Educational interaction in distance learning
Marco Casarotti †,
Luca Filipponi*, Luca Pieti* and Riccardo Sartori*
† Department of Developmental and Social Psychology, University of Padua,
Italy
* Department of General Psychology, University of Padua, Italy
www.psychnology.org
The basic definition of distance learning (DL)
considers that the teacher and the students are separate in the spatial
dimension and that this distance is filled by using technological resources.
Recent technological developments, allowing an
increasing level of interaction between users, have implicated a deep change in
the educational system. Aim of these studies was to analyze the implementation
of interaction in a DL system with one-way video and two-way audio channels and
to investigate the effect of interaction on psychological variables. Final
results suggest that the possibility of interaction in distance learning
arouses a greater degree of attention, interest, participation, concentration,
satisfaction and perceived efficacy. The distance modality with interaction
takes his place at the intermediate level between the traditional face to face
lesson and video-recorded lesson or distance learning without interaction. The
possibility of interaction during the lesson is a basic factor for the success
of a distance course.
In a
situation of rapid technological and socio-economical changes, the educational
system has had to face increasing requests in terms of formation and upgrade of
know-how and professional skills. Numerous structures, both private and public,
are answering this challenge developing distance learning programs.
The basic
definition of distance learning (DL) considers that the teacher and the
students are separate in the spatial dimension and that this distance is filled
by using technological resources (Moore & Kearsley, 1996).
These
resources could help working adults to obtain a university diploma, to avoid
difficulties linked to physical handicaps, or to implement professional upgrade
courses without requiring expensive travels.
For many
years technological tools have not had a remarkable impact on instruction.
Recent technological developments, allowing an increasing level of interaction
between users, have then implicated a deep change in the educational system.
DL can be
implemented in two modalities: synchronous and asynchronous. In the synchronous
modality, the teacher and the students interact in real time, for example by
means of a two-way video-conference. In the asynchronous modality, the
interaction doesn’t take place simultaneously. In this case, the teacher can
send instructions via video, computer or other technological tools, and the
students reply later. For example, instructions can be sent across the WEB and
the feedback received via e-mail.
Many
users wonder whether DL is as effective as traditional instruction face to
face.
The
studies comparing different teaching systems indicate that DL could be as or
more effective than the traditional system.
In a
research conducted at the Stanford University, Gibbons et al. (1977) have
compared the scores obtained by subjects of different groups which had attended
a course with different teaching modalities: campus, live video, videotape,
videotape with tutor. Subjects in the last group reported better scores.
Figura 1. Modified from J. F. Gibbons et al. (1997).
A
theoretical framework in which the psychological differences between
traditional face to face teaching and DL can be analyzed is given by the
Equivalency Theory (Simonson, 1998), which states that if the learning
experiences of a traditional course are equivalent to the ones of a distance
course, then the two courses will have the same results in terms of learning efficacy.
The learning experiences include all that
happens in a classroom, for example lectures, practical activities and social
interaction (SI).
The
mathematical representation of the Equivalency Theory describes the relation
between learning experiences and equivalency:
S(TC) ei = S(DL) ei
where: TC
= traditional classroom, DL = distance learning, ei = learning
experiences, e1 = social interaction, em = practical
activities.
The
equation indicates that is the sum of the experiences which determine the equivalency.
Thus, even if the detailed components could be not exactly the same, the final
result remains equivalent.
The
physical separation between teacher and students, and between students, is a
potential source of SI decreases during the course. The SI is considered one of
the most important factors which contributes to the efficacy of a course, both
traditional and at distance (Moore & Kearsley, 1996). Therefore, a lack of
equivalency in SI between TC and DL determines a difference in the success of
the courses.
The
Social Learning theory formulated by Bandura (1986) provides the mechanism by
which SI affects the results of a course.
The
Equivalency Theory takes into account also the individual differences in
reacting to the same learning experiences. In the context of the SI, the
individual differences could further alter the results of a course.
We
briefly review the most widespread systems for implementing distance learning:
Figura 2. Modified from S. Poltrock (2002).
Figura 3. Modified from S. Poltrock (2002).
Figura 4. Modified from S. Poltrock (2002).
Figura 5. Modified from S. Poltrock (2002).
