Tuesday, November 25, 2014

College students prefer online homework rather than handwritten due to its beneficial use by both students and professors

Photo courtesy of: homeworkdoctors.com
With the increasing use of technology in the classroom, many college professors have required assignments to be submitted online rather than submitting a paper assignment in class. This switch from paper-based homework to web-based homework over the past few years has led to differences in classroom performance as well as an overall student preference to complete homework online.

Courses in all fields of academia such as math, science, and english courses have been using online tools and websites for students to complete and submit their homework. In all fields, most students preferred to complete assignments online rather than with pen and paper.

This overwhelming preference of completing online assignments leads to question if there are any benefits or drawbacks associated with either method. Although research has found little to no difference in classroom performance based on both homework methods, there have been found benefits to both students and professors for completing homework assignments online.

Researchers found the benefit of online homework being faster, easier, and more convenient for both students and professors 


The study previously mentioned at The University of Tennessee at Martin and Western Illinois University also analyzed the benefits and drawbacks associated with online homework. Researchers asked what students overall liked and disliked about completing their homework online. 

The like likes of students included that the online homework was faster, easier, and more convenient, allowed one to get immediate feedback on their grade, and allowed them to submit the assignment before it was due thus "getting ahead." The dislikes of online homework included the possibility of getting locked out and technical difficulties with the computer or Internet. 

The researchers also analyzed the benefits and drawbacks online homework had for the professor of the class. The benefits found included freedom from students copying or distributing their work and also freedom from scoring the homework by hand. The drawbacks included the effort that was put into managing the online work such as setting up the assignments, training the students to use the software, and troubleshooting the software with student problems. 

Although there were several drawbacks to online homework, the benefits seemed to outweigh the consequences. The overwhelming preference of online homework can be attributed to the benefits associated with it. The research suggests that an increased use in online homework along with becoming more familiar with the software will decrease the amount of drawbacks. 

The views on the benefits and drawbacks of online homework can differ based on the preference of the professor. Graduate Coordinator of The Center for Teaching Excellence at The University of Maryland Emily Grossnickle responded to whether she believed there were any benefits associated with online assignments. She discussed how online assignments are a newer approach that may be more meaningful to students and that you can do more online than you can do with paper.
                                         



Despite student preference of web-based homework, researchers found the classroom performance to be comparable between web-based homework and paper-based homework


Researchers at several different universities have compared the classroom performance of students based on their method of completing homework assignments in various courses. In response to every study, students were found to prefer completing homework online rather than handwritten. In each case, results revealed that there was no significant difference in performance based on the students method of completing the assignments.

At The University of Tennessee at Martin and Western Illinois University, researchers compared the preference and student performance in completing online homework and pen and paper homework in an international marketing course. 

This study used two groups in their research methods: a pen and paper group, and an online group. Both groups obtained the homework, completed, and submitted their homework corresponding to their assigned method. When the homework was submitted, it was graded and results followed assessing the performance on the homework and the student's preference. 

The results found that 90 percent of students preferred the online method, leaving only 10 percent preferring the pen and paper method. The performance on the assignments however showed no significant difference between both methods.



Online homework was found to improve study habits in college students


Although classroom performance overall does not appear to be affected by whether homework is completed online or handwritten, some studies have found the addition of online homework in replacement of in class activities to be beneficial in improving study habits in college students.

A study at West Virginia University examined the effect of implicating online homework assignments in a general chemistry class. The researchers wanted to know if replacing an in-class quiz activity with online homework would be beneficial to the students. 

In this study, the instructor assigned weekly online homework in place of the written quizzes they had to complete each week. The data that was collected was based on the student's responses to an assortment of questions based on their motivation, performance and study habits.

This study found positive results attributed to the use of online homework. They found that with online homework, students were more likely to go back and check any work they had done incorrectly, therefore improving their understanding of the topics. This also lead to their other finding of improved study habits, where students reported that the online homework helped them to study more by working out the problems instead of relying on memorization like they did for the in-class quizzes.

Overall, the results of the study found the implementation of online homework to be a success both to the students and to their performance.

The growing use of technology in the classroom suggests an increased use of online homework in the long run


As we are all members in this current digital age, it can be seen that changes have been made in the classroom to accompany this new technology. From the use of technology in class on laptops, tablets, and interactive devices such as clickers, teachers and students appear to be relying on technology more and more.

Emily Grossnickle of the Center for Teaching Excellence explains her experience with online and written assignments in teaching undergraduate courses at the University of Maryland. Although she tends to use paper assignments, she has recently started switching over to submitting homework assignments online and using online discussion boards for assignments. This transition to web-based assignments can suggest her use of technology for homework will continue to grow.
                                          

Now, colleges use online platforms such as Blackboard and Canvas to distribute information about grades, assignments, and announcements. The heavy use of these technology based platforms can only suggest continued use in the future as technology continues to develop.

Grossnickle also agrees that there are benefits in the long run with classes that rely on a heavy use of computers such as blended learning and online classes.                      
                                             

Although some professors may still use more traditional methods with written homework assignments, the future generations can be predicted to adapt more technology-based assignments and in class activities due to the overwhelming preference of students today. In the long run, the benefits of online homework will grow and the drawbacks will decrease as students and professors become more tech savvy.


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