Facilitating learning in large lecture classes: testing the "teaching team" approach to peer learning

We tested the effect of voluntary peer-facilitated study groups on student learning in large introductory biology lecture classes. The peer facilitators (preceptors) were trained as part of a Teaching Team (faculty, graduate assistants, and preceptors) by faculty and Learning Center staff. Each preceptor offered one weekly study group to all students in the class. All individual study groups were similar in that they applied active-learning strategies to the class material, but they differed in the actual topics or questions discussed, which were chosen by the individual study groups. Study group participation was correlated with reduced failing grades and course dropout rates in both semesters, and participants scored better on the final exam and earned higher course grades than nonparticipants. In the spring semester the higher scores were clearly due to a significant study group effect beyond ability (grade point average). In contrast, the fall study groups had a small but nonsignificant effect after accounting for student ability. We discuss the differences between the two semesters and offer suggestions on how to implement teaching teams to optimize learning outcomes, including student feedback on study groups.     

DROPOUT AND STOPOUT PATTERNS AMONG DEVELOPMENTAL EDUCATION STUDENTS IN TEXAS COMMUNITY COLLEGES

The dropout/stopout patterns of community college students were examined in the research reported here. About two thirds of the 51,903 students in the study were enrolled in developmental education courses. Success in college was defined as a passing grade point average after five semesters of coursework. Student success was found to be associated with enrollment patterns, initial skill deficiencies, and age. Community college students who enrolled for consecutive semesters outperformed students with other types of enrollment patterns.     

Predicting Degree Completion: Examining the Interaction between Orientation Course Participation and Ethnic Background

This article reports an examination of the predictive nature of orientation course participation and degree completion. It also inspects the potential interactions between ethnic background, orientation course participation, and degree completion. Although interaction terms for African American and Hispanic student participation in orientation courses were not significantly predictive of degree completion, a significant main effect was found for orientation course participation and degree completion. Graduation for students who participated in the orientation course was 72 times higher than for nonparticipants. This main effect—as well as the interaction term for White students participating in the orientation course—and degree completion accounted for 30% of the variance in the criterion of variable degree completion.     

Relationship Between Peer Orientation and Achievement in Cooperative Learning-Based Research Methodology Courses

Abstract

The capability of the relationship between peer orientation and achievement to remain in research methodology courses when cooperative learning techniques are introduced was investigated. Participants comprised 159 students enrolled in 7 sections of a graduate-level research methodology course at a southern university over 2 semesters. The students, who were administered a learning-style instrument, were enrolled in sections in which cooperative-learning groups were formed to undertake the major course requirements. Findings revealed a small but statistically significant relationship between peer orientation and achievement; students who were more oriented toward cooperative learning attained lower levels of achievement than did those who did not have an orientation toward cooperative learning. Further research is warranted.     

The Study Activity of Students

ABSTRACT

Gamification incorporates game-elements in non-gaming situations to enhance student engagement and desired behavior. This study examined participant's willingness to take part in gamified activities where reward systems were not directly tied to course grades. Participants enrolled in a technology integration course for preservice teachers, were grouped on subject-specific interests, and designed 30-minute presentations on technology integration. Over two semesters, an optional gaming activity was included in five course sections acting as the treatment group, and four sections acted as non-blind control groups. Data was collected from pre-, mid-, and post-surveys that investigated previous gaming experience, game motivations, group project perceptions, and perceived willingness to participate in the game. The treatment group indicated their perceptions of game play during mid- and post-surveys. Participants in all sections completed meeting history worksheets to describe weekly group and individual meetings. The results indicated significant differences between mid- and post-surveys regarding individual participation, group pursuits, individual work, frequency of group meetings, group preparation, and purchased items. The findings indicated a significant difference between treatment and control groups regarding hours spent in groups. Recommendations were provided for the practice of gamification in educational settings.     

Does Reflective Journal Writing Improve Course Performance?

Abstract. This study investigated whether a reflective journal writing assignment would improve students' course performance. A total of 166 students from undergraduate sections of a course taught by the same instructor over three semesters completed the assignment as part of their requirements. Students (N = 317) from five previous semesters of the same course taught by the same instructor, who were not required to complete the assignment, served as a comparison group. Intervention and comparison groups were comparable on a variety of variables including all assignments, excepting the journal assignment. The findings are interpreted within the context of factors such as students' study habits and motivation.     

Student non‐completion of an undergraduate degree: wrong program selection or part of a career plan?

