New Study Shows College Biology Students Earn Better Grades, Professors Have More Time for Teaching using Cengage Learning's Aplia

BOSTON, June 4, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- College biology students using Cengage Learning's Aplia online homework tool earned better grades than students who did not use the tool, according to a study by The Research Group at the University of California, Berkeley's Lawrence Hall of Science. The study also found benefits for professors, with professors reporting that Aplia allows them more time to focus on actual classroom instruction.

"Everyone in higher education is under pressure to demonstrate improved outcomes and return on investment," said Jim Donohue, chief product officer, Cengage Learning. "With efficacy studies like this that show both students and instructors are directly benefitting from the use of our digital tools, we're demonstrating the value we bring to the learning process."

According to the study, both students and professors credited the use of Aplia as the reason why grades improved. Further, between 70 and 80 percent of student respondents indicated that using Aplia had helped them understand the course material, enabled them to learn at their own pace, provided a new way to learn the material and personalize their learning, and helped them complete more assignments. Professors also reported that Aplia helped students get more out of their textbook and become more involved in classroom lectures.

The auto-grading aspects of Aplia enabled professors more time to focus on what they wanted to present in class, leading to enhanced discussions. In addition, with the use of Aplia, professors reported that less students were struggling, allowing them to focus their time on enhancing instruction for all. The full results of the study are available online here.

Aplia is an award-winning product that helps students understand subjects through compelling content, brief engagement activities that illustrate key concepts, and thought-provoking questions. For more information about Aplia, please visit http://www.aplia.com/.

About Cengage Learning
Cengage Learning is a leading educational content, technology, and services company for the higher education and K-12, professional and library markets worldwide.  The company provides superior content, personalized services and course-driven digital solutions that accelerate student engagement and transform the learning experience. Cengage Learning is headquartered in Boston, MA with operations in more than 20 countries around the world. For more, visit: www.cengage.com.

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SOURCE Cengage Learning