The Audience RESEARCH BENEFITS
to go back and carefully read the materials which she still does not understand. She is also able to read it many times.
Meanwhile, there are also some things which are less convenient. The most inconvenient thing is when other readers read their blog and find
grammatical mistakes. A participant tells that what makes her worried is “there would be more people spotting my grammatical mistakes…They may laugh at
me” Lin, Lin, Groom: 2013. Students’ anxiety will likely to make them unable to write freely. They think that whatever they post, they have to make sure that
everything is correct. Yet, for other students, they are not afraid of it. It is because they always check everything before they post a writing composition.
Students’ understanding about the materials and also their motivation and attitude are things which can be observed. Most participants in those studies have
stated the empirical meaning, such as how they can learn more easily through blog-assisted learning. The texts obtained from the participants contain
information about empirical meaning only. There is not any explanation about how it affects their life beyond what can be seen and how it made them more self-
actualized. Those studies have not revealed what students’ feel beyond those academic things. The next study presented her, however, is able to reveal the
transcendent meaning. It revealed something which is more than the process and the result of learning itself. Another research is the one studying students’ lived
experience in their interaction in distance learning courses. Participants of this study showed that they had different point of view. Liu 2008 mentions that one
of participants say,
“I think that the student interactions were very important – the initial meeting, the icebreaker the bird camp – it allowed us to actively form this
community of learners. We got into a collegial, non-competitive learning
environment where it wasn’t about who has the best grade, it’s about look we all gotta succeed.” Jacobs
For this participant, establishing good learning environment is desirable. He would like to cooperate with others to achieve success. The same thing is
mentioned by another participant named Chad. Liu 2008 mentions that he says, “I didn’t, I didn’t like it the distance education course as much as a traditional
class because I really didn’t … I didn’t talk to my classmates, I don’t know, I didn’t even talk to the teacher.” Instead of helping students, he feels that it is
burdensome. It is because he feels isolated from his friends. This study by Liu 2008 has revealed a few about transcendent meaning. The use of computers in
distant learning has influenced not only the learning process but also something which is more than it. The feeling of not being able to talk with somebody has
caused discomfort and loneliness. In relation with empirical and transcendent meaning that this study is
going to seek, the study conducted by Lin, Lin Groom 2013 has revealed empirical meaning which is about how technology makes writing and reviewing
lesson much easier. It has not revealed the transcendent meaning yet. On the other hand, the one conducted by Liu 2008 has revealed some information about
something which is not directly observable, which is the feeling that having good grade is not always at the top of learners’ priority list. It is about the learners’
feeling. However, this unobservable feeling is not about being transcendent or being self-actualized. Therefore, this research has an aim to seek the transcendent
meaning.