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skills, which can be developed and used to solve
problems, versus the one procedure they learned
themselves.
6 CONCLUSIONS
Through the use of autoethnographic methods, this
paper responds to 1) the challenges faced by faculty
who teach hybrid courses and 2) the need to better
understand what constitutes quality online
education. This research with two professors who
teach elementary science and math methods and how
they begin to address the challenges and how they
overcame those challenges to meet the needs of the
21
st
century learner. In our classes we have both
traditional undergraduate student and adult learners
from our universities program geared towards
working adults and the unique set of challenges they
bring. Through our narratives we are self-reflective
on how we struggled and in many cases overcame
the challenges finding ways to deliver quality
distance education.
There is a growing body of literature that
addresses what students identify as challenges in
distance education (Hughes, 2007; Hilgenberg and
Tolone, 2000; Chen et al., 2007; O'Malley and
McCraw, 1999). However, there is not the same
level of research about what instructors believe and
their perceptions, concerns and challenges teaching
in the online classroom. Interest in online learning
will continue to grow as more and more students
experience online courses (Brown and Corkill,
2007). As more students enroll in courses,
Universities may find that the demand within the
institution will grow beyond current offerings. So,
the importance of this research is how do teacher
preparation programs meet the demands and charges
of institutions while maintaining quality of
instruction.
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MeetingtheDemandsofthe21stLearner-DeliveringElementaryScienceandMathMethodsCoursesOnlinean
Auto-ethnographicApproach
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