| dc.description.abstract | ISAonline is an online pilot program from the International School of Aruba (ISA) that seeks to grow in the coming years. This project aims to find ISAonline’s competitive advantage in Aruba, identify reasons parents choose many online options, discover enrollment drivers, and identify perceived best practices of online education. I adapted Billings’ framework for evaluating online nursing courses for this study as the authors suggest five dimensions of assessment: educational practices, student support, outcomes, use of technology, and faculty support. Evaluating parent perceptions of online learning in Aruba helps the ISAonline pilot project incorporate promising online education practices, illuminate competitive advantages against industry leaders, and tailor the program to a unique parent population in Aruba. I used a mixed methods survey to collect information from parents in Aruba who enrolled their children in online learning programs or schools through a local government partnership. The finding of the study includes the following: Overall, parents believe that online learning has positively impacted their child or children in terms of (1) outcomes and (2) student support, but there were mixed feelings about (3) use of technology, and (4) educational practices. Factors that influenced parents to enroll their child or children in online learning programs included the following themes: (1) educational practices, (2) student support, (3) outcomes, (4) COVID, and (5) use of technology. Parents identified teacher communication, teacher feedback, a mix of content delivery modes, an interactive platform, real-time classes with a teacher, and collaboration with other students as practices that they believed are most effective in online or blended learning education. The finding will further guide ISAonline as it grows and expands. | |
