Emerging Research into Nontraditional Learner Persistence in Online Continuing Education

Abstract

Online learning promises to expand access to higher education, yet nontraditional learners experience higher attrition rates than traditional students. When these learners do not persist, institutions often attribute withdrawal to student characteristics, such as insufficient motivation, inadequate preparation, or competing demands.

This presentation outlines emerging research examining persistence among nontraditional learners in online continuing education at a Canadian university. A review of the literature reveals that existing persistence models inadequately address this population as definitions remain inconsistent, persistence is treated as a static outcome, and attrition is disproportionately explained through student deficit rather than institutional design. Foundational frameworks developed for traditional students do not transfer cleanly to contemporary continuing education contexts.

In response to these gaps, the study employs an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design guided by a transformative worldview and the CoI framework. It integrates three data sources, a survey measuring CoI presences and self-regulated learning, LMS engagement data, and semi-structured interviews, in a sequence where quantitative findings actively shape qualitative inquiry. Individual LMS engagement patterns are used to develop personalized interview probes, enabling the study to connect observed behaviour with reported experience rather than using LMS data solely for triangulation.

The study models equity-oriented educational technology research by reframing persistence as a matter of institutional accountability, foregrounding course design, pedagogical, and policy factors that institutions can actually influence. Continuing education serves working adults, career changers, and others frequently underserved by traditional higher education, populations for whom online learning’s promise of flexibility has yet to be fully realized.