ERIC Number: EJ1252354
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018-Nov
Pages: 14
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1946-6226
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
How Do Gender, Learning Goals, and Forum Participation Predict Persistence in a Computer Science MOOC?
Crues, R. Wes; Henricks, Genevieve M.; Perry, Michelle; Bhat, Suma; Anderson, Carolyn J.; Shaik, Najmuddin; Angrave, Lawrence
ACM Transactions on Computing Education, v18 n4 Article 18 Nov 2018
Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs)--in part, because of their free, flexible, and relatively anonymous nature--may provide a means for helping overcome the large gender gap in Computer Science (CS). This study examines why women and men chose to enroll in a CS MOOC and how this is related to successful behavior in the course by (a) using k-means clustering to explore the reasons why women and men enrolled in this MOOC and then (b) analyzing if these reasons are related to forum participation and, ultimately, persistence in the course. Findings suggest that women and men have different reasons for taking this CS MOOC, and they persist at different rates, an outcome that is moderated by forum participation.
Descriptors: Online Courses, Computer Science Education, Persistence, Gender Differences, Discussion Groups, Student Participation, Course Selection (Students), Females, Student Educational Objectives, Computer Software, Programming, Introductory Courses, Computer Mediated Communication
Association for Computing Machinery. 2 Penn Plaza Suite 701, New York, NY 10121. Tel: 800-342-6626; Tel: 212-626-0500; Fax: 212-944-1318; e-mail: acmhelp@acm.org; Web site: http://toce.acm.org/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A

Peer reviewed
Direct link
