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Attrition Rate of Online Learning

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Attrition Rate of Online Learning
WHAT INFLUENCES ONLINE CLASSES HIGH ATTRITION RATE

by

Lora Hines
Bachelor of Science in Business Education
December 1984
College of Education

A Research Paper Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the
Master of Science in Education Degree

Department of Workforce Education and Development
In the Graduate School
Southern Illinois University – Carbondale
December 1, 2011

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter Page I. INTRODUCTION ……………………………………………….…………..1 Background……………………………………………………………….1 Statement of the Problem………………………………………………….6 Research Questions………………………………………………………..7 Significance of the Problem……………………………………………….7 II. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE………………………………..…..9 Demographics…………………………………………………………….10 Best Practices……………………………………………………………..16 Student Characteristics…………………………………………………...24 III. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS…………………….…….32 Summary …...…………………………………………………………….32 Findings .………..……………………………………………………….. 33 Recommendations………………………………………………………...38 REFERENCES………………………………………………………….. 41 VITA………………………………..……………………………………52

AN ABSTRACT OF THE R ESEARCH PAPER OF

Lora Hines, for the Master of Science degree in Workforce Education and Development, presented on December 1, 2011, at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.

TITLE: WHAT INFLUENCES ONLINE CLASSES HIGH ATTRITION RATE

MAJOR PROFESSOR: Glen Blackstone

Online education programs have grown tremendously in the past 10 years. From 1991 to 2006, online enrollments have grown from virtually 0 to over 2.35 million students. Over 3.5 million students, or roughly one in every six, were enrolled in at least one online course during the fall of 2006. By 2015, 25 million post-secondary students in the United States will be taking an online class. Universities worldwide are



