DISTANCE EDUCATION PERCEPTIONS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION STUDENTS: A METAPHOR ANALYSIS

The aim of this study is to determine the perceptions of distance education students about distance education by using metaphor technique. The working group included 220 students enrolled in Suleyman Demirel University, Distance Education Vocational School in 2014. Phenomenology method was chosen as the qualitative research design in this study. Participants were given a questionnaire consisting of demographic questions and the prompt “Distance Education is like …….…. Because ………..” to articulate their conceptualizations of distance education. The data were analyzed by content analysis method and then themes and categories were formed. The perceptions of students about distance education are interpreted according to the determined themes and categories. Metaphors were collected in five categories: Flexibility, Accessibility, Educational, Interaction and Affective. It was seen that the majority of the students were using positive metaphors and the perceptions of distance education were positive