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Student-Directed Learning Outperforms Teacher-Directed Learning in Online Education

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

A new study on nursing has found that student-directed learning (SDL) outperforms teacher-directed learning (TDL) in online education. Researchers at the Maternal and Child Health Department in Muscat, Oman conducted a retrospective comparative design study, which compared the academic performance outcomes between students enrolled in SDL and TDL online courses. The study found that students in the SDL class demonstrated higher final exam scores than those in the TDL class, with a statistically significant difference (p = .02). However, after removing outliers, the difference was no longer significant (p = .08). The study also found that students in the SDL class were highly satisfied with the course, with an overall satisfaction rate of 85%.

Key Takeaways:

  • Student-directed learning (SDL) outperformed teacher-directed learning (TDL) in online education, with students in the SDL class demonstrating higher final exam scores.
  • The difference in final exam scores between SDL and TDL was statistically significant (p = .02) before removing outliers.
  • After removing outliers, the difference in final exam scores between SDL and TDL was no longer significant (p = .08).
  • Students in the SDL class were highly satisfied with the course, with an overall satisfaction rate of 85%.
  • The satisfaction rate for educational design, communication and interaction, and assessment and evaluation in the SDL course was 88.4%, 78.8%, and 86.4%, respectively.
  • The study suggests that SDL has strong potential to improve learning outcomes and satisfy students' learning needs.
  • Future research may focus on investigating the integration of practical components in student-directed online education.

Statistics:

  • 118 students were analyzed in the study, with 63 in the SDL group and 55 in the TDL group.
  • Students in the SDL class had higher final exam scores than students in the TDL class, with a mean of 78.51 and 73.45, respectively.
  • The p-value for the difference in final exam scores between SDL and TDL was .02.
  • After removing outliers, the difference in final exam scores between SDL and TDL was no longer significant (p = .08).
  • The overall satisfaction rate for the SDL course was 85%.
  • The satisfaction rate for educational design, communication and interaction, and assessment and evaluation in the SDL course was 88.4%, 78.8%, and 86.4%, respectively.

Sources:

  • Academic Performance and Satisfaction of Student-Directed Learning in Online Education Among Multidisciplinary Undergraduate Students: A Retrospective Comparative Study (SAGE Open Nursing, 2025,11)
  • SAGE Open Nursing - http://journals.sagepub.com/home/son
  • SAGE Publishing
  • DOI: 10.1177/23779608251365990
  • Basma Al Yazeedi PhD, Maternal and Child Health Division, Muscat, Oman
  • Zeinab Al Azri PhD, Lina Shakman MSN, Safiya Al Shidhani MED, Maryam Al Kharusi BSc

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