What is the role of social interaction in a distance- learning course?

Abstract

Background and Aim: The Principles and Practice of Clinical Research (PPCR) is a distance learning program for clinical researchers that provide a variety of interactive opportunities during the course. From 7 years experiences, PPCR showed that satisfied students’ demand of active learning and successfully promoted the understanding and adherence.

Conclusion: The collaborative learning with people with diverse background is enhanced by social interaction and may increase the future research collaboration even within the web-based virtual classroom.
Key-Words: Distance learning, social interaction, collaboration.