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Results - Teacher contact
Almost half (9) of the surveyed respondents said their teacher rarely, if ever, contacted them. Six reported a monthly or occasional call or email from their teacher, four said their contact was on a weekly basis and one said the teacher contacted him/her daily. The main reasons the teachers contacted the students were to see if they were ready for testing (8) and check on student progress/offer help (6). Two students said the teacher contacted them regarding the 15-hour weekly requirement.
Sixteen of the twenty students said they almost never/rarely initiated contact with the teacher; they independently worked on the program. One student reported asking for assistance during the first week. Four other students asked their tutor or teacher for assistance when they visited campus since they were simultaneously receiving face-to-face instruction in addition to taking the online program. No one reported asking for assistance when the work was too hard or the directions were unclear. Teacher responses agreed that most students contacted their teachers only when they needed to be reassigned a different online program or there were computer problems. Few students asked for assistance with the content, either at the beginning of their online GED experience or throughout their online study.
Interviewed students readily confirmed that their teacher rarely, if ever, contacted them. If the teacher initiated contact it was usually to arrange the TABE or the GED test for the student. Two students said they put forth effort to contact their teacher if they had a question or wanted to take the test.
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