College Faculty Use and Perceptions of Electronic Mail to Communicate with Students

Abstract

In spite of the potential of e-mail to enhance faculty–student interaction, there is a limited amount of actual research on instructional uses of e-mail, and even less research on e-mail exchange between faculty and students. The purpose of the present study was to examine faculty-initiated e-mail with students, their perceptions of students’ motives for using e-mail, and their views of the consequences of faculty–student e-mail. A survey was distributed to faculty at two institutions, a small private university and a mid-sized public university. Results revealed that faculty in general are receiving more than twice as many e-mail messages as they initiate and that female faculty report receiving more student e-mail than male faculty. Faculty motives for initiating e-mail appear to be utilitarian in nature such as to make course announcements. Faculty reported that students used e-mail to make appointments and to clarify and ask questions about course material but that a primary motive was to offer excuses such as for late work. In general, faculty perceive the use of e-mail as both beneficial and as a liability in the educational context. Finally, institutional differences were found for faculty perceptions of student's motives for using e-mail and for the consequences of e-mail.