Change in university teachers' elearning beliefs and practices: a longitudinal study

Abstract

Little longitudinal research has examined change in university teachers' elearning beliefs and practices after their initial experience with elearning. This study addresses this gap by focusing on six teachers who developed and implemented an elearning resource, and the changes they made to the resource and its implementation over two years. A focus is whether the teachers' reflections on the changes provided an opportunity and stimulus for change in their elearning beliefs and practices. Findings highlight that change in elearning beliefs cannot be presumed to precede change in practices, and that changes in elearning beliefs and practices typically occur following critical unmet expectations, when students' learning preferences conflict with teachers' goals. Furthermore, teachers have sets of elearning beliefs that inform different practices in different contexts. Finally, this study has highlighted the continuing refinement and redevelopment of elearning resources that occur over time. The findings have implications for supporting teachers using elearning.

Keywords:

• beliefs
• practices
• reflection
• longitudinal study
• elearning

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank the research participants and my Ph.D. supervisors, Professor Peter Goodyear and Dr Mary Jane Mahony. I also thank Mary Jane, Professor Brian Paltridge and the two Studies in Higher Education referees for their insightful comments on earlier versions of this paper.