Student Persistence in Online Courses: Understanding the Key Factors - Maryellen Weimer, Faculty Focus

Carolyn Hart has completed an integrative review of the research literature in the hopes of identifying those factors that positively affect a student’s persistence in an online course. Do we know what differentiates students who complete online courses from those who drop out? Her review is based on 20 studies published since 1999. She found that researchers used a wide range of definitions for persistence. She opted for this straightforward description: persistence is “the ability to complete an online course despite obstacles or adverse circumstances.” (p. 30) The opposite of persistence is attrition, which she defined as “withdrawal from an online course.” (p. 30) Based on her review, she identified the following factors as being related to student persistence in online courses. http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/teaching-professor-blog/student-persistence-in-online-courses-understanding-the-key-factors/