The Impact of Online Learning Community on Students’ Performance and Satisfaction in Blended Accounting Classes

• In Event: Reception with ELS Posters

Abstract

This study examines whether building online learning community for blended classes helps to reduce students’ anxiety, improve students’ performance and satisfactory. Constructivism learning theory states that individual constructs his or her knowledge through personal experiences and interactions with the environment (Dewey (1938), von Glasersfeld (1995), and Fosnot (1996)). Prior studies have shown that building communities in blended and online courses are positively related to students’ perceived learning engagement, course satisfaction and learning outcomes (Gunawardena (1995), Garrison et al. (1999), Rovai (2002), Liu et al. (2007)). In addition, studies show that non-task content and social psychological interaction help to build a positive learning environment (Wegerif, 1998, Northrup, 2001, Kreijns, Kirschner, and Jochems, 2003). This study provides additional evidence of the impact of building online community on student learning for a sample of students who completed Intermediate Accounting I (ACT 311) course in fall 2011 and fall 2012. The results show that online learning community, such as personal introduction, greetings and salutations, acknowledgement, virtual café, general class information, and group collaboration, improves students’ course performances after controlling for prior GPA, math grade, gender, transfer, academic affiliation, and academic levels. In addition, online community in blended learning improves students’ satisfaction level.

Author

• Chan Du, University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth