Abstract

Introduction:

The use of a midterm warning intervention to improve student engagement and performance in statistics has not been evaluated at the university level. The current project is an RCT designed to evaluate the effectiveness of an email intervention on academic performance and engagement in an online introductory statistics course (HLSC 3800U).

Methods:

Midway through the fall 2020 term, half of the students in HLSC 3800U were randomized to the intervention group and received an email about their predicted final grades along with information on academic resources and campus support services. A demographic questionnaire was administered at the start of the semester to all students, as well as a survey at weeks 8 and 11 that measured engagement levels in the course

Results:

Of the 158 participants, 78 were randomized to the intervention group and 80 to the control. The response rate for the demographic questionnaire was 88.0%, and the engagement survey was 88.0% at week 8 and 85.4% at week 11. Of those in the intervention group, 25.6% accessed the resources document.

Discussion:

Research indicates the positive impact of educational interventions on student performance and engagement through changes in study habits, utilization of academic support, and the development of positive professor-student relationships. This study adds to the limited Canadian literature and expands current knowledge by offering a moderate sample size of 158 demographically diverse students.

Next Steps:

The next phase of the research involves completing data collection for the winter term of HLSC 3800U, data cleaning, and analysis. We will evaluate the impact of the intervention on final grades, and the relationship between engagement levels and performance. If results are significant, the email intervention can be used at universities as a low-cost, low-effort means of effecting change in student achievement and engagement for STEM courses.