related to distance education issues. Then, a multi-class supervised machine learning classification technique was carried out in two levels to classify the tweets under discussion to categories and further to sub-categories. We found that 76,737 tweets revealed five underlying themes: educational issues, social issues, technological issues, health issues, and attitude and ethical issues. This study presents an automated methodology that identifies underlying themes in Twitter content with a minimum human involvement. The results of this work suggest that the proposed model could be utilized for collecting and analyzing social media data to provide insights into students’ educational experience.

Digital Literacy and Views of the COVID-19 Pandemic of Students Who Prepared for Musical Aptitude Tests during the Pandemic

This study was carried out with the aim of determining the opinions and digital literacy status of the students who are preparing for the music talent exams of the universities during the COVID-19 process. The research is in the survey model, which is one of the quantitative research methods and is limited to 300 students who took the music department and department aptitude exams of 21 different universities. The type of high school from which the relevant students graduated, the universities they applied to for special talent exams, their previous undergraduate education, their status of researching distance education opportunities, and digital literacy levels of the universities they applied for special talent exams were included in the scope of the study. Within the scope of the problem situation of the research, the effects of the duration of the pandemic on the ear training, instrument training, voice training, and psychological state of the students were investigated. According to the data obtained from the interview form applied to the students, the pandemic process gave the students extra time for ear training, instrument training, and voice training, but this extra time could not be properly evaluated because there was no educator guidance. It was concluded that students felt inadequate about digital literacy.

Distance Education Opportunities in the Fields of Social Justice, Equality, and Human Rights for Inmates During Pandemic

Distance Education Opportunities in the Fields of Social Justice, Equality, and Human Rights for Inmates During Pandemic

IMPLEMENTATION OF BLENDED LEARNING IN ENGLISH AS A LINGUA FRANCA (ELF)-AWARE PRE-SERVICE TEACHER EDUCATION

Blended learning which synthesizes face-to-face instruction with distance education opportunities in educationally meaningful ways aims to take advantage of the affordances of both genuine and virtual types of teaching and ubiquitously equip learners without the limitation of time and space. Blended learning has been integrated into several pre-service teacher education courses to soundly cultivate teacher candidates with the efficient use of online and class time. Yet, to date, there has been no research on the use of blended learning in English as a lingua franca (ELF)-aware pre-service teacher education. This study aims to introduce an intensive blended learning model devised to raise ELF-awareness of pre-service teachers via critical reflection and investigate its effectiveness through their views. The data were collected by a questionnaire with closed- and open-ended items and semi-structured interviews and analyzed via quantitative and qualitative analysis. The findings showed the blended learning model was rated to be effective in raising ELF-awareness of the participants. The advantages of the model were also reported along with challenges and the ways to address them. Overall, the results indicate a high level of satisfaction about the model and it is suggested blended learning be used in pre-service teacher education contexts.

The Reasons for National Athletes with Undergraduate Education to Leave Sports

Background: There are studies in the literature scrutinising the reasons for dropping out of sports in terms of physiological, psychosocial, and surrounding factors. In addition to these, it is a fact that there are athletes who end their sports life immediately after beginning their undergraduate education. At this point, the reasons for students to leave sports during their undergraduate education remains a matter to be discovered. Aim: To this end, this study aims to reveal the factors that cause these persons to leave sports. Methods: This research was conducted through the qualitative research method, utilising the phenomenology design. The participants of the study were eleven former national athletes who left sports after beginning their undergraduate education. The participants were selected by criterion sampling method from purposive sampling methods. The data were obtained through face-to-face interviews composed of semi-structured questions. The data acquired were analyzed by the content analysis method. Results: Five main themes were composed in the study: training, social life, health, psychology, and school. It was observed that the participants failed to balance their school and sports life due to heavy and intense training, socialisation needs, unexpected injuries, nutritional problems, psychological fear of failure, and inability to achieve the success they desire. Conclusion: The study results revealed that the participants decided to leave sports not for a single reason, but as a result of a process during which multiple reasons accumulated. In this context, measures can be taken to facilitate their academic and sports life in order to prevent national athletes from leaving sports. These measures may include enabling them to continue to school where they do sports, providing them with distance education and exam opportunities, and enabling them to better integrate into campus life. In order to prevent early specialisation, long-term athlete development models may also be implemented. Keywords: National athlete, undergraduate students, dropping out of sports

Expanding Higher Education: Does the Open University of Sri Lanka Adequately Provide Distance Education Opportunities?

