Author(s): Seyhan Erden
This paper presents findings from an 11-year study on teaching introductory-level econometrics, a historically challenging course for students and instructors. Utilizing extensive data from Fall 2012 to Spring 2023, the study reveals that in-person instruction surpasses online teaching in effectiveness for this course for specific student profiles. It is the opposite for other types of student profiles. Additionally, the classroom response system emerges as the most impactful tool, bridging achievement gaps among students with diverse quantitative backgrounds and majors. Given different teaching modalities, the effect of the classroom response system on student performance depends on the student profile. When the teaching modality is online, polls help those students with a higher quantitative background and hurt those with a lower quantitate background. Conversely, the implementation of an online proctoring system significantly hampers student performance. The paper also addresses the transition from in-person to online and the subsequent return to in-person instruction, highlighting the opportunities that arose during the pandemic and were utilized to enhance in-person instruction afterward.