Communication in e-learning courses. Students' experiences and their preferences for online or face-to-face communication

Altogether, 2,196 students from 29 Austrian universities took part in an empirical investigation on learning and communication in e-learning courses. The students completed a questionnaire on their experiences in an actual e-learning course, on their perceived learning achievements, and their enjoyment of the course. Furthermore, they expressed their preferences for online or face-to-face communication. All in all, students were satisfied with their course. They did not prefer one communication setting over another. They preferred online-communication for the distribution of information but advocated face-to-face communication when joint learning and cooperation are important or when socio-emotional relations are to be developed. The results of the study advocate blended-learning designs and give recommendations for which communication purposes online and for which face-to-face settings are more adequate.