Beyond the Bind and Between the Lines: Focus Group Insights into an Interactive-Online Textbook

This research-based full paper describes a qualitative study to gain further insight into how and why an interactive online textbook developed for a Statics and Mechanics of Materials I course affects students' perceived learning. Data gathered to date has indicated positive effects on students, but detailed explanations of what aspects of the textbook are causing these effects have remained vague, unclear, or nonexistent. This research serves to better understand the different aspects of learning underpinning the textbook and how, in detail, they contribute to student performance. It further expands and validates the list of best practices for interactive textbooks. Colleges and universities continually work to improve their curriculum, teaching efficacy, and student outcomes. Didactic lecturing has been the cornerstone of most institutions' pedagogy; however, it has changed with advancements in educational theory. Flipped classrooms have become increasingly common in academia, as well as courses utilizing project-based learning. Research has shown that when implemented correctly, these methods improve student retention and confidence and, as a result, increase program completion rates. In addition to lecture style, several different learning modes may be used across a school's curriculum. Narrowing the scope to individual courses reveals an often understudied aspect of the classroom-the textbook. Previous qualitative studies on the interactive, online textbook showed that students felt their required reading material positively impacted their learning of class material, with themes such as “Beneficial” and “Helpful” applicable to numerous open-ended responses coded by the research team. This study, then, is a direct result of these findings, intending to achieve a deeper understanding of the nuances of these general themes. Three focus groups consisting of different genders and majors (n = 4, 7 and 7), were formed and given an identical set of questions concerning the interactive-online textbook. Two interviewers were present in each group to moderate the discussion. The focus group conversations were recorded using the university-approved recording platform, Panopto, and transcribed using NVivo, with a researcher making corrections if needed and confirming the accuracy of each transcript. The transcripts were then coded according to Creswell, and specific themes emerged. The most commonly discussed topic was the benefits of the embedded questions within the text-book. Students noted that the questions allowed for immediate feedback, validating their understanding of the content before moving on to new material. For example, if they answered a question incorrectly, the problem would provide a hint to help guide them to the correct answer. In addition, the students enjoyed the low-stakes learning environment of the text as the questions were scored on participation and not correctness. Another finding was that students found the organization of the textbook to be helpful. The text was built using Cognitive Load Theory and followed a Concept-Example-Question format. Students appreciated how this layout separated the material into smaller, easier-to-understand sections. These findings are invaluable to the development and implementation of interactive and engaging online textbooks.