Barriers and enablers to teachers' adoption of online teaching at an Australian University

For many years there has been a perception that academic staff have not adopted the online mode of teaching as quickly as might be expected. This study explores the factors which act as barriers or enhancers to the adoption of online teaching. <br>A qualitative methodology was used, and a single Australian University was chosen to provide a context. Interviews were conducted with 15 academic staff, and the transcripts and other information sources were thoroughly analysed. In concert with many other studies in the field, it was found that there were many perceived barriers, in particular lack of time and lack of technical skills, along with institutional and cultural factors. <br>This study also yielded several new insights. In a number of other studies “lack of time” was given as a barrier to the adoption online teaching. While those teachers with little experience of online delivery also saw this as a barrier, a number of teachers with extensive online experience found that the flexibility of time which was afforded to them by the online mode actually acted as an enhancing factor. <br>Another aspect of online teaching which was revealed was the role played by self-confidence, and self-efficacy. While previous research has identified lack of technical skills or technical support as an inhibiting factor, this study also demonstrated that these are factors in teachers’ adoption decisions, but that a lack of self-confidence was the common theme underlying these concerns.<br>