如何在在线学习中取得成功——基于美国18所社区学院的学生开放式问卷调查

How to Be a Successful Online Learner? A Topic Modeling Analysis of Open-Ended Survey Responses from Students at 18 Community Colleges in the United States

随着在线学习在高等教育中的快速发展,了解社区学院学生在在线学习中遇到的挑战及使用的有效学习策略,不仅可以帮助学生更加高效地解决在线学业困难问题、提高学业成绩,还有助于弱势学生取得成功,促进高等教育公平的实现。本文通过开放式问卷调查了来自18所社区学院的365名学生,收集学生认为会导致学业失败的障碍因素以及可以有效应对这些因素的学习策略。本文使用前沿的文本分析技术与传统人工编码相结合的方法,对开放式问卷文本进行分析。研究结果表明,学生认为制约在线学业发展的障碍因素包括“时间管理能力不足”“难以集中和维持注意力”以及“缺乏有效的人际互动和即时的问题解答”;为了应对这些挑战,可以提高在线学习效果的学习策略包括“时间管理能力培养”“使用有效的认知策略和元认知策略”“主动寻求帮助”以及“维持无干扰的学习环境”。

As online learning continues to expand in higher education,understanding the specific challenges students encounter in online coursework and strategies that help them cope with these challenges can provide valuable insights to improve academic performance and reduce equity gaps in college online courses.Using open-ended survey data collected from 365students at 18community colleges,this study examines students’ perceptions of challenges of online learning that may lead to undesirable learning outcomes and specific strategies they find effective in addressing these challenges.We combine structural topic modeling and human coding in analyzing student responses.Three challenges—insufficient time management skills,tendency to be distracted,and ineffective interpersonal interaction and frustration with help-seeking—emerge from student responses.In response to these challenges,students reflect on ways to improve online learning experiences and outcomes,including improving time management skills,using effective cognitive and metacognitive strategies,proactively seeking help,and maintaining an organized and distraction-free study environment.