‘Power to empower’: conceptions of teaching and learning in a pedagogical co-design partnership

ABSTRACT

This study is an autoethnographic reflection on power and expertise in an evolving student/staff partnership. The partnership was initiated as pedagogical co-design in the development and implementation of a peer-assisted learning programme. Through a process of critical reflection that linked our partnership experience with themes from relevant literature, we (the staff and student authors) became co-researchers of our practice. The evolution of the partnership provided a unique perspective from which to compare our experiences of power and expertise across both contexts. We characterised our pedagogical co-design partnership as a shift from the more traditional ‘power over’ model of delivery towards ‘power to empower’ where both student and staff partners had agency and voice. Key to this important transition was a shared philosophy of student-centred teaching. As the partnership transformed from co-teaching to co-researching we needed to re-negotiate power dynamics; while our different pathways had converged on a common view of student-centred learning, our research expertise remained disparate. We were able to negotiate this challenge by drawing on our existing relationship based on respect, reciprocity and responsibility, reinforcing views of partnership that value equality of opportunity and a focus on learning and process, rather than equality of contributions and outcomes.     

Teachers as Designers of Learning Environments

Abstract

This study examined how six Singapore teachers approached the design and implementation of a unit of work (topic) to demonstrate exemplary classroom practices that engage learners and use ICT in knowledge-generative rather than presentational activities. After a reflection and feedback session on the first lesson observation involving the researcher and the teacher, the teacher redesigned the lesson to enhance ICT use and involve students more actively in their learning. Our study revealed that there is a difference between students' physical engagement and cognitive engagement in a task and that the teacher, as a designer of the learning environment, needs to make explicit the cognitive processes involved in using the tool to ensure students' effective use of ICT. The teachers' understanding of what constitutes effective learning and their roles in students' learning determine how they design the learning environment. In essence, it is the teacher's skill in managing the “tripartite” partnership of IT tool, learning task, and teacher support that brings about higher levels of student engagement.     

Being more human: rooting learning analytics through resistance and reconnection with the values of higher education

ABSTRACT

Universities are now compelled to attend to metrics that (re)shape our conceptualisation of the student experience. New technologies such as learning analytics (LA) promise the ability to target personalised support to profiled ‘at risk’ students through mapping large-scale historic student engagement data such as attendance, library use, and virtual learning environment activity as well as demographic information and typical student outcomes. Yet serious ethical and implementation issues remain. Data-driven labelling of students as ‘high risk’, ‘hard to reach’ or ‘vulnerable’ creates conflict between promoting personal growth and human flourishing and treating people merely as data points. This article argues that universities must resist the assumption that numbers and algorithms alone can solve the ‘problem’ of student retention and performance; rather, LA work must be underpinned by a reconnection with the agreed values relating to the purpose of higher education, including democratic engagement, recognition of diverse and individual experience, and processes of becoming. Such a reconnection, this article contends, is possible when LA work is designed and implemented in genuine collaboration and partnership with students.     

Present and Accounted for: Improving Student Attendance Through Family and Community Involvement

Abstract

Reducing student absenteeism and truancy is a goal of many schools across the country. Surprisingly little research focuses on what schools can do to increase and sustain students' daily attendance, and even fewer studies explore how family-school-community partnerships may contribute to this goal. In this longitudinal study, data were collected on schools' rates of daily student attendance and chronic absenteeism and on specific partnership practices that were implemented to help increase or sustain student attendance. Results indicate that several family-school-community partnership practices predict an increase in daily attendance, a decrease in chronic absenteeism, or both. The data suggest that schools may be able to increase student attendance in elementary school by implementing specific family and community involvement activities.     

Investigation of Preservice Teachers' Classroom Assessment Practices During Student Teaching

Abstract

Teachers' evaluation of pupil learning should be consistent with identified learning outcomes at the intended level of performance. To the extent that curriculum and assessment are aligned, the validity of inferences about pupil knowledge is strengthened. The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate the assessment practices of preservice teachers who have successfully completed coursework in educational measurement. Three hundred and nine lesson plans from 65 preservice (student) teachers were reviewed. The authors found that, during student teaching, preservice teachers do not follow many of the assessment practices recommended in their coursework. Perhaps implementations of recommended classroom assessment practices seem to depend on more than possessing the requisite knowledge.     

