Assessing Service Quality At A 5 Star Hotel

Assessing Service Quality At A 5 Star Hotel 1.1 Introduction Tourism has become one of the great pillars in the Mauritian economy since some years. Today Mauritius is very popular in the Indian ocean and has emerged as a major tourist destination. According to statistical research done, we can say that Mauritius is facing a continual increase in the inflow of visitors during the recent years. Consequently, the hospitality industry faced a rapid growth to accommodate demands, causing a great increase in the number of hotels. The total passenger arrivals during the period January to September 2010 numbered 879,833 representing an increase of 7.3% over the figure of 819,741 for the corresponding period of 2009. Tourist arrivals for the first nine months of 2010 attained 646,656. This represents an increase of 6.2% over the figure of 608,885 registered in the corresponding period of 2009. However, one of the greatest challenges facing hotel organisations today is the ever-growing volume and high level of competition. (Kamdampully et al ,2000). In the highly competitive hotel industry, service becomes one of the most important elements for gaining a sustainable competitive advantage in the marketplace. Improving quality gaps has become a critical issue for the hotel industry in Mauritius as it represents an important source of competitive advantage. In consequence, hotels need to ensure customer satisfaction through the provision of high quality service to their guests for achieving their financial objectives. Increased employee performance is a viable way for hotels to remain competitive. On the other hand, given that delivering service quality and satisfying customers has become the life hood of service providers. Per se, service quality and customer satisfaction need to be investigated to know where the hotel stands and to develop proper methods leading to excellence. The impression that tourists will have of the organisation as a whole will depend on their interaction with the front line employees which means that the latter have a role to play in service quality. However, service quality control is of great importance for customer retention. Customer loyalty is a key determinant for the long term financial performance of organisations (Jones sasser, 1995) . Reichheld and sasser (1990) found that if a firm increases its customer retention rate by 5%, then its total lifetime profits from a typical customer will rise by 25-125%. 1.2 Problem statement The tourism and hospitality industry in our island is developing more rapidly than other industries. Based on data available on tourist arrivals and information gathered from stakeholders, tourist arrivals for the year 2010 has been revised upwards to 920,000. This represents an increase of 5.6% over the figure of 871,356 in 2009. Service quality occupies a significant role in the hotel industry as there is a need to provide service properly. Efficiency cannot be achieved without good proper service quality standards. Assurance of service quality is of great importance in various hotels. So, it is important to alleviate all the downfalls of service quality in this sector to ensure satisfaction of customers . This study is mainly carried out because in Mauritius, the main problem that the hospitality industry is facing nowadays is that demand for high quality service is increasing considerably due to competition. As our country is focussing more on tourism for a better economy, it is vital to see whether the expected class of services are provided to the tourists at the hotels. This shall allow Mauritius to respond to the challenges of the incoming competitive global business environment. By providing high quality service, hotels can enjoy long term profitability. Adapting it to concerned hotel, it is important to know if the employees and the management of the hotel are providing high quality service to the guests to ensure customer satisfaction. 1.3 Objectives of the study The aim of the study is to assess the level of service quality provided by the Hotel. This study will help to know the needs and expectations of the customers of the hotel. The study will also identify the hotel`s current situation and this will help the management of the hotel to develop future strategies to improve services . The study will focus on these objectives : To assess customers` perceptions and expectations of the level of service provided by the Hotel using a modified servqual model. To identify aspects of service that reveal weak and strong areas ( Gaps ) of service quality. To evaluate the level of customer satisfaction at the hotel. To identify appropriate techniques, strategies or action plans to enhance the service at the hotel. 1.4 Profile of organisation Location This 5 star hotel is one of the worlds great resorts -the height of cool, modern elegance, imbued with the warmth of tropical Mauritius, truly one of the Leading Hotels of the World. It lies on a beautiful stretch of sandy coast, looking out over tranquil Trou dEau Douce Bay. Out in the lagoon, are two beautiful islands, including Ile aux Cerfs with its spectacular 18-hole championship golf course, designed by Bernhard Langer. This is 5-star luxury at its best, the perfect holiday setting for couples and families, with a fabulous range of facilities, including an extensive range of water sports and land-based activities, 5 restaurants, a renowned Givenchy spa and personal butler service. The Resort also features three spectacular waterfront Villas, which have redefined the benchmark for luxury in Mauritius. Opened in May 2005, the hotel offer ultra-exclusive and spacious accommodation, using the latest technology to meet the high expectations of the most discerning guests. The hotel comprises of 300 rooms including villas, standard rooms, junior suites, and royal suite. There are 2 Bars known and also 3 Restaurants 1.5 Outline of study The study on assessing service Quality comprises five chapters . Chapter 1 relates to the introduction on service quality in this new century. Then the problem statement is explained followed by the aims and objectives of the study and lastly the hotel profile is shown. Chapter 2 consists of the literature review on service quality and discusses all its related key theories. This chapter has the main objective of broadening knowledge on service quality and customer satisfaction. The second part of the literature review sets out to develop and understanding of the distinctiveness application of service quality and customer satisfaction concepts to the tourism and hospitality industry. Chapter 3 explains the methodology used throughout the study , the methods used for data collection, the sample size , the sample techniques , the data analysis , and the limitations of the study. Chapter 4 presents the actual data findings accompanied by the necessary analysis. Chapter 5 consists of the conclusion and recommendations pertaining to the study. Chapter 2 The literature review The chapter sets out to clarify various concepts around which the thesis would be based. This part is normally divided into three sections whereby the first part gives an insight into the world of services. Then secondly the concept of service quality and its determinants are dealt with on a general point of view. And finally the last section offers a review of customer satisfaction and some elements of services attached to it. Within the chapter, much emphasis has been focussed on the work of Parasuraman , Zeithaml and Berry (1988) who devoted particular attention to the field of service quality. Services Since a couple of years services are growing in importance in the world economy and this is majorly due to the advent in technology. Services are diverse and omnipresent in most industries. They are economic activities that create value and provide benefit for customers at specific times and places as a result of bringing about a desired change in the recipient of the service (Lovelock, 2003). Services can also be viewed as including all economic activities whose output is not physical product or construction , is generally consumed at the time it is produced, and provides added value in forms (such as convenience , amusement , timeliness, comfort or health) that are essentially intangible concerns of its first purchaser ( zeithaml and bitner,2003) Although the process of services may be tied up to physical products, their performances are essentially intangible and do not result in ownership of any kind. This can be identified in all the definitions .In simple terms services can be described as deeds, processes and performances. Characteristics of services Intangibility Services cannot be seen, tasted, felt, heard or smelled before they are bought, as they are rather performances than objects. Customers usually derive value from service without obtaining ownership of any tangible elements in most cases (lovelock 2003) . For example, a tourist cannot know how his holidays would be like, at a particular destination until he/she experiences it. Inseparability Production and consumption of services are done simultaneously, after that they had already been sold before hand. Services cannot be separated from their providers, whether they are people or machines ( Kotler and Armstrong,2001). Customers usually need to assist the production process or even participate in it. This often reveals to be an essential ingredient in the service experienced by the customer. Heterogeneity Services are subject to degrees of variability as they are performances that are frequently produced by humans ( Zeithaml and Bitner,2003). Performances vary from producer to producer, from the customer and from day to day. This is due to our uniqueness; productions of services are delivered differently and experiences, lived in unique ways. Perishability Services are highly perishable items since they cannot be stored for later use or sale. It has a shorterm supply elasticity. Services cannot be stored and carried forward to a future time period (Rathwell,1966,Donnelly,1976 ; and Zeithaml et al..1985).For example, if a tourist reserved for a stay in a hotel during peak seasons ,he may not be re imburse if he does not show up. Customer Expectations Customer expectations are beliefs about service delivery that works as standards or reference points against which performance is judged . It provides understanding of how the customer defines quality of service and facilitates the development of customer satisfaction questionnaires ( Pizam and Ellis,1999). Consumer expectations , therefore , serve as the cornerstone or foundation on which service quality is measured ( Clow et al ..,1997) and represent a critical step in delivering quality service. In simpler terms, Expectations is defined as a person`s thought of the future service that he/she will consume. These are expectations have arised by the person`s personal experience, on the internet, by friends and colleagues through word of mouth etc. Customer perceptions As diverse individuals, we all tend to see the world in our own specific ways. Customers act and react on the basis of their perceptions rather than on the objective reality, meaning that each customer experience services differently. Thus ,it is important for organisations to know how consumers perceive their services so as to take necessary dispositions to enhance quality. Perception is defined as the process by which an individual selects ,organizes and interprets stimuli into meaningful and coherent picture of the world ( Schiffman and kanuk,2002) . Each consumer`s interpretation process is based on this own needs, values and expectations : as such , a cognitive judgement. Customer perceptions are the