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Learning-Mode Choice, Student Engagement, and Achievement Growth during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Working Paper No. 260-0122

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Bibliographic Details
Title: Learning-Mode Choice, Student Engagement, and Achievement Growth during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Working Paper No. 260-0122
Language: English
Authors: Darling-Aduana, Jennifer, Woodyard, Henry T., Sass, Tim R., Barry, Sarah S., National Center for Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Education Research (CALDER) at American Institutes for Research
Source: National Center for Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Education Research (CALDER). 2022.
Availability: National Center for Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Education Research. American Institutes for Research, 1000 Thomas Jefferson Street NW, Washington, DC 20007. Tel: 202-403-5796; Fax: 202-403-6783; e-mail: info@caldercenter.org; Web site: https://caldercenter.org
Peer Reviewed: N
Page Count: 45
Publication Date: 2022
Document Type: Reports - Research
Descriptors: COVID-19, Pandemics, Electronic Learning, Academic Achievement, Learner Engagement, Attendance, Attendance Patterns, Minority Group Students, Preferences, Conventional Instruction, Access to Computers, Educational Environment, Student Characteristics, Student Experience, Technology Uses in Education, Family Attitudes
Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic initially resulted in an unanticipated and near-universal shift from in-person to virtual instruction in spring 2020. During the 2020-21 school year, schools began to re-open and families were faced with decisions regarding the instructional mode for their children. We leverage administrative, survey, and virtual-learning data to examine the determinants of family learning-mode choice and the effects of virtual education on student engagement and academic achievement. Family preference for virtual (versus face-to-face) instruction was most highly associated with school-level infection rates and appeared relatively uniform within schools. We find that students who were assigned a higher proportion of instructional days in virtual mode experienced higher rates of attendance, but also negative student achievement growth compared to students who were assigned a higher proportion of instructional days in face-to-face mode. Students belonging to marginalized groups experienced more positive associations with attendance but were also more likely to experience lower student achievement growth when assigned a greater proportion of instructional days in virtual mode. Insights from this study can be used to better understand family preference as well as to target and refine virtual learning in a post-COVID-19 society.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2022
Accession Number: ED618467
Database: ERIC
Description
Abstract:The COVID-19 pandemic initially resulted in an unanticipated and near-universal shift from in-person to virtual instruction in spring 2020. During the 2020-21 school year, schools began to re-open and families were faced with decisions regarding the instructional mode for their children. We leverage administrative, survey, and virtual-learning data to examine the determinants of family learning-mode choice and the effects of virtual education on student engagement and academic achievement. Family preference for virtual (versus face-to-face) instruction was most highly associated with school-level infection rates and appeared relatively uniform within schools. We find that students who were assigned a higher proportion of instructional days in virtual mode experienced higher rates of attendance, but also negative student achievement growth compared to students who were assigned a higher proportion of instructional days in face-to-face mode. Students belonging to marginalized groups experienced more positive associations with attendance but were also more likely to experience lower student achievement growth when assigned a greater proportion of instructional days in virtual mode. Insights from this study can be used to better understand family preference as well as to target and refine virtual learning in a post-COVID-19 society.