Investigation Into the Selection of Online Learning Platforms and Tools in Higher Education

Background

According to a study by Picciano & Seamen (2009) it was estimated that over a million K-12 students took an online course during the 2007 -2008 academic year. In higher education, it is estimated that in the United States, that at the same time over 3.9 million higher education students were taking a course online (Allen & Seamen, 2008). By 2012, according to federal data, the percentage of American higher education institutions offering some level of online offerings had reached 86.5% (Allen & Seaman, 2014). Considering the growth of online education, it is important think of the impact that online learning will have on the structure of higher education in the 21^st century. A report by the Chronicle Research Service (2009) made the case that the traditional four year college experience is no longer the norm, “as demonstrated by the proliferation of colleges (particularly for-profit institutions), hybrid class schedules with night and weekend meetings, and, most significantly, online learning” (p.1) This change in higher education norms is outlines by Ortagus’ (2017) examination of the characteristics of students enrolling in online courses and found that “postsecondary online learners are not necessarily confined by niche characteristics that require the convenient and flexible benefits of online instruction to gain access to higher education, particularly for students who supplement their residential education with some online courses.” (p. 52).