Online Education Research Grows

New numbers from Nielsen/NetRatings indicate more people are turning to the Web for educational related research, with Wikipedia being the most visited reference site.

Numbers out from market research firm Nielsen/NetRatings indicate that more people than ever are turning to the Internet for their educational reference needs. This is indicated by a 22 percent growth in this category from September of last year.

Sites in the educational research category attracted 46.4 million users last month, or nearly 31% of active Internet users. Leading this category is the group-edited Web encyclopedia Wikipedia, with 13 million unique visitors last month, up 289 percent from last year. Wikipedia is followed Yahoo Education, with a 205 percent growth, and eHow, with a 97 percent increase in traffic.

Among different age groups flocking to online research, 53 percent of those were college educated adults aged 35 years and older. Overall, adults between the ages of 35 and 49 led the age groups in usage, garnering 37 percent of category’s audience, compared to 16 percent of Web users under age 18.

“The growth of educational reference sites stem from the basic offerings of the Internet — free and quick access to information,” said Gerry Davidson, senior media analyst, Nielsen//NetRatings. “The ‘wiki’ phenomenon offers the added element of user interaction, which appeals to college-educated Web users’ sense of altruism by allowing them to add or correct online content.”