Internet Learning Volume 1, Number 1, Fall 2012 | Page 52

A Research Review about Online Learning

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analysis that explained and defined student barriers to online learning. In short, they came up
with eight barriers/obstacles/factors:
—Barriers that administrators and instructors control.
—Obstacles to online learning caused by a lack of interaction.
—Obstacles to online learning caused by a lack of academic skills.
—Obstacles to online learning caused by a lack of technical skills.
—Factors related to learner motivation.
—Factors related to time and support for studies.
—Factors related to cost and access to the Internet.
—Obstacles caused by technical problems (Mulienburg and Berge 2005).
Another interesting and important report that had a big-picture theme was based on an
EBSCO database review of scholarly articles that focused strictly on online instruction and were
published between 1999 and 2004. The researchers for this report used "online instruction,"
"student satisfaction," and "distance education" as their most productive search strings. From this
review, six subtopics were identified:
—A comparison of online instruction to face-to-face instruction.
—Evaluation of online courses.
—Reasons students choose online courses.
—Contributors to student satisfaction.
—Predictors of student satisfaction.
—Course design and implementation considerations (Johnston, Killion, and Oomen
2005).
The reasons why students choose online courses were listed as flexibility, convenience,
and access to a course. Online distance education was their preferred learning style, e.g., shy
students have a voice online and feel more comfortable participating in the online environment,
and other students enjoy working at their own pace to better understand material being taught. It
was also noted that some students sign up for online courses because they have the wrong
perception that such courses may be easier, when, in fact, they are most always equally or more
challenging than traditional face-to-face courses (Johnston, Killion, and Oomen 2005).
The contributors to student satisfaction were noted as positive and effective contact and
interaction with the instructor, clarity and relevance of assignments and communication, access
to campus-based resources, availability of technical support, and orientation to the course and its
use of technology. Additionally, "the ability of students to interact with each other reduces the
feelings of isolation and improves satisfaction" (Johnston, Killion, and Oomen 2005).
The predictors of student satisfaction were strongly related to interaction with faculty and
peers. Other predictors included "timely comments, variety of assessment, and students know
how they will work with groups and teams to be statistically significant predictors." Also, an
extroverted personality type was said to be a valid predictor of student satisfaction (Johnston,
Killion, and Oomen 2005).
The Independent, Self-Directed Learner
Despite many common notions about positive interaction with other students being a key driver
for student satisfaction in the online learning environment, there is another category of student
who prefers to study and progress through a distance education degree program independently.
This student type is typically an adult learner in his or her middle to late 30s, or