scholarly journals Student Outcomes in Online Courses: When Does Class Size Matter?

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca Thomas ◽  
Mary Ellen Ditto Stritto
Keyword(s):  
Class Size ◽  
Student Outcomes ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
The United States ◽  
Public Institution ◽  
Online Higher Education ◽  
Engineering Mathematics ◽  
Level Data ◽  
Final Grades ◽  
Size Matter

This quantitative study investigated the relationship between class size and student outcomes (final grades and DFW rates) in online higher education courses offered by a large, 4 year public institution in the United States. The following class size cut-off points were used: 8-15 vs. 16 or more students, 8-30 vs. 31 or more students, 8-40 vs. 41 or more students, and 8-50 vs. 51 or more students. Course level data included average final grades and DFW rates for 391 online undergraduate courses taught during the years 2017 and 2018. Significant results suggest that students earned higher grades in STEM (Science Technology Engineering Mathematics) and upper-division courses when online courses included 30 or fewer students. This suggests that it may be beneficial to limit certain kinds of courses to 30 students or fewer, as 30 students may be a tipping point where the benefits of smaller online classes wear off.

Faculty Participation in Online Higher Education

2018 ◽  
pp. 2000-2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael S. Hoffman
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Online Education ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
The United States ◽  
Faculty Participation ◽  
Education Programs ◽  
Online Higher Education ◽  
Student Demand ◽  
Education Report

In the past decade, enrollments in distance education, and specifically online education, have grown dramatically in the United States. According to the 2009 Sloan Report (), enrollments in online courses increased from 9.6% of total postsecondary enrollments in 2002 to 25.3% in 2009. Unfortunately, a number of barriers exist that may result in an inability of higher education institutions to provide quality online education programming in sufficient scale to meet the expected student demand. The Managing Online Education report () identifies the resistance of faculty towards teaching in an online environment as foremost among ten factors that “impede institutional efforts to expand online education programs” (p. 1). An understanding of the factors that both motivate and discourage faculty member participation in online education programs is critical if institutions are to leverage their existing faculty to meet the current and future demand for online education. This case study first presents a number of motivating and inhibiting factors and then discusses how St. Bonaventure University leveraged these factors in an attempt to boost faculty participation in online education.

Faculty Participation in Online Higher Education

2018 ◽  
pp. 1148-1161
Author(s):  
Michael S. Hoffman
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Online Education ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
The United States ◽  
Faculty Participation ◽  
Education Programs ◽  
Online Higher Education ◽  
Student Demand ◽  
Education Report

In the past decade, enrollments in distance education, and specifically online education, have grown dramatically in the United States. According to the 2009 Sloan Report (), enrollments in online courses increased from 9.6% of total postsecondary enrollments in 2002 to 25.3% in 2009. Unfortunately, a number of barriers exist that may result in an inability of higher education institutions to provide quality online education programming in sufficient scale to meet the expected student demand. The Managing Online Education report () identifies the resistance of faculty towards teaching in an online environment as foremost among ten factors that “impede institutional efforts to expand online education programs” (p. 1). An understanding of the factors that both motivate and discourage faculty member participation in online education programs is critical if institutions are to leverage their existing faculty to meet the current and future demand for online education. This case study first presents a number of motivating and inhibiting factors and then discusses how St. Bonaventure University leveraged these factors in an attempt to boost faculty participation in online education.

scholarly journals Does Class Size Matter? An Exploration into Faculty Perceptions of Teaching High-Enrollment Online Courses

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 152-168 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick R. Lowenthal ◽  
Rob Nyland ◽  
Eulho Jung ◽  
Joanna C. Dunlap ◽  
Jennifer Kepka
Keyword(s):  
Class Size ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Faculty Perceptions ◽  
Perceptions Of Teaching ◽  
Size Matter

Faculty Participation in Online Higher Education

2014 ◽  
pp. 61-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael S. Hoffman
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Online Education ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
The United States ◽  
Faculty Participation ◽  
Education Programs ◽  
Online Higher Education ◽  
Student Demand ◽  
Education Report

In the past decade, enrollments in distance education, and specifically online education, have grown dramatically in the United States. According to the 2009 Sloan Report (Allen & Seaman, 2010), enrollments in online courses increased from 9.6% of total postsecondary enrollments in 2002 to 25.3% in 2009. Unfortunately, a number of barriers exist that may result in an inability of higher education institutions to provide quality online education programming in sufficient scale to meet the expected student demand. The Managing Online Education report (Green, 2010) identifies the resistance of faculty towards teaching in an online environment as foremost among ten factors that “impede institutional efforts to expand online education programs” (p. 1). An understanding of the factors that both motivate and discourage faculty member participation in online education programs is critical if institutions are to leverage their existing faculty to meet the current and future demand for online education. This case study first presents a number of motivating and inhibiting factors and then discusses how St. Bonaventure University leveraged these factors in an attempt to boost faculty participation in online education.

