The Effect of Active Participation on Online Course Performance

Abstract

Student participation and engagement in online classes can have significant effects on academic performance. This study examines this relationship using survey data obtained from 2 online economics classes at the Community College of Baltimore County. A cursory exploration of the data shows that a large percent of students (33.33 %) allocates 3-5 hours each week to studying and completing other class-related activities, while 45.45 % of students regularly read the lecture materials before the class. Controlling for a student’s prior grade point average, attitude towards the course, and anticipated score, an ordinary least squares regression analysis indicates that student engagement has a positive, though not statistically significant, effect on performance.