Utilization of Microsoft Teams for Online Communication Among Undergraduate Research Students
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.65141/sjter.v3i1n1Keywords:
Microsoft Teams, Learning Management System, Online Communication, Undergraduate Research, Grounded TheoryAbstract
Among the many options for a learning management system (LMS), Office 365 is one of the most popular among colleges and universities in the Philippines and abroad. While there are substantial studies conducted on the use of LMS for online communication in general, action research conducted for a specific higher education institution is still needed to produce immediate evidence that is readily applicable to a particular academic milieu. This study aims to generate a substantive grounded theory that can be applied immediately to the research writing courses in St. Jude College of Dasmariñas, Cavite (SJCDC). Twenty-two private conversations in Microsoft Teams (MS Teams) were selected and analyzed using a grounded theory approach. The results revealed that “routes of online communication,” “functions of online communication,” “the role of the research instructor,” and “student feedback” constitute the dynamics of student-instructor online communication in MS Teams, which became the properties of the substantive grounded theory that is the R2F2 model. The model explains the direction of the online communication process, which takes place between the research instructor and the undergraduate research students, and how each route shifts the role of the instructor depending on the specific function of online communication initiated by the student. Therefore, consideration of the multiple aspects presented in the R2F2 model for online communication is necessary to achieve a greater understanding of the dynamics of students-to-instructor online communication in research. As such, continuous use of Microsoft Teams, faculty training emphasis on effective online communication using Office 365, and verificatory studies for other courses besides research are recommended for SJCDC.
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