Measures for and insight on new students' readiness for success

This project develops and identifies key measures of readiness for success for online distance learners. We define readiness for success as that which is required to start, persist with and complete a unit or units of learning. Measures of, and insight into, student readiness for success have strategic relevance to key institutional activities such as new student enrolment and induction, retention and completion, tuition, personalisation, supporting students in meeting their learning goals, learning and teaching design, data insight and planning. This report outlines a framework for readiness in online distance learning (see figure 1), develops and pilots a questionnaire survey based on staff and student consultations and the research literature, and presents detailed analysis of the results. Four key categories of readiness were discerned from consultation and literature review: Ready to access and navigate, Ready to learn and develop, Ready to settle and connect, and Ready to persist and stay well. We summarise these in a working Framework for Readiness in Online Distance Learning. We identify 24 measures of student readiness based on the results of a specially developed student survey (n=205). Of these, twelve measures were identifiable by statistical analysis and comprise a scale of between two and six items. Others were identified by further analysis and are single-variable measures. Students’ Perceived Readiness was predicted by six other readiness measures: Performance outlook, Study Anxiety, Resilience and Persistence, Course fit and Study planning. Whilst some findings align with that of research from campus (and predominantly young student) universities there are some differences. For example, it seems that there is a much more polarised view about the role of social learning, friendship and community in a distance teaching context. Most measures have the potential for being used as potential risk flags and all measures could be useful to deliver more effective personalised learning and tuition. For example, measures of students readiness to interact with others, their computer skills and literacy, study anxiety and the role of family and friends. A condensed version of the Achievement Goal motivation scale enabled us to determine how strongly students were motivated by four core constructs. A range of open comments about what worked well and what could be improved in the readiness experience were shared by students. Further information about this project is available on request.