Comparison of Student Outcomes between Online and Lecture Nursing Research Classes
Background: The migration of nursing courses to online formats make education more accessible for RN’s returning for bachelor’s degrees as well as traditional students. A few studies examined the effectiveness of online learning, comparing the risks and benefits of online classes (Patterson, Krause, & Roy, 2012) or using test grades alone to evaluate online education (Nelson, 2010). No studies compared the range of student learning outcomes between the two modalities using Bloom’s taxonomy to measure comprehension and application in examination scores, analysis in journal critiques, and synthesis in a research paper.
Methods: Two sections of nursing research were offered; the first section a traditional classroom course, the second section an asynchronous online course. Both sections completed an identical curriculum with the same exams, assignments, and learning activities. Students were unaware a research study was being conducted until consent was requested after the courses ended.
Results: Final grades and average test scores for both groups were remarkably similar given there were slight variations between the groups in the individual grading activities. The final grade for the online cohort was 90.29% (n = 24) compared with 90.67% (n= 32) for the classroom cohort. In general, the quality of in-class activities for the classroom group was slightly lower than the online cohort. They worked in small groups during class and there was less depth in the work submitted for grading. The online group had similar activities, but needed to work independently prior to sharing their work with their small groups online.
Implications: Practice: Small group work in the classroom may be an effective way to engage students in the content; however, the researcher observed variability in terms of student engagement. Some students actively engaged and facilitated their small groups while others were reluctant to participate and provided less input. It is often difficult to evaluate the knowledge and engagement of students during small group discussions. Online discussion forums are highly visible and leave students no place to hide from participating in discussions.
Nursing Research: Further studies are needed to examine how in-person classroom experiences may be enhanced by incorporating online strategies. Including online discussion forums as part of a hybrid classroom experience or “flipping” content by placing traditional lectures online in order to provide experiential work in the classroom both require further investigation.