Student views regarding online freshmen physics courses

Background: Nationally, many public universities have started to move into the online course and program market that was previously associated with for-profit institutions of higher education. Public university administrators state that students seek the flexibility of online courses. But do students want to take courses online, especially freshmen-level science courses perceived to be difficult?

Purpose: This study investigated student views related to the potential of a physics course they were currently enrolled in being offered online.

Sample: This study took place at a large, public, mid-western university and involved students enrolled in either the first or second semester of a face-to-face flipped physics course for engineering technology majors.

Design and methods: Discussions with students during the semester about their online course experiences and expectations were used to develop the concourse and subsequently the Q sample to perform a Q methodology study about students’ views regarding taking physics courses online. Additional statements for the concourse and Q sample were taken from communications with administrators at the university. In this way, the statements sorted by the students included those from students and those from administrators. Factor analysis of the Q sorts resulted in three factors, each representing a unique perspective. Interpretations of these perspectives included the analyses of the Q sorts, the researcher’s interactions with students and administrators, and students’ written responses regarding their previous online course experiences and their sorting decisions.

Results: Three unique student views emerged were named: keeping it real and face-to-face, Online could be ok depending upon the course and instructor, and Online not for STEM classes. Consensus among the views is also discussed.

Conclusions: Overall, students’ views are negative concerning having physics courses, including labs, online and those views conflict with statements expressed by administrators regarding students’ desires for online courses at the university.     

RESEARCH REPORT

The study explores teachers’ experiences of teaching a context‐based chemistry course, Salters Advanced Chemistry, as compared with teachers of a conventional course. Second, main factors that appear to influence decisions over whether or not to adopt context‐based courses are investigated. Two hundred and twenty‐two teachers’ views of a context‐based and a conventional school advanced chemistry course were obtained from a questionnaire. Responses were analysed in six dimensions: motivation, chemical knowledge and development of concepts, learning activities, assessment, challenge to teachers and students, and teacher support. Both sets of teachers agreed that the context‐based course is more motivating to study and teach, that students would be more interested in chemistry and more likely to go to university to study chemistry, that students would be better able to study independently but that it is more demanding to teach and study. The groups differed principally about concept development and teaching strategy. The context‐based teachers believed that their course gave as good a foundation for further study as a traditional course and that the spiral curriculum was advantageous. Conventional course teachers disagreed with both statements. One significant implication to emerge from the study is the crucial role played by in‐service support in influencing the impact of a curriculum innovation.     

Space for performing teacher identity: through the lens of Kafka and Hegel

In this study, we argue that a teacher has a crucial role in leading students into collaborative inquiry‐learning practices. While many studies have given the impression that students are able to engage in inquiry processes on their own, the role of social practices and teacher guidance often remains unexplained. However, even when the pedagogical setting is organized toward collaboration and student‐driven inquiry, it does not mean that students will, as a matter of course, collaborate and take collective responsibility for their own learning. This research has been conducted by a teacher and researchers, and reports on the teacher’s impressions about organizing and promoting a computer‐supported collaborative inquiry process in her classroom of the fourth and fifth grade levels of a Finnish elementary school. The ‘Artifact Project’ was collaboratively designed together by the class teacher and researchers, but the teacher was responsible for implementing and adapting plans in practice. The aim of the ‘Artifact Project – the Past, the Present, and the Future’ – was to support students’ (n = 32) understanding of the diversity of artifacts. Students were asked to analyze artifacts within the cultural context, to study physical phenomena related to them, and to design future artifacts. A collaborative learning environment, Knowledge Forum, facilitated the activities. During the process, the teacher wrote weekly in a reflective project diary. The template of the diary guided the teacher to reflect on the issues that she considered important at the writing moment: the organizing practices, topic content and process stages; how the classroom community functioned; as well as the role of technology as a support for the process. The contents of the diary were analyzed with qualitative content analysis with the help of AtlasTi software. This study depicts an experienced teacher’s practices, her efforts to promote pupils’ cognitive responsibility for advancing their collaborative object‐oriented inquiry process themselves. Instead of trying to control all aspects of pupils’ learning, the teacher assumed the role of an organizer concerning collaborative progressive inquiry and designing activities. Organizing and supporting activities were based on a continuous following of the pupils’ states of process. Knowledge Forum structured the process and mediated activities, and rendered their objects visible and accessible to the whole learning collective. We suggest that in order to expand and scale up advanced inquiry practices, teachers’ usually invisible work in guiding and directing classroom practices has to be made visible and should be analyzed in detail.     

Scientific Processes in PISA Tests Observed for Science Teachers

A research study, mainly based on the notion of ‘scientific literacy’ from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2003 assessment framework, was carried out obtaining data from the administration of an open written questionnaire with items covering three central scientific processes—describing, explaining and predicting scientific phenomena; understanding scientific investigation; and interpreting scientific evidence and conclusions—to 30 experienced in‐service secondary school science teachers. The purpose was to analyse their views regarding the competences on the mentioned scientific processes assessed by Science PISA tests: which of the competences assessed were the most frequently identified by teachers, which of the competences they considered presenting difficulties for their students, and, finally, which activities they used in their classes to promote similar competences. Our results indicated that teachers had different perceptions of one or other scientific processes considered relevant for scientific literacy in the PISA framework. Their awareness of the expected students’ difficulties did not necessarily match the competences intended to be assessed by either PISA or what they thought to be assessed. Moreover, their views differed depending not only on the type of scientific process but also on the underlying subject. Concern about the students’ need of reading fluently with understanding and of paying special attention during the test time was also observed.     

