Students' Experiences of e-learning: a Virtual Ethnography into Blended Online Learning
Simone Krüger
Edge Hill
Abstract
This paper discusses results of research-in-progress into students' experiences of e-learning at Edge Hill, which has derived from the researcher's virtual ethnographic research and active participant-observation during a blended online module, which was modeled on a social constructivist learning approach. In my ethnographic analyses, two broad themes emerged, namely motivational issues pertinent to e-learning in general, and issues of identity formation in asynchronous discussions. Focusing on both aspects, this paper aims to illuminate e-learning's potential for enhanced learning among self-motivated learners and those participants who succeeded in building motivation as a result of constructing social identity.
Keywords
Experience, virtual ethnography, motivation, asynchronous discussion, identity, gender
Keynote Speakers
Peter Goodyear, University of Sydney
Beijing Normal University
Vera A. Solis, Universidad Centroamericana
Lawrence Hamburg, Higher Education Academy
Sten Ludvigsen, Intermedia, Oslo
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