Lecture Modality: Student Attendance Choices and Performance

Abstract

Using a pool of 226 students from introductory accounting courses offered during the COVID-19 pandemic, the author shows support for the efficacy of hybrid learning delivery methods. The author categorizes students’ preferences for remote (via video conferencing), in-person (face-to-face (F2F)), or HyFlex (an on-demand combination of either in-person or remote) learning modalities and examines the association with performance. The author finds that attendance choices affect a student’s self-reported engagement, coursework participation, and exam performance. Additionally, the author finds a significant effect on all performance measures for those who either attend in-person or hybrid lecture formats compared to remote learning via video conferencing technology. These results indicate a potential loss of learning in the absence of a F2F lecture component. However, results do not indicate any significant performance difference between those who attend in-person and those who prefer a hybrid learning (HyFlex) format. These results show that there is a benefit to F2F lectures, although, the degree to which students must attend in that modality to reach their full benefit remains unresolved as the study did not address this issue.

Citation

Green, K. (2021), "Lecture Modality: Student Attendance Choices and Performance", Calderon, T.G. (Ed.) Advances in Accounting Education: Teaching and Curriculum Innovations (Advances in Accounting Education, Vol. 25), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 119-131. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1085-462220210000025008