Factores que influyen en el rendimiento escolar

Section 3.7 above touched on the challenges of teaching with case studies in accounting in a traditional teaching environment. Teaching by means of case studies, specifically in a distance education environment, also has its challenges, which will be explored in this section.

The most significant challenge of teaching cases online is that it is more time- consuming (Allen & Seaman 2011:1; Rollag 2010:503; Webb et al 2005:247). More specifically, it takes much more time for educators to prepare case studies, facilitate case study discussions (owing to the large quantity of postings made by students) and assess students by means of online case studies (Rollag 2010:503) or to prepare online versions of courses (Allen & Seaman 2011:1). The flexibility of distance education can also lead to an extremely burdensome, overwhelming task for educators if they wish to create a “teaching presence” as it requires constant monitoring and facilitation of online content (Rollag 2010:503). A finding that was identified in the field of online management information systems was that case

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studies not only increased the time demands for educators, but also for students (Webb et al 2005:247), which leaves less time for learning subject content.

More coordination is necessary in a distance learning environment than with face-to- face situations owing to a lack of nonverbal signals (Kopp et al 2014:368; Rollag 2010:505). It is harder for educators to have a personal connection and establish a learning relationship with students in a distance education environment (Rollag 2010:505). It is also necessary to consider when structuring the case-solving activities and content that without the proper guidance, the expected learning success will not be achieved (Kirschner, Sweller & Clark, 2006:75; Marcus et al 2004:585). Chen et al (2006:72) found that the learning skills acquired through using case studies in an asynchronous online environment were to be lower than those acquired in face-to-face environments. Cahill, Cook and Jenkins (2003:360-370) conducted research on how useful the World Wide Web discussion boards and e- mails are in presenting a case study course in the medical field. Although they also posited that web-based communication encourages peer learning, their results showed that there is often a lack of participation, described as passive “lurking”, owing to a perceived risk of revealing knowledge ignorance (Cahill et al 2003:360). This finding contradicts the findings of Lampton (2011:70) in the accounting field discussed in section 3.8.3.

Communication is vital in the learning environment. Facial expression and body language contribute towards effective communication between educators and students (Rollag 2010:505). Shanker and Hu (2008:105) contend that classroom environments would be better suited to case-based classes that require an increased level of two-way communication than web-based classes. They go on to explain that it would be difficult to implement courses that require continuous exchange of ideas and discussions in a virtual environment. In a web-based environment, the lack of instant feedback, such as an instruction given by an educator in a classroom, necessitates proper planning in advance by educators as it is less dynamic. Shanker and Hu (2008:105) also posit that students who are not comfortable with technology tend to be intimidated by web classes. This also applies to students who are taught by means of case studies in a distance learning environment.

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Another challenge of teaching by means of case studies in a distance learning environment is that the pace of real-time discussions depends on the technological platforms being used (Montiel 2013:266). Lost connections or technical support interruptions to announce a drop in bandwidth could potentially cause delays which causes distress (Montiel 2013:266). Unisa also faces the challenge of poor bandwidth (Pitsoe & Baloyi 2015:92). Educators who make use of online case-based teaching may find that students perceive them as less important than in traditional classes (Webb et al 2005:247). Webb et al (2005:247) identified this finding in the field of management information systems.

ODL students are not expected to attend classes and therefore the challenge of evaluating whether students actually interrelate with learning material is more pronounced in a distance learning environment (Letseka & Pitsoe 2013:203). Not only does the use of case studies as a teaching tool in a distance learning environment pose challenges, but the use of case studies as a tool for assessment can also be challenging. Choosing the form of assessment is a vital consideration, as Mampane (2015:40) asserts that the form of assessment in an ODL environment should not affect students negatively. Assessment in ODL institutions often fails to cater for student diversity (Ngara, Ngwarai & Mhute 2012:171). Ngara et al (2012:171) and Letseka and Pitsoe (2013:197, 198) mentioned another challenge in the assessment of ODL students, namely that ODL educators are not always able to authenticate ODL students’ written work. Letseka and Pitsoe (2013:197, 198) posed the following question: “How can they tell whether the students’ submitted work sufficiently reflects their knowledge and understanding?”. They explain that their scepticism originates from practical challenges at Unisa whereby students submit well-written assignments but do not perform well in the examinations. The authorities suspect that the assignments are not always the students’ own work (Letseka & Pitsoe 2013:204). Grading students using the case method of teaching in a distance learning environment is more complex and requires more time than in face-to-face environments (Montiel 2013:269; Rollag 2010:503, 504).

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3.9 CHANGES TO PROFESSIONAL ACCOUNTING BODIES’ EXAMINATIONS