Investigation of Higher Education Student Perceptions of Social Presence and Motivations in Online Learning Environments

This chapter determines the social presence perceptions and motivation levels of higher education students participating in the online learning environment and reveals the possible causes that affect these variables. According to the findings obtained from the study in which the explanatory design was used among the mixed research methods, it was concluded that the social presence perceptions of the participants were lower compared to their motivation. Besides, it was found out that there is a positive relationship between social presence and motivation variables. According to the qualitative findings, the majority of the participants stated that they were not satisfied with distance education, encountered technical and hardware problems, and the online learning environment was not effective enough in the context of communication and interaction. The research results contribute to the literature in terms of the effectiveness of online learning environments.

Virtual Learning Post COVID-19

The impacts of COVID-19 on education have changed how many schools and education providers deliver education with the rapid transition to online learning environments. This research highlights the critical factors influencing student and teacher engagement while also highlighting opportunities for educators to enhance the engagement for their students, utilising results from two focus groups and qualitative surveys through a case study on school districts across South Australia. This provided an understanding of the critical factors influencing teacher and student engagement and identified opportunities for improvements to the levels of student engagements through online learning environments. This research has identified best practices within schools and across the Department of Education that can support virtual learning and digital engagement into the future. In addition, through the identification of critical factors influencing student and teacher engagement, exploration of opportunities to support students and improve overall digital engagement can be identified.

The Impact of Students’ Perceptions of Online Learning Environments on Students’ Satisfaction in the Context of Covid-19 Pandemic

In the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, the present study aimed to examine students’ perceptions of online learning environments and students’ satisfaction based on their academic stream. The study also investigated the impact of students’ perceptions of online learning environments on students’ satisfaction. A quantitative descriptive survey method was applied. This study included 230 students (130 undergraduate and 100 postgraduate students) from colleges and universities of West Bengal. Online Learning Environments Survey, an adapted and translated (Bengali) version of the Distance Education Learning Environments Survey (DELES) by Scott L Walker (2003), was used for collecting data. For data analysis, statistical techniques, ANOVA and regression analysis were performed. The results revealed significant mean differences among arts, commerce, and science students’ perceptions of online learning environments in the dimensions of student interaction and collaboration, personal relevance, authentic learning, active learning, and student autonomy except in instructor support. Furthermore, a significant mean difference in student satisfaction was found based on the academic stream. The result revealed that overall students’ perceptions of online learning environments had a significant impact on student satisfaction, with student interaction and collaboration being the most significant predictor of all; however, instructor support, active learning, and student autonomy were not found to be significant predictors of student satisfaction.

Chinese University Students’ Perceptions of Facilitation Strategies, Learning Motivation, and Satisfaction in Cloud-Based Virtual Classrooms

This study investigated university students’ perceptions of facilitation strategies, learning motivation, and satisfaction, and the relationships between them in a cloud-based virtual classroom in mainland China. The results of an online questionnaire survey from a sample of 7,210 university students showed that students perceived high levels of facilitation strategies, learning motivation, and satisfaction. Students’ demographic characteristics, such as discipline, university type, gender, and grade, did not significantly affect their perceptions of facilitation strategies and learning outcomes. Instructor-student interaction and instructor innovation were positively related to student learning motivation and satisfaction whereas the relationships between student interaction and learning motivation and satisfaction were weak and had no practical meaning. The findings of this study have implications for creating more effective synchronous online learning environments and achieving desirable learning outcomes.

Tracking Student Performance Tool for Predicting Students EBPP in Online Courses

Our motivation in this paper is to predict student Engagement (E), Behavior (B), Personality (P) and Performance (P) via designing a Tracking Student Perfor-mance Tool (TSPT) that obtained data directly from Moodle logs of any selected courses. The proposed tool follows the predictive EBP model that focuses mainly on student's EBP and Performance where the instructor could use it to monitor the overall performance of his/her students during the course. The results of test-ing the tool show that the developed tool gives the same as manual results analy-sis. Analyzing Moodle log of any course using such a tool is supposed to help with the implementation of similar courses and helpful for the instructor in re-designing it in a way that is more beneficial to the students. This paper sheds light on the importance of studying student's EBPP and provides interesting possibili-ties for improving student performance with a specific focus on designing online learning environments or contexts.