Reflecting on the Brink: At-Risk Student Experiences with Emergency Online Learning amid COVID-19

Abstract

During the COVID-19 pandemic, there was perhaps no group of students better prepared to make the switch to online learning than Gen Z. Research supports the fact that Gen Z adapts quickly to and enjoys technology integration in educational spaces (Barber, 2020; Mellman, 2020; Pavao, 2020; Strawser, 2020), yet no research has explored how at-risk students experience online learning and how these students uniquely adopt persistence strategies to succeed. As a result, this content analysis investigates the online discussion board posts from a credit-bearing student success course for at-risk Gen Z students on warning or probationary financial aid status (GPA < 2.00 or below a 67% completed over attempted credit hours ratio) to learn how these students reflected on their online learning experiences and their precarious status at their institution. Findings echoed prior studies where students felt their biggest challenges were distractions and their own procrastination. Moreover, students reported feeling like a burden, students could not learn and socialize effectively in online settings, and students did not have knowledge of institutional support that could have helped them persist during the pandemic. However, students unearthed unique persistence strategies, such as blending tactile learning strategies into their online learning environment and strategically segmenting their technology use during class sessions. Implications for research, policy, and practice are addressed.

"I feel like a bother": COVID-Era Experiences of College Students on Academic Probation and Financial Aid Warning Status

“…This study and other early studies into pandemic-era student persistence (Chan, 2022;Rainey & Taylor, 2022;Russell et al, 2022;Sharma & Yukhymenko-Lescroart, 2022) showed the need for more research to explore the experiences of college students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Research on adolescent's experiences during COVID-19 (Hussong et al, 2021), coupled with increasing evidence of secondary school learning loss (Huck & Zhang, 2021), highlighted the ongoing need to think differently about the ways we support students as they transition to and persist through college.…”

“…Data from this study should urge researchers to dig into students' online learning experiences, a topic breached by Rainey and Taylor (2022). This inquiry is pressing for students on academic probation and/or financial aid warning status, as these students were both stuck in pandemic-era online learning but were subject to pre-pandemic policies.…”

“…Pokhrel and Chhetri (2021) strongly asserted students who could smoothly adjust to online learning were much more likely to persist than their peers, suggesting socioeconomic stratification between higher-income students who could afford technology and internet access compared to lower-income peers. This finding was echoed by Rainey and Taylor (2022), who explored the online learning experiences of college students during the pandemic and found students who were comfortable communicating through online channels and made online connections to peers and faculty members were more likely to persist than peers who did not. Tangentially tied to Tinto's (1975Tinto's ( , 1988 notion of academic integration, Pokhrel and Chhetri (2021) and Rainey and Taylor (2022) asserted college students who could re-integrate academically in online or virtual spaces may have been best prepared to persist through the pandemic.…”

“…This finding was echoed by Rainey and Taylor (2022), who explored the online learning experiences of college students during the pandemic and found students who were comfortable communicating through online channels and made online connections to peers and faculty members were more likely to persist than peers who did not. Tangentially tied to Tinto's (1975Tinto's ( , 1988 notion of academic integration, Pokhrel and Chhetri (2021) and Rainey and Taylor (2022) asserted college students who could re-integrate academically in online or virtual spaces may have been best prepared to persist through the pandemic.…”

“…These policies impacted college students' grades and earned credit hours, criteria critical for maintaining good academic standing, and federal financial aid eligibility. Therefore, these policy changes may harm students already at risk of departing college based on their academic standing (Rainey & Taylor, 2022).…”