Document Type
Article
Abstract
International students comprise a growing population in U.S. higher education institutions, including online courses. Online international students’ experiences and needs have been largely understudied, but their increased presence in online courses offers a rich opportunity to understand better and improve their course experiences. This qualitative study draws upon interviews with international and domestic online learners to illuminate the importance of inclusivity and how it can be improved through course design and facilitation. To address our research questions, we interviewed 27 graduate students at a large public research university in the United States. The sample included 17 international and 10 domestic students. The findings show opportunities for enhancing the online learning experience for international learners through culturally attuned teaching, supporting both social and cognitive presences along with clear course expectations, and encouraging instructor’s responsiveness and peer engagement. This study concludes with four major implications for online instructors.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Repository Citation
Dennen, Vanessa P.; Choi, Hajeen; He, Dan; and Arslan, Ömer, "Course Design, Belonging, and Learner Engagement: Meeting the Needs of Diverse International Students in Online Courses" (2024). School of Engineering Faculty Publications. 3.
https://scholarworks.bgsu.edu/engineering_pub/3
Publication Date
Summer 6-14-2024
Publication Title
TechTrends
Publisher
Springer Nature
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-024-00983-w
Volume
68
Start Page No.
922
End Page No.
935
Included in
Educational Technology Commons, Higher Education Commons, Instructional Media Design Commons, Online and Distance Education Commons