A Current Study: An Assessment of Online Instructor’s Perceptions on Using an Introductory Video

Purpose/Significance

Dr Andree Swanson and Dr Maria Minor, research partners, are conducting a qualitative study to identify the views of online faculty on whether using an introductory video will be of assistance to increase social engagement.  Faculty want to ensure that students have a sense of connection and engagement (e-connectivity) with the faculty.  Increased e-connectivity will improve retention, reduce attrition, and help to keep the student engaged in the classroom (Swanson, Hutkin, Babb, & Howell, 2010, p. 121).  The study will seek the opinions of online faculty using social media such as Linkedin, Blogs, Facebook, and Twitter.

Significance Statement

The significance of this study is that faculty want to ensure that students are engaged in the online classroom.  Studies have been completed that identified the need for:

1)      Achieving a social connection (e-connectivity) with their students (Muirhead, 2000; Slagter van Tryon & Bishop, 2006)

2)      Increasing interactivity that “will help the students' with their understanding” (Swanson, Hutkin, Babb, & Howell, 2010, p. 121).

Swanson et al. (2010) stated,

Participants in a study agreed that faculty should be warm, available to answer questions; hold students to a high standard, remain flexible to adult learners; honest in all of their interactions, and demonstrate a caring nature in the online classroom. (p. 119)

Slagter van Tryon and Bishop (2006) as cited in Swanson et al. (2010) defined the unique term e-immediacy as the feeling of social connectivity between two online individuals whether instructors or classmates).  Engagement and the feelings of social connectedness are what the students’ desire (Slagter van Tryon & Bishop, 2006; Swanson et al., 2010).  Student engagement can be increased by including, at a minimum, instructor welcome videos in the online classroom.  The addition of introductory videos will enable the faculty members to engage in the proposed study to share their personality and enthusiasm for the topic.       

Benefits

This is an introductory research project. The benefits of this study may result in data that participants can use.  If the results show a positive outcome, participants make look into adding a welcoming video into their own classroom.  The benefits are to the online learning community may result in increased retention in online classroom and may result in reduced attrition.  The results from this survey may present significant data to conduct further research on the addition of video in the classroom which may benefit higher education and learning in society.

Participate in Study

You are invited to participate in a 12-question research study Using an Introductory.  Please go to this link, complete the informed consent, and take the brief survey.  Please go to http://www.minorswanson.info/#!current-research/ch6q then click on the link at the bottom of the page.

Dr. Andree Swanson and Dr Maria Minor

References

Slagter van Tryon, P. J., & Bishop, M. J. (2006). Identifying “e-mmediacy” strategies for web-based instruction: A Delphi study. Quarterly Review of Distance Education, 7(1), 49-63. Retrieved July 11, 2009, from ProQuest database.

Swanson, A., Hutkin, R., Babb, D., & Howell, S. (2010, Sep). Establishing the best practices for social interaction and e-connectivity in online higher education classes. Doctoral dissertation, University of Phoenix, Arizona. Publication Number: 3525517. Retrieved from http://gradworks.umi.com/3525517.pdf

Leadership Skills as Defined through Service Management Education

Leadership has become a more important focal point of conversations. Understanding the factors of leadership within a transforming educational environment can help college faculty and administrators better understand those skills and abilities which foster appropriate change. Leadership skill has been tested within the hospitality academic fields to better understand the perceptual differences between those who run a college and those who work within it.

Leadership can be seen as a combination of personality traits, abilities and gifts (Kenny & Zaccaro, 1983). People are born with certain leadership abilities that develop over time through effort and willpower. However, this does not take into consideration the multiple factors of development that can occur through different social situations and how these social situations foster leadership.

Leadership can also be seen as derived from the result of individual behaviors within a social context (Blake & Mouton, 1978). Under such social circumstances, skillfulness is demonstrated by effective action (Katz, 1955). Through pressing times, people with leadership skills may employ those skills to achieve a defined objective; even when such skills were not exhibited before.

Even though leadership can be associated with, the way people think they are only precursors to what may actually happen under the right circumstances. Behavioral-based theories measure leadership by what actually was exhibited in certain pressing circumstances (Northouse, 2007). What is done may vary be the way people think but only through “trial by fire” do meaningless words turn into effective action that come to define the true leader.

Effective leaders have a few traits that help separate them from others. High performing leaders tend to focus on interpersonal skills (Boyatzis, 1982) and problem-solving or decision-making abilities (Connelly, et. al., 2000). To put together the right solutions for the varying problems at hand leadership is derived from the following three factors (Mumford, et. al., 2000):

1.) Creative problem-solving skills

2.) Social judgment skills

3.) Knowledge

Under such circumstances, leaders can find solutions to problems, able to judge their social environment and use their prior knowledge to make proper decisions. Social judgment can be seen as the ability to perspective take,  perceptive in social situations, have behavioral flexibility, and create social performance (Mumford, et. al, 2000). In order to judge difficult situations and find solutions to ill-defined problems leaders need to quickly use information about tasks and the people they work with to create effective solutions (Mumford, et. al., 2000).

This quick witted and social grace allows leaders to create higher levels of performance when the timing is right. Such leaders quickly scan their environment to understand the factors, put together their prior knowledge to find solutions, and use their social skills to influence others. With these three factors, they are able to overcome problems that others may have a hard time fathoming.

A study conducted by Kalargyrou, Pescosolido, & Kalargiros in 2012 helps to determine the perceived skills of leaders within the hospitality management education programs at the college level. The study used 236 professors and administrators from baccalaureate and graduate problems that were registered with the International Council on Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Education (I-CHRIE).

The results of the survey indicate that faculty and administrators ranked business skills as the most important set of leadership qualities. This was followed by cognitive, interpersonal abilities and strategic decision-making abilities. To both faculty and administrators it is important for leaders to develop their business skills and use them in both personal and social ways to solve complex problems

Each of the concepts are defined as follows:

1.) Business skills: Management skills, management of personnel, financial management, and management of material resources.

2.) Financial Skills: Management of material resources that includes fundraising, budgeting, accounting, technology, sales, curriculum, and marketing.

3.) Cognitive Skills: Effective communication and the ability to adapt to changing environments.

4.) Interpersonal Skills: The ability to create positive public relations, empathy, respect hospitality, forgiveness, trustworthiness, and caring.

5.) Personal Values: The ability to act both ethically and fairly with people.

Boyatzis, R. E. (1982). The competent manager: A model for effective performance. New York:Wiley & Sons.

Blake, R. & Mouton, S. (1978). The new managerial grid. Houston, TX: Gulf.

Connelly, M., Gilbert, J., Zaccaro, S. , Threlfall, K., Marks, M. , & Mumford, M., (2000). Exploring

the relationship of leader skills and knowledge to leader performance. Leadership Quarterly, 11(1), 65–86.

Kalargyrou, V.  Pescosolido, A. & Kalargiros, E (2012).  Leadership skills in management education. Academy of Educational Leadership Journal,  16, ( 4).

Katz, R. L. (1955). Skills of an effective administrator. Harvard Business Review, 33(1), 33-42.

Kenny, D. & Zaccaro, S. (1983). An estimate of variance due to traits in leadership. Journal of Applied Psychology, 68, 678-685.

Mumford, M. D., Zaccaro, S. J., Connelly, M. S., & Marks, M. A. (2000). Leadership skills: Conclusions and future directions. Leadership Quarterly, 11(1), 155-170.

Northouse, P. (2007). Leadership theory and practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage publications.

Bookmark with Your Social Network