Daniel Jordan 18669233

Literature Review

Introduction

In a pandemic social and learning environment such as that which we face today both locally and globally, there has

perhaps been no better time to investigate some of the major impacts of online learning. As far back as 2009,

Cavanaugh, Barbour, and Clark conducted a K-12 review of literature calling for more research into teaching

strategies for online learning, including examining social interaction deficits and opportunities (Harvey, Greer,

Basham & Hu, 2014). Indeed, as Mansouri and Jenkins (2010) suggest, teachers have a duty to respond

professionally and appropriately to social change, and online teaching and content delivery is therefore a crucial area

of research. Not only has online learning been the fastest growing form of distance education, but it affords a

number of advantages over traditional face-to-face learning, such as flexibility, convenience and social distancing.

However, as indicated by research conducted by Harvey et al. (2014), one of the greatest barriers to successful

online learning can be a lack of social expression and interaction which is where this literature review is focused.

Social isolation and disconnects in online content delivery

Looking at the social component of online learning, Jaber and Kennedy examined a postgraduate online program

featuring four tutors and ten students in a qualitative case study. Through three rounds of interviews around social

presence and barriers or benefits to learning they discovered that the potential absence of verbal as well as non-

verbal cues in online learning contributed to a more impersonal relationship between educator and student and a

greater difficulty for students in constructing identities for their peers (Jaber & Kennedy, 2017). Likewise, the

research of Nicol, Minty and Sinclair found that a lack of social cues made interpreting student responses in an

online learning environment much more difficult. In situations where students were unresponsive it was hard for

educators to evaluate the cause, be it boredom, distraction or even offense or some other inhibition (Nichol, Minty

& Sinclair, 2003).

This research aligns with the study conducted by Harrell and Wendt which undertook a research project on blended

learning (online and traditional face to face) with 172 participants in a public high school. They noted that in online

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environments, especially those which were primarily delivered by text, that social expressions such as humour or

positive emotion were not commonly existent (Harrell & Wendt, 2019). They used a casual-comparative design

employing archival data across ninth to twelfth grade English and discovered that the online component did lose

some sense of belonging which could lead to a lack of self-directed learning, self-efficacy and disengagement (Harrell

& Wendt, 2019). Overall, students who studied entirely online compared to blended learners reported a statistically

significant variation (p=.002) in feeling a lower level of social presence and connection to their group (Harrell &

Wendt, 2019). The social disconnect that can occur during online learning was echoed by participants of the research

conducted by Harvey, Greer, Basham and Hu. They asked the 140 high school participants in their study what they

missed most about the traditional school setting, with the top two categories being ‘recess/ time to hang out’ (36%)

and ‘Lunch w/ students’ (33%) (Harvey et al., 2014, p. 22). This indicates that the teaching profession needs to

identify strong research evidence and suggestion actions around the challenges of social student engagement in

online learning environments.

Social barriers, benefits and deficits in online learning

The threat of negative emotions impacting students was definitely present in several research studies. Jaber and

Kennedy (2017) identified that remote learning could lead to student anxiety, dissatisfaction and isolation. One

student reported significant disappointment when the only response to a very detailed forum post was ‘I agree’ by a

fellow student, lacking appropriate social or emotional investment (Jaber & Kennedy, 2017). Feelings of student

isolation and a lack of social identity where corroborated in the research of Nicol et al. (2003) who identified that it

could lead some students to ‘lurking’ rather than participating in class contribution and group work.

Another threat was identified by Russell’s case study with a group of online learning high school students from Picnic

Point High School in New South Wales. She found that when given their own projects to work through online

without the face to face social support of teacher and peers, some students felt an immediate increase in anxiety

(Russell, 2006). However, the researched also revealed that it is not all bad news since some of the potential social

threats of traditional school environments could also be mitigated. In responses to the statement “I have been

embarrassed or humiliated’, 40% of students agreed in a traditional school setting compared to only 2.1% of

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students learning online (Harvey et al., 2014). Similarly, data collected from two schools in the work of Harvey et al.

(2014) indicated that the prevalence rate of bullying sat around 55% compared to cyberbullying at 18%. Hence it is

important to consider all of the data to understand which social aspects of online learning are a risk and may require

additional strategies, and which aspects stand to benefit. While research into online learning can inform pedagogical

strategies for this domain of learning, as stated by Kervin, Vialle, Howard, Herrington and Okely (2016) good

research should possess a generalisability and be able to be used in other contexts. Therefore, it stands to reason

that there may be research data obtained in the online learning domain that can also assist pedagogy in traditional

face to face environments, such as methods in mitigating anti-social behaviours.

