Retaining Students in Online Distance Education Programs: The Challenge Facing Post-Secondary Institutions

OMDE 670 Research Project Divine Mbong Eseh In partial fulfillment of the Masters of Distance Education and E- learning Degree Graduate School of Management & Technology University of Maryland University College For Professor Z. Berge Summer Semester 2012

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Abstract In spite of the rapid growth of online distance education and the increased enrollments of adult learners, student retention has been cited as the main weakness. Online courses have higher dropout rates than traditional on ground classes. It is now a recognized fact that distance learning extends access to education and training to individuals who could not otherwise participate. However, to be effective, it must resolve the retention problem that faces all post-secondary institutions. When institutional funding is tied to student enrollment, colleges and universities lose money. Low retention rates can also affect their credibility and accreditation standards.Thus the main challenge for postsecondary institutions is that of trying to find ways in which student retention in online courses can be improved. There is a literature review pertaining to the root causes of the higher dropout rates in online courses. Based on the research findings, the author presents three recommended strategies that could be used to improve online readiness and hence retention in post-secondary institutions.

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Retaining Students in Online Distance Education Programs: The Challenge Facing Post-Secondary Institutions

The rapid growth of technological improvements in online distance education (ODE) has created possibilities and opportunities that previous generations could not even think about. Today, students can earn certificate diplomas or degrees entirely online through distance education methods without interrupting their career goals. This innovation has made greater access to postsecondary education possible and has been particularly beneficial for working adult learners or stay at home parents. A study by Allen and Seaman (2007) published statistics that concluded that the number of online students in the United States had more than doubled in four years and stated furthermore that nearly 70 percent of college and university leaders, believe this growing trend to continue into the future. It is now a recognized fact that online distance learning extends access to education and training to individuals who could not otherwise participate. However, to be effective, it must resolve the retention issues that faces all post-secondary institutions of higher learning. In order to understand the methods and issues in distance education, one needs to know first, its history and definition, and a little bit about the technologies involved. Therefore, this paper begins with a brief background history of distance education and how it has evolved from its humble beginnings of correspondence courses, to today's online distance education programs. There is a literature review pertaining to the root causes of the higher dropout rates in online courses. The purpose of this paper is three-fold : (1) to understand the causes of dropout in distance learning programs, -- causes of attrition --- (2) to determine the best
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ways to prevent withdrawals based on the research literature -- increase retention and finally (3) to understand the .implications of the research findings on the meaning and design of future retention strategies and policies. The paper concludes with three recommended strategies for improving retention in post-secondary institutions, based on the research findings from the literature.These are the issues that will provide substance and direction to this paper in the ensuing pages. This project is based on scholarly journal articles and books published in the field of distance and online education.

A Brief History of Distance and Online Distance Education

Distance education is not a new concept and did not begin with the invention of the Internet. (Moore & Kearsley, 2012).When one thinks about distance education in North America, the first image that might come to mind is online learning. However, distance education has a much longer history spanning over 100 years. Clearly, the Internet did not exist at that time. Distance education (DE) was originally known as correspondence study and the printed tutorials that distance education students received and read at their own speed is an example of correspondence study (Peters, 2004). Correspondence education is often considered the first generation DE, and the time of the rise of large single mode DE institutions such as the Open University United Kingdom is often considered the second generation of DE. Online distance education (ODE) is often referred to as the third generation. Moore and Kearsley (2012) use the term generation to describe historical developments in DE. As correspondence courses became popular, many institutions started to experiment with newer technologies like radio and television to broadcast classes. The growth of the Internet and related technologies, resulted in a shift in teaching and learning approaches in
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DE, and gave birth to the rise of virtual universities and present day ODE. Whereas interaction in the first two generations of DE was dominated by student-content and student-instructor interaction, the third generation brought new and expansive forms of group interaction (Garrison, 2009). Defining Distance and Online Distance Education Distance education (DE) is a form of teaching and learning that takes place within the structure of formal educational or training organizations but which does not require face to face interaction. The distance between learner and teacher (and possibly with other learners) is bridged through the use of technical media. (Huelsmann, 2012, Mod 01). For this paper the term can also mean distance learning, e-learning and online distance education (Huelsmann, 2012).

Technologies Used in Online Distance Education

Distance education colleges and universities use various technologies to deliver distance education and present two types of course offerings: synchronous learning courses and asynchronous learning courses. With synchronous learning courses, learners sign on the school website at a given time to interact with peers, and professors. With asynchronous learning courses, distance education students log in asynchronously at time of their choosing. They often will learn via assignment sheets, message boards, email, or other media at any time and place. .(Herbert, 2006).Many students find that distance education courses give them the freedom to complete a degree or certificate program while meeting their personal and professional obligations. Motivated learners who prefer this type of education format usually are often able to

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complete their degrees in a fraction of the time often required. However, the convenience and flexibility comes at a price. Asynchronous distance education courses do not offer the face-toface interaction found in traditional classrooms. This represents the downside of fully online asynchronous distance education courses. As a result, some students struggle to stay motivated to meet deadlines due to the independent nature of asynchronous online distance education programs. (NCES,1999). Due to the possibilities and capabilities of the Internet as a legitimate learning platform, online distance education (ODE) programs are now more popular than ever. College and university students now have hundreds of legitimate distance education schools to choose from. According to the NCESs statistical report (1999), the Internet technology is one of the fastest growing delivery modes for postsecondary online distance education.

