Research finds that online classes are as effective as face-to-face education

A new study from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln shows students don't need classroom camaraderie to succeed academically.

The study found that students who take online courses perform as well academically as their peers, even though they may not have the same sense of community as those sitting in lecture.

"If they are looking for the ‘full college experience' they should take face-to-face classes," said Robert Vavala, an agronomy graduate student and one of the authors of the study. "If the focus is on education, they should be fine with online courses."

The authors of the study used data from a survey of more than 250 students in three different entry-level science classes taught by the same instructors online and face-to-face.

"If the class is taught right, (students will) be able to learn," Vavala said.

Some people perceive that online classes are not effective, and that is not a fact, he said.

UNL offered 80 semester-based online courses this fall with 2,293 students enrolled, according to a previous Daily Nebraskan article.

Michael Hoff, a professor of art and art history who teaches Art History 101 both online and in the classroom, said he wasn't surprised at the finding.

"I think a student who takes courses online needs to be motivated," he said. "They can't be lazy."

Hoff said about 70 students enrolled in the online course this semester compared to about 180 students in the lecture class.  

The college is reducing the number of sections so more students can take the online course, Hoff said. This allows the instructors to teach more courses in art history.

"We're trying to take students out of the big lecture class," he said.

Most students taking Art History 101 online do better than their peers in the classroom, Hoff said.

Students taking the course online can learn in the comfort of a dorm room or another location, he said.

"All you need is access to the Internet, and voila, it's there," he said.

It also allows students to listen to the lecture as many times as they need to so they can understand course material.

"To me, that would be the large advantage because in lectures students can miss a lot of important points in the back of the room on Facebook," Hoff said.

Vavala said taking online courses can lead to the loss of immediate feedback. Online course instructors can create discussion boards or require students to work together on projects to correct this, he said.

"(Instructors are) trying different things all the time to make these online students feel that sense of cohesion and trust," Vavala said.

Hoff said instructors try to interact with students by having a TA serve as a moderator on a live chat where students are able to discuss the material. These chats take place two times a week in the evenings, one during a week day and one on Sundays.

Hoff said he wouldn't recommend taking all online courses, only for large lecture classes like Art History 101.

"A student does need to have the interaction of other students and other faculty to complement the class experience," he said. "Students may not learn in a linear fashion; they may be able to gain from other students' feedback."

kimbuckley@dailynebraskan.com