Online Orientation Program Research Articles

Evaluation of an Orientation Program for Adjunct Clinical Instructors in Nursing

Abstract Part-time clinical nurse instructors teach students in many nursing schools in the United States. They are often unprepared for this role and require instruction in teaching methods. We developed and evaluated an online orientation program to provide the knowledge and skills necessary for nurses to become confident clinical instructors. For this project, 55 nurses completed the program; 28 were part-time faculty. Significant statistical differences were noted after completing the orientation program. Part-time faculty notably benefited from the online program and felt more confident in their ability to work with students.

Reproductive endocrinology and infertility nurse online orientation program evaluation: a quality improvement initiative

To evaluate the effectiveness of a novel online orientation program (Nurses in REI Communication, Knowledge, and Skills [NRCKS]) among new and early-career reproductive endocrinology nurses to make recommendations for program quality improvement. Quality improvement. Reproductive endocrinology nurses. Online orientation program featuring 8 micromodules. Knowledge acquisition, confidence, user experience, skills, and abilities. Nurses demonstrated a statistically significant increase in reproductive knowledge after completion of NRCKS. Most nurse users felt confident applying knowledge in the clinical settings after program completion. Nurse users had an overall positive experience with interactive components and quality of visuals. Most nurse users gained skills and abilities that they will implement into professional practice. Nurses suggested improving navigation, adding more visuals in content expert presentations, and teaching soft skills necessary for the role of reproductive endocrinology nurses. Nurses in REI Communication, Knowledge, and Skills was well received by nurse participants and emphasized the receptivity and desire for reproductive health and fertility training among novice reproductive endocrinology nurses. Nurses in REI Communication, Knowledge, and Skills increased nursing knowledge, and nurses felt confident applying newly gained knowledge in the clinical setting on completion. Nurse participants provided invaluable feedback for quality improvement to inform the hard launch. The results emphasize the online orientation's strong potential to close the theory-practice gap.

Preparing distance learning graduate students: Results of an innovative online orientation program

Preparing distance learning graduate students: Results of an innovative online orientation program

Designing Effective Online Orientation Programs for First-Year University Students

While asynchronous, self-paced online orientation programs are not brand new in the field of orientation, transition and retention, COVID-19 forced many institutions to rapidly create a program for the first time to help welcome fall 2020 students. Using the community of inquiry model as a framework, this literature review explores the research related to orientation and online learning in an effort to identify the principles, practices and processes that can help a student affairs professional to design an effective and engaging online orientation program, or enhance an existing program.

The Role of Orientation Programs to Prepare Students for Online Learning: A Case Study From an Executive MPH Program

The coronavirus pandemic has caused many colleges and universities throughout the United States to pivot from in-person teaching to distance-based instruction, and while this form of education offers many advantages, one challenge facing institutions of higher education is how to best prepare their students for success in the online environment. This article describes the approach used by a hybrid executive Master of Public Health (MPH) program to orient its students, who are all working professionals, to the online environment. In addition to a description of the online orientation course, quantitative and qualitative evaluation findings are shared. The article includes recommendations for establishing an online orientation program. Although the orientation described was developed for working professionals earning an MPH degree, the approach can be applied or adapted to other online programs as they face the need to prepare students for online delivery, whether during a time of emergency like the coronavirus pandemic or during a period of natural programmatic growth.

The Impact of an Online Orientation Program on Student Success at a Community College

This study examined the effectiveness of an online orientation program on participation and student success for a defined cohort of students at a mid-size community college in the mid-Atlantic region. Specifically, a quantitative analysis focused on differences in grade point average (GPA) and retention as success factors among students who completed the online orientation versus students who only started but did not finish and students who did not attempt the program at all. 
 The findings indicate a statistically significant difference in fall to spring retention and cumulative GPA earned after the first semester for students who complete the online orientation module over students who access but do not complete and students who do not access the program. Further, follow-up survey data indicate students felt more prepared to attend the college and utilize programs and services after completing the program.
 The study contributes to the research and literature on online orientation programs, specifically in the community college setting, and the researchers offers a discussion of results and recommendations for policy, practice, and future research.

The Online First-Year Experience: Defining and Illustrating a New Reality

All incoming students have a first experience with their institution. This article reviews literature on adult education, online learning, and first-year student success to articulate the scope of experiences and programs that ought to be included in institutional efforts aimed at helping adult students be successful in their first year of online education. In addition, three approaches to support these online students in their first year of college are illustrated. Key areas surveyed are online orientation programs, online first-year experience courses, and the co-curricular engagement of online learners. Examination of these cases demonstrates that supporting online first-year students is quite important, particularly given the proliferation of online students and their lag in standard measures of success.

Orientation Programs

Online orientation programs are a growing trend for delivery of information to new students within higher education. Considering the widespread use of Internet and technology and the increased personal and work demands on many students, higher education institutions need to investigate how orientation programs can potentially be delivered in an online format. A new framework should be explored to make this information more accessible to those students who are unable to attend the more traditional programs on campus, and to continue communicating with students throughout their transitional year. This article explores the concept of online orientation programs for students who physically attend at least one course on a postsecondary campus. The article also reviews some current programs and literature and provides recommendations for campuses looking to enhance this delivery option.

