Perception of African American Women Pursuing Online Doctorate Degree

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CHAPTER 02: LITERATURE REVIEW1

Introduction1

Women's Experiences with the Online Format4

Online Vs Traditional Learning5

Issues in Online Doctorate Programs6

Stress in Female Students7

Quality and Rigor9

Face-to-Face Interaction11

Mentoring13

Accreditation and Reputation16

Summary18

REFERENCES20

CHAPTER 02: LITERATURE REVIEW

Introduction

For the purpose of exploring literature for the current study topic, only few published dissertations were found that studied the concerns regarding the online education at doctorate level. The possible reason for such handful researches is the speed with which online education and learning is growing and has permeated the doctorate level education. Thus, there is the absence of ample time required to carry out formal inquiry and debate.

The doctorate is the highest academic degree which is awarded to those students who complete the specified program that offers a contribution to the society by excelled academic researches. The achievers of the doctorate degree are the top executives of the companies due to their highest academic qualifications (Green and Powell 2005). This degree is also referred as the pinnacle of academic success or the zenith of learning (Nyquist 2002, Lovat, Monfries and Morrison 2004). In USA, the doctorate program comprises of the advance level courses as well as academic research undertaking. On the other hand in European countries, the degree is exclusively based on research along with the apprenticeship that is done under the guidance of a supervisor.

Doctorate enables learners to extend the knowledge and abilities of discovering new facts and findings with the ability to communicate and disseminate the same (Council of Graduate Schools, 2005). The individuals who achieve the doctorate degree act as sources of generation, conservation and transformation of knowledge by critically evaluating the ideas and then implementing them practically. Thus, the knowledge is transformed through teaching and writing. Other necessary outcomes of a doctorate degree are the career preparation, leadership, scholarly rigor and higher order thinking abilities (Neumann, 2004).

Thus, doctorate degree is the combination of academic as well as the professional skills and enables the facilitation of wider opportunities of career. Also, newer forms of doctorate are emerging which lead to the satisfaction of both personal as well as career development. These doctorate degrees help the learner meet the market driven demand of possessing advanced professional skills that are required to be successful in the industry (Hoddell, Street, & Wildblood, 2002).

Pursuing online education has caused greatest impacts on the doctorate degree as evident from the findings that 17% of total students acquiring doctorate degree are enrolled in online programs (Allen & Seaman, 2006). This rate is growing by 18% each year , and the online enrollment rate in 2004 was seen to be 12%. It is also considered by the doctorate institutes that in order to implement the long term strategy and achievement online enrollment is critical in order to maintain participation in the online education sector. The students who reside in geographical proximity to the traditional education campuses are also seeking the facilities of online education as the preferred alternative (Ivankova and Stick, ...