A Comparative Analysis of Students' Perceptions of Learning in Online Versus Traditional Courses

The purpose of this study is to examine student perceptions of learning and course satisfaction of online courses compared to face-to-face (F2F) courses. The general trend in increasing online course offerings has been exacerbated by the Spring 2020 COVID closure and forced conversion to online formats. Approximately 400 undergraduate and graduate students from a mid-sized, moderately selective public university were surveyed and asked to answer four questions relating to perceptions of learning in online and F2F courses. In this study, analysis by gender did not present any significant differences. On the other hand, as participant age increased, responses indicated a higher level of agreement with the statement that just as much learning takes place in online as in F2F courses. Similar to the age variable, the greatest differences were between second-year and the fourth-year and graduate students. This study also found the more online courses students had taken, the more positive the perception of online learning becomes. Lastly, no significant differences were found on any of the four research questions for majors.