Our study overcomes many of the limitations
of prior studies by using the gold
standard research design, a randomized
trial, to measure the effect on learning
outcomes of a prototypical, interactive
online college statistics course. Specifically,
we randomly assigned students at
six public university campuses to take
the course in a hybrid format, with computer-guided
instruction accompanied
by one hour of face-to-face instruction
each week, or a traditional format,
with three to four hours of face-to-face
instruction each week. We find that
learning outcomes are essentially the
same: students in the hybrid format pay
no “price” for this mode of instruction
in terms of pass rates, final-exam scores,
or performance on a standardized assessment
of statistical literacy. Cost simulations,
although speculative, indicate that
adopting hybrid models of instruction in large introductory
courses has the potential to reduce instructor compensation
costs quite substantially.