What to assess in large scale Web-based instruction: Student satisfaction vs. performance

In many cases the success of course websites is measured in terms of student satisfaction (Lim & Karol, 2002; Reister, Lapointe, & Korcuska, 2007; Sahin & Shelley, 2008; Smart & Cappel, 2006). Many studies rely on the assumption that satisfaction enhances the motivation for learning, and that as a consequence, students’ ownership of the learning process increases (Lim & Karol, 2002; Smart & Cappel, 2006), which eventually, improves the effectiveness of the learning process. This research reports on the first stage of an instructional model (see basic version in action Table 1) designed to improve the learning in a large enrollment .introductory Biology course at the Technion. It is conducted as a collaborative project between the Department of Education in Technology and Science and the Faculty of Biology. All three versions of this instructional model use an online tutorial, which was developed for this purpose (see Figure 1).