The effects of class size in online college courses: Experimental evidence |
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| Institution: | 1. Stanford University, Center for Education Policy Analysis, 520 Galvez Mall, CERAS Building, Stanford, CA 94305, USA;2. Stanford University, Center for Education Policy Analysis, 520 Galvez Mall, CERAS Building, Office 507, Stanford, CA 94305, USA;3. DeVry University, USA;4. Harvard University, Monroe C. Gutman Library, 6 Appian Way, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA;1. Stanford University and NBER, 520 Galvez Mall, CERAS Building, Room 522, Stanford, CA 94305, USA;2. Harvard Graduate School of Education and NBER, Gutman Library 465, 6 Appian Way, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA;3. Harvard Graduate School of Education, Gutman Library 469, 6 Appian Way, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA;1. Bank of Spain, Calle Alcalá, 48, Madrid 28014, Spain;2. Queens College - CUNY, Economics Department, Powdermaker Hall, 65-30 Kissena Blvd., Queens, New York 11367, USA;3. FAE, Universidad de Alicante, Carretera de San Vicente s/n, 03080 San Vicente – Alicante, Spain;1. University of Milan, Italy;2. IZA, Germany;3. Department of Economics, Statistics and Finance, University of Calabria, Italy;1. Truman School of Public Affairs, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO;2. College Board, New York, NY;3. Stanford University Stanford, CA |
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| Abstract: | Class size is a first-order consideration in the study of education cost and effectiveness. Yet little is known about the effects of class size on student outcomes in online college classes, even though online courses have become commonplace in many institutions of higher education. We study a field experiment in which college students were quasi-randomly assigned to either regular sized classes or slightly larger classes. Regular classes had, on average, 31 students and treatment classes were, on average, ten percent larger. The experiment was conducted at DeVry University, one of the nation's largest for-profit postsecondary institutions, and included over 100,000 student course enrollments in nearly 4,000 classes across 111 different undergraduate and graduate courses. We examine class size effects on student success in the course and subsequent persistence in college. We find little evidence of effects on average or for a range of course types. Given the large sample, our estimates are precise, suggesting that small class size changes have little impact in online settings. |
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