evaluation of particular services by actually experiencing them. They are always considered relative to expectations . Oliver ( cited in Williams and buswell,2003) defined customer perceptions as `a comparison to excellence in service by the customer `. However , the notion of excellence is difficult to be known and whether this standard can be used to judge a particular service is questionable. Finally, customer perceptions should not only be viewed as being made at the end of and experience ( zeithaml and al..,1990) . It is believed that there is an endless potential for judgements to be made all through out the service delivery process. Perception creation starts whrn the customer first enters the service provider`s premise and continues during the service delivery process till it ends . Thus , it may be assumed that an overall perception is built after a particular experience. Service Quality Service quality is a central issue in this ever growing service economy. It is considered a critical determinant of competitiveness, as it is a source of differentiation for various firms . For instance, and appropriate service quality definition is an essential starting point. Through time , numerous quality concepts have been developed ,starting by shewhart ( cited in Williams and Buswells, 2003 ) with conformance to requirements. Then , Deming (1986) defined quality as the predictable degree of uniformity and dependability at low cost while juran proposed fitness for purpose ( Juran and godfrey,1999). Afterwards, Feigenbaum ( 1991) came with the total quality control throughout the organisation. Crosby ( 1979) equated quality to conformance to requirements until Peters ( 1987) offered the concept of customers perception excellence , which revealed be be fundamental in assessing quality. It is difficult to define service quality due to the various caracteristics of services ( such as tangibility ,perishability ) and to the changing needs and expectations of both providers and users. Quality practitioners view quality from various approaches but most of them prefer the user-based approach to quality. Kotler and Armstrong (2001) define quality as the ability to satisfy stated if implied needs with totality of features and characteristics of a service. In broad terms, quality focuses on the benefits created for customers` side of the equation (lovelock,2003). It is all about how customers, both internal and external , evaluate an organisation`s services. Service quality is modelled as the consumer comparing service attribute ( perceptions) to standards of excellence/ ideals for those attributes ( expectations) (oliver,1993;Parasuraman e al.. 1988). According to Deming ( cited in Van Der Wagen) , 1997) quality does not necessarily mean high quality. It means a predictable degree of uniformity and dependability, with a quality standard suited to the market . he also stated that as a concept , it is closely related to value for money. Whereas for Edvadsson ( 1998) , quality means satisfying needs and meeting expectations ; not only those of customers but also those of employees and owners. High quality service is considered as a critical determinant of long term profitability as service quality affects the repurchase intentions of both existing and potential customers ( Ghobadian e al..,1994 ) . Hence , it can be stated the concept is an effective means to ensure survival or even obtain a competitive position in today`s dynamic environment. However , the only appropriate means is to thrive for continuous improvement. Measuring service quality : As service quality is becoming a major part of business practice , it is important to be able to measure and research its effectiveness ( Mei et al..,1999) . For instance , different management practitioners and writers proposed various models to assess service quality. The figure 2.1 shows the gaps model of service quality Source : Zeithaml , V.A , Parasuraman, A.,Berry, L.L ( 1990) ,Delivering Quality Service : Balancing Customer perceptions and Expectations. Gap 1 : Customers expectation = Management Perceptions : as a result of inadequate marketing research orientation, lack of upward communication, insufficient relationship focus with both customer and stakeholders or even inadequate service recovery. Gap 2 : Service quality Specifications Management Perceptions: as a result of the absence of wholehearted management commitment to service quality , Poor service design, absence of customer defined service standards or even inappropriate goal setting. Gap 3 : Service Quality specifications Service Delivery : owing to poorly qualified employees , inadequate internal support systems , insufficient capacity to serve , customers not filling their roles or problems with service intermediaries among others. Gap 4 : Service Delivery External communications : due to inadequate horizontal communication and propensity to over promise. Gap 5 : Customer Expectations customer Perceptions : as a result of influences exerted from customers` side and because of the previous four gaps ( providers` gaps) Consequently, a process model ( Zeithaml et al..,1990) was developed to assess these gaps and take corrective actions. Servqual Model . SERVQUAL ( Parasuraman et al.,1990) had its roots from a strongly user oriented research done through numerous qualitative studies ( mainly focus groups). Parasuraman et al..,(1988) originally evolved a set of ten dimensions ,which was consolidated into five broad criteria after further in -depth research to evaluate service quality SERVQUAL is viewed as the mostly used ,valid and generally accepted measurement tool ( brown and bond,1995). It assesses customers` expectations and perceptions of quality through five generic dimensions described below : Reliability : ability to perform and deliver promised service dependablyand accurately. Responsiveness : Willingness to help customers and provide prompt service. Assurance : Employee`s knowledge , courtesy and ability to inspire trust and confidence ; serving with a smile and be courteous in their approach. Empathy : Caring and individualized attention the firm provides its customers . Ability to make him feel unique and to cater to any of his requirements. Tangibles : Appearances of physical facilities , equipments,personnel and communication materials used to enhance image of the organisation and to signal quality. SERVQUAL questionnaire contains 2 sections : an expectations section consisting of 22 statements and a perceptions section consisting of a matching set of company-specific statements ( Zeithaml et al.,1990). Expectations are measured to serve as standards against which perceptions are compared to determine service quality gap. The instrument is applicable across a broad spectrum of services but it can be adapted or supplemented to fit the characteristics or specific research needs of an organisation. the model has been criticized by a number of academics (Carman 1990; Babakus and Boller 1992; Teas 1994). Criticism was directed at the conceptual and operational base of the model, mostly its validity, reliability, operationalization of expectations, and dimensional structure. However, there is general agreement that servqual items are reliable predictors of overall service quality (Khan 2003) SERVPERF MODEL SERVPERF is quite a different approach from SERVQUAL in the sense that it tries to eliminate the expectations /perceptions problems ( Cronin and taylor, 1994 ) . It considers customer satisfaction, rather than service quality , as the sole construct determining purchase intentions . It is a performance-based model that considers service quality to be same as performance and Robledo (2001) confirmed that it is more appropriate for satisfaction measurement of Business` process by customers ( Baggs and Kleiner,1996) Importance -Performance Analysis ( IPA) IPA is a technique used to identify attributes that are considered as important factors to customers. It measures their relative importance associated with a service/product and also indicates the degree of performance ,i.e level of satisfaction (Martilla and james ,1977). As SERVQUAL,IPA support the view that quality is a function of customer perceptions of performance. SERVPEX MODEL Another model is the SERVPEX (Robledo ,2001), developed for airline services , which possess 26 attributes and a three -factor structure (tangibles, reliability and customer care). It is a basic tool for investigating perceived service quality and expectations. Quality Audit Quality audit is also an instrument assessing quality . It is often carried out as part of quality standard certification processes (e.g ISO 9000) and in TQM programs ( Rajendra and Devadasan,2005). Various researches developed quality audit tools and techniques for specific fields ; chapman et al.,2002 ( cited in Rajendra et al., 2005), to enhance quality in libraries , while, Takeuchi et all,1983 ( cited in Chua Chow et al.,2005), to improve customer service. Critical Incident Technique ( CIT) A critical incident is an observable action or form of expression, which is complete enough in itself to allow inferences to be drawn ( Davis , 2006). CIT is a very useful technique in solving real workplace problems and Edvardsson and Roos (2001) confirmed its limitless capacities in dealing with these types of problems . For instance ,CIT provides a generic road map to identify and resolve organisational problems ,particularly customer- centered ones ( Davies,2006 ) . It is like analysing the interactions of customers with providers during a service delivery . As such , it can be applied to the total customer experience ( Williams and Buswell,2003). Unfortunately, CIT has had very little exposure in the practical sphere. Direct Investigation Approach (DIA) DIA is basically a qualitative technique , which is also known as mystery shopping . It involves disguising an inspector as a customer and allowing him to actually experience the service level of an organisation under evaluation ( Baggs and kleiner, 1996). It provides an objective snapshot of the service experience through the detailed report of encounters and observation that the inspector would submit. QUALITOMETRO QUALITROMETRO is a method on the service quality dimensions ,proposed by parasuraman et al.,1988, conceived for evaluation and ON-LINE service quality control(Francheschini and Rossetto, 1995b). It allows for the possibility of a separate measurement of expected (observed as ex-ante) and perceived (observed as ex-post) quality without the potential for cross-influence on the same questionnaire . But QUALITROMETRO is still under advanced experimentation ( Francheschinie et al.,1998). Managing service quality One road to success in this dynamic world of changing customer expectations is good management practices to maintain excellent quality levels. The pioneer in this field was an American ,W. Edwards Deming who developed quality management strategies for the Japanese. Quality strategies for the Japanese . Quality management came from two ideas about how to run organisations better ; the first is about customers and the second about efficiency . Service quality management is a philosophy of continuous evaluation and improvement ( Van Der Wagen,1997) . It encloses a blend of practices such as quality control , quality measurement and service management Research done by Stephan and Yvonne Lagrosen (2003) on quality management revealed that the following core values were necessary to dash off on a quality journey. 1.Customer orientation . satisfaction of the needs and wants of customers is the ultimate goal ,being considered as the basis for quality management. Both internal and external customers are included . It is of most relevance for services as customer participation is often required in production is often required on production and also due to the high interaction level. 