scholarly journals Student Learning in Online College Programs

AERA Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 233285842110081
Author(s):  
Stephanie Riegg Cellini ◽  
Hernando Grueso
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Bachelor's Degree ◽  
Exit Exams ◽  
Private Institutions ◽  
Background Characteristics ◽  
Exit Examination ◽  
Online Programs ◽  
College Programs ◽  
Degree Major

We draw on administrative data from the country of Colombia to assess differences in student learning in online and traditional on-campus college programs. The Colombian context is uniquely suited to study this topic, as students take a compulsory exit examination at the end of their studies. We can therefore directly compare the performance on the exit exam for students in online and on-campus programs both across and within institutions, degrees, and majors. Using inverse probability weighting methods based on a rich set of background characteristics coupled with institution–degree–major fixed effects, our results suggest that bachelor’s degree students in online programs perform worse on nearly all test score measures (including math, reading, writing, and English) relative to their counterparts in on-campus programs. Results for shorter technical certificates are more mixed. While online students perform significantly worse than on-campus students on exit exams in private institutions, they perform better in SENA—the main public vocational institution in the country.

Student Learning in Online College Programs

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie Riegg R. Cellini ◽  
Hernando Grueso
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
College Programs

Are Western-Educated Leaders Less Prone to Initiate Militarized Disputes?

2018 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 535-566 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joan Barceló
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
International Relations ◽  
Soft Power ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Personal Attributes ◽  
Structural Factors ◽  
Background Characteristics ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Militarized Disputes ◽  
Leader Selection

Recent theories on the causes of war focus on how institutional and structural factors shape leaders’ decisions in foreign policy. However, citizens, policy-makers, and a growing number scholars argue that leaders’ background experiences may matter for both domestic and foreign policy choices. This article contributes to an emerging body of scholarship on leaders in international relations by showing how personal attributes influence the initiation of militarized disputes. Based on the soft power theory of international experiences and the impressionable-years hypothesis of socialization, I theorize that leaders with the experience of attending a university in a Western democratic country should be less likely than non-Western-educated leaders to initiate militarized interstate disputes. I test this proposition by employing a new dataset, building on Archigos and LEAD, that includes background attributes of more than 900 leaders from 147 non-Western countries between 1947 and 2001. The results strongly support the hypothesis, even when accounting for leader selection, time-variant country and leader-level controls, other leaders’ background characteristics, and country and year fixed effects. This finding lends credence to the soft power thesis of academic institutions on international sojourners, and highlights the value of considering leaders’ experiences in analyses about international relations.

scholarly journals Constrained Curriculum in High Schools: The Changing Math Standards and Student Achievement, High School Graduation and College Continuation

2012 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
pp. 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathan Daun-Barnett ◽  
Edward P. St. John
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Test Scores ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Policy Issue ◽  
High School Graduation ◽  
School Curriculum ◽  
College Attendance ◽  
Exit Exams ◽  
Public Policy Issue ◽  
School Graduation

Mathematics education is a critical public policy issue in the U.S. and the pressures facing students and schools are compounded by increasing expectations for college attendance after high school.  In this study, we examine whether policy efforts to constrain the high school curriculum in terms of course requirements and mandatory exit exams affects three educational outcomes – test scores on SAT math, high school completion, and college continuation rates.  We employ two complementary analytic methods – fixed effects and difference in differences (DID) – on panel data for all 50 states from 1990 to 2008. Our findings suggest that within states both policies may prevent some students from completing high school, particularly in the near term, but both policies appear to increase the proportion of students who continue on to college if they do graduate from high school. The DID analyses provide more support for math course requirement policies than mandatory exit exams, but the effects are modest. Both the DID and fixed effects analyses confirm the importance of school funding in the improvement of high school graduation rates and test scores.

scholarly journals Can online activities substitute in-person activities for older persons during Covid-19? (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiska Cohen-Mansfield ◽  
Aline Muff ◽  
Guy Meschiany ◽  
Shahar Lev-Ari
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Older Persons ◽  
Exercise Program ◽  
Background Characteristics ◽  
Online Programs ◽  
Group Activities ◽  
Online Lectures ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Technical Issues ◽  
Online Activities