Greater engagement in and responsibility for learning: what happens when students cross the threshold of student–faculty partnership

The importance of student engagement in higher education is increasingly recognised. As a result, questions have arisen regarding how best to inspire and support students in taking greater interest in and more active responsibility for their learning. Student–faculty partnerships that position students as consultants in explorations of pedagogical practice inspire and support engagement and responsibility that carry over from those partnerships into students' classroom participation. However, such partnership constitutes for many students a ‘threshold concept’. Because partnering with faculty in analyses and revisions of teaching and learning both requires and inspires students to redefine their roles, responsibilities and sense of themselves, student–faculty partnership proves troublesome, transformative, discursive, irreversible and integrative. In a case study of one partnership programme at a liberal arts institution in the Northeastern USA, we discuss how crossing the threshold constituted by student–faculty partnership in pedagogical exploration fosters in students greater engagement in, and responsibility for, learning. Implications for higher education include the potential of reconceptualising our classrooms as more democratic spaces and the work of teaching and learning as more of a shared responsibility.     

Unpacking the Black Box of Student Engagement: The Need for Programmatic Investigation of High Impact Practices

The conceptual understanding of student engagement entails a necessary relationship between institutions and individuals. Several decades of research have revealed the empirical relationship of student engagement and desirable student outcomes, as well as the myriad intervening factors that influence engagement levels. However, there is a critical gap in the research literature as to the specific programmatic features of college practices that best foster student engagement. In an era of dwindling resources and increasing demand for higher education access and student success, this understanding is critical for utilizing scarce resources and developing programs with the most impact. This essay argues that despite such high impact or promising practices continually studied and shown to have a high impact on student engagement levels, a more systematic investigation of these practices, structurally and collectively instead of topically, is needed to further our conceptual understanding of engagement and how to encourage it at the intersection of the student in the community college context.     

Student perspectives of engagement in learning in contemporary and digital contexts

ABSTRACT

Increasing significance has been ascribed to student engagement, as a measure of success of both teachers and programs. However, since users of the term commonly tend not to explain, rationalise or problematise their understanding of engagement, its value to understand or transform learning may be limited. While clarification has occurred in conceptual work, there is a lack of empirical work that extends beyond understandings of engagement-as-behaviour, as well as insufficient work exploring what students understand engagement to be. Further, much work on engagement is rooted in physical campuses and face-to-face delivery, which represents an incomplete picture of how students actually engage in study. This article investigates student perceptions of engagement in two blended learning Initial Teacher Education programs. It offers a critical discussion of how research can be re-considered in light of changing learning contexts and changing understandings of ways to investigate engagement. The findings of this study support previous work that found multiple levels and meanings of student engagement exist. New complex and multidimensional models of engagement are proposed, which can open new possibilities for designing studies and analysing findings. This article argues that including and questioning physical, virtual and political contexts and power, affect, relationships, linearity and essential measurability are important features of new models of engagement.     

‘Let your data tell a story:’ climate change experts and students navigating disciplinary argumentation in the classroom

ABSTRACT

Science education trends promote student engagement in authentic knowledge in practice to tackle personally consequential problems. This study explored how partnering scientists and students on a social media platform supported students’ development of disciplinary practice knowledge through practice-based learning with experts during two pilot enactments of a project-based curriculum focusing on the ecological impacts of climate change. Through the online platform, scientists provided feedback on students' infographics, visual argumentation artifacts that use data to communicate about climate change science. We conceptualize the infographics and professional data sets as boundary objects that supported authentic argumentation practices across classroom and professional contexts, but found that student generated data was not robust enough to cross these boundaries. Analysis of the structure and content of the scientists’ feedback revealed that when critiquing argumentation, scientists initiated engagement in multiple scientific practices, supporting a holistic rather than discrete model of practice-based learning. While traditional classroom inquiry has emphasized student experimentation, we found that engagement with existing professional data sets provided students with a platform for developing expertise in systemic scientific practices during argument construction. We further found that many students increased the complexity and improved the visual presentation of their arguments after feedback.     

The quandary of quantification: data,numbers and teachers’ learning

ABSTRACT

Drawing upon recent theorising of numbers and data, and applications to schooling, this paper reveals how tensions between more accountability-oriented logics, and more contextually-situated conceptions of engagement with data, played out in one school in a regional community in northern Queensland, Australia. The research reveals that at the same time teachers’ work and learning were heavily influenced by more reductive processes of quantification to account for teachers’ practices, teachers also sought to draw upon the attention to numeric markers of student achievement to foster more substantive teacher learning for student learning. These tensions were expressed in relation to: efforts to foster improved student learning through collection of evidence via ‘short-term data cycles’; engagement in various ‘data conversations’ with senior members of staff, and coaching by more experienced teachers, and; broader teacher learning initiatives focused on enhancing outcomes for specified groups of students identified as able to perform at higher levels of attainment. The research cautions that such practices present a quandary; even as broader processes of quantification of education may stimulate instances of more ongoing, substantive teacher learning for student learning, more performative applications of these numbers and data mitigate against the educative potential of such practices, and substantive learning for all students.     