References: Addesso, P. (2000). Online facilitation. In K. White & B. Weights (Eds.), The online teaching guide: A handbook of attitudes, strategies, and techniques for the virtual classroom. (pp. 112-124). Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Allen, I.E. & Seaman, J. (2006). Making the Grade: Online education in the United States, 2006. Needham, MA: Sloan Consortium. Retrieved from http://www.sloanconsortium.org/publications/survey/survey06.asp Allen, I.E. & Seaman, J. (March, 2007). Making the grade: Online education in the United States, 2006. Retrieved from http://sloanconsortium.org/publications/survey/pdf/Making_the_Grade_Midwest.pdf Allen, E Aragon, S.R., & Johnson, E.S. (2008). Factors influencing completion and non-completion in community college online courses. The American Journal of Distance Education, 22, pp Bangurah, F.M. (2004). A study of completion and passing rates between traditional and web-based instruction at a two-year community college in northeast Tennessee. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN. Bates, A.W. (2005). Technology, distributed learning and distance education. New York: Routledge. Biggs, M.J.G. (2006). Comparison of student perceptions of classroom instruction: Traditional, hybrid, and distance education. Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education (TOJDE), 7(2), 46-51. Branson, R.F., & Essex, C. (2001). Synchronous and asynchronous communication tools in distance education: A survey of instructors. TechTrends, 45(1), 36-42. Brown, R.E. (2001). The process of community-building in distance learning classe3s. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 5(2), 18-35. Carr, S. (2000, February 11). As distance education comes of age, the challenge is keeping the students. The Chronicle of Higher Education, 46(23), A39-A41. Chickering, A.W., & Gamson, A.F. (1987). The seven principles for good practice in undergraduate education. American Association of Higher Education Bulleting, 39(7), 3-7. Dede, C., & Kremer, A. (1999). Increasing students’ participation via multiple interactive media. Inventio, 1(1). Retrieved from http://doit.gmu.edu/archives/feb98/dede_1.htm DeMaria, R Draves, W.A. (2002). Teaching online. River Falls, WI: Learning Resources Network (LERN). Dutton, J., Dutton, M., & Perry, J. (2002). How do online students differ from lecture students? Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 6(1). Retrieved from http://sloanconsortium.org/system/files/v6n1_dutton.pdf Eastmond, D.V Focus on distance education. (2001, March). Update, 7(2). National Education Association. Flood, J. (2002). Read all about it: online learning facing 80% attrition rates. The Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology (TOJDE), 3 (2), 17-25. Floyd, D., & Casey-Powell, D. (2004, Winter). New roles for student support services in distance learning. New Directions for Community Colleges, 128. Frankola, K. (2001). Why online learners drop out. Workforce, 80 (10), 53-59. Garrison, D.R., & Anderson, T. (2003). E-learning in the 21st century: A framework for research and practice. New York: RoutledgeFalmer. Galusha, J. (1997). Barriers to learning in distance education. Retrieved from http://www.infrastruction.com/barriers.htm Gibson, C., & Graff, A Ice, P., Curtis, R., Phillips, P., & Wells, J. (2007). Using Asynchronous Audio Feedback to Enhance Teaching Presence and Students’ Sense of Community. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 11(2), 3-25. Iowa Depart of Education. (2008). The annual condition of education report. Des Moines, IA: State of Iowa, Department of Education. Kazmer, M. (2004, January). Online identity: Implications for course design. Online Classroom, 6-7. Keegan, D. (1988). Problems in defining the field of distance education. The American Journal of Distance Education, 2 (2), 4-11. Keengwee, J., & Kidd, T.T. (2010). Towards best practices in online learning and teaching in higher education. Journal of Online Learning and Teaching, 6(2). Retrieved from http://jolt.merlot.org/vol6no2/keengwe_0610.htm Kemp, W Kerka, S. (1995). Adult learner retention revisited. ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult Career and Vocational Education. Retrieved from http://bern.library.nenu.edu.cn/upload/soft/0-article/021/21009.pdf Kim, K Kirkup, G. & von Prummer, C. (1997). Distance education for European women: The treats and opportunities of new education forms and media. European Journal of Women’s Studies, 4(1), 39-62. Knowles, M. (1990). The adult learner: A neglected species. Houston, TX: Gulf. Knowles, M. (1998). The adult learner (5th ed.). Houston, TX: Gulf Publishing Company. Maddux, D.D. (2004). Developing online courses: Ten myths. Rural Special Education Quarterly, 23, 37-32. Maushak, N., & Ou, C. (2007). Using synchronous communication to facilitate graduate students’ online collaboration. Quarterly Review of Distance Education, 8(2), 161-169. Meyer, J. (2001). Where’d they go? Retention issues and ideas for online courses. Retrieved from http://virtual.parkland.edu/jdmeyer/tohe3.htm Motterram, G., & Forrester, G Muse Jr., H. (2003). The web-based community college student: An examination of factors that lead to success and risk. [Electronic version]. The Internet & Higher Education, 6(3), 241-263. Osika, E., & Sharp, D. (2002). Minimum technical competencies for distance learning students [Electronic version]. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 34(3), 318-325. Palloff, R.M., & Pratt, K. (1999). Building learning communities in cyberspace: Effective strategies for the online classroom. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Palloff, R.M., & Pratt, K. (2003). The virtual student: A profile and guide to working with on-line learners. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Parker, A. (1999). A study of variables that predict dropout from distance education. [Electronic version]. International Journal of Education Technology, 1(2), 1-10. Parker, A. (2003) Identifying predictors of academic persistence in distance education. USDLA Journal, 17(1). Retrieved from http://www.usdla.org/html/journal/JAN03_Issue/article06.html Pearson, J., & Trinidad, S Peters, O. (2000). Digital learning environments: New possibilities and opportunities. The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 1(1), 1-19. Retrieved from www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/article/download/3/23 Prensky, M Price, L. (2006). Gender differences and similarities in online courses: Challenging stereotypical views of women. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 22(5), 349-359. Proffitt, L. N. (2008). A study of the influence of learner readiness on academic success (Doctoral dissertation, Capella University, 2008) Decade Consulting. Ramsden, P. (1991). A performance indicator or teaching quality in higher education: The course experience questionnaire. Studies in Higher Education, 16(2), 129-150. Readiness for Education at a Distance Indicator, READI, (2010). Retrieved from http://smartermeasure.com/research#2010OSRR Rehnborg, N.D Rose, M. (2006). A review of research methods for assessing content of computer-mediat4ed discussion forums. Journal of Interactive Learning Research, 17(3), 243-267. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. EJ735728) Rovai, A Samarawickrema, G., & Stacey, E. (November, 2007). Adopting web-based learning and teaching: A case study in higher education. Distance Education, 28 (3), 313-333. Stilborne, L., & Williams, L. (1196). Meeting the needs of adult learners in developing online courses for the internet. Internet Society. April 1996. Retrieved from http://www.isoc.org/inet96/proceedings/c4/c4_2.htm Sweeney, J., & Ingram, D Tinto, V. (1998). Colleges as communities: Taking research on student persistence seriously. The Review of Higher Education, 21(2), 167-177. Thompson, B. (1998). Statistical significance testing and effect size reporting: Portrait of a possible future. RESEARCH IN THE SCHOOLS, 5(2), 33-38. Watkins, R., (2005). Preparing E-Learners for Online Success. Retrieved from http://www.astd.org/LC/2005/0905_watkins.htm Willis, L., & Lockee, B., (2004) Wolf, A. (1998). Exposing the great equalizer: Demythologizing internet equity. In B. Ebo, (Ed.), Race, class and gender on the Internet (pp. 15-32). Westport, CT: Praeger. Yates, S. J. (2001). Gender, language and CMC for education. Learning and Instruction 11(1), 21-34.

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