Community college online courses: Student retention

This study examined perceptions of students at a community college to determine if students who successfully complete an online course and those who withdrew from online courses differed in their satisfaction with their online course experience, expectations of enrollment in online courses, and reasons for completing or withdrawing from online courses. The study also sought to determine if personal and school related variables (age, gender, previous educational experiences, number of online courses, familiarity with technology, self-reported academic grades in traditional and online courses) could be used to predict students' plans to complete other courses online.;The sample included 420 community college students who were enrolled in online courses in the Fall 2007 semester. The participants who either completed or withdrew from their courses completed an online survey using the URL for Survey Monkey. The survey consisted of a Self-Assessment Questionnaire and an original demographic questionnaire that obtained information on factors that contribute to students' satisfaction, expectation and reasons for completing online courses.;Findings from the study indicated that students who had completed their online courses were more likely to be satisfied with their online courses than students who had withdrawn from their online courses. In relation to expectations of online classes, no statistically significant differences were found for student expectations of their online courses. Of the 10 items measuring students' decisions to withdraw or complete online classes, not liking the instructors' teaching style differed between the two groups, with remaining items not statistically significant. Student intent to re-enroll in online courses could not be predicted by number of online courses completed and grades in traditional courses.;Findings of this study suggested that differences in satisfaction between students who withdrew and those who completed differed based on their experiences with their instructors and format of the classes. Future research is needed to determine consistency in teaching online classes between instructors and within institution.