In Sri Lanka securing a place in a higher education institute has become more and more competitive and as a solution to the demand on the government for higher education opportunities for qualified students. The Open University of Sri Lanka was built up with a goal to provide an opportunity to enter Higher education to a large number of people. The intention of this research is to find out whether the students who get admitted are really gaining a second chance for higher education through the Open University of Sri Lanka. This research has 3 goals. Study the methods of university entrance in Sri Lanka, look into the methods of admissions practiced by the Open University for distant studying and whether these admissions provide a solution to the problem of entrance to the higher education system in Sri Lanka. In this context the documented data and information are primarily used and for analyzing purposes 15 interviews are conducted. According to this information the Open University currently faces 3 problems on its admissions such as Supply being unable to meet the demand, Supply being unable to win the demand it needs and The decrease in the number of student admissions in both methods. As such the Open University is facing the following problems. The primary goals of the university are challenged. Therefore, to overcome these problems, the Open University should come up with a program to increase its student admissions through its 22 centers throughout the country.

Digital transformation of the sphere of life as a basis for the growth of social value

The Covid-19 global pandemic has pushed the world to develop a digital economy. The processes of digital transformation do not bypass any sphere of human life and activity in Ukraine: there is a need to do business online; there is a need for remote work; increased opportunities for distance education. In order to reap the benefits of digitalization in all areas of application, it is important to use appropriate digital tools, which in turn helps to create high added value for the state, increase the efficiency of the economy and business and as a result lead to economic and social impact. The article reveals the connection between digital transformation and social value. Since each person lives in a separate system of values, objects and phenomena that are designed to meet all its needs, and can be involved in certain areas of life, such as economics, law, ecology, medicine, pedagogy, sports, art, all this and forms social values. That is, social value is the significance of phenomena and objects of reality in terms of their compliance or non-compliance with the needs of society, social groups or individuals. We get used to the fact that any service can be obtained without leaving home, using a smartphone, by electronically signing documents generated in the same smartphone, so we can easily move to activities and life in the virtual world (online). The article considers digital transformation projects that have already become popular among the citizens of Ukraine, as well as analyses the provision of households with fixed access to the Internet in urban and rural areas, which is a necessary condition for providing opportunities to use relevant services. The availability of websites of enterprises for certain types of economic activity was traced and the possibility of providing interactive services through it was studied, which really increases the possibilities of using digital services and increases the company's profits. The modern world of technology is rapidly evolving, so the digital transformation is an irreversible and endless process, and social values will always be relevant in the new conditions in which society will live and work.

CORONAVIRUS IN SCHOOL MANAGEMENT AT IMAM HATIP SCHOOLS EFFECTS OF THE (COVID-19) OUTBREAK

The corona virus (Covid-19) epidemic, which emerged in late 2019, caused very important changes in economic, social and pedagogical terms, especially in health, all over the world. One of the areas most affected by this epidemic is education systems. Currently, face-to-face training cannot be conducted worldwide, due to the epidemic. Hence, millions of people around the world have begun to study through open and distance education. Because of this epidemic in the world, in all education levels in Turkey face to face training paused and began to use open and distance education opportunities for all students. The main purpose of this study is to identify the problems faced by the school administrators in school administration in the coronavirus (Covid-19) epidemic and the solutions they developed. For this purpose, a qualitative research has been conducted in phenomenology design. The study group of the research consists of school administrators from imam hatip schools in Malatya. The interview form was used as a data collection tool in the study. During this period, there has been a significant increase in demand for open and distance education. For the solution of these problems; technological facilities (internet connection, internet provision, computer, tablet, smart phone supply) should be improved in terms of equality of opportunity in education, compensation programs (support and training courses, primary education training program, remedial training) should be implemented with the opening of schools, by transferring financial resources to schools It is suggested that the hygiene standards should be improved with the help of materials or materials, and schools can be frozen for a year, considering the possibility of the epidemic spreading.

Priorities and development perspectives of pedagogical specialities and environmental training

The increasing of the teachers’ professionalism is the priority and the necessary condition of the modernization the educational system in the Moscow region. The state educational organizations of secondary vocational and higher education solve this task through the connection with the local authorities of the Moscow Region educational municipalities. Method of theoretical analysis and systematization of scientific ideas; study and analysis of regulatory document were used. The conducted research allowed substantiating the priorities and prospects for the pedagogical specialties development in colleges through the necessity to implement the fundamental goals of continuing pedagogical education. The activity of the Moscow region pedagogical colleges focused on the next key points: the increasing of the raising the profile of the teaching profession; the increasing of the number of students, participating in the professional competitions; the development and integration of the digital tools into the educational process; the increasing of the percentage of graduates ‘ employment and retention in the profession; motivation to obtain higher education; training of persons with disabilities; introduction of the electronic resources’ system in the training process in the context of a pandemic, restrictive measures and the use of distance education opportunities.

