Attrition Rate of Online Learning

WHAT INFLUENCES ONLINE CLASSES HIGH ATTRITION RATE

by

Lora Hines
Bachelor of Science in Business Education
December 1984
College of Education

A Research Paper Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the
Master of Science in Education Degree

Department of Workforce Education and Development
In the Graduate School
Southern Illinois University – Carbondale
December 1, 2011

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter Page I. INTRODUCTION ……………………………………………….…………..1 Background……………………………………………………………….1 Statement of the Problem………………………………………………….6 Research Questions………………………………………………………..7 Significance of the Problem……………………………………………….7 II. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE………………………………..…..9 Demographics…………………………………………………………….10 Best Practices……………………………………………………………..16 Student Characteristics…………………………………………………...24 III. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS…………………….…….32 Summary …...…………………………………………………………….32 Findings .………..……………………………………………………….. 33 Recommendations………………………………………………………...38 REFERENCES………………………………………………………….. 41 VITA………………………………..……………………………………52

AN ABSTRACT OF THE R ESEARCH PAPER OF

Lora Hines, for the Master of Science degree in Workforce Education and Development, presented on December 1, 2011, at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.

TITLE: WHAT INFLUENCES ONLINE CLASSES HIGH ATTRITION RATE

MAJOR PROFESSOR: Glen Blackstone

Online education programs have grown tremendously in the past 10 years. From 1991 to 2006, online enrollments have grown from virtually 0 to over 2.35 million students. Over 3.5 million students, or roughly one in every six, were enrolled in at least one online course during the fall of 2006. By 2015, 25 million post-secondary students in the United States will be taking an online class. Universities worldwide are

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