Perceptions and Effects of Classroom Capture Software on Course Performance Among Selected Online Mathematics Community College Students

The purpose of this mixed methods research study was two-fold. First, I compared the findings of the success rates of online mathematics students with the perceived effects of classroom capture software in hopes to find convergence. Second, I used multiple methods in different phases of the study to expand the breadth and range of the effects of using classroom capture software in the online environment.

I conducted this study using Collins, Onwuegbuzie, and Sutton’s (2006) 13-step methodological framework for mixed methods research. In the quantitative research phase, I analyzed the grades of 1,476 students in 79 online mathematics classes during the 2012-2013 academic year. In the qualitative research phase, I conducted interviews with 6 instructors and 10 students.

The analysis in the quantitative research phase reveled a statistically significant difference between the mean scores of overall numeric course grades between the students who were enrolled in an instructor’s class where the instructor used classroom capture software (CCS) and students who were enrolled in an instructor’s class where the instructor did not use CCS. In the qualitative research phase, the students’ perceptions were similar to instructor perceptions in that both sets of participants found only positive value in using CCS in the online mathematics courses. Six themes emerged from the 10 interviews conducted with student participants concerning their perceptions of classroom capture software on their performance in their online mathematics course: inclusiveness, flexibility, future outlook, guidance, elimination of isolation, and challenges. Five themes emerged from the 6 interviews conducted with instructor participants concerning their perceptions of classroom capture software on their students’ performance in their online mathematics course: benefits to students, challenges, benefits to instructors, online teaching, and future students. It was hoped that findings from this study would help administrators of community college systems to decide whether to invest both time and money in order to incorporate classroom capture software in online mathematics courses. Additionally, it was hoped that findings would strengthen the knowledge base of the effectiveness of classroom capture software in online mathematics environments.