The Effect of Student Learning Style and Lesson Structure on Student Outcomes in an Online Learning Environment

Romoser, M. R.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many instructors have been forced on short notice to prepare their lessons for online delivery. Many simply saved their lessons as slide-based HTML files and uploaded them to their course management systems. The focus of this research was to investigate how to improve the effectiveness on online learning modules in a distance learning environment. Student learning style (Passive vs. Active learners) was assessed, and students were provided on online lecture on statistical quality control. Results show active learners scored significantly higher on a post-test than passive learners. Additionally, students receiving the structured lesson rated their lessons significantly better on the attitude scale. Lesson structure and learning style significantly influence the students’ ability to accurately develop a mental map that reflected how the material was related. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.