Cyberservices: What's Important and How Are We Doing?

Abstract

❖ As colleges and universities develop distance learning programs, administrators have scrambled to provide on-line services for distance learners. But do learners need such services? The present study examined how important services were for distance learners and how satisfied they were with the services provided to them. Data were collected through a national on-line survey and threaded discussion. Results revealed that services overall were not particularly important to participants, though there were significant differences by age and class status.The proliferation of technology in higher education has changed the ways in which education is delivered to students (

Commuter Students, Online Services, and Online Communities

“…With improvements in technology, as noted previously, student affairs professionals have done a remarkable job of integrating technology into their services and have migrated most to the online environment (Hirt, Cain, Bryant, & Williams, ). This blending of technology and services has been independent of the development of distance education courses and academic programs, and this disconnect of uncoordinated, patchwork programming between academics and student affairs has led to a system of online services but has failed to develop virtual communities.…”

Posibilidades para el uso del modelo de aceptación de la tecnología (TAM) y de la teoría de los marcos tecnológicos para evaluar la aceptación de nuevas tecnologías para el aseguramiento de la calidad en la educación superior chilena

“…Por ejemplo, en el año 1996, el 80% de todos los campus en Estados Unidos reportaban tener sitios de internet mientras que el 30% planeaba tenerlos dentro del próximo año. Estas páginas web proveían de información a potenciales estudiantes y público en general acerca de ofertas académicas, programas y servicios del campus, bibliotecas y asuntos académicos (Hirt, Cain, Bryant y Williams, 2002).…”

File Sharing, Napster, and Institutional Reponses: Educative, Developmental, or Responsive Policy?

“…This digital revolution also brought new challenges and concerns to student affairs in terms of providing student development to students engaged in distance education and solely interacting with the institution through the Internet (Hirt, Cain, Bryant, & Williams, 2003). In fact, digital considerations now heavily influence decisions concerning issues from instructional delivery to building construction.…”

“…ticularly those associated with distance education students (e.g., Hirt, Cain, Bryant, & Williams, 2003;Schwitzer, Ancis, & Brown, 2001), institutions continue to struggle with recognizing and regulating new types of student behavior associated with the use of this technology. For example, Gatz and Hirt (2000) note their study of student usage of e-mail "suggests that the nature of student involvement seems to be shifting as traditional-age, first-year students spend more time on computers" (p. 314).…”