2. leadership commitment . an active and visible commitment from management is required . Managers need to act as role models for quality ; focus need to be more on the processes rather than the outcomes. 3. Participation of everybody . Development of quality requires the participation of each organizational member. Employees should be empowered and for services , this is particularly important for the front staffs, who perform their duties in direct interaction with customers. 4. Continuous improvements . It is important to have a sustainable development of quality and to adopt a learning culture in today`s dynamic environment. Companies should constantly renew and improve all their services processes . Focus should not be only on short-term benefits but also on long term ones. 5. Management by facts. Effective management information systems must be developed ; decisions should be based on reliable and well-documented facts. A selection of indicators related to quality and satisfaction should be used. 6. Process orientation . Firms should have processes designed to enhance customer satisfaction . The way services are produced and delivered are essential to achieve service quality. Service blueprinting is a valuable and adequate tool in this context. Total Quality Management ( TQM ) TQM is one of the most common frameworks for managing quality. It can be regarded as the highest level of quality management ( Dale, 1999) . Development of this concept is largely attributed to Japanese manufacturing companies and to quality experts including W.Edward Deming , Joseph M. Juran and Philip Crosby ( cited in Peters, 1999 and Hutchins,1992 ) .TQM is principally designed to reduce an organisation`s defects , to determine its customers` requirements, and to satisfy these requirements ( Morrison,2001) . Five principles of TQM : Commitment to quality. Quality is the top priority of any firm instituting a TQM program . Management must take the responsibility to participate and direct the TQM process to ensure its success. Focus on customer satisfaction . TQM organisations recognise that customer care about quality and make the necessary efforts to find out their expected service quality levels. Upon determination of these standards, every effort is made to meet or exceed those expectations. Assessment of organisational culture. The consistency of the existing organisational culture must be assessed with the TQM principles . A team of top executives and employees usually does this practice over a period of several months. Empowerment of Employees and teams . The success of a TQM program is greatly due to the empowerment of employees that allows them to better satisfy each individual customer. Measurement of Quality Efforts. TQM firms must be able to measure the outcomes of their quality improvement efforts . Various service quality indicators ( such as customer satisfaction and employee performance measurements) should be utilized. HOLSERV Mei et al.., (1999) brought about some amendements to SERVQUAL and developed HOLSERV to fit the Australian hospitality industry . Three items were deleted and eight others were either modified or added to the initial measurement tool, transforming it to 27 items , divided into three dimensions ( employees, tangibles and reliability ) as a final scale. It is also more user friendly and reliable but the technique needs to be supplemented with qualitative research. JUWAHEER`S ADAPTED SERVQUAL Juwaheer ( 2004) modified the servqual to explore the international tourists` perception of hotel operations in Mauritius . 39 attributes were developed through nine hotel factors , which were identified as service quality and customer satisfaction determinants. Q-Sort technique Q-sort method ( Ekinci and Riley , 1999) serves the purpose of improving surveys . It addresses problems like where is no consensus on the meaning of a particular concept ( e.g service quality). Q-Sort technique can assess the validity of quality dimensions before they are used in measurement tools but its results must be subject to factors analysis to ensure reliability. It must further be noted that it is only a preliminary approach in scale development. Service Quality in tourism When we talk about tourism, we must also talk about quality issues to provide a quality tourism product. Among the service industries tourism is especially significant in terms of its sensitivity to quality issues and in fact, service quality is one of the goal tourism policy issues in the light of the rapid growth of the industry. Valid approaches regarding service quality for the tourism industry is the customer oriented and the value-oriented approach of Garvin`s five definition of quality (Williams et al..,2003) since the specific issue of quality in tourism has not yet been address by management academics and no specific definitions have been attributed to the industry. The customer-oriented approach views customers as central to the organisation and to all aspects of the operational procedures. This explains the necessity of constantly gathering information on guests` expectations (which Diaz-martin et al., 2000, considers as a segmentation variable in tourism), perceptions and complaints concerning services. Services are delivered according to the needs and wants of customers so as to enhance their holiday experience. Moreover, the customer must derive value from the tourism product ; the quality in tourism must be both in terms of the physical product ( hotel design, room,restaurant, menu items , etc ) and the service being offered. According to Horst Schulze, president and chief executive of the ritz carlton hotel company, ( service can only be accomplished by people. The hotel can be breathe-takingly beautiful adn the food memorable, but a poor employee can quickly sour the experience). The service element is crucial in enhancing the quality of the experience of the tourist , who will always be conscious of, and even assessing , the attitude , skills and competencies of the host delivering a particular service. Gronroos (1984) , regarded service quality from 2 point of view : technical adn functional quality. The technical quality is the actual outcome of the service while the functional quality is all about the process that has been undergone to deliver the outcome. Both are considered equally important owing to their impact on customers and can surely be applied in the tourism context. The world Tourism Organization (WTO, 2003b) has defined quality in tourism as : the result of a process which implies the satisfaction of all legitimate product and service needs, requirements and expectations of the customer , at an acceptable price , in conformity with the underlying quality determinants such as safety and security, hygiene , accessibility , transparency , authenticity and harmony of the tourism activity concerned with its human and natural environment. In the above definition we can clearly find that elements of both the customer-oriented and value oriented approach has been considered together with attributes which are directly connected with the tourism concept. Tourism quality is taken from a holistic perspective in this definition. One universal truth about the tourism industry, it is that nothing

Movie and the Society Essay

The pleasure of watching movies is considered vital in our society today. It gives us a temporary escape from reality and allows us to indulge in a world of thrills and chills within the persona of each character in the film that we watch. We also find ourselves contemplating on the identities of characters and somehow see a part of our life in theirs. Typical reaction of movie goers are â€Å"good†, â€Å"boring†, â€Å"exciting† and â€Å"O. K. † People’s judgment is based on their feelings and how the film made them feel that way. Are they triggered with fear during the movie? Did they end up crying? Did they feel good at the end of the movie and leave the theater with a smile on their faces? This approach in analyzing a movie is not really bad, since feelings and sensual pleasures are part of humanistic approach and initial reaction. An audience tends to react based how they exactly feel right after they’ve seen a film: how they indulge in fantasy on magical movies, how they drop off their seats during suspense and horror films, and how they feel the triumph of heroes and heroic figures on suspense and action films. Movies give us a two- to three-hour experience that we often lack in our daily lives. They also give us ideas and make us try to imagine what kind of life are we going to experience if we are in the shoes of the characters that we have watched. Movie Construction Movies are not only judged according to our feelings and emotions but also with ideas and assumptions. The plots and story give us a better vision and meaning of our own lives. Most people are not good evaluating, examining, and analyzing movies. Most people don’t bother to think much because they are after the experience of feeling different emotions or they just love the actors and actresses of the film. As a student who is in line with film studies, I think various bases should be used in analyzing movies. With this learning, we don’t only enjoy the film that we are watching but be more keen observers on the different aspects of movies that filmmakers tend to hide from us; how the film is made and what values are promoted (Kolker, 1999, p. 33). We often forget that films are not only artificial construction where people on screen are only projections from television and made out of cameras and videos. We should bear in mind that these films are results of thousand hours of writing scripts, directing, acting, shooting, editing, cutting, and splicing. Most filmmakers tries their best and makes them forget that its just a story by making sure that there is no equipments like cameras or microphones seen as a part of the filming context. They also work very hard to keep us from noticing how the film is pieced together from the footage taken in many different places, from many different camera positions, and over a much longer period of time than we experience in watching it. â€Å"Because we’re used to thinking that seeing is believing, that pictures don’t lie, it is easy to feel as if what we are seeing is really happening. † (Mast, 2008) Basic Terms in Movie Analysis Shots These are streams of images which are not interrupted by editing it is a continuity of scenes and where graphics are formed by series of still frames. In order to be able to think about a film, we have to resist the â€Å"suspension of disbelief† in order to pay attention to how the film is put together. Start by noticing when one shot ends and another begins. In film studies parlance, a â€Å"shot† is any â€Å"unbroken, unedited length of film. †(Kolker, 1999, p. 33) In most films shots gives us interpretation regarding scenes and characters. We can see the emotions and predict future events base on shots provided in the film. Like the extreme long shots that gives us the overall scenario where the enemies and soldiers begins a battle. Most of the time shots are cut through editing so that it will appear as one to the viewer but in reality it is taken with series of shots to make up one particular scene. Once we have enough knowledge in analyzing the shots and editing in the movie we can also understand how the film starts to manipulate us and our feelings through the rest of watching the entire movie. Shorter shots gives us faster pacing of the film and transitions in the events of the characters. â€Å"When we get used to fast-paced films like this, films with