The ubiquitous presence of technology in the everyday lives of this current society has left a generation of learners numb to the novelty, speed, and omnipresence of those same technologies. This study explores the impact of linear and nonlinear navigational schemes on learner knowledge retention. It takes into account how engagement, motivation, and attitude play different roles in how learners interact and ultimately in how successful they are within an online learning environment.

This mixed-method study was quasi-experimental in nature, drawing from an adult undergraduate sampling of several colleges and universities local to the Greater Philadelphia Region. The methodology was Explanatory Design.

The study points to the need for the online learning experience to go beyond solid pedagogy; it must appeal to a society of learners jaded by their own Internet experiences. Learners arrive in their classrooms expecting more than just information. They want to control their environment, to navigate freely within the course shells, and have learning events that are timely, accessible, and easily digested. To provide an optimal online learning experience, instructional designers, educators, facilitators, and technology personnel must work together to provide a stable, well formed, well designed, and adaptable environment.