Online Education: An Exploratory Study into Success Factors

The rapid growth of end-user computing, low-cost communication, and the development of the Internet has lead to a surge of online courses. In light of this, many educators still await the promise of technology's power to improve teaching effectiveness. This article presents an exploratory study of a Web-based distance education course at a major Australian university. We identify three critical success factors associated with teaching effectiveness in online delivery—technology, the lecturer, and the students' previous use of the technology. We also argue that the lecturer will continue to play a central role in online education, albeit his or her role will become one of a learning catalyst and knowledge navigator.