Cross-discipline investigation of the relationship between academic performance and online resource access by distance education students

• Published in: Research in learning technology Vol. 20; no. 1; p. 14430
• Main Authors: Crampton, Andrea, Ragusa, T.Angela, Cavanagh, Heather
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Jarfalla Association for Learning Technology 01.01.2012
• Subjects: 21st century; Academic achievement; Classrooms; Colleges & universities; Communication; Computer science; Curricula; Distance learning; Educational Environment; Educational Objectives; Educational Resources; Educational technology; Foreign students; Higher education; Humanities; Information science; Internet; Learner Engagement; Online instruction; Online tutorials; Public speaking; Science Curriculum; Science education; Social sciences; Teachers; Teaching; Teaching Methods; Australia; United States > US
• ISSN: 2156-7069; 2156-7077
• DOI: 10.3402/rlt.v20i0.14430

Educational technology implementation often owes more to the technical proficiency of the teaching staff and/or the capacity of the institution than to a student outcome-centred design process. Creation of online resources takes considerable time and involves significant cost to both the institution, for devices and platforms, and to students for devices and Internet connectivity charges. Here, we present a cross-discipline investigation of student engagement with a range of simple resources. Our aim was to determining if the provision of such resources had an impact on student academic performance regardless of the students’ level of academic proficiency. This research focused on students studying first-year introductory subjects at a distance (off campus) from two different faculties, Arts and Science. Analysis of the web access data from the learning management system (Sakai) demonstrated that students who accessed the most resources in terms of diversity and percentage of available resources achieved higher grades. We postulate that the resources prompted students to spend more ‘‘time-on-task’’ and facilitate more active styles of learning. We suggest, however, that students need to be made aware of the value of the resources and how they are best used to enhance academic performance.