Evaluation of a Web-based Introductory Psychology Course: I. Learning and Satisfaction in on-line versus Lecture Courses. - DETA Center | National Research Center for Distance Education and Technological Advancements (DETA)

Title:

Evaluation of a Web-based Introductory Psychology Course: I. Learning and Satisfaction in on-line versus Lecture Courses.

Author/s:

R. Maki
W. Maki
M. Patterson
Whittak

Year:

2000

Excerpt:

Increased content knowledge was greater for students in web sections,as was in-class examinations performance. Use of the WWW and use of computers for academic purposes increased more in the online sections, and on-line students showed a greater decrease in computer anxiety. Students in the on-line sections expressed appreciation for course components and the convenience of the source, but lecture sections received higher ratings on course evaluations than on-line sections. [”We find better performance on examinations in the web-based course, more learning as measured by content questions in a quasi-experimental design, but lower satisfaction. We have now replicated this effect using the same design during a second year. I believe that the better performance is due to our forcing students in the on-line sections to interact with course material and not due to any inherent advantage of the web-based format.