(190c) Comparing Student Performance and Preparation Indicators for a Summer Online Thermodynamics Course with a Full Term Face-to-Face Offering

Considering recent events, the ability to offer effective online courses takes on new importance. The authors have been teaching a core course in chemical engineering thermodynamics online for the past four summers, and have collected evidence which supports (albeit without statistical significance) the hypothesis that outcomes as measured by a common final exam are essentially indistinguishable from a regular term face-to face course offering. Perhaps most interestingly, the outcomes appear insensitive to the student’s average cumulative GPA when entering the course.

This transitioned thermodynamics course coverage includes 1^st and 2^nd law (building off a pre-requisite material and energy balances course), equations of state, phase equilibrium, mixtures, and reaction equilibrium. This presentation will provide details on course structure, lessons learned for teaching foundational courses online, and data that supports other literature findings that a well-designed online course produces outcomes indistinguishable from face-to-face courses. The data extends these findings with indications that acceptable learning outcomes can be attained even when offered in a highly compressed summer term time frame.