Statement of the Problem: The Dropout Crisis

In spite of the rapid growth of online distance education and the increased enrollments of students and its obvious advantages to adult learners, online student retention has been cited as the main weakness because online courses have higher dropout rates than face-to-face on ground classes. (Carr, 2002). In fact, some other researcher experts have reported that students are dropping out of online classes at a rate faster than those from traditional classroom programs (Bauman, 2002; Lorenzetti, 2002).

Ludwig-Hardman & Dunlap (2003) summarized this situation best by saying that the greatest challenge for online education providers therefore, is not so much how to recruit students, but how to retain them once they have begun. The retention literature concerning online education suggests a dropout crisis among most institutions offering

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online courses and programs. The numbers of students entering online courses and programs is predicted to continue to grow if recent trends continue. (p.12)

Retaining students is an important goal. When students drop courses, institutions lose money and high dropout rates can affect an institution credibility and accreditation standards.. Thus the main challenge for postsecondary institutions is that of trying to find ways in which student retention in online courses can be improved. (Whitehead, 2005).

Review of the Literature A lot has been published about retention rates in online distance education courses over the years, and many authors in the literature have written different ideas about what causes students to drop out of courses once they have enrolled. The promise and potential to transform lives through online learning are enormous. It is now a recognized fact that online distance learning extends access to education and training to individuals who could not otherwise participate. However, all too often, many of these students fail to realize this potential as they struggle to complete their assignments or just drop out completely from enrolled courses. There is evidence in the literature that online distance education courses have higher withdrawal rates than onground based courses. Carr (citing in DiRamio & Wolverton, 2006) report a 10% higher attrition rate for online classes than on ground classes. What Factors Cause Students to Dropout of Classes? If online education is such a convenient and preferred method by adult learners in reaching their learning goals, why then do they drop out of these courses as often as they do? Willging and Johnson (2004) reveal in their studies that adult learners will drop out of online distance courses
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typically for multiple reasons that could be described as complex and inter-related. Students will drop out of online classes for the following reasons as shown below: Feelings of isolation, disconnectedness, dissatisfaction with the learning environment Doubts about their online communication skills with students and instructors; Personal factors, including financial difficulties, resulting from poor financial planning; Poor academic preparation, or online competencies required for success.

(Willging & Johnson,2004). In another study conducted by Chyung (2001) in citing John Kellers ARCS model, online learners will drop out of classes if the online distance program does not meet the ARCS models minimum requirements as shown below: A= Attractive (the learning environment and instructional presentation is not attractive); R= Relevant (content is not relevant to their career goals); C= Confident (they lack the confidence or autonomy required for online instruction) S= Satisfaction (they have a low satisfaction level, especially if the goal is to satisfy a short term need). (Keller,1987). Clearly the high turnover in enrollment by adult learner is a problem and one way to improve the retention rates in online distance education is by implementing techniques within the learning environment that can prevent withdrawals. How can this be done and whose responsibility is it? Over the last 20 years or more hundreds of many research reports on efforts by faculty and institutions on retention and attrition has referenced Tintos model (1975,1993),as a guiding plan that strongly emphasized integration of all student activities. His model maintained that the more integrated a student is within their learning environment the

