Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 2 of 2
Full-Text Articles in Education
Digitally Rural: Identifying How Technological Inequity Impacts Rural Students In First-Year Writing Courses, Jo Anna M. Nevada
Digitally Rural: Identifying How Technological Inequity Impacts Rural Students In First-Year Writing Courses, Jo Anna M. Nevada
English Language and Literature ETDs
To teach composition in this era means to engage students with technology; it is all but an unspoken requirement at the majority of universities. This dissertation theorizes, however, that the imbricated use of technology in first-year writing (FYW) classrooms places rural students at an inherent disadvantage, with issues of inadequate technological proficiency and inconsistent access causing a substantial learning disparity between this student population and their urban peers. Through mixed-methods data analysis of student survey responses and final FYW course portfolios, this study reveals that the expectation of technological access and presumption of digital literacy is detrimental to rural student …
Reconnaissance: Relationship Between Social Presence And Knowledge Construction In Second Life, Leah A. Hardesty
Reconnaissance: Relationship Between Social Presence And Knowledge Construction In Second Life, Leah A. Hardesty
Organization, Information and Learning Sciences ETDs
This qualitative research study explored levels of social presence in Second Life (virtual world) associated with phases of knowledge construction. The study explored images and data collected from users at two discussion-based activities. The findings revealed the three levels of social presence, according to the Interactional Process Model of Social Presence developed by Schultze and Brooks. Social presence established a sense of mutual monitoring of users that increased users’ sense of presence. This made their virtual interactions more real. Various phases of knowledge construction were observed as specified in the Interaction Analysis Model developed by Gunawardena, Lowe and Anderson. Knowledge …