This study compared the level of student achievement of course outcome objectives, student experience, and scores on the PRAXIS certification exam in blended and online sections of the same graduate courses. Courses ran concurrently. Results and implications for blended and online course design, management, and instruction will be discussed.
As blended and online models of course delivery become increasingly more common in higher education, there is a corresponding need to ascertain the effectiveness of these types of course delivery formats. Numerous studies have explored the efficacy of blended and online courses in terms of student achievement and student experience as compared to traditional courses (100% F2F). Some findings indicate that there are little to no differences in achievement between students taking a course delivered in the in the traditional format versus students taking the same course that is delivered using the blended or online format (Aly, 2013; Dukes, Waring, & Koorland, 2006; Obrien, et al., 2011; Stack, 2015; Twigg, 2003). Other studies indicate that students achieve higher exam grades in online courses (Means et al., 2010) though this finding has been criticized by limitations of the studies in terms of self-selection and lack of proctoring for course exams. In one study that controlled for these limitations, no difference was seen (Stack, 2015). A review of 15 meta-analyses (Bernarda, Borokhovskib, & Tamim, 2014) found that blended and online learning produces superior results to traditional classroom instruction however, the authors qualify these findings saying that the degree of variability in the results reduces their reliability.
This study compared the level of student achievement of course outcome objectives, student experience, and scores on the PRAXIS certification exam in two sections of the same courses within the Reading Special program and two sections of the same courses within the Educational Leadership program at the study university. Within each program, two courses were taught using a blended course format and the other two were taught using a fully online course format. Courses ran concurrently.
Student achievement was measured by scores on pre-tests/post-tests of course outcome objectives and student scores on PRAXIS certification exams. Student experience was measured using a survey of student experiences in either the blended or the online course delivery format. Appropriate tests of significance were applied. Results showed no significant differences in terms of student acheivement and student perceptions between those who participated in blended courses and those who participated in online courses. Results and implications for blended and online course design, management, and instruction will be discussed.