Pro-social benefits and student leadership in online learning

In terms of social benefits, online learning does allow students who may struggle with confidence in front of their

peers to focus more on sharing through text or images and therefore liberate them of negative self-conscious

thoughts or fears of peer judgement (Nichol et al., 2003). Harvey et al. (2014) noted in similar vein that students who

are socially solitary people or aren’t particularly motivated through socially co-operative learning could find more

flexibility, focus and satisfaction through online delivery. Opportunities also existed for online social cohesion and

student leadership. In Russell’s (2006) research project she discovered that, in the physical absence of a teacher,

some students began to take active control and self-direct their own learning while also providing leadership to their

peers through the development of self-generated process. Indeed, in the study conducted by Harvey et al. (2014)

they found most of the students enjoyed their online classes, were able to pace themselves appropriately through

their work and felt supported by their educators. Jaber and Kennedy (2016) go as far to conclude that online

groupwork is capable of producing higher order, enriched social learning with “the potential to enable learners to

achieve a degree of metacognition and even social metacognition or co-regulation of learning” (p. 216).

Summary

To summarise this literature review, online learning continues to increase in significance and therefore is worth

further research into its effects. The social domain reflects one of the highest impacted areas for online learners that

can lead to students feeling disaffected, socially isolated and even potentially anxious or depressed. It can also lead

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to disengagement and a lack of satisfaction due to a lack of emotional cues or verbal or emotional affirmations of

achievement. It can however, also severely mitigate bullying behaviours, and can lead to increased student

ownership of learning, peer support, group cohesion and leadership, and is therefore worthy of new research that

can measure, evaluate and recommend actions to inform best practice online pedagogy.

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Collection Protocols

Name: ______________________________________________

Date: _______________________________________________

Years of teaching experience: ___________________________

Gender: _____________________________________________

Faculty: _____________________________________________

• How adequate do you feel your training in online teaching is to manage student’s social development?

Inadequate Marginal Effective Very Effective

• How good are your online learning tools in assessing student’s wellbeing?

Inadequate Marginal Effective Very Effective

• How effective is your system or process in allowing you to form group work or tasks online?

Inadequate Marginal Effective Very Effective

• How effective is your process or system in identifying bullying behaviours for students learning online?

Inadequate Marginal Effective Very Effective

• Are you able to identify students who are not contributing or being highly passive in their online
contributions?

Always Often Sometimes Never

• Do you feel you can support students who feel socially isolated during online learning?

Always Often Sometimes Never

• Do you feel that students who feel socially isolated have access to peer support during online learning?

Always Often Sometimes Never

• Do you feel you can effectively communicate with parents or carers during online learning when their child is
suffering some form of negative social experience?

Always Often Sometimes Never

• Students who feel isolated or anxious during online learning experience poorer academic achievements as a
result.

Always Often Sometimes Never

• Some students can achieve better academic results online than in traditional face to face settings.

Strongly agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree

• Please comment on any other information you feel is important or relevant to the social impact of online
learning in Australian High Schools:
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________

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Protocols Rationale

Due to the very recent nature of online learning due to the COVID pandemic, now is the perfect time to approach NSW

High School teachers to ask for their valuable feedback on the challenges and successes of online learning. Based on

the research literature, online learning represents challenges in social connectivity and isolation, so this survey

protocol has been constructed to find out how equipped teachers are in terms of training and technology, and how

effective they feel they can be in monitoring student’s social well-being while also being able to mitigate potential

threats. Since it has been established in the literature that some students can feel anxious, isolated or even depressed

when learning alone, this survey fulfils a quality sense of purpose in researching this important issue (Mockler, 2014).

When determining who to survey it was important to consider the ethical concern of minimising risk or potential harm.

Since asking students questions in relation to social isolation or anxiety could be a potential issue, the choice has

instead been made to interview educators (Mockler, 2014). The participants can be teachers from any faculty. This

includes student teachers who have done professional placement as long as they have been involved in delivering

remote online learning for students. The purpose of the research has been clearly identified to participants in relation

to the social impact of online learning as well as the affirmation that all of their responses will be de-identified along

with their appropriate institutions.

