Individuals’ perceptions of online environments

What adult learners are telling us

Abstract

This paper reports upon the results of ongoing research into student responses to their online learning habitat at a Western Australian university. The university in question has been at the forefront of innovation for flexible, online delivery of its Training and Development Program since the late 1990s. A number of reviews and evaluations of the program have taken place since then, with changes being made in direct line with academic research. This has pointed to ways of improving the quality of delivery and therefore student learning. This investigation focuses upon students’ reactions to their online learning environment and utilises student questionnaire data which concentrates upon factors relating to communication apprehension and competence, the experience of perceived loneliness, locus of control, collaboration by students regarding the learning experience, institutional support and the students’ sense of self efficacy. The results indicated that students’ personal perceptions of the importance of peer interaction and group work were surprisingly lower than anticipated. It appeared that the majority of students preferred to work alone and were less likely to initiate contact with fellow students as they believed their learning styles were not collaborative. Communication apprehension and competence were highly influential on their overall expectations of educational success in the unit studied. The students’ sense of control over the learning materials and environment led to an increase in their belief regarding a timely and successful completion of the unit of study and their perceived ability to interact effectively with others.