QUALITY INDICATORS IN DISTANCE EDUCATION AND EVALUATING TECHNOLOGY-BASED DISTANCE EDUCATION PRACTICES ACCORDING TO THESE INDICATORS

Dr. Nurettin Simsek
Ankara University

Abstract

Because of the growing popularity of technology-based distance education, distance education has gradually become the particular concern of many institutions and individuals. It is necessary to question the quality of the practices and develop those practices du to the arising problems. In this study, the primary objective is to develop quality indicators that can be used to evaluate the quality of technology-based education. Another objective of the study is to evaluate the practices in Turkey according to developed quality indicators. The study was conducted with the participation of four hundred and seventy-three instructors from twenty-three universities that applied technology-based distance education in the education years of 2011-2012. At the first stage of the study, a data-obtaining tool that included quality indicators was prepared based on evaluation approaches and criterion in the field of literature. At the second stage, the reliability and the validity studies were conducted. At the third stage, the participant group’ opinions on determined quality indicators and the present state of technology-based distance education practices according to these indicators were received. The results of the study indicated that the quality in technology-based distance education can be dealt with based on five dimensions like educational effectiveness, cost efficiency, accessibility, faculty satisfaction and student satisfaction. Participants approved thirty-seven of these quality indicators related to these five dimensions finding them “very important” and “crucially important”. Participants indicated the existence of various problems in distant education practices in terms of determined quality educators. It was determined that there were more problems in the dimensions of educational effectiveness, instructor and student satisfaction.

Keywords

Higher education, Quality assesment, Quality measurement, Quality indicators, Technology-based distance education.

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