Student Perceptions of the Impact of “Quality Matters” Certified Online Courses on their Learning and Engagement

Authors

  • Ayesha Sadaf University of North Carolina Charlotte
  • Florence Martin University of North Carolina Charlotte
  • Lynn Ahlgrim-Delzell University of North Carolina Charlotte

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24059/olj.v23i4.2009

Keywords:

Quality Matters, online learning, student engagement, student learning

Abstract

The Quality Matters (QM) is one of the most widely-adopted set of standards for best practices in online courses to promote student learning. In this study, we examined student perceptions of the impact of QM certified courses on students learning and engagement. Fifty graduate students enrolled in online courses completed a survey developed based on the QM rubric items. The QM framework includes 43 standards in eight categories. Among eight categories, Course Activities and Learner Interactionwere rated to have the highest impact and Learning Objectiveswere rated to have the second highest impact on both student learning and engagement. The exploratory factor analysis revealed that 12 factors explained 88.89% of the variance of the impact on learning and 8 factors explained 85.72% of the variance of the impact on engagement. Clear expectations loaded as the highest factor for both learning and engagement.

Author Biographies

Ayesha Sadaf, University of North Carolina Charlotte

Assistant Professor of Learning, Design and Technology

Florence Martin, University of North Carolina Charlotte

Professor of Learning, Design and Technology

Lynn Ahlgrim-Delzell, University of North Carolina Charlotte

Associate Professor of Educational Research

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Published

2019-12-01

Issue

Section

Special Conference Issue: AERA Online Teaching and Learning SIG