The lived experience of distance students: Individuality, mobility, connectedness, quality and resourcefulness

Abstract

This phenomenological study explored the lived experience of twelve distance education students in relation to their use of information and communication technologies and learning spaces to support teaching and learning activities. In providing a context for the study, distance education and distance learners are defined and the importance of distance learning in the face of growing institutional enrolments is discussed. Issues and trends influencing distance education in the 21st century are explored in some detail, along with the associated challenges. Consideration of the issues concerning ubiquitous learning in the Australian higher education environment, along with an examination of quality issues in relation to online learning and distance learners, provides further information on the context of the study. The study argues that the learner's voice is a critical part of quality processes and in many cases current quality processes focus on mainstream and blended learning activities and overlook the needs of the distance learner. The study also argues that there needs to be a greater emphasis on individual voices and on dialogical approaches to collecting the student voice. The methodology is discussed in some detail and a rationale for the phenomenological approach is supplied. The data collection methods are described as are the recruitment processes, ethical concerns and analysis process. The study also outlines the Charting the Week's activities method, a new approach developed for this study. The findings of the study are explored in a number of papers, which focus on different aspects of the findings, including new media, mobile learning and learning spaces. These papers also include a discussion of the implications of these findings for higher education institutions. The conclusions provide a summary of the findings, make key recommendations, identify the limitations of the study and offer suggestions for areas for further research. The main finding of the study is in relation to changing student learning preferences and the implications this has for learners, lecturers and institutions.