Traditional, Online or Both? A Comparative Study of University Student Learning and Satisfaction Between Traditional and Hyflex Delivery Modalities

Abstract

The purpose of this mixed method causal comparative and phenomenological study was to discover and examine the impact, if any, of 16-week traditional and five-week Hyflex delivery modalities on student learning and satisfaction within undergraduate courses. Quantitative satisfaction data was collected through a Likert survey as well as through data extraction from the institution’s student information system. Qualitative data was collected from students through open ended survey questions as well as from select faculty through interviews. For each of the two hypotheses, statistical analysis was presented through descriptive statistics as well as through comparative analysis. The quantitative analysis was followed by qualitative analysis that explored themes and patterns that emerged.

The participants in this study included a total purposive sample of eighty-one students from fifteen undergraduate courses, offered in the traditional and non-traditional programs of a small private college in Southern California, and offered over the course of five academic semesters. While statistical findings on student performance/learning did not reveal a significant difference between course delivery modalities in the area of final grade average, statistical findings did reveal a significant difference between course delivery modality and student satisfaction in the area of two distinct measures of student satisfaction. Additionally, non- statistical findings reflected a positive relationship between course attendance flexibility and student satisfaction.