Estimating the Electoral Effects of Voter Turnout

2010 ◽  
Vol 104 (2) ◽  
pp. 268-288 ◽  
Author(s):  
THOMAS G. HANSFORD ◽  
BRAD T. GOMEZ
Keyword(s):  
Voter Turnout ◽  
Instrumental Variable ◽  
Presidential Elections ◽  
Empirical Test ◽  
The United States ◽  
Electoral Outcomes ◽  
Level Data ◽  
Electoral Choice ◽  
High Turnout ◽  
Specific Factors

This article examines the electoral consequences of variation in voter turnout in the United States. Existing scholarship focuses on the claim that high turnout benefits Democrats, but evidence supporting this conjecture is variable and controversial. Previous work, however, does not account for endogeneity between turnout and electoral choice, and thus, causal claims are questionable. Using election day rainfall as an instrumental variable for voter turnout, we are able to estimate the effect of variation in turnout due to across-the-board changes in the utility of voting. We re-examine the Partisan Effects and Two-Effects Hypotheses, provide an empirical test of an Anti-Incumbent Hypothesis, and propose a Volatility Hypothesis, which posits that high turnout produces less predictable electoral outcomes. Using county-level data from the 1948–2000 presidential elections, we find support for each hypothesis. Failing to address the endogeneity problem would lead researchers to incorrectly reject all but the Anti-Incumbent Hypothesis. The effect of variation in turnout on electoral outcomes appears quite meaningful. Although election-specific factors other than turnout have the greatest influence on who wins an election, variation in turnout significantly affects vote shares at the county, national, and Electoral College levels.

scholarly journals Timing of social distancing policies and COVID-19 mortality: county-level evidence from the U.S.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catalina Amuedo-Dorantes ◽  
Neeraj Kaushal ◽  
Ashley N. Muchow
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Political Ideology ◽  
Death Rate ◽  
The United States ◽  
County Level ◽  
Level Data ◽  
Level Information ◽  
Alternative Measures ◽  
The U.S ◽  
Pharmaceutical Interventions

AbstractUsing county-level data on COVID-19 mortality and infections, along with county-level information on the adoption of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs), we examine how the speed of NPI adoption affected COVID-19 mortality in the United States. Our estimates suggest that adopting safer-at-home orders or non-essential business closures 1 day before infections double can curtail the COVID-19 death rate by 1.9%. This finding proves robust to alternative measures of NPI adoption speed, model specifications that control for testing, other NPIs, and mobility and across various samples (national, the Northeast, excluding New York, and excluding the Northeast). We also find that the adoption speed of NPIs is associated with lower infections and is unrelated to non-COVID deaths, suggesting these measures slowed contagion. Finally, NPI adoption speed appears to have been less effective in Republican counties, suggesting that political ideology might have compromised their efficacy.

Does Class Size Matter?

2001 ◽  
Vol 285 (5) ◽  
pp. 78-85 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronald G. Ehrenberg ◽  
Dominic J. Brewer ◽  
Adam Gamoran ◽  
J. Douglas Willms
Keyword(s):  
Class Size ◽  
Size Matter

scholarly journals Economic Competition and Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Sentencing: A Test of Economic Threat Perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 206
Author(s):  
Christopher D’Amato ◽  
Bryan Holmes ◽  
Ben Feldmeyer
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Disparities ◽  
The United States ◽  
Sentence Length ◽  
Multilevel Regression ◽  
United States Census ◽  
United States Census Bureau ◽  
Economic Competition ◽  
Economic Threat ◽  
Level Data ◽  
Racial Ethnic

Economic threat arguments within the broader racial/ethnic threat theory suggest that economic competition between minorities and Whites encourages the majority group to apply formal social controls on minorities to maintain their advantaged positions. Prior sentencing research has given limited attention to economic threat and has only done so using cross-sectional measures, which does not capture changing economic circumstances (a key element of racial/ethnic threat). The goal of this study is to provide a test of economic threat—and racial/ethnic threat more broadly—utilizing time variant measures. To achieve this goal, we use case-level data from the Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines Commission (N = 122,666) and county-level data from the United States Census Bureau. Multilevel regression models reveal partial but limited support for economic threat. Specifically, counties with a growing portion of minorities living above the poverty line between 2000 and 2010 had larger minority disadvantages (in comparison to Whites) at incarceration. However, economic threat measures do not significantly contextualize minority–White sentence length differences, while the broader racial/ethnic threat measures do not significantly influence minority–White outcomes at the incarceration or sentencing length decision. The results suggest that economic threat may explain a small but limited portion of the racial disparities identified.

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