The impact of e-mail use on student-faculty interaction

While research demonstrates that contact between students and teach-ers can positively affect students, new forms of technology are transform-ing the way that students and faculty interact. This paper will examine some of the positive and negative effects that the increased use of e-mail communication has on the interactions between students and faculty. Implications and recommendations for policy and practice are pre-sented. Close and frequent interaction between students and teachers has long been a central value of education (Wilson, Gaff, Dienst, Wood, & Bavry, 1975). Contact with faculty both in and out of the classroom has many positive impacts on students, and there is a wealth of research spanning several decades that supports this assertion. Studies have demonstrated that student-faculty interactions may enhance student development (Alberti, 1972), foster social and academic integration (Pascarella & Terenzini, 1978), and positively affect students ’ academi