longer shots and fewer cuts can seem slow and difficult to watch. But, of course, such fast-paced films also make it harder to think! Films that constantly use close-up shots of the characters create a higher level of intensity and intimacy than do films which focus more on landscape, geography, and other aspects of context. † (Mast, 2008) If a film always provides us shots of the characters it gives us the notion that these individuals are the most important element in the story and through the rest of the film, places and situations also gives valuable shot as it shapes the lives of the main character. Scenes and Sequences This usually takes place in a single time and place with the characters of the film having a conversation at a given time. There are times that two scenes are provided in the film alternately showing the viewers different scenarios which often combined or talks about the same topic. â€Å"Sometimes a single scene may contain two lines of action, occurring in different spaces or even different times, that are related by means of crosscutting. Scene and sequence can usually be used interchangeably, though the latter term can also refer to a longer segment of film that does not obey the spatial and temporal unities of a single scene. For example, a montage sequence that shows in a few shots a process that occurs over a period of time. † (Film Analysis Guide 2008) Story/Plot This term refers to the overall order of the film. It is consist of settings, time frame, events and the relations between them. Story on the other hand is more extensive sine it is more straightforward especially if the genre is drama where the story is manipulated by the plot to produce dramatic effects. Often times we tend to interpret easily a film based on the story without giving consideration to other factors in the film. We easily conclude that this film is made merely to frighten or to make us laugh or cry. Without noticing factors like the mise-en-scene. Mise-en-scene This is the overall projection of the film on an audience perspective. All things are put in the scene which includes the setting, properties, wardrobe, lights, acting,etc. Things like this often manipulates the minds of the viewers as they tend to easily judge the character based on its appearance. This is also one strategy that a film critic may use in determining the role of each character. For example if the character wears red and the rest of the cast wears pink we can easily say that he is the lead character and the whole story will revolve around him. Props also gives us interpretation regarding future events once they are used as symbolism in the film. With the use of shots and camera angles we can easily predict a future event like a shot of knife then the lead character then the villain. The mise-en-scene is arranged in a way that the viewer can picture out totally what is happening in the film itself. Genres The type of films are recognized and analyzed based also on its genre. This gives the film certain distinctions in terms of â€Å" narrative or stylistic conventions, or merely by their discursive organization in influential criticism. Genres are made necessary by high volume industrial production. † (Film Analysis Guide 2008) Focus This is another element of film wherein â€Å"the degree of light rays coming from any particular part of an object pass through the lens and re-converge at the same point on a frame of the film negative, creating sharp outlines and distinct textures that match the original object. This optical property of the cinema creates variations in depth of field through shallow focus, deep focus, and techniques such as racking focus. † (Film Analysis Guide 2008) The sharpness of an image in a film gives the viewer an eye shot of the main subject. Through focus we can also interpret and analyze film since we are given enough exposure of the scenes and we feel the intense feeling of the characters using this technique. Rocking focus makes us feel the thrill during chase scenes between the killers and the main character. Editing After shooting the entire film, clips are gathered and series of shots are combined in a single filmstrip. Here the sequence of scenes are added with transitions and uses cuts to remove unnecessary scenes. Hard to achieve effects which cannot be provided by means of humanistic approach is enhanced and produced by editing to give film a more enticing effect. Magics and special effects are added to make films more appealing. Hence this also helps us to interpret and analyze movies sometimes if a film is easily cut without giving further ado to the audience it may result negatively on the end of the audience because it was edited but with bad quality. Sound and Light Effects In cinemas, sounds in films does not necessarily need to match the scenes or it needs to be continuous. â€Å"Sound can also be used to reintroduce events from earlier in the story. † (Film Analysis Guide 2008). It gives viewers interpretation of what that scene is for base on the type of songs that is played during a particular scene. Lights also gives us predicaments as to what is really happening on that particular scene. Like on love scenes lights are always darker and mostly turned off in many movies. While Enhanced light which almost blinds the viewers are provided if there are scenes of triumphs and enjoyment. Ideology and Interpretation of Films After the given terms and interpretation of film above, â€Å"We have come to understand films as artificial constructions that are pieced together by filmmakers, we can more easily begin to ask questions about the ideological agenda of a film what values it promotes. Because films are cultural products shaped by the historical context of their making they can tell us much about the values and commitments of their makers and their audiences. An ideological analysis of a film that appeals to a viewer can also tell about a great deal on ones own conscious or unconscious values. (Mast, 2008) I believe that the real criteria in evaluating an interpreting a movie is by analyzing not only its components in the technical terms of movie analysis but how it appeals to our consciousness and sensitivity as an individual. Our Values and Social responsibility as impacted by the type of film that we’ve watched. So that later on we will drop comments like â€Å"boring† and â€Å"OK† and use more helpful words like how the film reinforces you as an individual and how it challenges an assumption regarding a particular topic. â€Å"Instead of dismissing films because they are slow-paced or follow unfamiliar plots or include unusual characters, it may be more inspiring and personally transformative to ask what surprised you about these films and why. For these Studies in Cinema films, in short, it will be worthwhile to move beyond the question â€Å"How did I feel? † to the more difficult question: â€Å"What do I think? † (Mast, 2008) There are some films that makes viewer easily understand bodies of literature. Movies like Romeo and Juliet are arranged and scripted in a way that can be easily understood in literal and lay man’s term. Unlike the words used in the literary piece it is more innovated in terms of using appropriate words and drops off words that are hard to understand by viewers. Reference Film Analysis Guide (2008). Yale Film Studies Website. Retrieved January 15, 2008 from: http://classes. yale. edu/film-analysis/ Kolker, Robert (1999). Film, Form and Culture. McGraw Hill College, p. 33. Mast, Gerald J. Biesecker (2008). How to Watch Movies Intelligently. Retrieved January 15, 2008 from: http://www. bluffton. edu/~mastg/Watchingmovies. htm

Online Education

ONLINE EDUCATION: PROBLEMS AND PERSPECTIVES by Jarrod Novicke ABSTRACT Online Education is a rapidly growing field within a highly competitive educational market. With the advances in technology over the last several years, more universities are offering an online curriculum to a diverse range of students. The increased demand for an educated workforce; has increased the need for additional means of education beyond the traditional in-classroom experience. Due to this increased demand, institutions are being tasked with developing a reputable form of online education.The program needs to meet the needs of the faculty responsible for delivering the material, a growing student base, and also prospective employers. This study will look at the perspectives and problems faced by both the faculty and students as this medium for education continues to grow. In doing so, we will take a brief look at the history of online education and how its growth has affected students and faculty, both ne gatively and positively. INTRODUCTION Colaris, Gibson and Harris (2008) defined distance education as asynchronous or remote; computer based, and has an instructional system that supports it.Contrary to what many people believe today, distance education did not begin with the electronic age. The first recorded instance of this form of education was much earlier. Distance education began in the United States as early as the 1800s, when the University of Chicago introduced the first major correspondence by mail program based on the fact that the teacher and student were in different locations (Seibold, 2007). From these early beginnings, distance education has thrived in the U. S. for many reasons such as the expansive geographical distance between U.S. citizens from institutions, the great thirst of our citizens for education, and technologies’ rapid advancement (Casey, 2008). The technological advancement can be seen while tracing the origins of distance education. From the t ime of the first correspondence program in Chicago, technology has played a major role in the advancement of distance education. During the World Wars, our federal government granted radio broadcasting licenses to over 200 universities. This in turn allowed the use of radio as a medium to provide education delivery to flourish.By the early 1940’s, several schools were using both radio and mail correspondence to educate their students (Seibold, 2007). By the 1970’s and thru the 80’s cable and satellite television became a popular form of educational delivery to distance education students. With the invention of the World Wide Web in 1992, a form of distance education referred to as online education has now become readily accessible (Harasim, 2000). One can define online learning courses as a course that has at least 80% of the content delivered via the internet without traditional classroom interactions (Dykman & Davis, 2008).Over the past 20 years, the innovatio ns and technological advancement of the internet has caused an exponential growth and expansion in the delivery of online education. While at first glance this may seem like a positive advancement, there are many problems associated with this new form of distance education. This paper will focus on the growth of this online learning aspect of distance education and will address these perceived pros and cons, along with the perspectives of faculty and students alike. LITERATURE REVIEWDykman and Davis (2008) wrote a series of three papers and in the second one, used for this research paper, the focus was answering the question of how online teaching is different from conventional methods. The article discusses topics including online course planning and organization, teaching constraints and guidelines, tutorials versus lectures, relationships among teachers and students, and student performance assessments. Bejerano (2008) looked at the increasing trend among colleges and universitie s of accepting the internet as a new medium of education.The shift from traditional classroom learning to online learning was studied to see whether or not the