Two-thirds of colleges and universities are adding new online programs in an effort to meet growing demand for online education. But only 22% of faculty have experience creating online courses and less than 25% of institutions require orientation for online students. Faced with these statistics you have to ask, are our institutions preparing students for success online?
Institutions need to invest in academic and support services to drive online student persistence. Here are three strategies to empower online learners and maximize student success efforts.
The pandemic necessitated teaching and learning online for many faculty across the country, who may otherwise never have chosen to teach online. 4-year public universities are notably lagging behind community colleges and private institutions in requiring faculty training for online education.
Dr. Frank Dooley, Chancellor at Purdue Global, is a champion for rigorous online education and high-quality digital pedagogy. In a recent fireside chat with Mentor Collective Co-Founder & CEO Jackson Boyar, he mentioned how online students needs and lived experiences are leading them to prioritize furthering their economic mobility and professional development vs. having the in-person college experience.
As demand for online courses continues to grow, faculty are challenged with creating and delivering engaging and rigorous online education that meets the needs of the future workforce. It is essential that higher education leaders involve faculty in online curriculum development and provide robust training to equip them with the tools and pedagogical skills needed to support online learning.
To be successful in online courses requires a high degree of motivation, time-management skills and resilience. The academic term used to describe this innate self-belief and motivation is self-efficacy: “the belief that one is capable of executing certain behaviors or achieving certain goals” (Ormrod, 2011). Online student self-efficacy is identified as the most influential factor linked to retention (Ivankova and Stick, 2007; Liaw, 2008; Street, 2010).
Assessing online student self-efficacy can be challenging and most institutions are not aware of students’ low-confidence until it is too late to intervene. Investing in tools to understand students’ self-efficacy is a critical first-step to increasing online student success. Additionally, providing all online students with intentionally designed orientation, and support services like tutoring and peer mentoring has been shown to drive self-efficacy and persistence.
A recent McKinsey study identified that a caring network is as important to them as engaging pedagogy. Only 9% of higher education institutions have developed online communities for students, although 65% of colleges have noted this is a high-priority area for future investment. Providing a community for online students is essential for sustaining student engagement, fostering belonging and driving success. Students are also asking for more community-driven resources to supplement their online education. Making online students feel part of a community can also be a key differentiator for institutions looking to stand out and grow enrollment in a saturated market.
The University of Arizona Online has taken this approach by investing in peer mentoring for all undergraduate and graduate students to authentically engage them and create a vibrant online network capable of fostering belonging and delivering timely support.
To learn more about the Arizona Online Mentor Cats program and the key decisions its leaders are making to achieve greater success for their students and institution, register for our upcoming webinar:
Thursday, September 21, 2023 | 12 - 1 PM ET