| In the United States, institutions of higher education struggle to attract and retain students in today's fiercely competitive environment. Universities respond to the changing needs and demands of their customers by offering increasingly flexible programs that are delivered through various learning modalities, including distance and cyber education.;There is a plethora of recent research on distance and cyber education; however, few studies focus specifically on the learning experience from the student's orientation. This research draws from the narratives of students attending three non-profit, American universities: Stanford University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and Golden Gate University.;This study follows a participatory, critical hermeneutic research protocol that is designed to bring forth the voice of distance and online learners in higher education. The research categories of language, community, and learning help to situate, organize and bring context to the narratives. Critical hermeneutics is an interpretive approach that takes into account the beliefs and the traditions of cultures; it also brings hope and encourages movement towards action. Herda (1999:131) states, "field-based research in a hermeneutic tradition can help bring forth community motifs that engender conversation, reflection, and new bases for action." Distance and cyber learners participate in this study by engaging in conversation; the transcribed conversation becomes the data for textual analysis.;The findings of this study include the following themes: access, technology, the need for a community of learning, the influence of past learning traditions, language, text, and the use of online bulletin boards.;The recommendations and implications for this research include the following: establishing a guideline for interaction to create a community of learning inclusive of instructor training for teaching in mixed mode deliveries; collective participation and authentic engagement of students by changing forced participation tied into the grading structure; technological cohesion; and the call for action to reconcile the tension that distance students experience in mixed mode learning.;The learners' narratives carry forth the voice of the larger community; their stories can help educational institutions build more sustainable, marketable, and potentially profitable communities of learning. |
