Students' Perceptions of Online Courses

While online learning is nothing new, research regarding student perceptions of online courses is limited and has generally focused on those who have taken online courses. Data were collected from 180 students taking criminal justice courses on campus at a large 4-year university in the Southwest and 100 students taking criminal justice courses in an online program at that same university. The analysis focuses on differences in perception between students who have taken online courses and those who have not. Results indicate that there are differences in perceptions by online course experience for the total sample, by the extent of online experience, for different age groups, and by the sex of the respondent.