PERCEPTIONS AND ATTITUDES OF FEMALE PRE-SERVICE TEACHERS IN AN E-LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

The aim of this research was to understand how gender-based attributes are manifested in an e-learning environment in which the majority are women. The research encompassed the views and perceptions of women in an e-learning surrounding.
The social reality within which this research took place indicates a changing world. The mutual influences of technological advancements and social shifts have resulted in a number of changes in western societies. Education was among the areas affected by those changes. In addition, the social and technological advancements influenced gender conceptualization, the roles of men and women in the modern developing world, the way the world views those roles, and how women in particular view their place within the evolving developments. The ever-changing world, new technologies, and the place of women in the use of those technologies generated an increase in the participation of women in various areas of life, and new understandings regarding the differences between men and women. Inequality between the genders is slowly fading away in light of our better understanding of the uniqueness of each gender.
Studies have revealed differences between men and women of various age groups, in different areas of life. There are differences in their perceptions, thought processes, and ways of learning.
This research focuses on the uniqueness of women within e-learning environments in higher education. The setting chosen for this research was a place where education, technology, and gender converge - an e-learning environment within an academic teacher's training college, where women constitute the majority.
The research tools included an analysis of a questionnaire filled out by 92 female pre service teachers studying in an e-learning environment. Another tool used was an analysis of interviews with 20 pre service teachers chosen from the 92 who filled out the questionnaire.
It was found that women relate positively to advancements in technology and its various applications. They were particularly positive about the ways in which technology have benefited women. However, their feelings towards knowledge-based technology did reveal some ambivalence.
Most of the women who participated in the research stated that there are well-defined gender differences between men and women. All throughout the research, women placed a high importance on both study and social communication within the e-learning course. They related to e-learning as a unique way of learning.
Despite the tendency of women in the contemporary age to minimize or eliminate the issue of gender differences, it would seem that such differences still do exist, as they are revealed in the e-learning environment. There is a uniqueness that characterizes how women relate to this environment. This uniqueness manifests itself in the way women place great significance on the study and social communication aspect of online learning and their gradual adaptation to the medium, a process that begins in a state of apprehension and ends in a state of interest and efficiency.
It can be concluded that gender-based traits will have an impact on the ongoing development of new e-learning environments.. The development of e-learning environments for women needs to take into account the ways that women can acquire the knowledge they need in the most efficient way possible to enable them to be as productive in such environments as they can be.