Working Paper: NBER ID: w16089
Authors: David N. Figlio; Mark Rush; Lu Yin
Abstract: This paper presents the first experimental evidence on the effects of live versus internet media of instruction. Students in a large introductory microeconomics course at a major research university were randomly assigned to live lectures versus watching these same lectures in an internet setting, where all other factors (e.g., instruction, supplemental materials) were the same. Counter to the conclusions drawn by a recent U.S. Department of Education meta-analysis of non-experimental analyses of internet instruction in higher education, we find modest evidence that live-only instruction dominates internet instruction. These results are particularly strong for Hispanic students, male students, and lower-achieving students. We also provide suggestions for future experimentation in other settings.
Keywords: online instruction; student learning; live lectures; higher education
JEL Codes: I20; I23
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| live instruction (Y20) | student performance (D29) |
| online instruction (Y20) | student performance (D29) |
| live instruction (Y20) | higher test scores for Hispanic students (I24) |
| live instruction (Y20) | higher test scores for male students (I24) |
| live instruction (Y20) | higher test scores for lower-achieving students (I24) |