Do Hybrid Courses Have Better Outcomes than Distance Only Courses in the North Carolina Community College System?

DAVIS, DONNA ELIZABETH. Best of Both Worlds: Do Hybrid Courses Have Better Outcomes Than Distance Only Courses in the North Carolina Community College System? (Under the direction of J. Conrad Glass, Jr.) The purpose of this research was to compare the outcomes of hybrid courses, which require a certain degree of classroom participation, with distance only courses, which involve no classroom contact. Tinto’s theory of retention indicates that academic integration is an important factor in student persistence. Hybrid courses have been touted as the best of both worlds, combining the flexibility of distance learning with varying degrees of classroom interaction. This research used secondary data to examine grades and retention in hybrid and distance only courses from three semesters at four community colleges in the North Carolina Community College System. Traditional courses were examined as a benchmark. No significant difference was found in retention rates between hybrid and distance only courses examined in this study, but when divided by gender, males had significantly higher retention rates in hybrid courses than in distance only courses. Traditional courses had significantly higher retention rates, but this held true only for females when gender was accounted for. Grades for both genders were significantly better in hybrid courses than in distance only courses. Age was found to have a positive relationship with retention in both hybrid and distance only courses and there was no significant gender difference. When course types were examined independently for differences in gender, females had significantly higher retention rates and better grades in distance only. In hybrid courses, male and female students were found to have no significant differences in retention, but females had significantly higher grades. Overall, hybrid courses saw better outcomes than distance only courses in this study. Best of Both Worlds: Do Hybrid Courses Have Better Outcomes Than Distance Only Courses in the North Carolina Community College System?