Özet:

The Prekindergarten Associate degree program, offered on the regional campuses at a public Midwestern university, is a teacher preparation program designed for students planning to teach children birth through age five in a childcare or preschool setting. Many students in the program are nontraditional, often working full time and caring for family members. The program was changed from face-to-face to a fully online format to improve access for these nontraditional students. As the program launched, the researchers were concerned about the impact of moving to a fully online format on the online social learning environment. Students from two online Prekindergarten courses were invited to complete a survey to learn more about their perceptions of social presence in the online courses. Additionally, a small group of randomly selected students was invited to participate in an interview. Study participants reported that the new online format created an accessible way to earn their associate degree that they would not have been able to do if the program was in a face-to-face format. However, some students also stated that social presence was not a high priority since their primary goal was to earn a degree.

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