Interaction through mobile technology in short-term university courses

Nowadays, online or distance learning postgraduate schools program the academic period in different sequentially developed modules. This article assesses the impact of the programming of short-term university courses (30-60 days) on the frequency and quality of interaction when communication takes place through mobile technologies. Frequency corresponded to the messages generated by actors in learning environments, and quality was quantified using a scale of interaction levels operated by assessing the content of the messages issued by the actors. Results revealed that there is no correlation between interaction and academic performance in short-term courses. Additionally, a downward trend was observed in the number of individuals involved and in the frequency and quality of interaction throughout the course.