Internet Learning Volume 7, Number 1 • 2018/2019 | Page 9

Internet Learning Journal
that the majority preferred print course
materials to electronic course materials
(Baron, 2016 as cited in Schaub, 2016).
Margolin, Driscoll, Toland, and
Kegler (2013) presented undergraduates
with electronic and print versions of
narrative and expository passages and
then measured reading comprehension.
While the study found no significant
difference in reading comprehension
for the two formats, Margolin et al. suggest
that additional research is needed to
examine if resource format affects reading
comprehension of informational
passages. Studying a general education
psychology course, Shepperd, Grace,
and Koch (2008) did not find a difference
in course grades for students using
a physical versus electronic text. Similarly,
a multi-institutional study found
that across courses in four disciplines,
student performance was similar in
courses using OERs versus traditional
resources (Fischer, Hilton, Robinson, &
Wiley, 2015). Measuring undergraduate
student experience retaining information
from print and electronic presentations,
Green, Perera, Dance, and Myers
(2010) found no difference in reading
comprehension and information recall
between the two mediums. In contrast
with these studies, other research suggests
that student performance may be
reduced when using electronic materials.
For example, Ackerman and Goldsmith
(2011) found that in untimed
assessments, college students who had
print versions of reading materials performed
better on comprehension and
retention tasks than students who had
electronic reading materials.
Study Overview
In this study, we build on earlier research
examining the effect of print
and electronic course materials on
reading comprehension and retention
(Ackerman & Goldsmith, 2011; Baron,
2016 as cited in Schaub, 2016). This
study examines if the type of course
materials (electronic, print) is related
to undergraduate student performance
in an online course at an online institution
serving adult learners. Adult
learners in online courses tend to approach
learning with a high degree of
self-motivation, autonomy, and motivation
to relate new learning to prior
experience (Conaway & Zorn-Arnold,
2016). In this completely virtual environment,
students are accustomed to
an online learning experience, including
asynchronous delivery of course
content and participation. Thus, students
may be more comfortable and
agile with electronic reading. At this institution,
undergraduate students also
receive course materials as part of the
program cost, meaning that all students
have access to the course materials. We
predicted that students who received
electronic course materials will have
equal levels of reading comprehension
and retention, demonstrated through
their performance on assessments,
compared with students who received
physical course materials.
Methods
This study examined undergraduate
students in a high enrollment,
introductory level online
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