Online Versus Face-to-Face Course Outcomes: Controlling for Relevant Student Characteristics and Specific Course Taken

• In Event: 25.053 - Differences Between Online and Classroom Teaching and Other Comparisons

Abstract

Evidence suggests that online students have higher rates of attrition compared to students who take courses face-to-face, but no single study has controlled for both course- and student-level heterogeneity using variables that likely simultaneously impact online enrollment and course dropout. This study analyzes data for two- and four-year college students from a large U.S. university system in the northeast to explore the relationship between the online medium and subsequent course outcomes. Merging institutional and survey data, and controlling for course- and student-level heterogeneity (using multilevel modeling, fixed effects models, multivariate logistic regression, and propensity score matching), there was no significant difference online versus face-to-face in the proportion of students who successfully completed a course with a C- or better.

Authors

• Claire Wladis, Borough of Manhattan Community College - CUNY

• Alyse C. Hachey, Teachers College, Columbia University

• Katherine Mary Conway, Borough of Manhattan Community College - CUNY