In order to achieve good study results in the online study environment, it is important for students and teachers to have mutual interaction in the online classroom; this is reflected in the effectiveness of communication in online educational systems. We analyzed various sources in the theoretical part and summarized some of the authors’ views and findings on the chosen topic. In the research part, we analyzed the aspects of part-time students involved in e-study at the Faculty of Public Administration about the importance of mutual interaction and its elements on effective communication. In the survey, we asked the students how they experienced the lack of physical presence due to e-learning, how important they found communication or elements of communication and how often they interacted with classmates about the subject matter through social networks. We also obtained data on whether the students preferred group work or working in interactive groups. We were also interested in whether they established informal social contacts with each other.
There were 32 students from the Faculty of Public Administration participating in the survey. Its results showed that communication is an important factor for students in the e-learning process. According to the students, the most important factor of communication is the responsiveness of the teacher. We found that most respondents prefer individual learning over learning in study groups; some students do not put any emphasis on who they work within a group. Most students in e-learning miss direct communication with a teacher and in-person interpretation. They also believe, among other things, that this form of study brings a lack of social contacts and physical presence; this causes a different experience of emotions than in students who attend classroom lectures.
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