Perceptions of Online Learning in an Australian University: Malaysian Students’ Perspective – Support for Learning

Abstract

Abstract-Several researchers have reported that cultural and language differences can affect online interactions and communications between students from different cultural backgrounds. Other researchers have asserted that online learning is a tool that can improve teaching and learning skills, but its effectiveness depends on how the tool is used. To delve into these aspects further, this study set out to investigate the kinds of learning difficulties encountered by the international Asian students, in particular Malaysian students and how they actually coped with online learning. The modified Online Learning Environment Survey (OLES) instrument was used to collect data from the sample of 76 students at a university in Brisbane. A smaller group of 35 Australian students was also included for comparison purposes. Contrary to assumptions from previous research, the findings revealed that there were only few differences between the international Asian students from Malaysia and Australian students with regards to their perceptions of online learning. Recommendations based on the findings of this research study were made for Australian universities where Asian international students from Malaysia study online. Specifically the recommendations highlighted the importance of upskilling of lecturers' ability to structure their teaching online and to apply strong theoretical underpinnings when designing learning activities such as discussion forums, and for the university to establish a degree of consistency with regards to how content is located and displayed in a learning management system like Blackboard.Index Terms-Asian international students, online learning, online learning environments, online learning environment survey (OLES), Net Gen, support for learning.

A Literature Review and Directions for Future Research on International Student Perceptions of Online versus Face-to-Face Education: Program-centered Characteristics

“…For example, research at the turn of the century indicated differences between Australians and Asian students in student perceptions (Smith & Smith, 1999;Ramburuth & McCormick, 2001); however, a more recent study found no significant differences existed on many factors for these groups (Chew & Yee, 2015). Yet, another study reported on changes in Chinese students' motivation and learning strategies after an online collaborative experience towards a social-constructivist learning approach (Zhu et al, 2009).…”

“…Mixed results in cross-cultural comparisons exist for many program characteristics; however, recent research appears to indicate that the Millennials generation regard online education differently and are more accepting than Gen-Xers or Gen-Yers (Chew & Yee, 2015). Additionally, several studies note that students' perceptions changed over time (Benbunan-Fich & Hiltz, 203;Karns, 2005;Mortagy & Boghikian-Whitby, 2010;Perreault et al, 2008;Ramburuth & McCormick, 2001;Smith & Smith, 1999;Zhu et al, 2009) Previous research demonstrates mixed student perceptions of online education that differed in facility size (small, medium, and large universities), audience (e.g.…”

“…Previous studies examined differences across cultures (Cronje, 2011;Chew & Yee, 2015;Grandon et al, 2005;Li & Kirkup, 2005;Popov et al, 2012;Popov, Noroozi, Barrett, Biemans, Teasley, Slof & Mulder 2014;Zhu, Valcke & Schellens., 2009) and within cultures (Adler et al, 2001;Chase et al, 2002;Hamdan, 2014;Okwumabua, Walker, Hu & Watson, 2010). In a recent cross-cultural comparison between Malaysian and Australian students, no significant differences in students' perceptions existed on computer usage, lecturer support, equity, student interaction and collaboration (Chew & Yee, 2015). In another study at a large, southeastern University in the U.S., both African-American and Caucasian American students' perceptions view online learning positively (Ashong & Commander, 2012).…”

“…Today, instructors skills are critical in online delivery, and as online education crosses global boundaries, instructors need to understand different cultural and technological environments when designing learning activities (particularly discussion forums) (Chew & Yee, 2015). Current research on students' perceptions can be divided into two streams of research -student-centered (concentrating on differences between students' perceptions based upon individual demographic and perceptual characteristics) and programcentered (concentrating on program design issues that may be controlled by the instructor).…”

Exploring the Educational Effectiveness of Culturally-enhanced Serious Game in Education

“…Furthermore, studies have revealed that culture also had influence on an individual's needs, preferences and expectations towards education [6][7][8]. For example, Western learners expect constructivist learning approach in contrast to Eastern learners, thus Western learners prefer to utilize social constructivist tool such as e-learning, Wikipedia and Facebook [6,9,10].…”