Abstract
This paper, based on an empirical analysis, compares students‘ attitudes and performance for a graduate Financial Management course, which was taught through two different modes (online and traditional) of course delivery. In an attempt to overcome the shortcomings of other studies comparing different modes of education, this study designed a similar learning environment for both online and traditional groups. Over three semesters a questionnaire, addressing four major criteria or indices (Web utility, interactivity, learning experience, and overall satisfaction) that captured nineteen attributes (variables), was distributed to both groups. After computing the indices and analyzing the collected data, the study concluded that there is no significant difference between the two groups of students‘ attitudes and performance.
Keywords: distance education, online vs. face-to-face
Introduction:
Instruction involves the development and communication of knowledge through a viable medium. The medium around which teaching/learning has transpired has undergone a variety of changes in form over the years, from home schooling to traditional classroom (face-to-face) to distance education and its new form, computer mediated communication (CMC), known as the "virtual" classroom.
In a traditional medium (classroom setting), instruction is accomplished through lecturing and interaction of students/students and students/faculty. However, recently with technological advancements in computing and the advent of the Internet, computers as a mere instructional tool are being transformed to a medium through which the instruction is being delivered.
It is observed that the application of computers in instruction has resulted in a more active involvement of students in their own learning. Barr (1990), in support of this notion, in his discussion of educational reform, states that learning should be more "independent, individualized, interactive, interdisciplinary, and intuitive", and that computer-based classrooms support such learning.
The rise of online course offerings by colleges around the world has created both excitement and skepticism among students, educators, administrators, employers, and government officials for different reasons. Based on a survey by the U.S. Department of Education‘s National Center for Education Statistics, the use of asynchronous Internet-based technologies in teaching has grown from 22 percent of institutions in 1995 to 60 percent of institutions in 1997-1998. The survey also points to a 33% rate of growth, within the same time period, among the higher educational institutions offering courses through distance education. A revolution in higher education is in the making.
Naturally, such dizzying growth in online course offerings breeds controversy. Among the hotly debated issues concerning the quality of learning are whether:
1. The extent of learning that normally takes place in a traditional classroom could be replicated online; and
2. Virtual classrooms allow the same amount of interactivity as their traditional counterparts.
Currently, online classes are taught in different formats. Some classes integrate a bulletin board and email on a Web page through which assignments are communicated to students. Students are required to use the email or bulletin board to explicate their completed assignments, pose their questions, and most importantly interact with one another. Other virtual courses offer online external links and assignments plus computer chat rooms on a real-time basis. This allows students to discuss group projects among each other, or get together with the instructor at designated times and discuss their questions and progress in the course. Some traditional classes also supplement their courses with Web-based resources. In either case, online capabilities have produced a pedagogical side benefit as a result of greater accessibility to the instructors and course contents, and the vast resources of the Internet.
Can technology as another medium supplant the traditional classroom? If so, could effective instruction be achieved through this medium? Regardless of the medium, effective instruction should clearly identify the learning objectives, impart knowledge, and provoke critical thinking. The current technological advancements have provided additional tools to educators for designing effective instruction. These tools (evolving on an almost daily basis) enable instructional designers and educators to produce a more appealing, consistent, and efficient learning environment, learning activities, and assessment tools for their students. If both traditional and technological mediums are able to attain effective instruction, then they could be transmutable. Effectiveness in education can be considered from many perspectives. It could be related to: (1) the "levels of achievements of educational goals" as articulated by Linke et al. (1984), or (2) the measurement of the "quantity" and "quality" of outcomes of learning in a given course as is advocated by Keegan (1990). In the literature, there is no consensus on what constitutes proper measures of effectiveness. However, it is generally agreed that such measures must be multidimensional. This study considers Keegan‘s notion of effectiveness and uses several indicators (Appendix A) to address and compare the effectiveness of both mediums.
