Four-stage dropout timing definitions for cross-institutional persistence comparison

Research Method · All research methods
Evidence · 4 claims (4 for) · 1 study (1 associational), q2 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 4 claims rest on one study

Description

The article collapses Simpson's nine potential dropout stages into four timing-based definitions of dropout (Table 2), distinguishing drops before course start, during the initial or Orientation week, and during instruction, and counting only "active drops" while excluding dormant (MIA) students. The author offers these "definitions of the time a student withdraws" to other researchers hoping to enable cross-institutional aggregation, since inconsistent attrition definitions make onground–online comparisons like comparing "apples and oranges."

Accounts

• Four-stage dropout timing definitions for cross-institutional persistence comparison: The article collapses Simpson's nine potential dropout stages into four timing-based definitions of dropout (Table 2), distinguishing drops before course start, during the initial or Orientation week, and during instruction, and counting only "active drops" while excluding dormant (MIA) students. The author offers these "definitions of the time a student withdraws" to other researchers hoping to enable cross-institutional aggregation, since inconsistent attrition definitions make onground–online comparisons like comparing "apples and oranges." (Jia Frydenberg (2007))

Claims

• After instruction has begun, drop rates are essentially the same in online and onground continuing education classes [+W]
• Online attrition during Orientation Week is twice that of onground classes' first week [+W]
• Online continuing education courses show lower persistence than comparable onground courses (79% vs 84%) over eight quarters [+W]
• Self-reported withdrawal reasons are largely similar online and onground, led by no/other reason, transfer, and schedule conflict [+W]

Related Research Methods

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Key Sources

• Jia Frydenberg. (2007). Persistence in University Continuing Education Online Classes. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 8(3). https://portal.issn.org/resource/ISSN/1492-3831

Page metadata

Field	Value
type	research-method
id	four-stage-dropout-timing-definitions-for-cross-institutional-persistence-comparison
title	Four-stage dropout timing definitions for cross-institutional persistence comparison
description	The article collapses Simpson's nine potential dropout stages into four timing-based definitions of dropout (Table 2), distinguishing drops before course start, during the initial or Orientation week, and during instruction, and counting only "active drops" while excluding dormant (MIA) students.
status	review
moved_from	element/dropout-timing-stage-definitions
generated	by process:sweep-kinds on 2026-10-10
trust	unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content
sources	1 — jia-frydenberg-2007

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