Institution wide comparisons of students who leave university before completing their degree and students who complete their studies, have identified ‘wrong course selection’ and a lack of vocational focus as common reasons for non‐completion. It is not fully understood, though, whether these trends are constant across different disciplines and programs and whether all relevant contributing factors, in particular career intentions, have been considered. This study was undertaken to explore reasons for student non‐completion in more detail in one program. Students enrolled in an undergraduate health sciences degree completed a questionnaire at enrolment and another 12 months later, regarding their reasons for enrolment, career intentions and expectations for/experiences of learning. Students who did not re‐enrol after the first year were invited to complete a separate exit questionnaire regarding their reasons for not re‐enrolling. Many students who did not re‐enrol after the first year of study transferred to another degree that was more aligned with their career intentions. In this context rather than a ‘wrong’ selection, non‐completion of the initial undergraduate degree formed part of a career plan.     

The Longitudinal Achievement of Chapter 1 Students: Preliminary Evidence From the Prospects Study

In this article, we document the longitudinal achievement growth of Chapter 1 students based on nationally representative data from the Prospects study. Focusing on various 2- and 3-year patterns of Chapter 1 participation, this study provides longitudinal and year-to-year comparisons between the reading and math achievements of Chapter 1 students and the achievements of their similar and more advantaged peers. Multilevel analyses of longitudinal learning rates revealed few differences between the growth trajectories of Chapter 1 students and their more advantaged peers. However, follow-up analyses indicated some evidence of greater yearly achievement gains for participants than similar nonparticipants. Overall, significant positive results generally were restricted to the more advantaged portion of the Chapter 1 population. Students with greater disadvantages, who participated in Chapter 1 continuously, were able to keep pace with their more advantaged peers, but they were unable to close substantial initial achievement gaps.     

The Ecological Message of the Outdoor Magazines

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine (a) college students' attitudes and complexity of thinking about the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and (b) the effects of environment-based coursework on students' attitudes and thinking. Using self-report questionnaires in a pretest-posttest design, the authors examined attitudes in terms of their direction, extremity, ambivalence, and importance. Complexity of thinking was measured as integrative complexity. Results suggested that college students (N = 205) who had moderate and ambivalent attitudes toward the ESA wrote significantly more integratively complex essays about the issue than did students who had unambivalent attitudes. Students' integratively complex thinking was not related to the direction of their attitudes toward the ESA or its personal importance to them. Students who were enrolled in an environment-based, university-wide writing course showed a significantly greater increase in integratively complex thinking about the ESA than did students enrolled in a nonenvironment-based, university-wide writing course.     

The different impact of a structured peer-assessment task in relation to university undergraduates’ initial writing skills

This article presents an empirical evaluation of the validity and reliability of a peer-assessment activity to improve academic writing competences. Specifically, we explored a large group of psychology undergraduate students with different initial writing skills. Participants (n?=?365) produced two different essays, which were evaluated by their course peers and professors using a specific grading instrument (rubric). The validity of the task was demonstrated by a high inter-grader agreement and a strong degree of consistency between the ratings of the peers and professors. Although all students did not improve their writing skills between their first and second essays, the peer-assessment activity enhanced the writing abilities of low but not high-achieving participants. The pedagogical implications of these results are discussed.     

Referral,enrollment, and completion in developmental education sequences in community colleges

After being assessed, many students entering community colleges are referred to one or more levels of developmental education. While the need to assist students with weak academic skills is well known, little research has examined student progression through multiple levels of developmental education and into entry-level college courses. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the patterns and determinants of student progression through sequences of developmental education starting from initial referral. Our results indicate that fewer than one half of the students who are referred to remediation actually complete the entire sequence to which they are referred. About 30 percent of students referred to developmental education do not enroll in any remedial course, and only about 60 percent of referred students actually enroll in the remedial course to which they were referred. The results also show that more students exit their developmental sequences because they did not enroll in the first or a subsequent course than because they failed or withdrew from a course in which they were enrolled. We also show that men, older students, African American students, part-time students, and students in vocational programs are less likely to progress through their full remedial sequences.     

The effects of self-regulated learning training on community college students’ metacognition and achievement in developmental math courses

The effects of training in self-regulation on metacognition and math achievement were investigated. The participants were 116 community college students enrolled in developmental math courses. Students enrolled in 16 classrooms were randomly assigned to the treatment and control groups. Participants in the treatment group completed four self-regulated learning (SRL) exercises based on Zimmerman’s (2002) cyclical model. The exercises were completed weekly and repeated for a total of 3 weeks. During the last week of class, participants completed a final exam to measure math achievement as well as the metacognitive self-regulation and time/study environment management scales on the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire ([MSLQ], Pintrich, Smith, Garcia, & McKeachie, 1991). There were significant differences between the two groups, indicating that training in SRL improved math achievement and metacognitive skills assessed on both MSLQ scales. The findings suggested that training in SRL improves math achievement, metacognitive self-regulation and time/study environmental management skills of students enrolled in developmental math courses.     