students who are taking the online courses are getting a similar quality of education as the traditional face to face students. Bejerano also looks at the universities that offer online learning and the students who enroll in these courses. In the article College Distance Education Courses, Lei & Gupta (2010) evaluated the benefits and costs from the perspectives of the faculty, student, and institutions.Through their studies they have found and suggested that online education maximizes and facilitates learning more efficiently than traditional student learning. They write that although the benefits of online learning are great, there are also some costs that must be carefully evaluated and considered. Mohamed, Hassan, and Spencer (2011) they looked at and tried to measure the perceived risks student’s feel with online education. Their study developed a valid and reliable scale to measure risk of online education by using both quantitative and qualitative techniques.This study showed that the perceived risks of online education has five risk dimensions and the authors list and explain these five dimensions. In the research paper written by Seibold (2007), the author looked at the pros and cons of online education from several perspectives. In doing so, a brief history of online education was given from its early beginnings as distance education through the mail to the online education we a familiar with today. Also discussed is technologies impact on the growth of online education. GROWTH OF ONLINE EDUCATIONFaculty and students are turning to the Internet and online education more and more each year to supplement, or in some cases even replace conventional approaches to classroom teaching. With the advancements in both communication technologies and the computer itself, the internet has turned on line education into a powerful new tool for teaching and learning. Many say that these advancements in technology have the possibility of revolutionizing higher education with a wider reach in the marketplace for education and increased access to educational services for the students of various institutions (Dykman & Davis, 2008).Online education via the collegiate level has risen at an astounding speed, and it is doing so in ways no one would have foreseen years earlier (Lei & Gupta, 2010). Research done by Allen & Seaman (2009) illustrates that for six consecutive years the number of students enrolled in at least one online class has continued to grow at a rate in excess of the growth rate of higher education enrollments overall. Their research showed that for the fall of 2008, 4. 6 million students were enrolled online which represented a 17 percent increase over the fall of 2007. In contrast, there were 1. million students taking at least a minimum of one online course in the fa ll of 2002. The growth of students from 2002 to 2008 represents a 19 percent annual growth rate. Over that same time period the vast majority of the collegiate student body increased at a growth annually of only 1. 5 percent. As of 2008, over twenty-five percent of all higher education students enrolled in at least one course online (Allen & Seaman, 2009). Several of these students are considered to be off campus learners and have a wide range of work experience, ages, and family circumstances.At a number of institutes of higher learning however, close to half of the online students are estimated to be in school full-time and are students that are traditionally educated in the classroom that enrolled in an online course for reasons of scheduling or that of convenience. Most of these students are enrolled at public state-run universities, community colleges and other colleges which all offer at the very least a portion of online education (Mayadas, 2009).Virtually all of the institut ions of higher learning that have the desire and capabilities to add online courses to their curriculum are currently doing so. The small number of schools that still might launch their first programs online is for the most part, small, and has a minimal impact on the overall online enrollment figures. So who is benefitting from the latest growth in online enrollments? The answer to this question is that the majority of online enrollments are coming from the large, more established schools.These schools are in a better position to be able to increase their offerings of online education. The larger institutions on average teach more students online than any other size of school. The mean number of students who are enrolled online per institution has a correlation positive to that of the actual size of the institution. The pattern may be true for both graduate and undergraduate enrollment levels’, however there is a stronger relationship among the undergraduate population.The l arger institutions show a pattern of bigger online enrollments which result in a greater concentration of its online students at just a few universities. As an example, 89 percent of all the online students are studying at universities with more than one thousand online enrollments even though these institutions only make up 38 percent of the ones that offer some form of online education (Allen & Seaman, 2009). The institutions that offer these online education programs are actually both public and private, as well as institutions that are for-profit like the Universities of Phoenix, Capella, and Kaplan for example.Overall, the highest rates of growth in online education are located at community colleges and also at the aforementioned institutions that are for-profit. While the for-profit institutions are growing at a fast rate and definitely meet a big need, online enrollment is still dominated for the most part by the more traditional universities who have acquired the skills, fac ulty acceptance, and infrastructure to allow them to compete effectively (Mayadas, 2009). CONS OF ONLINE EDUCATIONAlthough online education has grown rapidly over the past several years, to the benefit of many, it has not done so without its share of costs/criticisms. One of the factors of online education that is having a major negative impact to the overall acceptance of distance education is the relative ease to which anyone can purchase a degree that is actually fake. The advancement of the internet has created a rise in a new form of graduate school, the diploma mill.It has become extremely easy to create a fake university online that looks like a credible major university simply by using fancy computer graphics and optimizing the search engine so that the school comes up on the first page of any online college searches (Seibold, 2007). Diploma mills are considered any institutions of higher learning that are unregulated and grant degrees with basically few academic requirement s, if any.Due to these so called diploma mills, other legitimate institutions offering online courses are having a hard time establishing their credibility. It was estimated in 2002 that the sale of fake degrees topped the $200 million dollar mark around the world. Commercialization is another aspect in higher education resulting in a negative impact to the perception of online education. Commercialization among institutions is on the rise and several universities are now considered to be teaching toward a job.Many see higher education and specifically online education as becoming more and more controlled by business rather than government and because of this, courses are focused on strictly preparing for the job. This may not necessarily be a bad thing, but many say that this intense focus on job preparation leads to a less rounded student (Vukelic, 2011). With the growth in online education, faculty members see many cons in this relatively new form of online learning. First and fo remost among faculty concerns is the risk of academic dishonesty increasing.Students that want to cheat will find a way to cheat regardless if the class in online or in a classroom, however research found that it is much easier for a student to cheat in an online class (Nagel, Maniam, Leavell, 2011). The eCollege system of course management continues to make changes in regard to its software packages, however students can simply use screenshots of their test questions and save them to share with other students. For this reason, faculty must think of new ways to assess their students to ensure the validity of the test results (Nagel, Maniam, Leavell, 2011).Faculty also might find that online teaching is extremely time consuming and not as rewarding as they would like. Instituting an online class demands a good deal of organization and continuous monitoring during throughout the course. In the beginning, instructors may not be familiar or trained with the tools and the technology that are available to them which makes the job of developing and translating the good practice’s of the classroom they are used to seeing, difficult to achieve (Bejerano, 2008).Once the course is created, instructors might find the rewards associated with the daily interaction and student contact which is immediate in the classroom, is now lost because of time and space. Instructors often lose their chance to mentor, lead, advise, and become a role model amongst students because of the loss of personal interaction and communication with the student on a daily basis. This doesn’t mean that teacher and student interaction totally disappears, it is just not as rich of an interaction because the online environment is more restrictive in nature.Faculty members that enjoy teaching and are excellent at motivating and engaging their students, often do not find the same dynamic with online education that allow them to show their passion and experience the joy and excitement that yo u get from teaching face to face (Bejerano, 2008). From a student’s view, there are also cons associated with online education. One of the major issues is that not all students or potential students have access to nor can they afford new computer technology.In some instances a teacher might want his or her students to participate in a chat session on the web or discussion on the web, however a number of students might not have the ability to immediately access the internet or the means financially to obtain a computer with high speed internet, Skype, or chat capabilities (Lei & Gupta, 2010). Students are also required in many cases to have an excellent understanding of technologies and advanced skills with a computer.Oftentimes students do not have the patience for difficulties with technology that pertain to a sluggish internet connection or certain other issues related to a computer which results in a high level of anxiety from students evident through frequent email and vo icemail messages especially at the beginning stages of an online course. Students are afraid that they may have missed important assignments or that they are not sure of their responsibilities (Lei & Gupta, 2010). Another argument of online learning is that the chances for student’s social and academic assimilation into the learning environment or institution are minimized.These are factors that are a known contributor to student success. Basically, students taking an online course miss the campus experiences which link them to other students and faculty. Since this integration with peers and faculty is lacking, some students begin to feel isolation and alienation which could lead to students not completing their degree. However, many of these students are not aware of how important social and academic integration is and thus view online classes as a replacement to in class learning and they in turn miss the face to face educational experience.The traditional classroom settin g provides students with not only a great education, but it gives