A case study of an adult learner with ASD and ADHD in an undergraduate online learning environment

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Author(s)
Meyers, Christopher A
Bagnall, Richard G
Year published
2015
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
The contemporary need for older workers to participate in education and training programs to increase their employability has exposed many of them to learning opportunities involving online learning in higher education. This paper reports research into the issues and experiences of an adult learner with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attentiondeficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) engaging in undergraduate online learning. The issues and experiences were identified through the use of inductive, in depth interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA), as part of a larger study. The profile of the target student was very ...
View more >The contemporary need for older workers to participate in education and training programs to increase their employability has exposed many of them to learning opportunities involving online learning in higher education. This paper reports research into the issues and experiences of an adult learner with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attentiondeficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) engaging in undergraduate online learning. The issues and experiences were identified through the use of inductive, in depth interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA), as part of a larger study. The profile of the target student was very different from the other nine participants in the study, and was interpreted as principally related to disorientation within his online learning environment. Three types of disorientation were identified - navigational, contextual, and procedural - each of which presented strategies for its mitigation. The research revealed a significant disjunction between the characteristics of the learner's online learning environment and his learning needs and preferences, which has implications for the design and development of inclusive online learning environments in higher education.
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View more >The contemporary need for older workers to participate in education and training programs to increase their employability has exposed many of them to learning opportunities involving online learning in higher education. This paper reports research into the issues and experiences of an adult learner with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attentiondeficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) engaging in undergraduate online learning. The issues and experiences were identified through the use of inductive, in depth interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA), as part of a larger study. The profile of the target student was very different from the other nine participants in the study, and was interpreted as principally related to disorientation within his online learning environment. Three types of disorientation were identified - navigational, contextual, and procedural - each of which presented strategies for its mitigation. The research revealed a significant disjunction between the characteristics of the learner's online learning environment and his learning needs and preferences, which has implications for the design and development of inclusive online learning environments in higher education.
View less >
Journal Title
Australasian Journal of Educational Technology
Volume
31
Issue
2
Copyright Statement
© 2015 Australasian Society for Computers in Learning in Tertiary Education (ASCILITE). The attached file is reproduced here in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher. Please refer to the journal's website for access to the definitive, published version.
Subject
Curriculum and Pedagogy Theory and Development
Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Curriculum and Pedagogy
Specialist Studies in Education