远程学习者辍学影响因素的追踪对比研究

本研究以某省级电大2010年春季入学的英语专业本科生为研究样本,对其进行追踪调查,对比分析了第一学期和第二学期辍学生在个人背景、学习情况及辍学原因上的异同。研究数据通过网上调查问卷和深度访谈的方式获得,并在"远程教育辍学归因框架"下,使用量化统计和质性研究工具Nvivo 8.0进行编码和分析。研究发现,第二学期的辍学生比之前者,尽管学习目标更加明确,英语基础较好,学习投入更多,但其努力程度依然有限,加之课程难度增加,学校教学支持服务又不到位,使其在工学矛盾等环境因素的刺激下最终做出辍学的决定。与第一学期相比,导致辍学的因素更趋多样化,且激烈程度大为降低;隶属于远程教育机构的因素在辍学影响中发挥着更大的作用。     

Using Online Studio Groups to Improve Writing Competency: A Pilot Study in a Quality Improvement Methods Course

Communication skills are a significant contributor to an individual's success in the workplace. Unfortunately, students often have trouble expressing their ideas in written form and the poor quality of students’ written work often impedes the learning process. This pilot study investigates the use of online writing studios within a quality improvement methods course and the impact of this intervention on students’ writing competency and perceptions about the writing process. The impact of this approach on student performance is evaluated within and across semesters using comparative statistical analyses. Results show that students who participated in online writing studios performed better (i.e., at least one rubric level higher) on their final written assignments for the course compared to students who did not, and that this approach is associated with improved students’ perceptions about the writing process. This research suggests that the use of online writing studios within a content‐specific course can incrementally improve students’ writing competency over the course of one semester, and can positively affect the learning of written communication skills and change students’ perceptions about various aspects of the writing process.     

Continuing education student flow analysis

A five year longitudinal student flow analysis was conducted on 427 students who first enrolled in a two-year college's noncredit continuing education classes. Over half (54%) of this group reenrolled at the college at least once during the five-year period, and 49% of these persisters enrolled in a college credit course. The majority of reenrollments occurred one or two semesters after the initial college attendance. Other analyses included comparison of nonpersisters to persisters on type of initial course selection and examination of credit versus noncredit persisters. Implications of the study and future research directions are also discussed.     

The Comparative Impacts of Social Justice Educational Methods on Political Participation,Civic Engagement,and Multicultural Activism

This cross-sectional, repeated measures, quasi-experimental study evaluates changes in college students’ commitment toward, and confidence in, political participation, civic engagement, and multicultural activism. Our sample (n = 653) consisted of college students in a Midwestern university who participated in one of three social justice education course types (service learning, intergroup dialogue, or lecture-based diversity classes) or in an “introduction to psychology” course (the non-intervention group). After completion of a social justice education course, students reported an increase in political participation and multicultural activism, whereas students enrolled in the non-intervention group reported no changes in these measures. Service learning course participants started and ended their course with the highest reported levels of political participation, civic engagement, and multicultural activism but did not demonstrate an increase in any of the three outcomes. Intergroup dialogue participants demonstrated increases in all three outcomes, while participants of lecture-based classes focusing on social justice issues demonstrated increases in political participation and multicultural activism, but not civic engagement. Our findings suggest that participation in social justice education courses is associated with increases in political participation and multicultural activism.     

The Relationship between Assignment Completion and the Attrition and Achievement in Correspondence Courses

Abstract

The relationships between the number of assignments completed by students, whether or not they completed a correspondence course, and their final grades were investigated. The subjects were two separate groups of students enrolled in a correspondence course in fundamental accounting during two consecutive years at the School of Continuing Education, University of Toronto. Students who did more than half of the assignments were significantly more likely to complete the course. Furthermore, the more assignments they submitted, the higher their final examination grade tended to be. Explanation for the observed relationships and suggestions to improve the generally low completion rate in correspondence courses are offered.     

Exploring Elementary Pre-service Teachers’ Beliefs About Science Teaching and Learning as Revealed in Their Metaphor Writing

This study examined elementary preservice teachers’ beliefs about the role/image of a science teacher and science teaching and how these beliefs change during an elementary science methods course; this examination was conducted through an analysis of their metaphor writing. Data included personal metaphors and rationale papers for supporting them collected from 106 participants at the start and end of the semester. Data were analyzed using the constant comparative method and also quantified for statistical analysis. Results indicate that most participants came to the course with traditional views and developed more constructivist views during the course. However, they tended to keep their traditional views and added new constructivist perspectives into their original belief systems. This study suggests that metaphor writing can be used as both a reflection tool for preservice teachers to clarify and refine their beliefs about science teaching and learning and a diagnostic assessment tool for teacher educators to understand their students for tailoring a methods course accordingly.