them a community of their peers where they can engage, interact, and be supportive of one another (Bejerano, 2008). Although there are many cons associated with online education, growth has been staggering which leads us to believe that the pros are outweighing the cons. PROS OF ONLINE EDUCATION Around the world universities and colleges are turning to the internet as a new method of instruction at a rapid rate as seen from the rapid growth stated above. Recent research has shown that the effect of online learning has been positive.Studies conducted in the area of legal, communication and social work reported no difference of significance between the traditional forms of education and that of online learning. This is true so long as the student has the proper technology and the technology works well (Seibold, 2007). In fact, the technological skills that are gained through the virtual classroom benefit the student and have become a second learning outcome. In terms of the positive effect online education has had on educational institutions, there are important and significant benefits that have led to the significant growth levels we see today.It has become apparent to educators involved in higher learning that the continued growth and demand of online education is changing the way instruction is delivered in a major way. Probably the most significant positive impact of the technology of online learning is that the limitation of space and time that used to exist has been removed for the most part by networking capabilities. Even during the major budget crisis of the past several years, universities are still embracing the same philosophies and educational missions which are to educate their students.The offering of online courses has allowed institutions to meet the educational needs of those students. Online classes tend to reach a broader audience with students from varying geographic areas th an do the conventional classrooms. Online courses can help students who are isolated geographically, disabled, or have extremely busy schedules actually obtain a quality education. Additionally, online learning does wonders to decrease classrooms that have become overcrowded.The online classes allow faculty and institutions to present additional courses at the most popular times demanded throughout the course of the week, which maximizes the resources available that are in short supply by increasing the flexibility of scheduling class. Students that may have had a schedule conflict can simply enroll in an online course. While comparing costs between educating a student in a traditional classroom versus an online course, the latter can decrease the costs of paper as well as the costs associated with photocopying since the majority of communication is done via email.Institutional costs also lessen as its students grow to be more knowledgeable about the multiple resources that are made accessible on the internet. Universities can now communicate effectively with their students and faculty by electronic means which reduces costs of printing class schedules, bulletins, upcoming campus and academic events as well as other forms of advertisements. Students and educators alike believe that by using online learning technology that they are promoting the green revolution, giving them the benefit of personal satisfaction of being socially responsible (Lei & Gupta, 2010).An institution’s faculty can also benefit from the use of online learning as a tool for education. An important benefit of online education for faculty is that the online environment is both place and time independent. Online learning provides professors with flexibility and convenience (Nagel, Maniam, Leavell, 2011). Due to the decreasing demand of work, an institution’s faculty is now able to present papers, attend conferences, and take part in university recruiting.An additional benefit o f the online learning environment is that it trains students in the same technology that is giving global corporations a competitive advantage and allows them to build communities of international knowledge at the same time. Another positive impact of the steady rise of online learning is that this medium provides opportunities for students and faculty to interact as well as students to interact with each other during online discussions which might promote critical thinking and deep learning.By using online teams and round table type discussions students are sure to develop the sharing of knowledge and the construction of global communities of knowledge (Lei & Gupta, 2010). Many faculty members feel that there is a personal dialogue that occurs among them and their students in an online classroom setting that they simply do not get in the traditional classroom. Faculty reported that by using electronic communication, students are able to be involved more than they are in a tradition al in-class setting. In general, aculty perceive that students often are more relaxed and open in expressing their ideas when they are blogging and chatting via the internet, as opposed to face-to-face interaction in the classroom. While there are many positive aspects of online education for the institutions and faculty, students also see the positives as well. Students rely heavily on the computer and internet applications when learning in online courses. The teachers have limited face to face communication which may remove any misinterpretations that may occur due to possible poor communication skills by an instructor.Students enrolled in an online class can take the class wherever they are in the world. If they are taking a traditional campus course, they have to become accustomed to different classroom cultures, and form various learning styles to accommodate their professors. Students often can do away with this bias through online learning (Lei & Gupta, 2010). Another positiv e in the eyes of students is the flexible nature of the course and the independence they have to work at their own speed. Online students also have the ability to hold a full-time job during the day, managing their schoolwork and studying at night and on the weekends.Students can access courses and engage in online learning from anywhere in the world. Many universities are beginning to account for students with busy family and work schedules. Since many students rely on a steady stream of income to cover bills and other expenses, several universities have turned their marketing efforts to take into account the working adult’s lifestyle. Many accredited institutions are recognizing the need for a program that is time sensitive and are adjusting their curriculum for that reason.If students have certain family and job responsibilities but still wish to carry on with learning and developing in their career, online learning is an excellent option. Students also no longer have to w orry about daily parking and commuting issues associated with driving to campus. Not having to drive to class is a positive aspect to a student that is trying to live a more frugal and greener lifestyle. Since the materials, coursework, and teacher is accessible anytime and anywhere, there is not a need to commute to campus which thusly translates to lowering carbon emissions.Without having to travel to class, students are able to save money on gas and are able to decrease the amount of wear and tear that commuting puts on their vehicle (Nagel, Maniam, Leavell, 2011). As you can see, there are several positive factors that have led to the growth in online education FACULTY PERCEPTIONS AND PERSPECTIVES Whether you see online learning in a positive or negative light, it is continuing to grow at a rapid pace and many faculty members have strong feelings and perspectives about it.Faculty members are attempting to adapt to the increasing demand for online education while universities and other institutions of higher education are steering toward online methods of course instruction as an answer to increasing number of student enrollments. Innovation in online education is imperative to not only meet the growing need in the marketplace for higher education, but also to sustain the continued advancement and growth of today’s institutions. In a traditional, classroom-setting education, faculty generally implements a standard 40-40-20 to their workload. This is in reference to the total hours spent instructing a course.Teaching in the classroom accounts for 40% of time spent, 40% spent on course-related research, and the remaining 20% of workload is dedicated to service (Mupinga & Maughan, 2008). This formula for teaching, however, can bring about obstacles when applied to instruction of web-based courses. The inherent nature of a successful online course requires a certain level of technical â€Å"know-how†, technical support capabilities, a need for inf rastructure, and an altered course organization from that of a traditional course format, which can create a significant disconnect between time spent and compensation earned.It is not difficult for one to clearly understand the concerns that faculty face when expected to provide online course instruction. Unfortunately some professors who have never instructed an online course have mistakenly believed the process would be fairly easy, and flexible, unaware of the significant challenges that exist in the creation of the course program. However, often times, professors are very well aware of the technological difficulties related to online course delivery causing them to be apprehensive over participating in this method of education. Colaris, Gibson, & Harris, 2008) Some feel that with the increased demand of time required to effectively educate students through an online course, there should be an increase of compensation to match. However, it is commonly understood by most instruct ors that additional compensation will not be paid for teaching an online course. Most likely it is the case that additional pay would only be applied if the course enrollment numbers become unmanageable or if the technology tools necessary for course development are not provided.These very issues of workload and pay are those that universities and other institutions absolutely must address in order to sustain successful efforts to provide an answer to the needs of online education, while maintaining a focus on achieving their own unique goals within the world of education (Orr, Pennington, & Williams, 2009). Additionally, as universities are continually expanding their reach, and aiming to bring in higher numbers of enrollment, further hiring of faculty is necessary to serve the student body as well as redesign and devise innovative methods of online education (Good & Peca, 2007).Older generations of students are continually seeking out both new skills and new knowledge to adapt to an ever-changing marketplace and economic landscape, adding to the demand for institutions and universities to provide effective and relevant options for online education (Kolowich, 2009). Simultaneously, institutions of education are continually looking for creative solutions to sidestep tuition hikes as they suffer the microscope of tight budget constraints.Aside from the technological, budget, and staffing concerns that go along with an online course, an important question to ask for faculty members responsible for providing quality online instruction is whether or not the institutions where they are employed are effectively responding to the obstacles facing them in both planning and executing the courses. Overall, most faculty members feel that the institutions are doing a satisfactory job in addressing the concerns, though there are still some specific areas that need adjustment and improvement as this sector of education becomes higher in demand.In