Maintaining Core Values in Postgraduate Programs During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The novel coronavirus identified in 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted pharmacy graduate and postgraduate education. This crisis has resulted in a cosmic shift in the administration of these programs to ensure core values are sustained. Adjustments may be needed at a minimum to ensure that postgraduate trainees complete program requirements while maintaining safety. Moving forward, additional issues may arise that will need to be addressed such as admissions and program onboarding, acclimating students to new training environments, and managing inadequate resources for distance education, distance practice, and remote versus in-person research opportunities.

Graduate Education in Contemporary Society: Traditional and Distance Education Options and Opportunities

Graduate Education in Contemporary Society: Traditional and Distance Education Options and Opportunities

The Complexity of Transnational Distance Students: A Review of the Literature

Transnational education is a rapidly evolving and constantly changing field. The Internet has enabled virtually global access to distance education opportunities, however transnational distance students in particular have often been miscategorized, oversimplified, or overlooked in prior research. This literature review synthesizes research and publications over a ten-year period focusing on the emerging phenomenon of transnational distance students. Contrary to the allure of flexible, any time, any place learning often ascribed to distance education, diverse and complex situations are highlighted that paint a more nuanced picture of student circumstances and motivations, counterintuitive and underrepresented conditions that may influence students in their decisions to enrol in transnational distance education programs.

The Post-MOOC era: opportunities for open and distance education

The Post-MOOC era: opportunities for open and distance education

EXPLORE POSSIBILITIES AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR DISTANCE EDUCATION IN ARCHITECTURE (LESSONS FROM INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCES)

Rapid evolution of communication and Internet technologies has great impact in the development of distance education methods. Also, increasing demand for higher education and the inability of traditional educational institutions to keep pace with this growing demand has led to increased demand for this type of education. Despite of widespread availability of programs and degrees introduced and granted through distance education, academic programs in the field of architecture is still limited. This is probably because the uniqueness of architectural education, which relies on direct interaction between students and professors at studios of design. Thus, a problem happens when transforming architectural curriculum from traditional education to distance education. So, this research tries to explore possibilities and opportunities for distance education in architecture. Analytical methods, both qualitative and quantitative were used to analyze several international experiences of distance education in the field of architecture. Many questions of research were answered that concerning with stating definitions and clear boundaries for different methods of distance education, figuring out the most appropriate methods for architectural education, shedding light on many of technologies used, describing statistically many of academic programs, and finding methods of overcoming problem of physical separation in teaching courses of design studios. Thus, results of this research support directly process of designing educational technical plans in architectural institutions

High School Students’ Attitudes towards Distance Education: Comparative Study

By the rapidly evolving technologies, alternative training methods used on training needs of individuals instead of classical training methods. With the growing popularity of distance education opportunities, students’ attitudes towards distance education is rapidly changing. The purpose of this study was determine to changes of attitudes of high school students in 2010 and 2014 towards distance education. To achieve this study “Distance Learning Attitude Scale” (DLAS) and “Personal Information Form” (PIF) developed by Celik (2011) utilized. Mentioned measuring tools applied to 92 in 2010 and 99 in 2014 high school students. DLAS has two sub-dimensions on distance education which are positive and negative attitudes. The reliability of these subscales were examined by Cronbach's Alpha coefficient. Positive sub-dimension attitude toward distance learning Cronbach's Alpha coefficient calculated as α=0.91 for 2010 and α=0.92 for 2014 and negative sub-dimension attitude toward distance learning Cronbach's Alpha coefficient calculated as α=0.75 for 2010 and α=0.79 for 2014. Participant student's gender, socio-economic levels and internet usage time determined by PIF. İnternet usage time of students grouped by less than 1 hour, 1-3hours and more than 3hours. ANOVA used on SPSS 20 software to analyze if student's gender, socio-economic level and internet usage time have significant impact on positive and negative attitudes. Homogeneity of variances analyzed by Levene F test. Each test examined separately for the 2010 and 2014 data. As a result of the analysis, no significant difference (p<0.05) of student's gender on distance education attitudes detected. The time spent on the Internet in 2010 has a significant difference (p=0.04) on positive attitude but no significant difference on negative attitude. No significant difference for the time spent on Internet for both attitude scales. Socio-economic status of students has a significant difference (p=0.02) on positive attitude for the year 2010 but no significant difference for the year 2014. Additionally no change detected on distance learning attitudes of students in comparison between the year 2010 and 2014.