EDUCAUSE Quarterly Articles, Faculty, Productivity Applications and Systems, and E-mail and Messaging

The following exploratory study investigated email communication between faculty and undergraduate students at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  Factors related to email behavior, expectations, and influence on instructional outcomes were explored through an electronic survey of undergraduate students and faculty.  Results in this first study indicate that although faculty and students share similar ideas about the use of email in academia and recognize the potential of email communication as a means for enhancing instructional outcomes, it is not typically used for such purposes.  Although additional research at other universities is necessary, preliminary data analysis and discussion follow including initial suggestions on improving faculty and student email communication as well as enhancing scholarly discourse and instructional outcomes via electronic mail.