Relationships Among Students' Course Perceptions, Engagement, and Achievement in a Large Online Course

• In Event: Persistence and Achievement

Abstract

Although motivation theories have been applied to educational settings, the interactions among motivation constructs for students within large college courses is not well understood. We examined the relationships between students' course perceptions, effort, and grades by surveying 1,446 students near the end of a large online course. Students completed closed- and open-ended items and we used structural equation modeling and qualitative coding to document that students' course perceptions predicted their course effort, which then predicted their final course grade. Findings were moderated by how easy students perceived the course to be. This study extends prior research to large online courses and explicates differences in students' effort that arise from their perceptions of course ease. Implications will be provided.

Authors

• Brett D. Jones, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

• Kevin Krost, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

• Mia W. Jones