Non-Participanting Online Students

Non-Participants Online Courses

The Case against Non-Participating Online Students

The Case against Non-Participating Online Students

With dropout rates 10 to 20% higher than bricks-n-mortar classes, the future success on online educational programs will depend on lowering these rates (reviewed by Nagel, Blignaut, and Cronje, 2009). The success of online classes has been shown to depend on student-instructor and student-student interactions, which are made more difficult by the long-distance nature of classes conducted over the internet. However, the difficulties associated with online classes are compensated for by opportunities to engage in prolonged online discussions with peers and instructors. The potential benefits of an interactive online learning environment therefore argue in favor of further research into what does and does not work and then making the necessary changes to improve educational outcomes.

Towards this goal, Nagel and colleagues (2009) monitored the experiences of students between the ages of 30...
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