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more they are likely to persist until graduation. Application of this model was successful but limited to the traditional student classroom only. However while this has been the case, comparatively less research work has been carried out to improve the success and retention rates of distance learning students (Barefoot, Warnock, Dickinson, Richardson, & Roberts, 1998).In another study by Berge and Huang (2004) pertaining to the e-learning environment, they also confirmed the scarcity of such research efforts on retention remedies within the online environment and that more and concluded that more work was needed in this area. Furthermore, their research stated that even though the variables affecting attrition decisions are complex and constantly changing the variables most commonly cited for solving retention issues could be categorized into three main groups: (1)personal variables (2)institutional variables and (3)circumstantial variables. (Berge & Huang, p.15). Herbert (2006) cited in Berge & Huang further gave examples of the aforementioned categories as shown below: Personal variables these include demographics that encompass age, gender, and martial status; as well as variables such as academic skills and abilities, motivation, commitment and locus of control Institutional variables. This category includes variables such as academic, bureaucratic and institutional social variables Circumstantial variables. These include socio-economic variables, academic interactions, social interactions and life situation. ( p.2). The implication of these variables from their model is that when applied to solve a retention issue, no one variable is more important than the rest. All three variables could be used
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holistically in varying quantities. In other words, their retention model can serve as a scalable working guide towards implementing an effective retention strategy for a given online distance environment (ODE)..Other prominent retention researchers have offered alternative models, to help explain to educators the potential variables that affect student retention, attrition, and persistence in their courses. (Herbert, 2006; Soen & Davidovitch, 2008; Veenstra, 2009; Woodley, 2004). Despite many years of work by these prominent researchers, there is still much to be learned about the dropout crisis in online programs and one thing is clear from these studies: the fact that current research neither adequately explains the reasons for high attrition rates in online courses nor ascribes the cause of it to only one major factor. What are the implications of the research findings for future retention strategies? While the literature will show that many factors cause attrition, the ones most cited, are students reporting feelings of isolation, poor time management skills, and lack of self-direction resulting to loss of motivation to succeed. Based on lessons learned from the Berge and Huang and ARCS models, and building on to Tintos work on retention in the traditional classroom, one can conclude that an effective retention strategy must include all three variables as defined by Berge and Huang model, (2004). Furthermore, in order to design a retention strategy that is truly engaging, its best to integrate at the very minimum the principal aspects called for by Kellers ARCS model(Keller,1987). There is no magic bullet or simple solution to reducing

dropouts and withdrawals (Ds and Ws ) in online programs. Reducing Ds and Ws is a matter of implementing good quality program and course design and adequate preparation by the student for online instruction. It is about managing a delicate balance between all these three variables in different scalable quantities all at once,
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as prescribed by the Berge and Huang model (2004). Just addressing one aspect is unlikely to show significant benefits. For instance, asynchronous online instruction requires a different pedagogy, just as much as a student in online learning requires a specific set of competencies. A good retention strategy will need to address both aspects all at once but not one or the other. An assessment has to be made about the learning environment to determine the remedial levels for each variable required. Distance learning, is a phenomenon that is here to stay. So students dropping out of any course should be a concern for everyone: students, faculty, and institutions. They all have a stake on this issue. Strategies Designed Increase Retention
Students will withdraw from courses for various reasons. Generally, if the institution can proactively identify students deficiencies early, and then provide the needed support, the chances for them to persist in the program will increase. The key goal is to intervene early before at risk students withdraw from courses. In the pages that follow, the author will present three recommended strategies that could be used to improve online readiness and hence retention. Strategy # 1: Faculty Support Based on Principles of Andragogy Given the themes found from a review of the literature, this author will argue that, getting a better understanding of the characteristics and needs of adult learners in the online environment is a prerequisite for designing courses that are conducive to their success. Designing courses that are relevant, engaging and attractive is one way faculty can improve retention in online classes for adult students. Why you say?
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Distance education and in particular online distance education has been mainly marketed to meet the needs of nontraditional learners, who historically have been defined as persons over age 25. Typical distance learners are those who don't have access to programs, employees who work during scheduled class hours, homebound individuals, self-motivated individuals who want to take courses for self-knowledge or advancement, or those who are unable or unwilling to attend class" (Charp, 2000, p. 10). Since the online format of education is increasingly being used by adult learners, it makes perfect logic for faculty to design online courses based on their needs and characteristics. Adult online-students are self-directed learners. They value time, performance and results. They request only that which is necessary for the learning process and reject the usual student life distractions common to traditional classroom environment. The concept of self-directed learning has roots based from the andragogical theory of adult learning. While pedagogy explains the teacher-directed learning theory, andragogy is an instructional approach that is based on selfdirected learning. Malcolm Knowles, a world renowned leader in Adult Education coined this term Andragogy to help explain how adults learn long before the advent of the Internet or the introduction of online distance education. (Knowles, 1992) According to Knowles (1992) adults and children learn in different ways: while adults are selfdirected in their learning, children on the other hand, are learner-directed in the traditional sense. This is the basic principle behind the theory known as Andragogy. Whitehead (2005) in citing (Knowles,1992) stated that in the 1970s, Knowles popularized the andragogical approach to learning and summarized it as follows:

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Adult learners are self-directed -- they want their education to be relevant to their jobs and lives.

