The Videoconferencing Classroom: What Do Students Think?

The advantages of video conferencing in educational institutions are well documented. Scholarly literature has indicated that videoconferencing technology reduces time and costs between remote locations, fill gaps in teaching services, increases training productivity, enables meetings that would not be possible due to prohibitive travel costs, and improves access to learning (Martin, 2005; Rose, Furner, Hall, Montgomery, Katsavras, & Clarke, 2000; Townes-Young & Ewing, 2005; West, 1999). However, there are few studies that analyze the effectiveness of videoconferencing from the student’s perspective. Videoconferencing technology is often touted as a method to connect with previously inaccessible student populations, but does it adequately serve the needs of the students? If given a choice, would students select videoconferencing over face-to-face instructional methods