MINORITY STUDENTS' NEEDS FOR SOCIAL INTERACTION ONLINE

This study examined the relationship of factorsrelating to students' perceptions of their need forsocial interaction in online classes and the extentto which the communication functions of onlineclasses met those perceived needs. The studyexamined Hispanic and non-Hispanic community collegestudents from one community college and Hispanic andnon-Hispanic university doctoral students from onestate university. The outcome measures were need forsocial interaction and the degree to which thecommunication functions of online courses met theneed. A statistically significant difference wasfound in level of institution and students'perceived need for social interaction in onlineclasses. University students perceived a higherneed for social interaction. No statisticallysignificant difference was found in Hispanic and non-Hispanic students need for social interaction inonline classes. No statistically significantdifferences were found in level of institution orethnicity regarding students' perceptions that thecommunication functions of online classes met theperceived needs.

Autorentext

Ann Sudell Thorn is a tenured Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Del Mar College (DMC)in Corpus Christi, TX. Prior to accepting the position of instructor at DMC in 2000, she served as Systems Analyst for Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi (TAMU- CC). She holds an AAS from DMC and a BBA, MS, and EdD from TAMU- CC.

Klappentext
This study examined the relationship of factors relating to students' perceptions of their need for social interaction in online classes and the extent to which the communication functions of online classes met those perceived needs. The study examined Hispanic and non-Hispanic community college students from one community college and Hispanic and non-Hispanic university doctoral students from one state university. The outcome measures were need for social interaction and the degree to which the communication functions of online courses met the need. A statistically significant difference was found in level of institution and students' perceived need for social interaction in online classes. University students perceived a higher need for social interaction. No statistically significant difference was found in Hispanic and non- Hispanic students need for social interaction in online classes. No statistically significant differences were found in level of institution or ethnicity regarding students' perceptions that the communication functions of online classes met the perceived needs.