远程学习者辍学影响因素的追踪对比研究

A Comparison of Factors Leading to the Dropouts of Distance Learners

本研究以某省级电大2010年春季入学的英语专业本科生为研究样本，对其进行追踪调查，对比分析了第一学期和第二学期辍学生在个人背景、学习情况及辍学原因上的异同。研究数据通过网上调查问卷和深度访谈的方式获得，并在"远程教育辍学归因框架"下，使用量化统计和质性研究工具Nvivo 8.0进行编码和分析。研究发现，第二学期的辍学生比之前者，尽管学习目标更加明确，英语基础较好，学习投入更多，但其努力程度依然有限，加之课程难度增加，学校教学支持服务又不到位，使其在工学矛盾等环境因素的刺激下最终做出辍学的决定。与第一学期相比，导致辍学的因素更趋多样化，且激烈程度大为降低；隶属于远程教育机构的因素在辍学影响中发挥着更大的作用。

This study explores why students drop out from distance learning programs in different semesters. Participants are English majors in a TV University, who enrolled in the spring semester of 2010 for the Bachelor's degree. Data were collected through online questionnaires and in-depth interviews with students and their tutors, and were analyzed either quantitatively or in the Nvivo 8. 0 software bade on the Composite Attribution Model. By comparing the dropouts' personal background, their outcomes and the reasons of quitting, we conclude that students who dropouts in the second semester had better English skills, clearer learning objectives, and received more feedback than those who dropped out in the first semester. However, second-semester students still quitted the program due to the gaps between their efforts and the increased difficulties of the courses, the ineffective learning support from the course provider and also the conflict between study and work. We also notice two outstanding characters of the 2nd-semester dropout: 1) the influential factors causing the dropouts varied a great deal; and 2) many of the dropouts are caused by the operation of the distance education institutions. This study attempts to encourage the distance education providers to be more proactive in different semesters to reduce the dropout rates.