The article "Academic Achievement and Dropout of University Students from a Course in Both an Online and Face-to-Face Modality" by Eduardo Gonzales Lopez and Inés Evaristo Chiyong analyzes how these two modalities affect student performance and retention at a private university in Peru.
Through a quasi-experimental post-test design, the academic results and dropout rates of students in a Descriptive Statistics and Probabilities course were compared between the online and face-to-face modalities.
The study results indicated no significant differences in the final grade averages between the two modalities, suggesting that the teaching modality alone does not determine academic performance.
However, variations were observed in some individual assessments, with the face-to-face group achieving better results on the final project, possibly due to greater synchronous interaction and feedback from the instructor. On the other hand, dropout rates were low in both groups, though slightly higher in the online group, without statistically significant differences.
In conclusion, the study underscores that academic success and student retention do not depend solely on the teaching modality but on factors such as the quality of instruction and teacher support.
It also highlights the need to address non-pedagogical variables, such as connectivity issues and students' personal conditions, to improve the effectiveness of virtual education and reduce dropout rates.
---
How to cite: Gonzales Lopez, E. F., & Evaristo Chiyong, I. (2021). Academic Achievement and Dropout of University Students from a Course in Both an Online and Face-to-Face Modality. RIED. Revista Iberoamericana de Educación a Distancia, 24(2), 189–202. https://doi.org/10.5944/ried.24.2.29103
