Factors Affecting Interaction in Online EFL Courses: A Multiple Case Study of Instructors’ Perspectives

Authors : Eda YAPICI, Yaşar YAPICI, Gülin BALIKCIOĞLU AKKUŞ

Pages : 325-340

Doi:10.14686/buefad.1008001

View : 14 | Download : 4

Publication Date : 2023-04-15

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :A variety of factors might impact on interpersonal interaction between instructors and students in an online course. This study seeks to explore the opinions and attitudes of six EFL instructors working at various universities in Turkey regarding the factors they believe increase interaction in their online courses and to contribute to the pertinent literature. Within the scope of collaborative research, the use of purposeful sampling technique and semi-structured interviews with the participants provided the best opportunity to describe the attitudes and opinions of these instructors who were assigned to teach online in an emergency remote teaching environment due to the coronavirus pandemic, COVID-19. The end result includes a variety of factors and strategies influencing interaction that can be used by novice and experienced online instructors aiming to influence interpersonal interaction in their online courses. While all the participants expressed the need to provide higher quality interactions during the online courses, the obstacles they face in their efforts to reach the desired level of interaction were the main agenda of the interviews. They discussed the role of course structure factors, environment and media effects, feedback and assessment techniques, and discourse facilitators, which constituted the main themes that were categorized into codes emerging from the interview data.
Keywords : Faktörler ve stratejiler, kişiler arası etkileşim, çevrimiçi kurslar