The collection method is primarily a four-point Likert scale for quantitative data with a final and optional qualitative

open request for anything the participant may wish to add. As McMillian (2012) notes, multiple means of collecting

data allow for a triangulation of results so allowing participants an opportunity to give a written response will improve

the efficacy of the survey. In creating the questions, care was taken to keep the language clear and concise where

possible and for the survey to have clearly specified sections that are logical for respondents to respond to accurately

(Kervin et al., 2016). It has been designed to allow for a cross section of teacher experiences (including those of many

or few years of experience or even pre-service teaching) and across faculties. This can allow for variations in key

learning areas to be examined should they arise.

The questionnaire has essentially been divided into four main areas. The first part relates to teacher training and

system support to adequately provide for student well-being. The second examines the ability of teachers to monitor

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individual student’s well-being as well as social participation. The third relates to their ability to socially interact with

students, parents and carers during online delivery. Finally, teachers are asked if they see an academic impact based

on student’s remote social experience. By having an opportunity to identify any significant weaknesses from a teacher

perspective, this survey fulfils an important quality of purpose in that the research can identify where training and

resources are needed most (Mockler, 2014).

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Appendix 1: Consent Form

Dear Potential Participant:

I am working on a project titled ‘Gauging the Effectiveness of online learning’ for the class, ‘Researching Teaching and
Learning 2,’ at Western Sydney University. As part of the project, I am collecting information to help inform the design of
a teacher research proposal.

Your participation will be in a survey that is designed to help gauge the impact of online learning on student’s wellbeing
and social experience, as well as the impact on their academic achievement and your ability as a teacher to monitor,
engage with and mitigate threats or issues. The survey is predominately formatted as a four-point Likert scale with room
at the end for any further detail you may wish to add. Overall, the survey should only take ten to fifteen minutes of your
valuable time.

By participating in this survey, I acknowledge that:

• I have read the project information and have been given the opportunity to discuss the information and my
involvement in the project with the researcher/s.
• The procedures required for the project and the time involved have been explained to me, and any questions I
have about the project have been answered to my satisfaction.
• I consent to giving my feedback in relation to the social aspect of online learning.
• I understand that my involvement is confidential and that the information gained during this data collection
experience will only be reported within the confines of the ‘Researching Teaching and Learning 2’ unit, and that
all personal details will be de-identified from the data.
• I understand that I can withdraw from the project at any time, without affecting my relationship with the
researcher/s, now or in the future.

Please feel free to contact the author of this survey at any time: Daniel Jordan, email:
18669233@student.westernsydney.edu.au.

By signing below, I acknowledge that I am 18 years of age or older, or I am a full-time university student who is 17 years
old.

Signed: __________________________________

Name: __________________________________

Date: __________________________________

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References
Harrell, K. & Wendt, J. (2019). The Impact of Blended Learning on Community of Inquiry and Perceived Learning

among High School Learners Enrolled in a Public Charter School. Journal of Research on Technology in

Education, 51(3), 259-272.

Harvey, D., Greer, D., Basham J. & Hu, B. (2014). From the Student Perspective: Experiences of Middle and High

School Students in Online Learning. American Journal of Distance Education, 28(1), 14-26.

Jaber, R. & Kennedy, E. (2017). Not the same person anymore: Groupwork, identity and social learning

online. Distance Education: Special Issue: Social Presence and Identity in Online Learning, 38(2),

216-229.

Kervin, L., Vialle, W., Howard, S., Herrington, J., & Okely, T. (2016). Research for Educators (2nd ed.). South

Melbourne, Victoria: Cengage Learning.

Mansouri, F., & Jenkins, L. (2010). Schools as Sites of Race Relations and Intercultural Tension. Australian Journal

of Teacher Education, 35(7).

McMillan, J. (2012). Educational Research: Fundamentals for the Consumer (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.

Mockler, N. (2014). When ‘research ethics’ become ‘everyday ethics’: the intersection of inquiry and practice in

practitioner research. Educational Action Research, 22(2).

Nicol, D., Minty, I. & Sinclair, C. (2003). The social dimensions of online learning. Innovations in Education and

Teaching International, 40(3), 270-280.

Russell, W. (2006). Piaget’s Other Classroom. Innovation in Teaching and Learning in Information and Computer

Sciences, 5(4), 64-75.

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