Considering the direction of the information
flow, we can distinguish the following modalities:
Figura 6. Different modalities of distance learning
based on the direction of information flow.
The
modality analyzed in our study was a one-way video \ two-way audio system based
on satellite transference of the video contents:
Figura 7. Representation of the system analyzed in this
study.
Benefits of distance learning
Convenience
Technological
tools implementing distance learning can provide advantages in terms of costs
reduction both for the students and for the teachers; in fact, many usable
technologies, for example internet, are easily reachable from home. Other
tools, such as desktop videoconferencing, can be distributed from a single
site, for example a university server, to many remote sites, for example
classrooms. The satellite transmissions can be received from equipped
positions, video-recorded and then used later.
Efficacy
Distance
learning is not only convenient, but also effective. Several researches have
demonstrated that, it can be equally or more effective than traditional
instruction: when the method and the technologies are appropriate, when it is
provided for the interaction between students and finally when there is
continuous feedback between teacher and students (Moore & Thompson, 1990;
Verdun & Clark, 1991; CSCL, 2002, available on-line).
Flexibility
Several
distance learning systems allow the students to attend a course when they
prefer, for example during the night or in the early afternoon. Moreover, a
student may spend thirty minutes consulting a web site, while another may
decide to appreciate the contents later on.
Multimediality
One of
the most important advantages of distance learning regards the fact that a wide
range of materials can be delivered respecting the individual preferences in
the learning modalities. For example, some students prefer materials presented
in visual or in acoustic form; others may learn better interacting with a
computer program.
Interactivity
In
contrast with the common opinion, distance learning can offer an increment in
the interaction with students. In particular, introvert subjects who are too
shy to ask questions in classroom, often are more active and participate when
they can interact via e-mail or use another individualized tools (Franklin,
Yoakam & Warren, 1996). By using interaction, besides, teachers can satisfy
the individual needs of single students.
Equity
In many
geographic areas, the lack of educational homogeneity is a real problem. The
schools in the outskirts often have few teachers and out-of-date teaching
tools. Distance learning allows these limits to be overcome and it has been
used with great efficacy in countries such as Australia and Canada.
Effects
of interaction in distance learning
At the Department of General
Psychology of the University of Padua a research group (Educational Interaction
in Distance Learning Laboratory, EIDLL) has been formed to investigate the
effects of different types of interaction in distance learning: teacher-student
and student-student.
Aim of the research group was to
analyze qualitatively the implementation of interaction in a DL system with
one-way video and two-way audio channels and to investigate the effect of
interaction on psychological variables as, for example, the degree of
satisfaction and perceived efficacy, the level of attention and distraction,
etc.
The first studies have shown the
remarkable impact due to the introduction and to the improvement of interaction
in distance learning (Casarotti et al., 2002).
These researches have provided important indications about the attitude
and the degree of students
participation during a distance lesson.
Particularly, the student could interact: 1) virtually raising a hand by
pressing a key; 2) addressing all the other students after the teacher’s call;
3) answering multi-choice questions by pressing a key.
Subjects who could interact with the teacher are more attentive during
the lessons than subjects who attended the same lessons with no interaction. An
identical situation was observed for the degree of interest, the degree of
perceived satisfaction, the degree of participation and the level of
concentration. Moreover, interacting subjects considered the lesson more
effective than the colleagues who attended it with no interaction.
As for
distraction, the subjects in the interactive modality showed a lower degree of
distraction than the subject in the passive modality.
In short, the results of our studies suggest that the possibility of
interaction in distance learning arouses a greater degree of attention,
interest, participation, concentration, satisfaction and perceived efficacy.
These observations allow us to assume that the efficacy and the
assessment of different systems implementing distance learning depends on the
possible degree of interaction.
It can be remarked that the traditional lesson is considered more
positively than the video-recorded lesson or distance learning without
interaction (asynchronous modality). At the intermediate level the distance
modality with interaction takes his place such as that analyzed in our
research. The interaction is crucial; we expect no differences between
video-recorded lessons and that conducted at distance without any kind of
interaction.
In conclusion, the possibility of interaction during the lesson is a
basic factor for the success of a distance course.
The EIDLL intends to assess the quality and the amount of learning in a
course at distance by means of new experimental studies manipulating the
possibilities of interaction.
References
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http://www.cscl2002.org/.
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