Journal of College Teaching & Learning – November 2008 Volume 5, Number 11 41 Web-Based vs. Face-To-Face MBA Classes: A Comparative Assessment Study Barry Brownstein, University of Baltimore, USA Deborah Brownstein, Educational Consultant, USA Daniel A. Gerlowski, University of Baltimore, USA ABSTRACT The challenges of online learning include ensuring that the learning outcomes are at least as robust as in the face-to-face sections of the same course. At the University of Baltimore, both online sections and face-to-face sections of core MBA courses are offered. Once admitted to the MBA, students are free to enroll in any combination of web-based or face-to-face courses. This provides a unique laboratory to assess comparative learning outcomes. Keywords: assessment, learning outcomes, online learning, MBA INTRODUCTION kepticism has been reported about whether distance learning formats can achieve the same learning outcomes as face-to-face courses (Allen, Bourhis, Mabry, Burell &Timmerman, 2006). Indeed, this skepticism among academics spills over to students. Bezjian (2005) found that: “Students in traditional face-to-face courses had higher expectations for the quality of the faculty than did students in web-delivered programs.” In a comparison of learning outcomes between face-to-face and online courses, Warren and Holloman (2006) found no significant difference in learning outcomes. Brown and Liedholm (2002) and Coates and Humphreys (2003) found differences in learning outcomes when comparing online and more traditional course delivery modes. Harmon and Labrinos (2007) found no significant difference in performance between a traditional course format and one that blends traditional lecture and online learning aids. Approaching assessment from a different angle, Toper (2007) found no significant differences in the quality of instruction in face-to-face and online sections. Some research (Terry, 2007) argues that online courses more frequently enhance learning in the higher orders of Bloom’s taxonomy, namely analysis and synthesis topics. Our findings support those who maintain that learning outcomes in online courses can be at least as robust as face-to-face outcomes. During the fall semester 2005, an assessment study was conducted to compare the learning outcomes in two sections of "Domestic and Global Business Environment," a required core course in the MBA program at the University of Baltimore. Both sections were taught and evaluated by the same professor, thus holding the quality of instruction constant. One section was a purely online course and the other was purely a face-to-face course. Ordinarily, the face-to-face course would contain a supplemental online conference; but for the purpose of this study, that online conference was eliminated. “Domestic and Global Business Environment,” for both the online and the face-to-face course, contains the same twelve learning objectives. The learning objectives concentrate on Bloom's higher level learning goals: analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. The learning environments in the online and face-to-face sections of “Domestic and Global Business Environment” are, of course, different. Although the learning environments of both sections follow a collaborative S