New Student Orientation in Online Education

This study utilized the standards put forth by the Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS) to assess orientation in online education. Two surveys were used to examine the oldest and largest online degree programs, as well as all-online schools. Descriptive statistics were employed to compare online orientation practices to the CAS Standards. Results suggest that online orientation programs are meeting the standards in some areas and missing them in others. The demographics and needs of online students must be closely examined in order to define engagement in the online environment.

Developing an Online Orientation Program for Transfer Students to Arizona State University

Developing an Online Orientation Program for Transfer Students to Arizona State University

Is the Library’s Online Orientation Program Effective with English Language Learners?

In this paper, the author examines four years of assessment data (N=4,786) from Brooklyn College’s Library Online Orientation Program (LOOP; url: https://library.brooklyn.cuny.edu/resources/loop/loop.php ), which is used to provide all English 1010 students with an orientation to the library, to see if English language learners (ELLs) are performing as well as their non-ELL peers. This paper also reports on how useful the LOOP is to ELLs when compared to non-ELLs. By comparing data from ELL and non-ELL students using several independent samples T-tests, this paper shows that ELLs on the average scored lower on the quiz component of the LOOP than non-ELLs, though they found the LOOP tutorial more useful. In addition to reporting these assessment results, this paper includes a review of the different kinds of English language learners, discusses how to statistically operationalize this population for further quantitative studies for other libraries who would like to include these additional independent variables in their assessment data collection, and provides suggestions for making the LOOP more useful to ELL students in the future.

The Implementation of an Independent and Self-Paced Online Library Orientation for Freshman Students and the Use of Sakai as a Quiz Management System (QMS)

The Brooklyn College Library's Reference Unit developed the Library's Online Orientation Program (LOOP) to provide freshman students with an entirely online, independent, flexible, and self-paced introduction to the library's resources and services. The implementation of the LOOP gave the reference librarians much-needed time to focus their teaching on classes that require research. The LOOP includes an assessment component that was created and is managed using Sakai. Sakai was found to be effective in creating and managing the assessment, with minimal ongoing maintenance required. Reference librarians with serious time constraints can look to this model as an alternative to in-person library orientation sessions. Since very little has been written about the use of Sakai as a means of creating and managing online assessment, its benefits and drawbacks are outlined.

Evaluation of an Online Orientation Program for New Healthcare Employees

Online learning is one of the newest efforts of mainstream healthcare education. It has been cited as providing both an efficient and effective alternative learning medium. This study explored the acceptance of an online orientation program by new healthcare employees and identified several critical factors affecting online learning outcomes. The study applied triangulation methods including surveys, interviews, and test scores. Data were captured from 154 questionnaires (with a response rate of 78.2%) with related test scores and 13 participant interviews. The results showed that new healthcare employees were positive toward the computer-based learning program. "Perceived ease of use" and "perceived usefulness" were the major variables predicting technology acceptance, whereas "learner satisfaction" and "continued intention to use" were the major indices for the learning outcomes. Test scores, however, did not reveal any statistical impact. Additionally, human-computer interaction, instant feedback, and program content were commented on as factors affecting learning outcomes. Therefore, online learning is suitable for new healthcare employees, both in the orientation stage and as a follow-up learning method. The results of this study can help support the development of educational technology online programs.

Optimizing Staff Onboarding

Optimizing Staff Onboarding

Design-based research principles for student orientation to online study: Capturing the lessons learnt

<span>Few institutions have reported research on students' </span><em>use</em><span> of orientation programs designed for mature students returning to study in contemporary learning environments now regularly amalgamating distance and online strategies. We report within a design-based research framework the student experience of</span><em>GetLearning</em><span>, the third stage of an innovative online orientation program. Integral to the design is active student engagement with activities to extend their skills whilst still supported in a risk free environment. Analysis included observations of the patterns of student activity, students' responses in evaluation instruments, our reflections, and identification of the limitations to deployment of such orientation programs. We also provide a set of design principles to guide further development work and research.</span>

Benefits of a Flexible Neonatal Online Nursing Orientation Program

Online technologies are becoming widely used to cater to the differing needs of nurses. Traditional training consists of relatively passive exercises in classroom-type settings followed by observation of a preceptor; whereas online learning promotes active learning. Benefits of online learning include deeper learning, increased interaction, increased sense of learner control, economic efficiency, easily updated learning materials, and improved learner satisfaction, retention, and learning outcomes. The increasing cost for orientation is alarming. The cost of nurse turnover along with the high costs of orientation has skyrocketed. Online learning allows new nurses to enroll in the program at any point throughout the year, eliminating the repeat of didactic classes. On-line training provides new staff with consistent knowledge, policies, and procedures; rather than individual preceptors' opinions. Benefits of the online orientation program are many, with the ultimate goal to provide a more flexible, active learning environment.

What is the Affect of an Online Orientation Course on Student Satisfaction?

What is affect of an online orientation course on student satisfaction? A Chi-Square non-parametric test was utilized to provide a statistical analysis of the participants’ responses. Findings indicated that online students should have a mandatory online orientation in the online environment. Education stakeholders should utilize these findings to develop a policy on mandatory online orientation programs.