Sources of Students' Frustration When Learning Online: A Mixed-Method Case Study

• In Event: Technology, Instruction, Cognition and Learning SIG: Learning With Technology

Abstract

Although research has shown that student frustration in online learning negatively affects their academic outcomes, less is known about the sources of this frustration. A mixed-method case study explored students’ frustration in three contexts (class, learning, and test-taking) in a blended statistic course, using Pekrun’s (2006) control-value theory. Quantitative analyses found that higher control and value appraisals reduced students’ frustration in all three contexts of online learning, that in all three contexts greater frustration led to lower satisfaction, and found greater frustration online versus in-class for online class activities and test-taking but not for learning-related frustration. Qualitative analysis of students’ responses identified five sources of students’ frustration: instructional design, online tests, technical problems, online videos, and lack of support.

Authors

• Somayeh Ghaderizefreh, McGill University

• Michael Lindsley Hoover, McGill University