ERIC Number: EJ730384
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2004-Oct
Pages: 14
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0272-7757
EISSN: N/A
"No Significant Distance" between Face-to-Face and Online Instruction: Evidence from Principles of Economics
Coates, Dennis; Humphreys, Brad, R.; Kane, John; Vachris, Michelle, A.
Economics of Education Review, v23 n5 p533-546 Oct 2004
This paper describes an experiment focused on measuring and explaining differences in students learning between online and face-to-face modes of instruction in college level principles of economics courses. Our results indicate that students in face-to-face sections scored better on the Test of Understanding College Economics (TUCE) than students in online sections. We find that failure to account for the self-selection of students into online or face-to-face sections biases toward zero the differential in TUCE scores between online and face-to-face students. Online students score a statistically significant 3-6 fewer correct answers, out of 33 questions, than face-to-face students in the selection-corrected model. However, an endogenous switching model finds that students who select into the online classes perform better than they would, all other things constant, in a face-to-face class. Other results suggest caution in using the web to teach underclassmen.
Descriptors: Economics Education, Undergraduate Students, Online Courses, Distance Education, Teaching Methods, Instructional Effectiveness, Scores, Web Based Instruction, Outcomes of Education, Conventional Instruction
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A