Student Engagement and Student Learning: Examining the Convergent and Discriminant Validity of the Revised National Survey of Student Engagement

The present study examined the relationships between student engagement, represented by two versions of the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) and self-reported gains in learning. The study drew on institutional-level data from participating institutions in 2011 and 2013. The objective of the research was to compare evidence of convergence and discrimination for the two versions of NSSE using canonical correlation analysis. Results indicated that both versions of NSSE provided clear evidence of convergence in that student engagement measures were significantly and positively related to perceived gains in learning. However, only the most recent version of NSSE provided strong evidence of discrimination (i.e., differential relationships between engagement measures and self-reported learning outcomes). Thus, the revised NSSE appears to offer substantial advantages for institutions interested in more nuanced understandings of the relationships between student engagement and perceived learning outcomes. Implications for educators, with goals of enhancing student learning, and for researchers, who often compare complex sets of data, are included.     

Student leadership in small group science inquiry

Background: Science educators have sought to structure collaborative inquiry learning through the assignment of static group roles. This structural approach to student grouping oversimplifies the complexities of peer collaboration and overlooks the highly dynamic nature of group activity.

Purpose: This study addresses this issue of oversimplification of group dynamics by examining the social leadership structures that emerge in small student groups during science inquiry.

Sample: Two small student groups investigating the burning of a candle under a jar participated in this study.

Design and method: We used a mixed-method research approach that combined computational discourse analysis (computational quantification of social aspects of small group discussions) with microethnography (qualitative, in-depth examination of group discussions).

Results: While in one group social leadership was decentralized (i.e., students shared control over topics and tasks), the second group was dominated by a male student (centralized social leadership). Further, decentralized social leadership was found to be paralleled by higher levels of student cognitive engagement.

Conclusions: It is argued that computational discourse analysis can provide science educators with a powerful means of developing pedagogical models of collaborative science learning that take into account the emergent nature of group structures and highly fluid nature of student collaboration.     

Let me edutain you! Practices of student engagement employed by new lecturers

ABSTRACT

Over the last few years, student engagement has become a commonly used term in Higher Education across the United Kingdom, American and Australasian higher education systems. This article presents research on an area of student engagement absent from the literature, that of new lecturers’ practices. Following detailed analyses of interview data after one year of teaching, the findings reveal a range of perceptions, pressures and tensions relating to student engagement which influence practice. Most lecturers described engagement as an emotional construct (the need for students to ‘like’ learning) as well as a cognitive construct (what they learn). However, there were tensions between the two and a need to overcome perceived barriers. We argue that lecturers can best be supported by acknowledging the time it takes to gain confidence, experiment and take risks, and appreciating their need to respond to different expectations.     

Evidence and benefits of postgraduate international students-staff members partnership in extra-curricular activities: a Malaysian perspective

ABSTRACT

The student engagement concept has been revolutionised so that students play an active role alongside staff members in determining their student learning experiences. Although the development of student–staff partnerships enhances student engagement and experience, empirical research on partnerships in Malaysia is scant. This paper contributes to the growing scholarly literature on such partnerships – in particular, exploring postgraduate international students and staff members’ partnership dimensions in extra-curricular activities at a research university in Malaysia. This qualitative study interviewed 33 postgraduate international students, 10 academic staff and 12 professional staff members. Based on the findings, the student–staff partnership model is well integrated into the extra-curricular activities: international students are invited to co-design and implement adjustment programmes for newly arrived international students. This paper also explores the multi-layered benefits of partnerships for postgraduate international students and for staff members. The implications of such partnerships for the university, international students and staff members are discussed.     

