| This study examined the survey responses of 645 distance education faculty at 129 universities and colleges in order to identify key factors that influence communication satisfaction for the distance education instructors. This study found that faculty members are somewhat satisfied with the overall level of communication satisfaction for teaching in distance education classroom. Specifically, distance education instructors are somewhat satisfied with the amount of information they receive relative to their distance teaching, the level of distance education administrative support, and with the level of student-to-teacher interaction in the distance education. “Interaction with students” was ranked as the most influential factor for communication satisfaction in the distance education classroom. The remaining seven factors measured were: organizational climate, communication with distance education administrators, communication with organizational supervisor, personal feedback, written communication with students, written information from distance education administrators, and informal communication with distance education personnel. According to respondents, increased student interaction is the primary aspect of communication that most instructors would change in order to enhance their satisfaction. Other important changes in communication recommended by the respondents include opportunities for one-on-one communication, open microphones, the ability to see and hear all students simultaneously, communication with students prior to the beginning of the grading period, larger monitors and wider angle cameras to better view the individual students, increased student comfort with technology, the availability of instant messenger for all students, and access to email on all campuses. In short, interaction with students plays a pivotal role in the communication satisfaction of distance education faculty. |
