Sanders, Hannah; Graul, Antje; Lavoie, Raymond (Utah State University)
Faculty Advisor: Graul, Antje (Jon M. Huntsman School of Business, Marketing and Strategy Department)
It is imperative for institutions of higher-education to understand and meet the needs of their students when teaching in an online environment, specifically, how their enjoyment, attitude and learning outcomes derived from an online class can be predicted. Our research demonstrates the importance of instructor playfulness--defined as the level of which an instructor is gregarious, uninhibited, comedic and dynamic in class--in an online class environment. We suggest that instructor playfulness significantly positively correlates with students' perception of enjoyment, attitude and learning outcomes in an online class.
To test these predictions, we conducted a quantitative study with college students in order to gain insights into their experiences and perceptions of instructor playfulness in online classes and surveyed related student outcomes. Our results suggest that the positive effects of instructor playfulness in an online class are drawn by the extent to which students develop a subject-related identity and improved flow of the online class. Based on our findings, we conclude specific methods and teaching techniques that can be incorporated by online instructors to design their online classes in higher education more successfully.
Together, our research advances the existing stream of literature by examining the concept of instructor playfulness in an online context. We contribute to practical implications by offering guidance for online instructors in higher education.