Share Paper: Graduate Student’s Preference toward Strong Instructor Support over Peer to Peer Collaboration in Online Courses

  1. Justin Louder, Texas Tech University, United States
  2. Nancy Maushak, Texas Tech University, United States
  3. Steven Crooks, Texas Tech University, United States
  4. Stephanie Jones, Texas Tech University, United States
  5. William Lan, Texas Tech University, United States

Abstract: This paper is a report on the findings of a study conducted on graduate level students enrolled in distance/online education courses. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to examine student’s preference in the online learning environment and what variables positively impacted overall student learning. Findings indicate that graduate students prefer strong instructor support instead of collaboration and interaction with peers when it comes to learning in the online environment. Instructors need to provide greater online support and reduce the abundance of online discussion and collaboration for online graduate programs to have a better impact in overall student learning.