System Infrastructure Needs for Web Course Delivery: A Survey of Online Courses in Florida Community Colleges

This quantitative study describes the system infrastructure needs and perceptions of the 28 Florida community colleges regarding current Web course delivery. Section 1 assesses 27 (96.4%) Florida Community College Distance Learning Consortium (FCCDLC) member representative responses to a 19-item, researcher-designed survey. The study includes assessment of interview responses from five selected FCCDLC member representatives. Section 2 reviews literature and information in order to provide a historical perspective, views of technology in education, distance learning, infrastructure reliability and scalability, and institutional readiness factors for online course delivery. Methodology was planned in question design and sequencing. The study's 19 areas of inquiry address the following larger issues: (1) What incentives and rewards are there to motivate faculty in obtaining knowledge to develop and teach online classes? (2) What academic services and technical support are available to students enrolled in online classes? (3) What processes, procedures, instructional design, and technical support are available for faculty who develop online courses? (4) What software, equipment, and facilities are being used for the development and delivery of online courses? and (5) What levels and degrees of online courses exist in relation to the size of the institution? Findings indicate that 66.6% of Florida community colleges offer incentives or rewards, and 81.4% of colleges support faculty in development of Web courses. (Contains 79 references.) (Author/NB)