Student Success

A good approach to helping students succeed is to recognize factors associated with student persistence in online courses.

Satisfaction with Online Learning

Not surprising, students who are satisfied with online courses and programs persist. In one study, students who had graduated from an online program reported satisfaction levels above 90%, those enrolled in a program reported 70% satisfaction levels, and those just beginning indicated a 58% satisfaction level. Compare those percentages with the 20% satisfaction levels reported by those who withdrew from courses. (p. 34)

Factors to Satisfaction

• A sense of belonging to a learning community-Students who are comfortable establishing relationships in an online environment tend to persist at higher rates. These are students who can successfully participate in online discussions and work with others they do not know or have not met. The feeling of "camaraderie" among students within the class contributes to persistence.
• Motivation -Highly motivated students complete online courses. "Personal resolve and determination to succeed strongly contributes to persistence." (p. 34)
• Peer and family support-Those learning in online environments more often successfully complete courses if they have peer and family support. The emotional support provided by peers, family, and sometimes even faculty, is especially important when students are trying to complete online courses at the same time they are coping with hardships or juggling competing demands.
• Time management skills-"Students with good study habits, [who have] the ability to stay on task with assignments and readings, and [who] are able to successfully manage time are more apt to persist when compared to non-persisters." (p. 31)
• Increased communication with the instructor-"Qualitative findings indicate that in addition to promptness, the quality of feedback, and the willingness of faculty to meet student needs are viewed as important to student persistence." (p. 33-4)

Qtd. in Faculty Focus Maryellen Weimer Hart, C. (2012). Factors associated with student persistence in an online program of study: A review of the literature. Journal of Interactive Online Learning, 11 (1), 19-42.

Time Management

Time management will be your students' first and possibly greatest challenge. Online courses are billed as a way to learn on our own schedules. This works well for students with exceptional time-management skills, but most students are not practiced at making and keeping their own schedules. The inherent ambiguity of an online classroom-a place without set meeting times, populated by faceless classmates and instructors-exacerbates time management and planning challenges that students already face.

Best Practices for Promoting Online Student Success

1. Encourage a Study Plan ✓ Time Management The LSC's 8-minute video workshop Creating a Study Plan guides students in identifying and setting aside time for study, an especially useful process in online courses. As they watch, students are prompted to think about when they will log in and complete the work.
2. Suggest certain days and times that are optimal for completing coursework for your class. ✓ Time Management
3. Offer virtual office hours based on student feedback. Use Doodle to figure out the best times. ✓ Communication with Instructor
4. Assign a Success Quiz with auto-feedback. (See sample quiz) ✓ Time Management
5. Ask students to share their quiz feedback and study plans in a discussion forum. Encourage collaborative tools such as whiteboard or chat for study groups. ✓ Belonging to a Learning Community ✓ Motivation
6. Update grades frequently. ✓ Motivation
7. Use LMS tools to identify struggling students before they are too far gone. ✓ Communication with Instructor.
8. Arrange to meet virtually or face-to-face with struggling students. Resurrecting struggling students' Study Plans can really help them realign. ✓ Communication with Instructor; Motivation
9. Refer students with children to the LSC's video "Organize Your Time for Online Learning" ✓ Peer and Family Support
10. Design an excellent course. ✓ Satisfaction with Online Learning

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