BACKGROUND Background: Group activities are a strategy to address social isolation and loneliness among older adults. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic most of these activities had to be cancelled and online activities have been offered as an alternative by some organizations. Yet, the effectiveness of online group activities for older adults has scarcely been researched. OBJECTIVE We aimed to understand the extent to which online activities for older adults provide an adequate substitute for in-person activities. METHODS In this telephone survey, we interviewed 105 older adults in Israel who were offered the opportunity to participate in online activities after routine activities closed due to Covid-19. We inquired about background characteristics, satisfaction with activities, and reasons for participation or nonparticipation in the activities. RESULTS Those who participated in the online activities tended to be highly satisfied with at least some of them. They rated enjoyment from the content of the activity as the most important motivator, followed by maintaining a routine, enjoying the activity, and the presence of others. Over 50% wished to continue with the exercise program after the end of the Covid-19 pandemic, and 40% with online lectures. The most common reasons cited by those who did not participate were not being aware of the online program (43%), lack of interest in the content (32%), and technical issues (23%), such as not owning or being able to fully utilize a computer. Both participants and nonparticipants were interested in a wide range of topics, with many being very particular about the topics they wished to access, and about half expressing willingness to pay for access. CONCLUSIONS Findings suggest a need for online activities for countering boredom and a sense of isolation. The main challenges in substituting in-person services are: promoting social relationships, which are currently not incorporated into most online programs, accommodating a wider range of topics, and making current programs accessible to the population who needs them. Such approaches are needed to help homebound older persons during and after the Covid-19 pandemic.

scholarly journals Cognitive Returns to Having Better Educated Teachers: Evidence from the China Education Panel Survey

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 60
Author(s):  
Ji Liu
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
Bachelor's Degree ◽  
Sensitivity Analyses ◽  
Panel Survey ◽  
International Debate ◽  
Teacher Student ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Capital Development ◽  
Academic Year ◽  
Class Assignment

Teachers’ own level of human capital development is commonly believed to be deterministic for the quality and effectiveness of their instruction and management in the classroom. Yet, there still exists an international debate on whether better educated teachers contribute to students’ cognitive development. Leveraging a random class-assignment subsample (N = 3436) from a nationally representative teacher-student linked dataset in China, this study reassesses the ongoing contention regarding the value of teacher education. By linking differences in teachers’ own educational attainment levels across different subjects of instruction to variation in seventh grade students’ Chinese, Math and English test scores using student fixed-effect models, this study quantifies the cognitive returns attributable to better educated teachers, in student learning terms. Findings show that teachers with at least a bachelor’s degree contribute substantially to student learning compared to those who are less qualified, by as much as 0.069 SDs or about two additional months of learning over a typical academic year. Additional sensitivity analyses suggest that this observed effect is robust to model specifications, and is consistent for students from different backgrounds.

Review of Undergraduate Student Retention and Graduation Since 2010: Patterns, Predictions, and Recommendations for 2020

2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 227-250 ◽  
Author(s):  
Salvatore A. Barbera ◽  
Steven David Berkshire ◽  
Consuelo B. Boronat ◽  
Michael H. Kennedy
Keyword(s):  
Nontraditional Students ◽  
Student Retention ◽  
College Experience ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Demographic Variables ◽  
Bachelor's Degree ◽  
Degree Programs ◽  
Predictors Of Success ◽  
Online Programs ◽  
Broad Array

A plethora of research spanning several decades has attempted to understand predictors of retention and graduation in undergraduate bachelor’s degree programs. The topic is no less important today, as larger and larger swaths of the American population attend college each year. Studies have demonstrated that key demographic variables, indicators of academic readiness, and financial challenges all appear to be important predictors of student retention and graduation. In addition to these historically important indicators, other modern considerations, such as an increasing number of nontraditional students and the availability of online programs, deserve mention. In this review, we covered both historical predictors of success, as well as more novel challenges to the college experience, limiting our discussion to research published since 2010. We also discuss relevant theoretical models for synthesizing this broad array of findings and provide suggestions for the future of research on this topic for the upcoming decade.

