Concurrent Sessions

A Comparison of Student Success in an Online Organic Chemistry I Course Compared to a Traditional Organic Chemistry I Course

Tue 11:00 – 11:45AM — Ward Christopher Room
Kenneth J. O’Connor, Marshall University

Imagine an organic chemistry course in which the instructor’s lectures were recorded in real time using Wimba Classroom and students could take the class either online or in the traditional sense (by attending lectures). Assume that students in both classes were able to watch the recorded videos of the lectures as often as she/he desired. The one question that arises is: Can students taking an online organic chemistry course succeed to the same extent as students who attend classes? In order to answer this question, in the summer of 2009, a twelve week organic chemistry I class was offered at a satellite campus of Marshall University. An overview of the performance of each class will be presented in addition to the advantages and disadvantages of recording the lectures in real time.
The criterion of performance include attrition rate, grade distribution and exam averages on tests 1-4 and the final exam. The extent to which students watched the videos is important. Prior studies involving classes with videotaped lectures have found that the majority of students watched the videos just before the test. Comparing the video viewing patterns of the online students with the traditional students will be very interesting.

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