terms of compensation and a llowance of time off, faculty are well-pleased. These are not however, typical motivating factors for educators. The faculty members at institutions of higher education tend to genuinely enjoy their profession, and are committed to furthering their careers in education. Excelling in the realm of online education instruction only adds to, and broadens the spectrum of their experience, helping them remain competitive in today’s market of higher education where online instruction is no longer just an option, but an expectation of most students seeking higher education.In large part, educators are motivated by concern for meeting education needs of the students, leaving this to be the main factor that drives ongoing dedication. They hold a strong interest in making sure there are ample avenues for students to acquire their degrees and complete their education in a timely fashion. Faculty of higher education believe that they are morally and ethically obligated to provide alternat ive learning formats for the benefit of the students, while some also feel it is important for students to take part in, and experience what the environment of online learning has to offer.Generally, professors share a similar set of values, with compassion, caring, and commitment to their students’ education at the core, fueling the motivation for teaching. Naturally, the effective development of a quality online course is a legitimate concern across the board. Simultaneously the concern of adequate time allotment is consistently a concern at hand with faculty members. When it comes to online education, a member of faculty serves both as role of instructor as well as the role of facilitator.For an instructor to make a quality online learning experience possible for the students, there is the prerequisite of a higher time commitment from that faculty member. Clearly this concern could be mitigated by additional support staff to take part in the workload of online course devel opment. The professors must be involved with the development of online courses at various levels of the process. They are the sole individuals responsible for the content to be taught in the class, but this allows them a solid understanding of course structure.There are many institutions that are beginning to provide teams of developmental support to work alongside faculty members, to remove some of the pressure, as they will then have the ability to delegate much of the basic development activities to the support staff. For some professors who are accustomed to the freedom and creative flexibility of teaching in a traditional setting, learning to adapt to collaboration with a course facilitator or online course development team can be somewhat of a difficult adjustment.For these, the open access to their course through the online system by administrators or other faculty can cause them to feel uneasy, making it the change in course medium quite challenging to accept. A loss of cont rol at some degree exists, so this challenge to their teaching habits and preferred style of course conduct is still very real to many, even after mastering the technology involved with instructing an online course (Dykman & Davis, 2008). However, as a professor gains experience with the technology, process, and systems of online course development, the amount of required ongoing support from other staff will decrease.Many professors feel that the learning curve in transitioning into online course instruction may be significant, but moving forward into this method of educating students is pertinent to the ongoing growth of their careers as well as the future success of their institution. In order to support and enhance an instructor’s success with online classes, it is best that the faculty members have a clear understanding of exactly how their programs work into the bigger picture of the institution’s efforts (Orr, Pennington, & Williams, 2009).The members of faculty need to have clarity and specification of their institutions goals and direction to truly be fully committed to online learning. It is then possible for an instructor to ensure that his or her efforts of designing an online course fit nicely within the framework of their institution. Just as traditional classes, it is very important for online courses to fall in line with the objectives of the school goals. By insisting that these objectives be met, an institution can communicate an unambiguous message of the value and significance of the activities crucial to web-based learning programs.This sets up the instructors for a greater level of focus in designing and implementing an online course with the same degree of passion in educating online students, as they express in instructing a traditional classroom. This can likely lead to higher student success and personal satisfaction of faculty. In addition to creating an environment to encourage internal gratification of educatorsâ€⠄¢ efforts, it is essential for universities and other institutions to provide substantial outward recognition of instructors’ online teaching efforts by department.By instilling a stronger system of recognition for online instruction and providing an outline of how opportunity for promotion is possible, instructors are more likely to increase their skills and master online course development in such a way that meets the institutions standards and goals, ultimately fulfilling the student body’s growing expectation of high-quality online education. It is also critical that institution solicit input from the teaching faculty when addressing various quality concerns of online courses and the reality of student learning outcomes.The majority of professors want to ensure that their students receive an excellent education experience, therefore are open to accepting suggestions to improve the overall efficacy of current programs. This cooperation between instructors, staff su pport and administration will enhance every aspect of the overall design and delivery of online courses. In planning for an increase of online education courses to meet today’s demand, it is imperative that institutions take into account the motivation behind faculty charged with instructing them.By clearly understanding why an instructor is driven to educate, an institution can help show them the value of teaching online. It is then possible to lead faculty members to appreciate exactly how online learning programs are critical in accomplishing the institution’s ability to offer a diversity of courses required to meet the students’ educational needs. Aiding faculty in understanding the true value of online education will increase their proficiency of online class development as well as instruction.This type of support and motivation is a key element in teaching a course online, as faculty members in general need to feel a sense that their efforts add value to t he institution where they teach. Online education has become a proven method for fulfilling the learning needs of today’s students. This can be seen from its exponential growth over the past few years, and for universities and colleges planning to further develop and enhance online education courses, they stand to benefit greatly from ongoing research into methods of faculty motivation. STUDENT PERCEPTIONS & PERSPECTIVESWith online education growing like it is in universities, students are now granted the choice to attend traditional face-to-face classes or choose an online option. Today’s online education opportunities allow students to meet their educational goals in a convenient, flexible, and cost effective manner. While having a bevy of educational options open to them is great, there are many risks that students perceive to go along with the positive aspects of an online education. There is no such thing as a typical student, however online education courses tend to attract mature students hat have several demands on their time so they tend to be in particular fairly discerning regarding their courses. This is the result of the conflicts the course could potentially create with the students’ personal and professional commitments and also because there is a tendency for students to either pay for their own education or be sponsored by their employer. Therefore institutions that provide online education must be conscious of the fact that they are dealing with a student body that value their education and are more than willing to criticize the courses they feel are wasting valuable money and time.These students share in the fact that they invest a substantial amount of time, money, and effort so they are conscious of the way that their investment is being used and/or misused (Tricker, Rangecroft, & Long, 2001). As demand for online education continues to rise, online students are seeking programs with the best reputations, so it is impe rative that educators strive to meet the highest standards in this regard. The risks a student perceives while making the decision on whether or not to take an online class are many, especially considering those students who are new to the concept of online courses.The student may be attracted to this type of education because of its convenience, but at the same time, they may be concerned about course effectiveness, their ability to interact and communicate with their classmates, and the likelihood of their success. Mohamed, Hassan, & Spencer (2011) define risk as â€Å"the variation in the distribution of possible outcomes, their likelihood and their subjective values† (Mohamed, Hassan, & Spencer, 2011). The decision to take an online class can involve some risk because in doing so, there could be uncertain or unexpected consequences which may be negative in nature.Potential students might wonder if they will be able to learn online as well as they do in a traditional class room setting, whether or not they will have communication with their teachers and/or peers, if their grades may suffer, and whether they will be able to finish their course on time and so on. The perception of these various issues, accurate or not, will likely affect potential student’s intention to enroll in an online course. There is a perceived psychological risk that reflects the concern regarding the tension and discomfort that might arise due to enrollment in an online education ourse. Research has shown that some online students often feel more isolated, anxious, frustrated, and confused than a traditional student does (Mohamed, Hassan, & Spencer, 2011). In addition, online education students can also experience a reduced feeling of belonging to the class and may miss the participation and discussions associated with a traditional university classroom. It is very important that instructors stay sensitive to the needs of the students, and have programs in place to reduc e these emotional reactions by creating a culture of involvement.Finally, there is some research that suggests online students might fear they will be unable to complete their course work because of lack of discipline, self-motivation, and writing skills. Today the attrition rates for online students are 10 to 20 percent higher than those of students in a traditional classroom setting (Dobs, Waid, & Carmen, 2009). Performance risk is related to concerns of whether the program will deliver benefits promised or perform as desired. Many students experience some form of technical problems during their course (Mohamed, Hassan, & Spencer, 2011).And at times, online students perceive instructors to be less prepared, use teaching methodologies that are not appropriate, and often give bigger workloads than are given in traditional classrooms. Online students also show less satisfaction than their counterparts on campus with the degree of