Impact of an Orientation on Online Course Completion

• In Event: Ensuring Supportive, Educative Environments for All Online Learners

Abstract

The number of secondary students enrolled in online courses across the country has grown rapidly. At the same time, a major concern with online courses is the low completion rates. Orientation courses are often cited as a best practice and a means to increase course completion rates. In this session, we will describe a partnership between a Midwestern state education agency, an online course provider, and researchers to understand whether an orientation course increases course completion rates. We will also present the results from a randomized controlled trial to estimate the impact of an online orientation on the likelihood that students complete their online high school courses.

Authors

• Jacqueline Zweig, Education Development Center, Inc.

• Erin Stafford, Education Development Center, Inc.

• Noman Khanani, Boston College

• Makoto Hanita, Education Development Center, Inc.