Research Article
What Can Faculty Members and Programs Do to Improve Students' Learning?
Table 2
Mean scores for items related to ideal program and courses within an ideal program.
(a) |
| Items related to ideal program | Mean score | SD |
| My ideal program would provide for a leave of absence status without financial penalty | 4.62 | .61 | My ideal program would have technical support available within 24 hours | 4.57 | .50 | My ideal program would be supported by a strong administrative infrastructure (e.g., effective procedures for answering questions, registration) | 4.45 | .59 | My ideal program would allow me to take a number of courses per semester | 3.73 | 1.05 | My ideal program would be completed without a thesis or major project | 3.67 | 1.13 | My ideal program would allow me to take only one course per semester | 2.98 | 1.25 |
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(b) |
| Theme/Stem | Items related to courses within an ideal program | Mean score | SD |
| Content and structure | Courses are well organized, with structured content | 4.58 | .54 | Course readings/textbooks reflect current knowledge in the discipline | 4.58 | .50 | Courses have seamless navigation | 4.48 | .51 | Course content is appropriate to my learning needs | 4.47 | .50 | Courses have a strong relationship of content to assignments | 4.42 | .50 | Course readings/resources are accessible on line instead of having to obtain a hard copy | 4.02 | 1.1 |
| Collaboration and feedback | Courses provide opportunities for me to receive feedback about my ideas from course instructors | 4.56 | .55 | Courses require collaboration among learners | 4.25 | .69 | Courses provide opportunities for me to receive feedback about my ideas from other course participants | 4.13 | .59 | Courses provide opportunities for me to respond to the ideas of other course participants | 4.04 | .64 | Courses encourage team effort and community building among learners | 4.04 | .64 |
| Discussion forum | Courses have frequent instructor interaction in discussion forums | 4.16 | .67 | Courses have frequent discussion forums | 3.47 | .97 |
| Instructors | Instructors respond to my emails within 24 hours | 3.78 | 1.22 |
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