Report challenges online-learning assumptions

Some critics of distance learning say face-to-face classes give students a better learning environment, but a recent Indiana University study, the National Survey of Student Engagement, found that online learners reported deeper approaches to learning than classroom-based learners. Deep learning, researchers said, is a type of learning that goes beyond rote memorization and focuses on reflection, integrative learning, and higher-order thinking -- analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. According to the survey results, 37 percent of first-year online learners and 45 percent of seniors said they participated in course activities that challenged them intellectually "very often," compared to only 24 percent of first-year classroom-based learners and 35 percent of seniors. The survey also found that online learners reported slightly more deep approaches to learning in their coursework.