Objectives of the Study:
Keegan (1990) considers distance education as one of several modes of education with its own characteristics and discipline. Regardless of the mode, the goal of distance learning ought to be at least re-creation of the teaching-learning dynamic that takes place in a traditional classroom and in the process enhance, or keep unaltered the students‘ learning, performance, and interactivity. Using a CMC mode, the major objective of this study is to empirically test the extent to which this particular goal for the MBA Program‘s Financial Management course is accomplished. Considering the growth of distant learning in higher education in recent years, an understanding of this issue is useful for all parties (students, teachers, college administrators, businesses, and governmental entities) involved, since the CMC mode will undergo further scrutiny by those interest groups.
Hypotheses:
The major issue in this study is an understanding of the impact of medium on student‘s learning, performance, and interactivity where medium is defined as CMC vs. traditional classroom. To investigate these questions, the following hypotheses will be tested:
1. Is there a significant difference between the utility of the Web-based course contents for students attending virtual vs. traditional classrooms?
2. Is there a significant difference in learning experience among students attending virtual vs. traditional classrooms?
3. Is there a significant difference in interactivity among students attending virtual vs. traditional classrooms?
In other words, how does the medium of delivery (virtual/traditional classroom) impact interactivity? Interactivity is defined as connectivity the students feel with instructors and their peers. Sherry (1996) asserts "Without connectivity, distant learning degenerates into the old correspondence course model of independent study."
In regard to questions about the quality of online courses, the issue of interactivity is often a major concern as interactivity is considered to be an important pedagogical issue. Wagner (1997) states that instructors and program administrators seem to view interactivity as the defining attribute of CMC (p. 19). Critics of CMC usually point to lack of face-to-face interactions as a major shortcoming in distance education. Advocates of CMC, however, reject such assertions and provide evidence in support of effective interactivity in CMC. Wagner confirms a superior interactivity through CMC as opposed to a face-to-face classroom.
These three questions will be addressed through a comparative analysis of data over a three-semester period from a questionnaire (Appendix A), which was handed out to students in both control and experimental groups. Additionally, (1) to understand the students‘ general satisfaction with the course, an "overall satisfaction" index will be computed and compared, and (2) as a measure of performance in the course, the average final grades for both groups over the three semesters will likewise be computed and compared.
Prior Studies:
By and large, the effectiveness of distance education courses have been studied in terms of the three following measures:
1. Student outcome (such as test scores);
2. Student attitudes towards learning; and
3. Student satisfaction with the medium.
The bulk of research related to the effectiveness of online education points out that there are no significant differences between students‘ learning within different modes of knowledge delivery. Recent studies by Clarke (1999), Dobrin (1999), Dutton et al. (1999), Hoffman (1999), Navarro & Shoemaker (1999), Schulman & Sims (1999), Smeaton & Keogh (1999), and Wade (1999) that used different means of measuring learning effectiveness concluded that online students learned equally effectively as on-campus students. In a book published by Thomas Russell (1999) addressing such studies, the author concludes that distance learning is as effective as face-to-face education.
In a report sponsored by the American Federation of Teachers and the National Education Institution and published by The Institute for Higher Education Policy (1999), the findings of such studies were questioned. The report indicated that, based on one or more of the following shortcomings, these studies‘ conclusions were flawed.
1. Lack of control for extraneous variables;
2. Subjects were not selected randomly;
3. Instruments used in assessing student outcomes were invalid/unreliable; and
4. Lack of control for feelings and attitudes of students/faculty (reactive effects).
In its approach, this study attempts to overcome these shortcomings through the design and control of the research environment.
The Course:
Managerial Finance is a required MBA course at Frostburg State University. It is primarily attended by professional adult students with job and family responsibilities. The course requires the completion of two one-hour proctored examinations, a term project and one case. In addition, students are required to read selected articles and work on assigned problems on a weekly basis. For the term project and the case, students are allowed to work as teams of three to four students. The grade distribution for the course consists of twenty five percent each for (1) the two exams, (2) the term project, (3) the case, and (4) class participation (discussion of articles and related course concepts). Online students, thus far, have been from the pool of traditional students who for a variety of reasons (course scheduling conflict, saving travel time, moving out of area, and curiosity) decided to try this format of learning.
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