interaction with their instructor and it primarily occ urs when they did not grasp the material in the lecture. Additionally, online students have reported that their understanding of the subject increases at a lesser rate and the course held less value than the students participating in a traditional classroom.Further, the perceived risk of time demand involves the fear surrounding the required amount of time and the effort that is required to complete the online course. Many students see the convenience and flexibility of taking online courses as a major benefit, however for those that are full time employees or have obligations with their family; concerns often arise about the demands on their time. In a study of student perceptions in online learning performed by Eom and Wen, the study participants often complained about losing work that was previously saved, the length of assignments, and the slow times of screen loads.Another item of note reported by online students is the frustration they felt with the time that was spent doing o nline administrative service tasks like ordering textbooks, advising, and library access (Eom & Wen, 2006). Students also feel a form of social risk that is related to the concern they have regarding what others will think about their degree. Students might fear that their online degree will not be accepted well by family, friends, or most importantly by employers.This perceived risk is an important hurdle that institutions face in attracting online education students. Finally, the last source of perceived risks that students face is source risk. Source risk is the concern for the credibility of the institution that is offering the online education course. When students are deciding on whether or not to enroll in an online course they often worry about the reputation of the institution, the institution’s location, and whether the online program will accept other institutions transfer credits.The students also may worry that potential employers might question the value of the online education institution in comparison to an education in a traditional manner (Mohamed, Hassan, & Spencer, 2011). CONCLUSION Through the research conducted for this paper, it is evident that online education is not only here to stay but growing at a rapid pace. From the beginning of distance education in the early 1800’s to today’s online learning, the advancements in technology have been immense.This advancement in technology has opened up education possibilities to student’s from all walks of life and connected students from all over the world. The first people to embrace this new revolution of online learning were the educators and now with the new and improved online learning tools and amplified opportunities in education, society as a whole is being influenced in ways never seen before. As we delve into the 21st century, the implications behind this newfound educational conversion are beginning to be recognized by the public at large.With it we have se en an extraordinary level of investment, changes in public feelings, and a fury of (sometime not realistic) expectations regardless of the progress that has been made in altering pedagogic and institutional strategies. As we move forward, online education is no longer supplementary or peripheral, it has turned into a vital part of mainstream society (Smith & Mitry, 2008). Though we have seen that there are many pros and cons as well as varying perceptions among students and faculty, no one can deny the level of growth in online education over the years.It is obvious from the growth seen that the pros are outweighing the cons as well as the rewards outweighing the risks for both faculty and students alike. Only time will tell when this explosion of growth in online enrollment and the technology advancements will level off but for now online education is here to stay and growing rapidly. Dedication to advancement and growth in online course development by institutions and instructors alike are pertinent to the future of today’s student. References Adams, J. , & DeFleur, M. (2006). The Acceptability of Online Degrees Earned as a Credential for Obtaining Employment.Communication Education, 32-45. Allen, E. , & Seaman, J. (2009). Learning on Demand. The Sloan Consortium, 1-24 Bejerano, A. (2008). The Genesis and Evolution of Online Degree Programs: Who Are They for and What Have We Lost Along the Way? Communication Education, 408-414. Casey, D. (2008). The Historical Development of Distance Education Through Technology. Tech Trends, Vol. 52, No. 2. Colaris, S. M. , Gibson, S. G. , & Harris, M. L. (2008). Technology Acceptance in an Academic Context: Faculty Acceptance of Online Education. Journal of Education for Business, 355-359. Columbaro, N. & Monaghan, C. (2009). Employer Perceptions of Online Degrees: A Literature Review. Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration, Vol. 7, No. 1. Conceicao, S. C. O. (2006). Faculty Lived Experiences in the Onli ne Environment. Adult Education Quarterly, 26-45. Dobbs, R. , Waid, C. , & Carmen, A. (2009). Students’ Perceptions of Online Courses – The Effect of Online Course Experience. The Quarterly Review of Distance Education, 9-26. Dykman, C. , & Davis, C. (2008). Online Education Forum. Journal of Information Systems Education, Vol. 19, No. 1. Eom, S. Wen, J. (2006).The Determinants of Student’s Perceived Learning Outcomes and Satisfaction in University Online Education: An Impirical Investigation. Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative Education, Vol. 4, No. 2. Good, K. & Peca, K. (2007). The Hidden Hypocrisy of University Faculty Regarding Online Instruction. Curriculum and Teaching Dialogue, 267-277. Lei, S. & Gupta, R. College Distance Education Courses: Evaluating Benefits and Costs from Institutional, Faculty, and Students’ Perspectives, Distance Education Vol. 130, No. 4. Maughan, G. R & Mupinga, D. M. (2008), Web-Based Instruction and CommunityCollege Faculty Workload. College Teaching, 56. Mayadas, A. (2009). Online Education Today. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, Vol. 13, No. 2. Mohamed, F. , Hassan, A. , & Spencer, B. (2011). Conceptualization and Measurement of Perceived Risk of Online Education. Academy of Educational Leadership Journal, Volume 15, No. 4. Nagel, S. , Maniam, B. , & Leavell, H. (2010). Pros and Cons of Online Education for Educators and Students. International Journal of Business Research, Vol. 11, No. 6. Orr, R. , Pennington, K. , & Williams, M. R. (2009). Institutional Efforts to SupportFaculty in Online Teaching. Innovative Higher Education, 34, 257-268. Seibold, K. (2007). Employers’ Perceptions of Online Education. The University of Oklahoma Thesis, 1-130. Smith, E. , & Mitry, D. (2008). Investigation of Higher Education: The Real Costs and Quality of Online Programs. Journal of Education for Business, 147-152. Tricker, T. , Rangecroft, M. , & Long, P. (2001). Evaluating Distance Educa tion Courses: The Student Perception. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, Vol. 26. Vukelic, B. (2011). Employer’s Evaluation of Online Education. DAAM International, 1471-1472.

Analysis Of Jamaica Kincaid s Girl - 1543 Words

Being a woman in not only today’s society, but throughout history is one of the most difficult things a person can be. Being a woman that is respected by her peers and by men is even more challenging. There are specific rules that women are expected to live by everyday, in order to fulfill the task of being an â€Å"acceptable† woman in the eyes of society. In Jamaica Kincaid’s short story â€Å"Girl†, she illustrates a mother teaching her daughter the rules of life for a woman. Though this story was written in 1978 and takes place in what can be assumed as a predominantly African-American populated area, a vast majority of the lessons is taught are still relevant today. These lessons, combined with the lack of sugarcoated language, create a handful†¦show more content†¦It is ironic that the young girl is taught how to deal with both lovers and bullies, yet most young men are never taught to not be bullies to begin with. Girls are taught to never put their drinks down at parties in fear of being date-rape drugged but boys are never taught not to put drugs in someone else s drink. After reading Kincaid’s short story, though it never states it directly, it is shocking to see the different things that girls and boys are taught at a young age. A father would never sit down his son and tell him not to act like a floozy. A father would never dictate how his son is suppose to walk by saying â€Å"Sundays try to walk like a lady and not like the slut you are so bent on becoming;†(Kincaid 430 ). Men are never taught to not be promiscuous but instead they are often congratulated for their promiscuity, while it is the complete opposite for women of all ages. The concept of femininity is a topic that the mother is obviously concerned about when it comes to her daughter. All their lives, women are trained to be good housewives and always to act like a lady, they learn to cook and clean along with how to take care of their husband. The mother solidifies this fact by telling her daughter â€Å"this is how you love a man and if that doesn t work there are other ways† (431). A women is also expected to complete all of these tasks while looking dainty or womanly. The mother is obviously worried about keeping upShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Jamaica Kincaid s Girl And The Mask1117 Words   |  5 Pagesas parents pass down the values and standards that have been upheld throughout numerous generations. Thus, the way that a child is brought up is considered traditional. Both the story â€Å"Girl† by Jamaica Kincaid and the video â€Å"The Mask You Are In† both explore the negative side of cultural conditioning. While Kincaid reve als the oppressive nature of the female identity construct, â€Å"The Mask You Live In† criticizes society’s efforts to teach boys how to â€Å"be a man.† Men and women both have standards toRead MoreEssay on Short Story Analysis of Girl by Jamaica Kincaid873 Words   |  4 PagesShort story analysis of Girl by Jamaica Kincaid Have you ever wished that someone had given you a guide on how live the right way? Jamaica Kincaid does just that in  her short story, Girl. The narrative  is presented as a set of life instructions to a girl by her mother to live properly in Antigua in the 1980’s. While the setting of the story is not expressly stated by the author in the narrative, the reader is able to understand the culture for which  Girl  was written. Jamaica Kincaid seems to beRead MoreA Literary Analysis Of Girl By Jamaica Kincaid1927 Words   |  8 PagesLanguage, Culture, and a Mother s’ Influence: A Literary Analysis of Girl by Jamaica Kincaid Girls, young women, and mature mothers. Society has consistently given women strict guidelines, rules and principles on how to be an appropriate member of a man’s society. These rules are set at a young age and enforced thoroughly into adulthood. When not followed accordingly, women often times too many face reprimanding through means of verbal abuse, physical abuse, or social exile. In the midst of allRead MoreLiterary Criticism : The Free Encyclopedia 7351 Words   |  30 Pagesnovel is sometimes used interchangeably with Bildungsroman, but its use is usually wider and less technical. The birth of the Bildungsroman is normally dated to the publication of Wilhelm Meister s Apprenticeship by Johann Wolfgang Goethe in 1795–96,[8] or, sometimes, to Christoph Martin Wieland s Geschichte des Agathon of 1767.[9] Although the Bildungsroman arose in Germany, it has had extensive influence first in Europe and later throughout the world. Thomas Carlyle translated Goethe’s novel