Course Modality Choice and Student Performance in Business Statistics Courses in Post Secondary Institutions.

摘要

Limited research has been conducted on the role of course modality choice (face-to-face [FTF] or online [OL]) on course grades. At the study site, an independent college, the research problem was the lack of research on the proportions of undergraduate students who completed a statistics course as part of their academic program, in either OL or FTF modality, and their final grades. The purpose of this study was to provide the stakeholders at the study site with empirical evidence on the differences in the students' final grades in OL and FTF to guide the stakeholders with the allocation of human and capital resources regarding course modality. This quantitative study was grounded in the cognitive flexibility theory of Spiro. The research question focused on the proportions of the final grades of undergraduate students who complete a statistics course either OL or FTF. The participants were 448 undergraduate business students who have taken a statistics course either OL or FTF. Data were collected via an online survey and analyzed using a Chi-square test for independence to compare the final grades of the participants to course modality choice to determine if these two variables were independent of each other. The findings indicated a proportional difference in the students' final grades regarding OL or FTF course modality choice. The findings also indicated a significant disproportion in the final letter grades of A, B+, and B. Implications for positive social change could include support for college students to select course modality and for administrators to allocate human and financial capital more effectively throughout their academic operations.