Barriers to Distance Education: Perceptions of K-12 Educators

Abstract

Instructional-use computers are continuing to migrate into the classrooms, with public schools reporting over half the installed base now located in classrooms. Still, education struggles with the rapid expansion of technology. This article reports on findings from a survey (n=2504) of respondents working in elementary, middle, and secondary schools (n=159). The survey concerns barriers perceived in distance education and is based on prior research involving content analyses of the case studies along with an extensive review of the literature. Demographic data about the respondents is reported for job functions, delivery systems, individual expertise in distance education, and organizational capabilities regarding distance education. Perceptions of these respondents concerning barriers to distance education reported, along with comparisons to respondents not working in K-12.