Tesis y Tesistas 2020 - Postgrado - Fac. de Informática - UNLP

english
Mg. María Florencia Castro
study, mainly, data relating to the students’ personal
and socio-economic situation, as well as institutional
arrangements.
To evaluate the effect of blended-learning on both desertion
and academic performance, the students’ socio-economic
situation was first examined with the aim of identifying any
significant differences between the students following each
modality. They were found to show similar characteristics:
most students came out of public secondary schools and
were financially supported by their parents. There were no
significant differences regarding their place of origin.
With respect to institutional arrangements, the University
programs addressing distance learning and students’
admission and graduation were assessed. For both blendedlearning
and classroom-course modalities the entry course
deals with the same contents and is taught by the same
teachers, who are also in charge of teaching first-year
courses. All the students are entitled to several different
aids, such as grants, mentoring, etc.
As regards retention data, it was found that the percentage
of retention was higher for Engineering students than the
University average in both modalities.
When retention data across cohorts of Engineering students
were examined, total retention was found to be higher in
all the cases, with 20 % more retention among second-year
students under the blended-learning modality.
Desertion causes were, for the most part, ascribed to
financial difficulties.
The students who continued with their studies were also
assessed, and it should be pointed out that 91 % of those
who took the blended-learning entry course made use of
the virtual platform for the other courses in their program of
studies, while 68 % of the students who took the classroombased
course report to have used the virtual platform for
the rest of the courses.
From the analysis of the data obtained in the present study,
it is observed that, taking into account total retention and
retention by cohort and modality, retention among first-year
students was higher for those who took the entry course
under the blended-learning modality than for those who
attended the classroom-based course. Furthermore, academic
performance was found to be better when using ICT. This
could be ascertained from the analysis of the number of
exams and courses passed by each cohort in both modalities.
At the same time, these results were endorsed by the
participants in the study, both the teachers, during personal
interviews with each of them, and the students who
deserted during their first year at the University, who were
surveyed for this work.
As regards the external factors that influence desertion
studied in the literature, no significant differences were
observed between the students under the blended-learning
modality and those who took the classroom-based course:
they all come from the same towns and their socio-economic
backgrounds are similar.
Finally, on the basis of the variables taken into consideration
in the analysis of this work, it can be concluded that
performance and retention were higher among students
learning in ICT-supported environments than among those
students who did not make use of them.
Future Research Lines
This study results show that, in the case analyzed, utilizing
a virtual environment had a positive effect on student
retention, and that the students who made use of ICT tools
from the beginning of their academic path performed better.
Introducing blended-learning practices in university
courses seems to be a proper method to improve students’
trajectories. Similarly, developing strategies incorporating
ICT tools to promote university access, continuity, and
graduation might constitute a novel way of improving
performance and retention levels at universities.
Furthermore, a comparative analysis involving other
universities seems feasible.
47 TESIS Y TESISTAS 2020