The purpose of this study was to evaluate graduate students’ perceptions of a completely online master’s degree program in special education for emotional and behavioral disorders. The Community of Inquiry survey was used to examine graduate students’ perceptions of the online program in the areas of teaching, cognitive, and social presences. The results suggest that teaching and cognitive presence can be addressed with a high level of satisfaction in an online program. Activities related to creating a social presence within an online program may need additional attention. Given the limited amount of research on how to evaluate online teacher preparation programs, the findings from this study provide a starting point for determining the effectiveness of online programs in education.
AllenI. E.SeamanJ.GarrettR. (2007). Blending in: The extent and promise of blended education in the United States. Sloan Consortium. Retrieved from http://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED529930
3.
American Association for Employment in Education. (2009). Executive summary: Educator supply and demand research. Columbus, OH: Author.
4.
ArbaughJ. B.BangertA.Cleveland-InnesM. (2010). Subject matter effects and the Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework: An exploratory study. The Internet and Higher Education, 13, 37-44.
5.
ArbaughJ. B.Cleveland-InnesM.DiazS. R.GarrisonD. R.IceP.RichardsonJ. C.SwanK. P. (2008). Developing a community of inquiry instrument: Testing a measure of the community of inquiry framework using a multi-institutional sample. The Internet and Higher Education, 11, 133-136.
6.
BatesA. W.PooleG. (2003). Effective teaching with technology in higher education. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
7.
BollingerD. U.HalupaC. (2012). Student perceptions of staisfaction and anxiety in an online doctoral program. Distance Education, 33, 81-98.
8.
BollingerD. U.MartindaleT. (2004). Key factors for determining student satisfaction in online courses. International Journal on E-Learning, 3, 61-67.
9.
BourneJ.MooreJ. (2002). Elements of quality online education (3rd ed.). Needham, MA: Sloan Center for Online Education.
10.
BraunT. (2008). Making a choice: The perceptions and attitudes of online graduate students. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 16, 63-92.
11.
BullockL. M.GableR. A.MohrJ. D. (2008). Technology-mediated instruction in distance education and teacher preparation in special education. Teacher Education and Special Education, 31, 229-242.
12.
CancioE. J.AlbrechtS. F.JohnsB. H. (2014). Combating the attrition of teachers of students with EBD: What can administrators do?Intervention in School and Clinic, 49, 306-312.
Cleveland-InnesM.GarrisonR.KinselE. (2007). Role adjustment for learners in an online community of inquiry: Identifying the needs of novice online learners. International Journal of Web-Based Learning and Teaching Technologies, 2(1), 1-16.
15.
CooperL. (2001). A comparison of online and traditional computer applications classes. Technological Horizons in Education Journal, 28(6), 31-37.
16.
DobbsR. L.AllenW. C. (2004, March). Designing an assessment model for implementing a quality online degree program. Paper presented at the Academy of Human Resource Development International Research Conference, Austin, TX.
17.
FrazierL. C. (2010). Distance education in teacher education: A baseline for instructional decision making (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Towson University, Towson, MD.
18.
FrazierL. C.SaderaW. A. (2013). Distance education in teacher preparation programs: A national study. International Journal of Technology in Teaching and Learning, 9(2), 112-138.
19.
GarrisonD. R.AndersonT.ArcherW. (2000). Critical inquiry in a text-based environment: Computer conferencing in higher education. The Internet and Higher Education, 2, 87-105.
20.
GlaserB. G.StraussA. L. (1967). The discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for qualitative research. Chicago, IL: Aldine.
21.
HowlandJ.MooreJ. (2002). Student perceptions as distance learners in internet-based courses. Distance Education, 23, 183-195.
KatsiyannisA.ZhangD.ConroyM. A. (2003). Availability of special education teachers. Remedial and Special Education, 24, 246-253.
24.
KumarS.RitzhauptA. D. (2014). Adapting the community of inquiry survey for an online graduate program: Implications for online programs. E-Learning and Digital Media, 11, 59-70.
25.
LeedsE.CampbellS.BakerH.AliR.BrawleyD.CrispJ. (2013). The impact of student retention strategies: An empirical study. International Journal of Management in Education, 7, 22-43.
26.
LincolnY. A.GubaE. G. (1985). Naturalistic inquiry. Beverly Hills, CA: SAGE.
27.
MarianiM. (2001). Distance learning in post-secondary education: Learning whenever, wherever. Occupational Outlook Quarterly, 45(2), 2-10.
28.
McInnerneyJ. M.RobertsT. S. (2004). Online learning: Social interaction and the creation of a sense of community. Educational Technology & Society, 7(3), 73-81.
29.
McLeskeyJ.TylerN. C.FlippenS. S. (2004). The supply of and demand for special education teachers: A review of research regarding the chronic shortage of special education teachers. The Journal of Special Education, 38, 5-21.
30.
NordD. (2011). Online learning programs: Evaluation’s challenging future. In MathisonS. (Ed.), Really new directions in evaluation: Young evaluators’ perspectives (New directions for evaluation, No. 131, pp. 129-134). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley.
31.
QueenB.LewisL. (2011). Distance education courses for public elementary and secondary school students: 2009-2010 (NCES 2012-009). National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2012/2012008.pdf
32.
RekkedalT.Qvist-EriksenS. (2004). Student support services in e-learning: An evaluation study of students’ needs and satisfaction. European Journal of Open, Distance and E-Learning. Retrieved from http://www.eurodl.org
33.
RobertsT. G.IraniT. A.TelgR. W.LundyL. K. (2005). The development of an instrument to evaluate distance education courses using student attitudes. American Journal of Distance Education, 19, 51-64.