Instructor Prompts and Student Engagement in Synchronous Online Nutrition Classes

ABSTRACT

The number of online courses in higher education is on the rise. However, empirical evidence elucidating best practices for synchronous online instruction is needed to best implement these courses. The research purposes were to examine synchronous online class sessions to (1) quantify interaction type, frequency, and rate, (2) quantify student engagement frequency, and (3) quantify instructor prompt frequency in three areas in order to investigate relationships with each category of student engagement. A total of 24 previously recorded synchronous sessions including oral and textual chat interactions were transcribed. Every line of student interaction was determined to be either superficial or containing evidence of at least one instance of engagement according to five categories from the Seven Principles and the National Survey for Student Engagement. Every line of instructor interaction was concurrently coded for at least one of the following forms of prompt: social, organizational, or intellectual. Inter-tester reliability of coded interactions from Cohen’s kappa = 0.91. Social prompts were the best predictor of supportive campus environments (r = 0.79); organizational prompts were the best predictor of enriching academic experiences (r = 0.72); and intellectual prompts were the best predictor of instructor interactions, active/collaborative learning, and academic challenge (r= 0.77, r= 0.78, r= 0.54, respectively); with all of these being significant (p< .01). The conclusions are: (a) online synchronous class sessions can be used to promote student engagement across all NSSE categories, (b) online synchronous class sessions can be moderated via differing instructor-prompts to promote student interaction and engagement.     

Course Design,Quality Matters Training,and Student Outcomes

ABSTRACT

North Carolina Central University (NCCU) recognized the need to address the increasing rates of Ds, Fs, and Withdrawal by students matriculating in online courses. Led by two science faculty, a faculty learning community in partnership with the NCCU Division of Extended Studies was created to assess online science course offerings and instruction. Faculty within this learning community completed the Quality Matters (QM) “Applying the Quality Matters Rubric” course. This online training course, coupled with services provided by the NCCU Division of Extended Studies, offered the faculty learning community a variety of pedagogical strategies to meet their instructional needs. All faculty participating in this learning community completed the online training course and all faculty indicated that they implemented changes in their subsequent online course offerings. This article describes the impact of that training and the application of quality course design standards in the Quality Matters Rubric on the design and student outcomes for an Introductory Biology course over four terms. As faculty learning communities are broadly utilized, it is anticipated that this article may present an effective strategy to increase the quality and quantity of online science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) courses at similar institutions.     

A systematic review on the deployment and effectiveness of data analytics in higher education to improve student outcomes

Abstract

This is a systematic review conducted of primary research literature published between 2007 and 2018 on the deployment and effectiveness of data analytics in higher education to improve student outcomes. We took a methodological approach to searching databases; appraising and synthesising results against predefined criteria. We reviewed research on the effectiveness of three differentiated forms of data analytics: learning, academic and learner analytics. Student outcomes are defined as retention, academic performance and engagement. Our results find that three quarters of studies report the use of educational data analytics to be effective in improving student outcomes but their relationship with student outcomes requires further and more robust investigation and assessment. We argue that research must interpret and communicate effectiveness qualitatively, as well as quantitatively, by including the student voice in assessments of impact.     

The Effects of Discipline on Deep Approaches to Student Learning and College Outcomes

“Deep learning” represents student engagement in approaches to learning that emphasize integration, synthesis, and reflection. Because learning is a shared responsibility between students and faculty, it is important to determine whether faculty members emphasize deep approaches to learning and to assess how much students employ these approaches. This study examines the effect of discipline on student use of and faculty members’ emphasis on deep approaches to learning as well as on the relationships between deep approaches to learning and selected educational outcomes. Using data from over 80,000 seniors and 10,000 faculty members we found that deep approaches to learning were more prevalent in Biglan’s soft, pure, and life fields compared to their counterparts. The differences were largest between soft and hard fields. We also found that seniors who engage more frequently in deep learning behaviors report greater educational gains, higher grades, and greater satisfaction with college, and that the strength of these relationships is relatively consistent across disciplinary categories.     

Student and Instructor Perspectives of ITV Instruction

ABSTRACT

This mixed-methods grounded theory study examined student and faculty perceptions of engagement in Interactive Television (ITV) courses. Survey participants from two regional higher learning institutions consisted of students (n = 442) and faculty (n = 99) with previous ITV experience. Data were analyzed using principal factor analysis, Independent T-test, and ANOVA. Qualitative data consisted of focus groups and student (n = 22) and faculty (n = 10) personal interviews. Factor analysis of survey data identified three engagement themes: dialogic, autonomous, and interpersonal. Significant differences were noted between student and faculty perceptions on all three factors. Faculty rated levels of dialogic and autonomous interaction lower than students, while students reported lower levels of interpersonal interaction. Qualitative coding revealed that students attribute lower dialogic and autonomous interactions to reduced interpersonal interactions. What initially emerged as a simple three-factor model of student engagement in quantitative analysis, became a model of three factors driven by one prominent factor – interpersonal interaction.