Online Delivery as a Course Adjunct Promotes Active Learning and Student Success

Abstract

Chickering and Gamson’s notable summary of the best practices of undergraduate teaching include promoting active learning, cooperation, and student–faculty contact. The present study hypothesized that online delivery of lecture prior to course meetings allows more in-class time to achieve these goals. Students in a control group received a traditional, oral, lecture-style class with supplementing PowerPoint presentation, whereas students in a treatment group received online presentation of the same lecture script and PowerPoint presentation prior to coming to class; the treatment group’s in-class time was devoted to group activities and discussion of material. Learning and retention were assessed by student performance on a series of multiple-choice tests and quizzes given throughout the semester. Results indicate that students in the treatment condition scored significantly higher on most measures than did students in the control condition. Through strong control of experimental conditions, this study departs from many previous investigations of the benefits of online delivery as an adjunct to seated class time in an introductory social science course, highlighting its advantages such as freeing class time for those activities and strategies deemed to be best practices. The implications of these results and limitations to the study are discussed.

Learning by doing—teaching systematic review methods in 8 weeks

“…The 19‐year duration of the course has meant that the course has grown and improved with the field. The new teaching methods such as use of online materials, classroom capture technology, increased recognition of the benefits of active learning and other novel technology will make the course more effective in the future (Davis et al ., , ; Kulier et al ., , , ; Turney et al ., ; US Department of Education Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development, ; Zepke and Leach, ; Lewis and Harrison, ).…”

Evaluating Characteristics of Top and Bottom Performance: Online Versus In-Class

“…Most studies measure the effectiveness of e-learning by comparing the learning outcomes of traditionally taught classes with similar online classes (Driscoll et al 2012;Gibson 2008), where outcomes are defined as course grade or grade on some specific event, such as a common final exam. Other studies attempt to assess the impact of e-learning on learning benchmarks (Ossiannilsson and Landgren 2012), learning opportunities (Lewis and Harrison 2012), or learning satisfaction as measured by end-of-course evaluations (Eom, Wen, and Ashill 2006). Still other studies consider the cost and benefits of traditional versus online instruction (Lei and Govra 2010).…”

Current Status of Research on Online Learning in Postsecondary Education

“…Of the research that falls into the former category, the findings tend to indicate no significant difference, or provide mixed results. For example, Summers, Waigandt, and Whittaker (2005), Lewis and Harrison (2012) and Enriquez (2010) each find no significant difference with respect to any of the outcomes they examine. Plumb andLaMeres (2011), Rich andDereshiwsky (2011) and Parsons-Pollard et al (2008) each find online students outperformed face-to-face students on some measures, face-to-face students outperformed online students on other measures, and there is no significant difference on other measures.…”