Interaction and Immediacy in Online Learning
The authors' key point is that "Interaction alone... is insufficient to create a positive social dynamic in the online classroom." An important mediating element, argue the authors, is "immediacy," which is "the extent to which selected communicative behaviors enhance physical or psychological closeness in interpersonal communication" and "immediacy is both a consequence of interaction and a contributor to it." The implication is that immediacy enhances interaction, but one would be hard pressed to draw this conclusion explicity in this paper. More...
Analysing the Importance-Competence Gap of Distance Educators With the Increased Utilisation of Online Learning Strategies
The competence of distance educators has a significant impact on learners’ success. The paradigm shift for universities to become distance and electronic learning environments justifies the urgency to address competency gaps in distance educators’ competencies efficiently. From a strategic human resource development perspective, the systems theory is used to explain the idea of maximising outputs with the minimum inputs (Biddle, 1986). More...