Student persistence is important for students, faculty, and universities and online faculty mentoring supports student persistence to graduation. The online learning environment is increasingly a choice for more undergraduate students, and it continues to grow in popularity as an attractive option for adults. It is crucial to find ways to increase persistence and graduation especially given the increased use of virtual learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. Attrition rates in online learning can be high for a variety of reasons, including persistence and engagement. Faculty mentors in the online environment can strengthen connections and relationships with undergraduate students, and it is important to ask for and evaluate these student perceptions. This mixed methods study surveyed and interviewed undergraduate students in an online university to understand both their experiences with faculty mentoring in the online environment and the potential of a faculty mentor program in a large online university. The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions and experiences of four undergraduate student mentees with their faculty mentor at a large online university using mixed methods research design. In addition, survey data from one department are analyzed to guide future mentoring programs in online learning environments. Findings from the study indicate belief that mentoring and encouragement from faculty would enhance students’ scholarly experience. Students indicated they would like to participate in a faculty mentoring program, and it was clear that students welcome and appreciate the opportunity to further cement a professional relationship between themselves and faculty. This article makes a unique contribution to higher education research, providing a potential model for others seeking guidance in mentoring in online higher education. The data analysis and research indicate that a larger scale mentoring program might be more valuable for students.
The convenience factor of studying online can be diminished by the lack of interaction with faculty and peers, and students often express feelings of isolation as influencing online engagement. When students can actively participate throughout a program, students feel satisfied with the learning program. Building positive and organized connections in online communities enhances academic success and retention rates and fosters a sense of community. Therefore, the presence of online faculty is vital for building interaction and connectedness between faculty and student, and student and student. There are a variety of ways to achieve this, including facilitating connections between discussions, assignments, and live interactions; merging conceptual learning to pragmatic application; connecting cohorts of students; and leveraging synchronous tools to manage an interactive atmosphere.
Inclusion is built on the idea that all students are valuable and significant members of their community and should be accepted in general education settings. Inclusion is a term that can define classroom practices, but it is also a valued system where all students have a sense of belonging. Collaboration between teachers can effectively support students with special needs (SSN) in inclusion, offering insight into student needs and providing valuable information for supporting students. Research has identified the effective collaborative constructs of (1) shared planning, (2) frequent communication, (3) shared vision, (4) mutual respect, and (5) joint trust. This chapter will investigate the real-life issue of collaboration needs and define the established collaborative constructs for practice.
The convenience factor of studying online can be diminished by the lack of interaction with faculty and peers, and students often express feelings of isolation as influencing online engagement. When students can actively participate throughout a program, students feel satisfied with the learning program. Building positive and organized connections in online communities enhances academic success and retention rates and fosters a sense of community. Therefore, the presence of online faculty is vital for building interaction and connectedness between faculty and student, and student and student. There are a variety of ways to achieve this, including facilitating connections between discussions, assignments, and live interactions; merging conceptual learning to pragmatic application; connecting cohorts of students; and leveraging synchronous tools to manage an interactive atmosphere.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.