Student Performance Under Synchronous Versus Asynchronous Instruction

• In Event: Situational Factors and Online Learning

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic promoted a rapid increase in online teaching and learning, including in relatively new formats such as synchronous instruction. This study uses administrative data from the California Community College system and a highly-saturated set of fixed effects to explore how student performance compares across synchronous, asynchronous, and face-to-face course delivery modalities. We find that students in both synchronous and asynchronous courses have poorer performance on average than students in face-to-face classes. However, these gaps narrowed between 2015 and 2021. In the post-pandemic period, synchronous course-taking is associated with stronger performance than asynchronous course-taking. These patterns hold for students across nearly all race/ethnic, sex, and financial aid groups that we examine.

Authors

• Cassandra M.D. Hart, University of California - Davis

• Rachel B. Baker, University of Pennsylvania

• Di Xu, University of California - Irvine

• Michael Hill, University of California - Irvine

• Emily Alonso, University of California - Davis