What Did Students Think About Online Learning Last Year?
What Did Students Think About Online Learning Last Year?
My new survey report shares insights about students’ experiences with EdTech and online learning
In my role as a research scientist for the College Innovation Network (CIN), I’ve come to learn how important the student voice is for both understanding and improving students’ learning experiences. I am a firm proponent of the value of classroom-based learning, but recognize the value of online and tech-based learning when used to enhance human-centered learning, rather than replace it entirely. This past year, however, was a grand experiment in near universal online learning, and I was curious to learn more from students.
In April 2021, I administered a survey to nearly 700 students at four CIN institutions to uncover (1) how EdTech self-efficacy impacted students’ learning experiences over the 2020-21 academic year, and (2) how students’ personal characteristics and characteristics of their college/university impacted their learning experiences with EdTech over the 2020-21 academic year.
The results of the published report, The New Digital Divide: How EdTech Self-Efficacy is Shaping the Online Student Learning Experience in Higher Ed, reveal several key insights into the student online learning experience with EdTech across the previous academic year:
Students’ EdTech self-efficacy is a robust predictor of students’ learning experience, and is associated with a more positive and impactful learning experience over the 2020-21 academic year.
Students at institutions with established online learning infrastructure reported significantly more positive and impactful learning experiences over the 2020-21 academic year.
Foundational EdTech hardware and software are driving the online learning transition in higher education; inequitable access to foundational EdTech can create tech dependencies for new products and exacerbate inequity.
The future is hybrid: Students are looking forward to returning to social activities on campus, but many still want online learning options next year.
Drawing on these insights, I conclude the report with actionable recommendations on how administrators and faculty alike can work to improve the online student learning experience with EdTech moving forward.
I encourage you to download, read, and share the report with your colleagues, if you’d be so kind.