Adult learners draw on life experiences in their learning activities. The learning focuses on problem-solving. Adults in a classroom setting want to be involved in their educational planning (p.01)

How are these aspects of andragogy relevant in the design of online courses and retention? In the first case for instance, self-directed learning- Gibbons & Wentworth (2001) state that: Nontraditional learners require an alternative framework within which to learn. Knowles suggests that nontraditional learners need to know why they need to learn something before undertaking to learn it This need suggests that the responsibility for learning be transferred from facilitator to learner. (p.4) In the second case, pertaining to past experiences- they also state that: - Nontraditional students bring a variety of life and work experiences to the virtual classroom and are most responsive to learning models that provide an opportunity to apply theory to their experiences.(p.4) In the third and fourth cases, problem solvers and being engaged in activities-they state that: The most effective tools for generating dialogue are discussion questions, case analysis, and other applications-oriented materials that put theory into practice. These tools, combined with group and team activities integral to the learning model, allow learners to synthesize theory with their own experiences to best demonstrate learning outcomes.(p.5)

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Generally, online distance education is attractive to institutions because it is a cost-effective method of educating students and the economies of scale yield financial benefits to the institutions involved. Under an androgogical approach, the course and learning materials would have to be customized to fit the individual aspects described above. Which essentially wipes away the benefits of economies of scale and defeats the purpose of implementing a systems approach to distance learning (Moore & Kearsley,2012) The argument here is not to advocate for a totally pure andrgogical approach in the course design of online classes. Actually, Whitehead (citing (Bullen , 2003) maintains that such an approach to distance learning would cause upheaval to the system (p.01).Instead what is required here is that faculty responsible for cause design must pay a great deal of attention to the characteristics and needs of adult learners in order to retain them through graduation in their courses. If faculty makes the effort to learn a bit more about their student population, then they stand a chance of implementing proper remedial strategies to improve their retention efforts. The opposite of course is true as well. If adult learners are to succeed in their online classes, then instructors must do more than just provide access to class content and information. They really need to understand their learners needs in order to successfully apply a reasonable measure of the principles of andragogy in their course designs. Separate from, but in addition to the aforementioned argument, once instructors know their students, they can then be able to design online courses that are relevant, attractive and meet the confidence and satisfaction levels of their adult audience(learner expectations).This approach is entirely consistent with the ARCS model by John Keller. (Chyung (2001) in citing Keller, (1987). So the success of adult learners in online distance education (ODE) and by extension the improved retention depends on whether or not faculty would acquire new competencies required for online instruction. It is not enough to
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just master new technologies that could be utilized in ODE. And just converting traditional onground lectures to serve the needs of adult students in online classes will only make the retention problems worsen. Andragogy is not a perfect solution to the retention issue facing postsecondary institutions today. If used properly by course developers, it can help ameliorate or improve retention ,especially when the course designer produces the course content , based on the needs and characteristics of the online adult student. Andragogy has its limitations, but for what it is worth it, it continues to be an attempt to explain the difference between adult and childhood learning. Strategy # 2: Institutional Student Support It is very important that online students have access to good, reliable and competent technical supportive staff, always and every day of the week. (24/7). In fact the helpdesk support team should provide comprehensive services ranging from the use of the learning management system (LMS) to the delivery of an effective simple email system to all students even if they have been trained. Some or even most of these students could be entirely new to this learning environment so much so that trying to cope with both the subject matter and technical issues could be overwhelming and resulting to frustrations, and total dissatisfaction with the program. Issues like these without a doubt lead to assignments being submitted late, increases in feelings of isolation and a tendency to withdraw or dropout. E-learning allows students the opportunity to complete coursework asynchronously from anywhere. Every effort must be made therefore by the institution to discourage all aspect that could force the student to develop feelings of frustration, disconnectedness and dissatisfaction.

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Strategy # 2 Establish a Mentoring Program Today mentoring programs are fulfilling a viable function to most online students. These programs make it possible for online students to interact with mentors who could answer questions or give advice. In some cases mentors can serve as technical support assistants, teaching assistants and even social connectedness initiators. (Chang, 2002) Mentoring programs can proof to be very useful since they create a sense of belonging that makes the student feel connected. These programs some times are structured to run parallel with the degree or certificate programs. Strategy #3 Start and Maintain an Orientation Program All institutions must implement orientation programs to all incoming students who plan to take online courses because to perform well you have to be familiar with the learning environment or learning management system. This should be a mandatory requirement whether or not you are fully prepared to take online courses. Of all the strategies mention thus far this seems to be the most effective method in increasing online retention. (Bauman, 2002; as cited in Gleason, 2004).If designed properly, orientation programs should recreate an environment that mimics the online classes one will take.

Conclusion
Irrespective of the mode of delivery, face to face or online learning, there will always be students wanting to with draw or dropout of classes for any number of reasons. The literature reveals that for over 20 years now, the retention rates for DE and online learning continue to be historically lower than their classroom counterparts. For the foreseeable future things will not improve on

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their own. The task is huge and it will take everyones participation for things to change positively. Smith and Brackin (2003) citing Mullendore summarized it best when they said orientation professionals need to understand that retention is everyones business, and that orientation is a critical component in student persistence. Increased retention and student satisfaction ultimately lead to both academic and fiscal success for any college or university community. Providing support for a quality orientation process seems like good pedagogy as well as good business (p. 51).

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