Analysis of Success Indicators in Online Learning

Abstract

This article examines the impact of personality traits, learning styles, gender, and online course factors (course difficulty, group affiliation, provided materials, etc.) in the academic success of students taking online courses and their overall success rate through traditional classes. Students’ performance in the online learning environment is still a new perception, and a fair numbers of details are still unknown, in stark contrast to the details known in regard to traditional learning methods. Different types of learners respond differently to online and traditional courses. A case study was performed in which students were asked to attend two online courses, with different difficulty levels, during one semester. One-way analysis of variance was used to determine which factors are significant for the academic performance of students taking online courses, as well as for their overall academic success. Findings from the case study indicate that female students score slightly better, course difficulty has impact on test results, emotional students are more susceptible to online environments, and learning styles are more difficult to identify in online classes.