The Challenges Behind the Development of an E-Mentoring Model for Online Distance Education: A Pilot Experience

The Challenges Behind the Development of an E-Mentoring Model for Online Distance Education: A Pilot Experience

Lina Morgado, Ana Paula Afonso, Nathalie Ferret, Marta Gomes
Copyright: © 2022 |Pages: 14
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-8193-3.ch018
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Abstract

Different higher education institutions (HEI) have broadly adopted peer mentoring as a strategy to provide initial and continuous support for new students, to promote their academic inclusion. In Distance Education HEI, peer e-mentoring assumes a crucial role in the promotion and maintenance of social and cognitive presence and in the creation of a sense of belonging to the academic community. Thus, it is assumed as a crucial support for the overcoming of online students' specific difficulties and as a factor for his success. After a theoretical framework, this chapter presents the case of a pilot e-mentoring project implemented in a European open university based on the paradigms of virtual learning communities and the model of the community of inquiry (CoI). To conclude, it presents a set of assumptions for the construction of an e-mentoring model adapted to online DE and further research to be conducted.
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Contextualization And Project Approach

In the context of expansion and proliferation of internationalization strategies by higher education institutions providing distance learning, and given the vast heterogeneity of the attending students, the demand to develop diverse skills and the consideration of psychosocial-motivational factors for a successful learning process, it is important to develop and implement support systems that foster students’ integration and promote equity.

In the European context, to meet the challenges of the 21st century, profound changes are needed in a wide range of Life-Long-Learning scenarios, especially in the technology-mediated ones.

Following these thoughts, “equally important is the active involvement of students in the development of counselling, guidance and mentoring systems” (European Commission, p.44), as these support systems seem to foster a more successful path, enhance the sense of belonging to the institution and support the development of transversal competences (Sánchez-Elvira & Simpson, 2018).

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