Lecturers’ perceptions and experiences of Blackboard Collaborate as a distance learning and teaching tool via Open Universities Australia (OUA)

ABSTRACT

Australian tertiary institutions offer online units to provide flexibility for students unable to attend classes on campus due to the constraints of distance and scheduling. While lecture materials and discussions can be accessed asynchronously, a synchronous element allows lecturers and students to interact in real time. Blackboard Collaborate, featuring videoconferencing, text, voice chat and interactive whiteboard, is a synchronous tool which can encourage a collaborative learning environment. This study explored seven lecturers’ perceptions of, and experiences with Blackboard Collaborate in an Australian university setting. Quantitative data was collected and statistically analysed from responses to closed-ended items in an online survey. Qualitative data was gathered and thematically analysed from open-ended item responses and semi-structured interviews. Lecturers found that the use of Blackboard Collaborate motivated students, helped them to share knowledge, facilitated timely responses to student queries, enhanced interaction via multimodality and built virtual learning and teaching communities. Negative aspects were also noted, however, and included lecturers having to cope with technical glitches, a lack of face-to-face co-presence, delayed turn-taking in live sessions and difficulties with engagement due to suitable session scheduling.

KEYWORDS:

• Blackboard Collaborate
• distance learning
• synchronous mode
• lecturer perceptions
• Open Universities Australia (OUA)

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Teaching Academic Scholarship Seed (TASS) Grant, Curtin University.

Notes on contributors

Julian Chengchiang Chen

Julian Chengchiang Chen is a Senior Lecturer at Curtin University where he teaches the Post Graduate Programmes in Applied Linguistics. His research interests include technology-enhanced language learning, task-based language teaching and blended learning.

Toni Dobinson

Toni Dobinson is an Associate Professor at Curtin University where she coordinates the Post Graduate Programmes in Applied Linguistics. Her research interests are in transcultural competence, language education, translanguaging and literacies.

Sarah Kent

Sarah Kent teaches a foundation level academic research and writing unit at Curtin College. Her research interests include English language teaching and online learning technologies.