Abstract: Students with English as a Second Language (ESL) make up a growing student population across the U.S. As Web-based instruction continues to gain wide acceptance, educators need to ensure that ESL students are not placed at a disadvantage due to language and cultural barriers. This study compared the performance of ESL students in three different settings - Web, lecture, and lecture with Web. The results showed that the lecture group performed significantly better than the Web group. Ethnicity contributed to a significant difference in performance in the lecture group. The study found no differences in performance due to gender. Students with PC ownership with Internet access and those with longer residency in the U.S. performed significantly better irrespective of the setting. The paper concludes with lessons learned and offers helpful suggestions in teaching Web courses to ESL and minority students.

Keywords: Web-based instruction, English as a second language, Gender, Ethnicity

Download this article: JISE - Volume 10 Number 2, Page 13.pdf

Recommended Citation: Sankaran, S. R. & Bui, T. X. (1999). Effectiveness of Web-Based Instruction for ESL Students: An Empirical Study with Focus on Gender, Ethnicity, and Instructional Media. Journal of Information Systems Education, 10(2), 13-19.