A Research Synthesis of Online Learning: Plethora or Paucity of Instructional Solutions?

Abstract ________________________________________________________________
While online education courses are becoming more popular, perhaps due to cost efficiency and convenience, questions are arising about effectiveness and outcome. The issues of quality, attrition rates, and how instructional approach can be modified for online delivery are at the forefront of current study. A synthesis of the research shows that online learning is a field that may challenge educational assumptions about learning and lead to changes in delivery, interaction, and enrollment. Three studies that address selected concerns are examined.

    Literature on Internet instruction has addressed many questions recently, including course design (Porter, 1997; Cooper, 2000), faculty role (Dede, 1996; Moller, 1998), quality control (Terry, 2000), and student and faculty assessment (Ryan, 2000; White, 2000). Studies have focused on perceptions (Beard & Harper, 2002) and learning styles of online participants (Aragon, Johnson, & Shaik, 2002), as well as the role of an online instructor to provide responses that are immediate (Baker, 2001) and intimate (Dolence & Norris, 1995).
 
    One current concern is that online classes appear to attract, and lose, more students than traditional campus courses. A three-year study conducted at West Texas A&M University (Terry, 2001) found that, of the 15 graduate business courses offered both on campus and via the Internet, online enrollment was higher in 12 of the 15 courses. Online delivery had an overall average enrollment of 34 students per course and traditional campus delivery averaged 25 students per course. While students benefit from flexible location, individualized attention from the instructor, less travel, and more time to respond to questions (Matthews, 1999), higher enrollment numbers also indicate that course content may have been preferred in online delivery formats, allowing more student-centered learning (Spitzer, 1990).
 
    During the study, the same professor taught each course, both online and on campus, using consistent methods. Learning materials, such as textbooks, lecture notes, and articles were the same in both delivery formats. Tuition fees for both delivery formats were identical. Enrollment was taken on the first day of class session and documented throughout the classes.
Results showed that both enrollment and attrition rates were higher in online courses. The average attrition rate for campus courses was 14% and for online courses, the average was 21%. The highest attrition rate on campus for any class was 26%. For online classes, the highest was 43%. Possible explanations for the higher attrition rates may be that specific content is not effective in this format, students are not able to adjust to a self-paced format, study time was more intensive than students anticipated, and both students and faculty were less familiar with the methods required.
 
     Conclusions of the study point to a trend of sustained higher enrollment in online courses, offset by a higher attrition rate. Some content areas may be less conducive to online success, measured by students who finish courses. For example, business statistics and finance had attrition rates of over 30%. This study was a preliminary step in research. Statistics that show online classes are popular (based on enrollment) often do not include that many students do not attain educational goals or even finish the course.
 
     After students find and enroll in online courses, they must also achieve the level of success required by the course. The factors that allow such success may include initial experience (Conrad, 2002), faculty-student interaction (Kearsley, 2000), and pedagogical practices. The delivery of an online course is not merely the transcription into html.
 
     One study (Mulligan & Geary) questioned the quality of online instruction in meeting educational standards and investigated one method being used to insure student work outcomes. Christopher Newport University expanded a computer-managed, distance education program (CNU ONLINE) to offer all necessary courses for a Bachelor of Arts degree in governmental administration. The format used a writing-intensive pedagogy, encouraging students to think critically and to write copiously. Instructors responded critically to student writing. The premise of the program was that online classes should be taught with “as much or more rigor” (pg. 388) than traditional courses. During the 1994-1995 school year, the online attrition rate was 25-30%, which was attributed to students being unprepared for the format.
 
    Two general education courses were examined to measure the effectiveness of student writing. The focus was the volume of writing, the genre of writing, and the quality of writing. All written assignments and messages (to the instructor, from the instructor, and among students) were saved and analyzed. In English 207G, about 2,198 pages were written, each student averaging 220 pages, from 10-40 times the amount written in traditionally delivered formats. Realizing that all writing was not the same type or quality, researchers divided it into three genres; meta-discourse, class discussion, and formal assignments. More than half of the online writing fell into the category of discussion, including group interaction, content-related questions, and collaborative projects. The discussions resulted in more interaction from each student than is typical in traditional settings and more freedom to express thoughts.
 
     Formal writing samples were collected to assess readability, style, and a holistic score. The weakest writers improved clarity, while the stronger writers increased stylistic sophistication. Earlier assignments had “more meta-discourse, more qualifications, less analysis of the text, and more personal opinion” (pg. 392), less evidence to support claims. The later assignments showed more evidence from the text or other resources, more critical thought, and more detailed analysis.
 
    Two benefits of online learning were identified by the study’s results. The data from online classes is recorded explicitly, which allows analysis superior to conventional settings, and the instructor gains more knowledge of students online through writing and is better able to adjust material, redefine goals, and stimulate discussion. Two dangers were also identified. First, institutions that focus exclusively on the economical, space-saving, and unlimited enrollment capabilities of online learning will find that quality in instruction is almost impossible to achieve. To insure student and instructor effectiveness, online courses must allow limited enrollment. Second, the trend toward increased writing volume and informality (class discussions being graded as a class assignment,) combined with high class enrollment, may weaken pedagogical practices and encourage less careful writing. Improper practices could decrease students’ “concerns with delivery, style, and arrangement” (pg. 394). The rigorous treatment of student writing in this study led to the conclusion that the learning outcomes for the online English courses were as good as the traditionally formatted classes.
 
     Another consideration for judging online course effectiveness is the students’ need for communication from instructors. One study focused on the effects of altering the volume of instructor interactions upon student perceptions of community, satisfaction, and personal relationships (Woods, 2002). A sense of co-presence is achieved through frequent exchanges (Boettcher, 1999) and has been regarded as a requirement for online success. The study first examined the relationship between online student dissatisfaction at Regent University and the amount and depth of instructor-initiated interaction. Then, during a 15-week semester, online students were assigned to four treatments. Two groups were to receive a personal e-mail from the instructor every week (15 messages.) Two groups were to receive one e-mail each month (4 messages.) Two groups were to receive only two messages. The control group and one other group were to receive no personal messages.
 
    The messages were to average 50 words and consist of personal comments, not discussions of study-related material. At the end of the semester, students were surveyed about sense of online community, satisfaction with the overall learning experience, and perceptions of faculty/student relationship. Also, group participation levels were measured.
 
     Results showed no statistically significant difference in perceptions. All students reported positive perceptions in all areas. A statistically difference in participation was shown, however. The groups receiving only two messages had nearly twice the level of overall participation than the groups receiving 15 messages. The control group, receiving no messages, participated in higher levels than either group receiving 15 messages. More frequent messages did not appear to influence satisfaction or perception or to encourage more group participation. The study did not, however, measure quality of communication between faculty and students occurring within discussion formats. It is possible that some groups got more positive feedback or instructions of greater immediacy during discussions. One possibility is that instructor interaction within the discussion format is just as, or more, effective than personal messages. Gender may also be a factor to be considered.
 
    In the ongoing investigation of quality and effectiveness of online instruction, many factors need to take precedence. First, what attracts learners to online environments, and –more importantly—what keeps them there successfully? Second, can online courses be conducted as rigorously as traditional classes and how can educators ensure and assess results? Third, what role must an online instructor assume to best serve students? If those factors are securely in place, online instruction can become quality instruction.

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