Comparing student acceptance and performance of online activities to classroom activities

ABSTRACT

Students in a computer science survey course for non-majors experienced a blend of online activities with traditional classroom activities. While the majority of the course involved face-to-face meetings, online modules involving two disparate topics were inserted into the course. Students in two sections of the course participated alternately in the online modules in order to compare their performance and acceptance of the same material presented online versus in the classroom.

Overall, the course presents a broad view of computing and its implications for society so incorporating online learning into the class is a perfect match with the course content. Students taking this course typically exhibit a broad range of technical ability. The module topics included a technical topic, computer programming with JavaScript, and a "softer" topic, computer mediated communication. One section received classroom instruction in JavaScript and online instruction in computer mediated communication while the other section received online instruction in JavaScript and classroom instruction in computer mediated communication.

At the conclusion of each module, students completed a survey intended to measure their acceptance and opinions of each type of instruction. This paper describes student acceptance of combining online learning with classroom instruction and presents a comparison of student performance for the same topics completed online versus in the classroom.

REFERENCES

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INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  K. Computing Milieux
  K.3 COMPUTERS AND EDUCATION
      K.3.1 Computer Uses in Education
          Subjects: Computer-assisted instruction (CAI)

Additional Classification:
  K. Computing Milieux
  K.3 COMPUTERS AND EDUCATION
      K.3.1 Computer Uses in Education
          Subjects: Distance learning; Computer-managed instruction (CMI)

Keywords:
active learning, online learning, teamwork, traditional instruction