Abstract:

The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between the previous readiness of our engineering students, who followed an online semester-based course of Mathematical Software for Engineering, and the reached objective results at the end of the course. The subject was completely developed in a virtual manner with no face to face contact between teachers and students. At the beginning of the course students had to fill a ten-item test about their previous attitude towards e-learning, something totally new for them. As a response variable was chosen the grade in a final examination. Data analysis does not show significant relationship between the previous attitude and the final outcomes. Nevertheless, the results show clearly a high correlation between the active participation in forums, during the course, and the objective outcome measurement, even though students who participated actively in forums had not necessarily expressed a more positive attitude towards online learning.

Keywords:

e-learning, distance education.