ERIC Number: EJ1233191
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2019
Pages: 25
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0899 3408
EISSN: N/A
How Prior Experience and Self-Efficacy Shape Graduate Student Perceptions of an Online Learning Environment in Computing
Computer Science Education, v29 n4 p357-381 2019
Background & Context: As graduate programs in computing expand to online environments, existing research is limited in its ability to inform both practical and theoretical understandings of the factors influencing student success. Objective: We explore student perceptions of their learning environment at the understudied intersection of online graduate education, STEM, and adult learning. We focus on how students' human capital influences self-efficacy and how self-efficacy shapes perceptions of the learning environment. Method: We conduct a survey of students in a large, online MS program in computer science, then examine those findings using descriptive statistics and OLS. Findings: Findings indicate gender variation in both learning and computing self-efficacy and in how positively students perceive the online learning environment. Students with prior online education experiences have lower learning self-efficacy. Implications: Low learning self-efficacy is one potential mechanism for why online students struggle to succeed, even in specialized fields. Adapting support structures, advising, and admissions may help address these challenges.
Descriptors: Prior Learning, Self Efficacy, Graduate Students, Electronic Learning, Computer Science Education, Gender Differences, Educational Experience, Adult Students, Age Differences, Educational Environment, Work Experience, Citizenship, Grade Point Average, Human Capital, Disproportionate Representation, Student Motivation, Student Satisfaction, Minority Group Students
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education; Adult Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Georgia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A