Evaluating Online Programs Using a BSC Approach

2011 ◽  
pp. 875-881
Author(s):  
Barbara J. Keinath
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Student Satisfaction ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Student Learning Outcomes ◽  
Online Programs ◽  
For Profit ◽  
External Forces ◽  
Educational Market ◽  
The Impact

Accountability pressures on higher education have increased in recent decades (Dill, 1999; Garvin, 2000; Jacob & Hellström, 2003). Pressure for financial accountability stacks up alongside pressures to assess student learning outcomes. Student satisfaction has always been a factor in institutional success, but added mobility and growth in the for-profit educational market have increased the impact of student satisfaction. Further, citizens, parents of students, alumni, taxpayers, and, for the for-profit institutions, shareholders constitute powerful external forces.

scholarly journals Telesecundaria: entre la teoría y la práctica

2019 ◽  
pp. 27-33
Author(s):  
Margarita Ochoa-Vargas ◽  
María Margarita Chávez-López
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Normal State ◽  
Teaching Practices ◽  
Bachelor's Degree ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Television Programs ◽  
Key Informants ◽  
The Real ◽  
Regular Educators

This study arises from the need to know the main conflicts of teaching practices in regular educators as teachers in training of the Telesecundaria modality within the state of Colima, to allow the development of a project that contributes to the improvement of these and contributes to the achievement of student learning. It is ethnographic, the key informants corresponded to eighth semester students of the Bachelor's degree in High School with a specialty in Telesecundaria of the normal state, as well as active teachers of the different school zones, to systematize the techniques proposed by Martínez Migueles were used. It was found that the challenges they face in their practice is to identify the point of balance between the theory and practice of the model that involves telesecundaria, the adaptation of the curriculum and television programs to the real needs of the students, effective leadership on the part of directors and supervisors who are aware of the reality of the classrooms as well as the characteristics of each school community. Finally, the need to revalue the education and practice of the telesecundaria teacher.

scholarly journals The Impact of Children’s Academic Competencies and School Grades on their Life Satisfaction: What Really Matters?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacqueline Lettau
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Educational Achievement ◽  
Panel Study ◽  
Causal Link ◽  
Background Characteristics ◽  
School Grades ◽  
Heterogeneous Effects ◽  
Academic Competencies ◽  
The Impact

AbstractIncreasing demands in schools, higher pressure on children’s performance levels, and increasing mental health constraints raise questions about the impact of educational achievement on children’s life satisfaction. Therefore, this study investigates whether children’s academic competence levels and school grades affect their life satisfaction and if the effects vary by educational track. Complementing prior research, this study firstly uses fixed effects regressions to get closer to the estimation of the causal link between children’s academic competencies, school grades, and life satisfaction by eliminating time-constant confounding factors such as intelligence, early background characteristics, and genetic factors. By using valuable longitudinal data on academic competencies, school grades, and life satisfaction of children from a sample of 5th-grade students (N = 3045) of the National Educational Panel Study in Germany (NEPS) from 2010 to 2015 this study reaches also a broader external validity than prior research. Including various tracks, makes testing for heterogeneous effects by school track attended possible. Results indicate that, on average, children’s school grades seem to be highly important for their life evaluations. Moreover, the effect of school grades does not vary across educational tracks, i.e. school grades seem to matter for all children. In contrast, levels of academic competencies seem to be relevant only for specific subgroups. Investigating effect heterogeneities reveals that only among children in the lower secondary school tracks higher competencies are related to lower life satisfaction. Overall, the study highlights the importance of school grades and point out variation in the relevance of competence levels between school tracks.

scholarly journals Ethnic Enclaves, Education, and Crime among Immigrant Youth

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Are Skeie Hermansen
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Behavior ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Immigrant Youth ◽  
Adverse Outcomes ◽  
Neighborhood Environment ◽  
Background Characteristics ◽  
Upper Secondary Education ◽  
Life Chances ◽  
Key Dimensions ◽  
Ethnic Neighborhood

While the spatial concentration of immigrant minorities raises concern about the intergenerational consequences of place-based ethnic inequalities, influential theories of assimilation emphasize that mobilization of social capital within local ethnic networks is central in shaping the future life chances of immigrant youth. This study asks how properties of the ethnic neighborhood environment in adolescence predict future criminal behavior and educational careers among immigrant youth using rich administrative data from Norway. I find that immigrant youth’s adolescent exposure to better-educated coethnic immigrant neighbors from the same origin country is related to lower risks of criminal engagement, higher likelihoods of completing upper-secondary education, and better academic achievements while growing up in areas with less-educated coethnics is associated with adverse outcomes. These associations are robust to adjustment for a broad set of background characteristics and fixed effects at the level of neighborhoods and national-origin groups. By contrast, the educational characteristics of other immigrant and native majority neighbors during adolescence seems to matter less. Overall, these findings support the view that the socioeconomic profile of coethnic neighbors in adolescence are consequential for key dimensions of immigrant youth’s assimilation.

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