This study examines a possible relationship between flexibility (content, teacher contact, and time) and student engagement (cognitive, emotional, and behavioral) in distance learning in higher education. The study applies a quantitative approach to give a response to the hypothesis of the research whether flexibility in distance education is positively related to student engagement. Participants comprised 164 distance students attending online classes in two faculties and four vocational schools of a state university in Türkiye in the fall semester of the 2023 to 2024 academic year. They completed an online survey measuring the levels of cognitive engagement, emotional engagement, and behavioral engagement and the flexibility of content, teacher contact, and time in distance education. The results revealed that the flexibility of teacher contact was significantly related to behavioral engagement while the flexibility of content was positively correlated with cognitive engagement. Additionally, time flexibility was significantly correlated with both behavioral and cognitive engagement. It was concluded that a positive relationship between flexibility and student engagement in distance education existed.

EJER |Eurasian Journal of Educational Research

In recent years, the increase in the use of computer and the internet has led to a change in the traditional concept of formal education today. Distance learning as a more student-centered system has been frequently used at universities. In this context, education has been applied to the individuals consisting of all age groups in accordance with their aspirations, expectations and interest in a more flexible way. This study aims to determine and compare the motivation and attitudes of language learners of online distance and traditional in-classroom education, in a state university in Turkey. Participants were 500 undergraduate university students in various disciplines. About 250 (half) of the participants studied English as a foreign language through traditional in-classroom education whereas the rest of the participants (250) studied English through online distance education in the same university by the same instructors. Two questionnaires (one to evaluate motivation level and one to evaluate attitudes of the participants related to English as a foreign language) and a background information form investigating individual information of the participants were used to collect data from the students of nine faculties at the University (including Faculty of Dentistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Faculty of Education, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Faculty of Fine Arts and Design, Faculty of Law, Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, Faculty of Engineering, and Faculty of Medicine). According to the nature of the research, the study used descriptive statistics (frequencies, range, means, and standard deviations), t-test and ANOVA as the statistical analysis methods. All collected data were coded and computerized using the SPSS software and the alpha level for the tests was set at .05. After calculating each participant’s motivation and attitudes scores, their scores were compared to the variables selected for the study and each other. The findings indicated statistically significant relationships between motivation and attitudes of the participants and some individual variables. Some conclusions were reached based on the findings of the research and some recommendations and suggestions were made for future research into areas not covered by this study.

Introduction: The purpose of this study is to identify distance students’ learning strategies and styles and find out the effect of their learning styles on their learning strategies in higher education. It examined 158 faculty survey responses to identify students’ learning strategies (academic thinking, complex cognitive strategy use, management of time and effort, contacts with others, and simple cognitive strategy use) and their learning styles (intuitive, logical, independent, social, active, verbal, and audio-visual) in distance learning. Methods: A survey study design was used to fully display the learning styles and learning strategies that students employed in distance education. Results: Research findings displayed that most distance students used a combination of various learning styles and employed all learning strategies at high, medium, or low frequency. The most preferred learning style was the logical learning style and the complex cognitive strategy use was the most preferred learning strategy. In contrast, academic thinking and contacts with others were the least used strategies and audio-visual and independent learning styles were the least preferred styles. The results demonstrated significant relationships between independent learning style and management of time and effort strategy use and verbal, social and audio visual learning styles and contacts with others strategy in distance learning. Discussion: Explanations for these results and their implications were also discussed within the scope of the study.

Basic digital competence is essential for learners in higher education and especially in the field of distance education. The main purpose of this study is to understand the levels of digital competence of distance learners in Turkey according to the variables of age, gender and owing a computer. The participants were consisted of 243 distance learners studying at various disciplines of a state university. Data were collected through a survey via digital competence scale. The findings of the research indicated that basic digital competence of distance learners were high in communication and moderate in problem solving, university’s virtual tools and social communication and information and data literacy. However, distance learners are the least competent in digital content development. In addition, statistical analysis indicated that basic digital competence of distance learners did not differ in terms of gender. On contrary, significant differences existed in the information and data literacy of the students with regard to having a computer and age. The results of the study displayed that it is important to include the improvement of digital competence into the distance education to provide distance learners an opportunity to reach high basic digital competence and to facilitate learning.

Although there were a massive increasing number of online English learners, not much research has clarified the assumed relationships between language learning effort and learner autonomy in the context of online distance learning in higher education. This paper aims to investigate and compare the EFL learners’ levels of foreign language learning effort and autonomy perceptions in online distance education. Data was collected from 220 EFL freshmen students taking an online English course and studying in various disciplines at a state university in Turkey. Two questionnaires were used in order to explore the relationship between language learning effort and autonomy of online English learners. The Foreign Language Learning Effort Scale (Karabıyık & Mirici, 2018) was used in order to assess the participants’ levels of foreign language learning effort and the Autonomy Perception Scale (Demirtaş, 2010) was administered so as to identify the level of autonomy perceptions of the students towards language learning. Additionally, a background information form was also utilized in order to determine individual information of the participants. The study was designed based on a baseline descriptive survey method. The data were analyzed using basic descriptive statistics (means and standard deviations) and Pearson correlation coefficients analysis. The results of the study displayed that the learners often employed effort in learning a foreign language. Moreover, the learners generally were not capable of using autonomous learning skills in learning a language although they had the capacity to employ some autonomous learning skills to a sufficient degree