摘要：The purpose of this research study was to investigate the perceptions of students
entering an online bachelors program in a Midwest university that had either previously
graduated from a regional Community College or has taken some classes but did not have
an Associate’s Degree from a Community College. This study analyzed the student’s
perception of how they learn best (active or passive), their self-reported satisfaction with
the university program, their perceived difficulty (rigor) with the university program,
how prepared they felt they were and the amount of time they spent studying at the
university.
The university online program requires that students engage in active learning by
sharing and participating, so satisfactory completion of the first two classes requires that
students become active learners. This is made possible by discussion group participation
with minimal intercession by the professor. The results of this study indicate that
although students state that they learn best by passive means (watching or listening), their
discussion board grades, along with their degree program satisfaction, indicate otherwise.
Additionally, this study indicates that students feel that the university program contains
rigor, believe that their Community College prepared them for their university studies,
are satisfied with the university program, and generally spent more time studying at the
university than they did at their Community College. Also, active learning can overcome
the lack of face-to-face interaction in an online degree program as evidenced by the
student’s level of satisfaction with the online program.
关键词：Student Perceptions, Active Learning, Passive Learning, Student
Participation, Student Satisfaction
