Online Learning and Education Technology

Online Learning and Education

Technology can provide a valuable advantage for students in the classroom. The opportunities for teachers to enhance instruction using computer technology are tremendous. However, the literature review revealed that there are significant obstacles and wide-spread use of computers in the classroom. It was suspected that a lack of training and computer skills were responsible for the gap in technology use. It was discovered that not only the availability of the training and the quality of training were major issues in the ability to increase computer usage among educators. The purpose of this research will be to explore the use of online courses as a solution to the barriers inherent in the current level of computer use in the classroom as a resource for educators.

Research Questions

This research will support the hypothesis that online courses will have a significant positive impact on actual computer use in the classroom. It will address the following research questions:

Does an online course increase actual usage of computer technology in the classroom?

Does an online course result in improved attitudes towards technology in the classroom by educators?

Does an online course result in better support from administration as far as time to take the course is concerned?

Does an online course significantly increase the computer knowledge level of a selected group of educators?

Rationale

This study will be a quantitative investigation of the ability of an online course to increase both computer knowledge and level of usage among the teachers in the classroom. A quantitative approach was chosen because the data can be easily translated into a numerical form via a standardized test (Creswell, 2005). This topic was chosen as result of the literature review, which indicated that online courses may offer a better alternative than face-to-face courses for increasing computer knowledge among staff. It will serve as a quantitative assessment of an online course for this purpose.

Instrumentation

This study will use a survey to evaluate the level of knowledge present in a group of educators chosen to participate in the study. They will be given a survey designed to assess their overall level of computer knowledge and current level of usage in the classroom setting. The participants will be asked to take an online course to help increase their level of computer knowledge. Two weeks after the course, a follow-up survey will be given to assess if they have increased their level of computer knowledge and level of usage in the classroom.

Methodology

Sample participants for the study will be selected from among elementary school teachers in several local school districts. They will be teachers for grades 1-6 and will be selected by announcing the study and allowing volunteers to sign up. They will be offered an incentive for participation to encourage enrollment in the study. The course itself will be an incentive to participate. The study will consist of 50 participants from among at least three local school districts. They will be a demographically mixed group.

The study will consist of two phases. The first phase will consist of administering a survey to assess the level of computer knowledge and current level of computer usage in the classroom. This will serve as the independent variable of the study. After the initial survey, teachers will be asked to participate in an online course designed to increase their level of computer knowledge and usage. Two weeks after the initial survey another survey will be given. It will be identical to the first survey.