Impacts of Online Education on Existing Education Models, Teachers, and Students: Results of a Nationwide Survey in Taiwan

Jonathan Spangler, “Impacts of Online Education on Existing Education Models: Empirical Evidence from Taiwan,” in Chuing Prudence Chou and Jonathan Spangler (eds.), Chinese Education Models in a Global Age, Singapore: Springer, 2016, pp. 177–192, . Abstract Recent years have seen an explosion in the popularity of online education, yet the impacts of online education on existing education models, teachers, and students are not fully understood. While the rise of online education is evident in countries around the world, students in East Asian societies have been particularly active in their online educational pursuits. This chapter seeks to further understand the significance of these trends by using empirical evidence from a nationwide survey conducted in Taiwan. In particular, it aims to ascertain the reasons for the immense popularity of online education that may be specific to societies of Chinese descent and identify the impacts of online education on the existing education model, teachers, and students. Empirical evidence is based on nationwide survey data collected in collaboration with the Election Study Center in Taiwan. The results indicate that logistical, professional/academic, and sociocultural factors have contributed to the growth of online education in the Taiwanese context. The findings suggest that online education has had major impacts on the existing education model, teachers, and students and that these impacts has been both positive and negative in nature. Methodology In collaboration with the Election Study Center (ESC), a nationwide survey (n=397) was conducted in Taiwan in early October 2014. Invitations to participate in the survey were sent to 8,700 individuals aged 20 to 69, and the survey was closed after receiving 400 responses. As the organization responsible for gathering national statistical data on political and social issues since 1989, the ESC has developed a reputation as one of the few research organizations capable of conducting nationwide surveys. (Cheng, 1996, p. 206) Respondents came from all geographic areas, and the distribution of responses closely reflects the population distribution of the most recent census data. As anticipated, respondents tended to be in the younger age cohorts, reflecting the general distribution of Internet users as well as those enrolled in online courses. The questionnaire consisted of four parts covering (1) the reasons for the increasing popularity of online courses in Taiwan, (2) the impacts of online education on existing education models, teachers, and students, (3) comparisons between online and offline courses, and (4) demographic data about the respondents’ personal experiences with online education. See Appendix I for the specific questions asked in the questionnaire. Demographic data about each respondent based on questions not asked in the survey were provided by ESC and matched with survey data for the current study.

乔纳森·斯潘格勒（Jonathan Spangler）：《在线教育对现有教育模式的影响：来自中国台湾地区的实证证据》，收录于周琼瑾（Chuing Prudence Chou）与乔纳森·斯潘格勒（Jonathan Spangler）主编的《全球化时代的中国教育模式》，新加坡：施普林格（Springer）出版社，2016年，第177-192页。

摘要 近年来，在线教育的普及呈爆发式增长，但学界尚未完全厘清其对现有教育模式、教师与学生群体的影响。尽管在线教育的崛起已在全球多国显现，东亚社会的学生在在线教育学习方面尤为活跃。本章依托中国台湾地区一项全国性调查的实证数据，旨在进一步剖析此类趋势的学术意义。具体而言，本章旨在明确华裔社会特有的在线教育高普及度成因，并厘清在线教育对现有教育模式、教师与学生的影响。本研究的实证数据源自与中国台湾地区选举研究中心（Election Study Center, ESC）合作收集的全国性调查数据。研究结果显示，后勤保障、专业学术与社会文化三类因素共同推动了中国台湾地区在线教育的发展。研究发现表明，在线教育对现有教育模式、教师与学生均产生了显著影响，且此类影响兼具积极与消极两面性。

研究方法 本研究与中国台湾地区选举研究中心（Election Study Center, ESC）合作，于2014年10月初在中国台湾地区开展了一项全国性调查，有效样本量为397（n=397）。研究人员向8700名年龄介于20至69岁之间的受访者发出调研邀请，在回收400份有效问卷后终止调查。自1989年起，选举研究中心便肩负着收集全国政治与社会统计数据的职责，其作为少数可开展全国性调查的研究机构之一，已获得学界广泛认可（Cheng, 1996, 第206页）。受访者覆盖全国各地理区域，其样本分布与最新人口普查数据中的人口分布高度吻合。正如预期，受访者年龄结构偏向年轻化，这与互联网用户及在线课程学习者的整体分布特征一致。调查问卷共分为四个部分：（1）中国台湾地区在线课程日益普及的成因；（2）在线教育对现有教育模式、教师与学生的影响；（3）在线课程与线下课程的对比分析；（4）受访者在线教育个人经历的人口统计学相关信息。问卷具体问题详见附录一。本研究中未通过调研直接获取的受访者人口统计学数据，由选举研究中心提供，并与本次调研数据进行匹配整合。