Steven Asquith, Kanda University of International Studies
Phoebe Lyon, Kanda University of International Studies
Kathryn Jurns, Kanda University of International Studies
Abstract
Whilst online courses have become ever more prevalent in the educational field in recent decades, their efficacy is still debated, especially with respect to language communication classes, which traditionally entail human interactions. Although there has been previous, limited research conducted into online learning options at the same tertiary institution (Mynard & Murphy, 2012), online courses were still far from ubiquitous in the Japanese landscape of tertiary language education curricula at the time of this study. However, adoption of online courses would allow for the expansion of current programs, enabling non-traditional students access to equal education opportunities as well as offer institutions a practical alternative to having to cancel lessons owing to unforeseen circumstances. This study investigates whether online lessons of the core curriculum classes offered at a language-focused Japanese university context, and which were based upon the regular in-class course content, offer comparable value to the regular classroom-based lessons in terms of students’ perceptions of the delivery, structure and usefulness of the lesson. By providing practical descriptions of how the traditional classroom lessons were adapted and delivered online, as well as quantitative feedback comparing the students’ perceptions of the online versus classroom lessons, the paper will highlight the challenges of creating online course content, considering both instructors’ and students’ viewpoints.
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