Details
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | e2216686120 |
| Journal | Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America |
| Volume | 120 |
| Issue number | 30 |
| Publication status | Published - 17 Jul 2023 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Abstract
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In: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Vol. 120, No. 30, e2216686120, 17.07.2023.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer review
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - System-, teacher-, and student-level interventions for improving participation in online learning at scale in high schools
AU - Flores Taipe, Francisco Pablo
AU - Asanov, Igor
AU - Mariya Asanov, Anastasiya
AU - Åstebro, Thomas
AU - Bünstorf, Guido
AU - Crépon, Bruno
AU - McKenzie, David
AU - Mensmann, Mona
AU - Schulte, Mathis
N1 - Publisher Copyright: Copyright © 2023 the Author(s).
PY - 2023/7/17
Y1 - 2023/7/17
N2 - Many school systems across the globe turned to online education during the COVID-19 pandemic. This context differs significantly from the prepandemic situation in which massive open online courses attracted large numbers of voluntary learners who struggled with completion. Students who are provided online courses by their high schools also have their behavior determined by actions of their teachers and school system. We conducted experiments to improve participation in online learning before, during, and right after the COVID-19 outbreak, with 1,151 schools covering more than 45,000 students in their final years of high school in Ecuador. These experiments tested light-touch interventions at scale, motivated by behavioral science, and were carried out at three levels: that of the system, teacher, and student. We find the largest impacts come from intervening at the system level. A cheap, online learning management system for centralized monitoring increased participation by 0.21 SD and subject knowledge by 0.13 SD relative to decentralized management. Centralized management is particularly effective for underperforming schools. Teacher-level nudges in the form of benchmarking emails, encouragement messages, and administrative reminders did not improve student participation. There was no significant impact of encouragement messages to students, or in having them plan and team-up with peers. Small financial incentives in the form of lottery prizes for finishing lessons did increase study time, but was less cost-effective, and had no significant impact on knowledge. The results show the difficulty in incentivizing online learning at scale, and a key role for central monitoring.
AB - Many school systems across the globe turned to online education during the COVID-19 pandemic. This context differs significantly from the prepandemic situation in which massive open online courses attracted large numbers of voluntary learners who struggled with completion. Students who are provided online courses by their high schools also have their behavior determined by actions of their teachers and school system. We conducted experiments to improve participation in online learning before, during, and right after the COVID-19 outbreak, with 1,151 schools covering more than 45,000 students in their final years of high school in Ecuador. These experiments tested light-touch interventions at scale, motivated by behavioral science, and were carried out at three levels: that of the system, teacher, and student. We find the largest impacts come from intervening at the system level. A cheap, online learning management system for centralized monitoring increased participation by 0.21 SD and subject knowledge by 0.13 SD relative to decentralized management. Centralized management is particularly effective for underperforming schools. Teacher-level nudges in the form of benchmarking emails, encouragement messages, and administrative reminders did not improve student participation. There was no significant impact of encouragement messages to students, or in having them plan and team-up with peers. Small financial incentives in the form of lottery prizes for finishing lessons did increase study time, but was less cost-effective, and had no significant impact on knowledge. The results show the difficulty in incentivizing online learning at scale, and a key role for central monitoring.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85165040910&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1073/pnas.2216686120
DO - 10.1073/pnas.2216686120
M3 - Article
VL - 120
JO - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
JF - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
SN - 0027-8424
IS - 30
M1 - e2216686120
ER -