ERIC Number: EJ1269073
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020
Pages: 13
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1449-5554
EISSN: N/A
Effects of Instructors' Academic Disciplines and Prior Experience with Learning Management Systems: A Study about the Use of Canvas
Fathema, Nafsaniath; Akanda, Mohammad H.
Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, v36 n4 p113-125 2020
This study examines the effects of instructors' academic disciplines and prior experience with the learning management system (LMS), Canvas, on current use. Our mixed method study collected data via an online survey from 557 instructors at two United States universities. Quantitative analyses found significant differences in instructors' use of Canvas by their academic discipline and prior Canvas experience. Content analysis of the open-ended responses revealed that, when reporting the strengths and weaknesses of Canvas, while instructors across disciplines reported common strengths, the weaknesses they identified varied according to the features they used for their specific disciplines. Our findings lead us to recommend routine evaluation and assessment of instructors' needs related to LMS. We suggest that, together with general LMS training, campuses design and offer discipline-specific LMS training to ensure instructors' needs for LMS based on their academic fields are addressed. Also, we propose that universities should design and offer basic and advanced LMS training programs for instructors with different levels of LMS experience.
Descriptors: Intellectual Disciplines, Knowledge Level, Teaching Experience, Teacher Characteristics, Teacher Attitudes, Teacher Behavior, College Faculty, Technology Integration, Integrated Learning Systems, Affordances, Usability, Faculty Development, Research Universities
Australasian Society for Computers in Learning in Tertiary Education. Ascilite Secretariat, P.O. Box 44, Figtree, NSW, Australia. Tel: +61-8-9367-1133; e-mail: info@ascilite.org.au; Web site: https://ajet.org.au/index.php/AJET
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A