Date
11-11-2026
Department
School of Education
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy in Education (PhD)
Chair
Donald Lauer III
Keywords
adaptive-responsive, traditional-responsive, online learning platform, self-efficacy, stoichiometric concepts, cognitive load, retention
Disciplines
Curriculum and Instruction
Recommended Citation
Felts, Jennifer E., "A Causal-comparative Quantitative Study of the Efficacy of Adaptive-responsive versus Traditional-responsive Application Practice on Student Performance in Higher Education General Chemistry I Courses" (2026). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 9089.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/9089
Abstract
The purpose of this quantitative causal-comparative study was to examine the efficacy of adaptive-responsive versus traditional-responsive homework in the mastery and application of General Chemistry I concepts. This study was important to determine if the repetition and foundational concept acquisition necessary for success in the fundamental course was better achieved with Assessment & Learning in Knowledge Spaces (ALEKS) adaptive-responsive homework or traditional-responsive reformulating textbook questions. The sample was composed of 132 higher education General Chemistry I students at Lunar Community College (pseudonym). Data were collected using the American Chemical Society (ACS) General Chemistry First Term (GC1) exam, with ten questions from the exam identified as addressing stoichiometric concepts. The in-person proctored exam was administered to the students using paper-pencil format and Scantron answer sheets; these sheets were tallied to an overall score of 0-70 by Scantron machine, with stoichiometric question data scored on a secondary scale from 0-10. The results of the independent t test did not find a significant difference between the total exam and stoichiometric question scores of the ACS exams between the students of the adaptive-responsive and traditional-responsive homework administration. Due to these results, both adaptive-responsive and traditional-responsive homework can be recommended for use in the General Chemistry I course. Further research is necessary to determine the applicability of the adaptive ALEKS homework in more advanced Chemistry study, when mastery may be less reliant on the repetition necessary for memorization of fundamental concepts and cognitive load less problematic due to increased student confidence.
