International nursing students' experiences of electronic-learning
Shakya, Rashmi; Bett, Maureen (2017)
Shakya, Rashmi
Bett, Maureen
Laurea-ammattikorkeakoulu
2017
All rights reserved
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2017101816153
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2017101816153
Tiivistelmä
With the growing need for distance education, most universities and universities of applied sciences (UAS) are singling out e-learning as an important area of development. The purpose of this thesis was to describe the kind of experiences international nursing students’ had of e-learning. The research question was, “What kind of experiences do international nursing students have regarding electronic learning?”
This thesis was based on technology acceptance model (TAM) and online collaborative theory (OLC) that explained the factors determining e-learning experiences. The participants in this thesis were international nursing students (nationalities other than Finnish) who started their studies in fall, 2015. This thesis used qualitative research with semi-structured interviews for data collection. The findings were connected to the two existing theories (TAM and OLC) using deductive content analysis of data.
The findings of this thesis indicated that students preferred face-to-face learning to e-learning. Moreover, e-learning was preferred for being convenient while challenges included inadequate materials, poor support from tutors and some courses being unsuited for e-learning. In addition, number of courses running simultaneously overwhelmed the participants.
Based on the findings, recommendations were made, which included e-learning materials improvement; e-learning supplemented with a few contact lessons to reinforce the learning attained from the online courses; scheduling of courses to ensure that many courses do not run concurrently; and prompt support for students using the electronic workspace.
Since this thesis had limited participants, further research was suggested in assessing e-learning which would consider a wider population. This would provide an insight into the aspects of e-learning so that there can be a holistic improvement in the entire e-learning value chain.
This thesis was based on technology acceptance model (TAM) and online collaborative theory (OLC) that explained the factors determining e-learning experiences. The participants in this thesis were international nursing students (nationalities other than Finnish) who started their studies in fall, 2015. This thesis used qualitative research with semi-structured interviews for data collection. The findings were connected to the two existing theories (TAM and OLC) using deductive content analysis of data.
The findings of this thesis indicated that students preferred face-to-face learning to e-learning. Moreover, e-learning was preferred for being convenient while challenges included inadequate materials, poor support from tutors and some courses being unsuited for e-learning. In addition, number of courses running simultaneously overwhelmed the participants.
Based on the findings, recommendations were made, which included e-learning materials improvement; e-learning supplemented with a few contact lessons to reinforce the learning attained from the online courses; scheduling of courses to ensure that many courses do not run concurrently; and prompt support for students using the electronic workspace.
Since this thesis had limited participants, further research was suggested in assessing e-learning which would consider a wider population. This would provide an insight into the aspects of e-learning so that there can be a holistic improvement in the entire e-learning value chain.