An exploration of learner progress and drop-out in Korea National Open University

This study examines which factors make a difference in distance learners’ achievements and also their continuous enrolment status over one year in Korea National Open University. A path analysis revealed that while learners’ job load had no directly significant effect on grade-point average (GPA), it had a significant indirect effect on GPA via the study time variable. In addition to study time, social integration and extra face-to-face activities were found to be significant variables acting on their GPA. In predicting subsequent enrolment, face-to-face activities were the most influential up to a year later. The results of this study challenges the prevalent view that GPA has something to do with drop-out, suggesting that learner progress toward achievement and drop-out may be understood better when viewed separately, especially in the case of long-term distance learning.