Why Online Learners Drop Out

by Karen Frankola

High dropout rates are e-learning's embarrassing secret. Here's what you can do about it.

Creating an online orientation course for new hires seemed like a great idea for GE Capital. Employees could be brought up to speed quickly and economically, leading to big gains in productivity. There was just one problem. Even though the course was supposed to be a requirement, only about half the participants actually finished it.

Welcome to the problem that a lot of people in the e-learning industry don't like to talk about: high dropout rates. There are no national statistics, but a recent report in the Chronicle of Higher Education found that institutions are seeing dropout rates that range from 20 to 50 percent for distance learners. And administrators of online courses concur that dropout rates are often 10 to 20 percentage points higher than in their face-to-face counterparts.

In 1999, the Institute for Higher Education Policy did a comprehensive review of the research on the effectiveness of distance learning. It found evidence of higher dropout rates for distance learners, but concluded, "The research does not adequately explain why the dropout rates of distance learners are higher."

Experts in the industry have no shortage of theories, some of which are backed by new research. Corporate University Xchange, an education and research consulting firm, recently studied corporate e-learners who've taken both asynchronous (no live instruction) and synchronous courses offered by either their companies or external vendors. The e-learners were asked what they wanted from their courses. Their wish list: credentials as an outcome--college credit or a certificate; an active correspondence with an online facilitator who has frequent virtual office hours; 24/7 technical support; and the ability to start a course anytime.

Reasons for high dropout rates

These corporate e-learners said their top reason for dropping a course was lack of time. Many had trouble completing courses from their desktops because of frequent distractions caused by coworkers. Some said they could access the courses only through the company's intranet, so they couldn't finish their assignments from home.

They also listed other inhibiting factors:

* Lack of management oversight

* Lack of motivation

* Problems with technology

* Lack of student support

* Individual learning preferences

* Poorly designed courses

* Substandard/inexperienced instructors

Laissez-faire management hurts

E-learning guru Elliott Masie of the Masie Center in Saratoga Springs, New York, believes that another big reason corporate e-learners drop out is lack of managerial oversight. When someone is sent to a classroom-based course, a manager generally has to sign off on it. But Masie says online courses can fall below a manager's radar.

That's what GE Capital thinks happened to many of its new employees taking its online orientation course. When the company discovered that only half of its new hires completed the 5- to 10- hour course, it launched a Six Sigma study (a statistical quality-control analysis) to determine the difference between those who finished the course and those who didn't.

Mike Markovits, who manages GE Capital's Center for Learning and Organizational Excellence, says the difference had nothing to do with technology or instructional design. "It all had to do with how much motivation the employees got from management."

The study found that finishing the course was dependent on whether managers gave reinforcement on attendance, how important employees were made to feel, and whether employee progress in the course was tracked.

Markovits says that GE Capital made several changes in the program as a result of the study. Managers received kits to help them explain the importance of the course to employees. And GE Capital put together a much better tracking process and taught managers how to use it. Markovits says the company is now studying whether or not the changes will improve the course completion rate.

Motivation from within

Corporate e-learning is particularly susceptible to high dropout rates. A student who voluntarily enrolls in an online course because she's hoping that an advanced degree will land her a better job is a much different learner than someone who is told to take an online course at work. If a corporate e-learner isn't internally motivated, a company will have to step in.

Corporate e-learners also face the same challenges that all online students deal with such as technology problems and poorly designed courses. But in just a short time, business providers have learned a great deal about how to meet those challenges. At the Penn State World Campus, the distance education arm of Pennsylvania State University, the online course completion rate for the fall of 2000 was 95 percent, up from 80 percent in the spring of 1998. Jean McGrath, the director of student services for World Campus Distance Education, says completion rates have typically not been a problem, probably because most students are highly motivated.

McGrath says that few students take classes for mere self-improvement. Most enroll to increase their success in the job market. World Campus courses are predominantly asynchronous-only, leading toward a degree or certification. Most students enroll individually, although many companies pay for employee tuition.

Realistic expectations

McGrath attributes the improving completion rate to managing student expectations up front, better course design, and instructor improvement with professional development. Penn State used to advertise that a degree was "just a click away," which understated the rigor of its online courses. Those courses require as much work as traditional classes-about 10 to 12 hours a week. New students can also prepare for their first online course by taking World Campus 101.

McGrath says that students also benefit from high interactivity with faculty and with one another. Classes vary as to forms of communication, but bulletin-board discussions and e-mails are used extensively. The instructor monitors participation and e-mails students who aren't contributing. McGrath says instructors are key to the success of the World Campus. "You can have the best course out there, but if you don't have instructors working with students, people will drop out," she says.

UCLA is also proud of its completion rate for online courses. It's now at 85 to 89 percent, compared with 50 to 60 percent in 1996. UCLA'S e-learners enroll via corporations and individually. Like those at Penn State, most classes are asynchronous-only, and they are rigorous, requiring 10 to 12 hours of work weekly.

UCLA also has high interactivity between students and instructors, but Kathy McGuire, the director of Distance Learning, says the biggest reason for improving completion rates is what she calls their "concierge service"--course managers who serve as student resources. They "notice" if students are going into the course and send reminders if they can't "find" them--acting as "canaries in the mine."

Course managers handle technical issues themselves and may refer course-content questions to instructors. If a question is about an instructor, it's referred to an administrator. McGuire says it doesn't work for instructors to do this kind of hand-holding, because they want to concentrate on content. "The only way you can get an online venue to work is if it's seamless and transparent for both the instructor and the students," she says.

UCLA also has an extensive five- to six-week training program that is required for online instructors. And even though there are course managers, McGuire says, instructors generally log on several times a day to respond to students' threaded discussions. She says students can't sleep in the back of an online class.

Sun Microsystems, Inc., also found out how crucial interactivity can be to the success of a course. Company studies show that only 25 percent of employees finish classes that are strictly self-paced. But 75 percent finish when given similar assignments and access to tutors through e-mail, phone, or threaded discussions.