Using Podcasts in a High School Advanced Placement Statistics Course to Encourage a Higher Achieving Learning Environment

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to discuss an instructional design project to determine the effectiveness of implementing podcasts as a supplemental online resource on probability in Moodle, an online course management system. Eighteen high school seniors in AP Statistics at a private school in Honolulu, Hawaii, used podcasts to review information previously learned in a traditional classroom atmosphere four months prior to the review. The collected data was used to determine the effectiveness of the module and to analyze the students’ attitudes toward hybrid or online learning. Results between a paper-based pre-test and an online posttest showed a general improvement in understanding the content in probability. Student feedback from an attititudinal survey showed a more positive attitude for the convenient resource and the ability to review concepts that were forgotten. Results from the project will guide teachers towards a better understanding of student success in an AP course.