ACHIEVEMENT IN ONLINE AND CAMPUS-BASED CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION (CTE) COURSES

Abstract

Community colleges are actively involved in distance-learning programs in Career and Technical Education (CTE). Over 76% of community colleges offer some form of distance learning in CTE. Over the years, only a few isolated studies have compared the effectiveness of distance CTE courses to traditional face-to-face courses. Typically, the findings of previous studies indicate no significant differences between the two methods. This study was designed to address the lack of systematic studies of this question. It also examines how student motivation and learning strategies differ for campus-based and online students. Finally, it investigates how online and campus-based courses differ in terms of course interaction, content organization, student support, and transactional distance (i.e., feelings of closeness to the instructor and the program).