Embedded Assessment in Project‐based Science Courses for the Gifted: Insights to inform teaching all students

The present study of gifted students’ views of assessment is aimed at understanding how the employment of Embedded Assessment for Learning (EAfL) framework in science courses for the gifted affects the students’ views throughout the learning process. The participants were 86 students in three programmes for the gifted who elected project‐based science courses. The data included questionnaires, distributed at the beginning and at the end of the assessment processes in each science course, and in‐depth interviews with 12 students, which were analysed according to three main themes: general view of assessment; assessment modes; and relationships between assessment and learning. The students viewed the EAfL framework as an integral part of the learning process, and perceived it as a means of expressing autonomous learning and a range of performances; characteristics that correspond with the students’ unique needs. In addition, students addressed cognitive and social processes they had undergone. This implies that assessment which is explicitly designed to promote learning in science courses is a powerful tool for teachers as well as for students, and contributes to meaningful learning.     

Thought Experiments in Physics Education: A Simple and Practical Example

Thought experiments play a vital role in scientific argumentation. However, implications for pedagogy are generally neglected. In this article, a Galilean thought experiment is used to enhance learning in a college-level physical science course. Both modern and historical perspectives of Galileo's work are presented. As a final project, students explore Galileo's thought experiment in the laboratory using modern detectors with satisfying results. The project experience lends insight into both the content and processes of science. Extensions to other educational contexts are discussed.     

Relations between students’ perceptions of the teaching-learning environment and teachers’ approaches to teaching: a qualitative study

ABSTRACT

In recent decades, a constructivist view of learning has triggered a change in teaching-learning environments (TLEs). Teacher-centred TLEs have been replaced by student-centred ones where the teachers’ approaches to teaching are more learning- than content-focused. Previous research exploring the relationship between student-centred TLEs and the quality of learning has shown contradictory results. Previous studies also indicate that various elements of TLEs may influence students’ learning. This study explored course-level types of elements, enhancing or hindering, related to TLEs, which the course students described. The TLEs of the courses varied because the teachers adopted different types of approaches to teaching. The data for this study were collected through semi-structured interviews with undergraduate students (N = 33) from three compulsory courses. The interviews were designed so that students could describe their perceptions of the course as well as their learning experiences and processes. The data were analysed using qualitative content analysis. The results revealed that when the teacher employed a consonant learning-focused approach to teaching, the students perceived almost all elements of the TLE as enhancing. When the teacher’s approach to teaching was identified as dissonant, the students perceived several elements of the TLE as hindering. This study revealed that inclusion of student-activating teaching-learning activities is important when designing TLEs, but that it is also crucial to design elements which guide and structure students’ learning.

Abbreviation: TLE: teaching-learning environment     

Leaving certificate accounting: Measuring students’ perceptions with the course experience questionnaire

Abstract

This study uses the Course Experience Questionnaire (CEQ) to explore tertiary students’ perceptions of their recently completed Leaving Certificate higher‐level Accounting course. Overall it finds that students hold positive views of the course, consider the workload and assessment were appropriate, and perceive the goals and standards of the course to be clear. Generally, they were happy with the teaching of the course but a significant minority felt their teachers did not provide enough feedback or make the course interesting. While the students believe the course developed some generic skills, disappointingly, they do not feel confident in tackling unfamiliar problems. They also think that the course did not improve their written communication skills or ability to work as a team member. Recommendations about the volume of course material and assessment practices are made to help address these issues.     

An initial examination of Singaporean seventh and eighth graders’ views of nature of science

Research in nature of science (NOS) among Asia-Pacific countries such as Singapore is arguably scarce. This study aimed to survey Singaporean secondary school students’ views of NOS with a newly developed instrument named Students’ Views of Nature of Science (SVNOS), which included various key aspects of NOS that are generally agreed upon by the science education community. Moreover, the relations between some demographic factors, including gender and grade, and students’ views of NOS were explored.

Sample, design and method

In total, 359 Singaporean seventh and eighth graders were invited to participate in this survey. The reliability, validity and structure of the SVNOS instrument were ensured by confirmatory factor analysis. A two-way multivariate analysis of variance was then conducted to determine the interaction effects between the gender variable and the grade-level variable.

Results and conclusion

The results indicated that the SVNOS instrument is reliable and valid to assess students’ views of NOS regarding seven distinct NOS dimensions. The male students were more prone to have constructivist-oriented views of NOS in the most of the SVNOS dimensions, while the female students conveyed more non-objective views of NOS. In addition, the eighth graders revealed more empiricist-oriented views of NOS than the seventh graders in several SVNOS dimensions. This result seems to contradict the results of previous studies that students’ views of NOS may reflect a developmental trend with their increasing educational experiences.     

LESSONS LEARNED IN FOUR URBAN EARLY CHILDHOOD PROGRAMS AND THE IMPLICATIONS FOR TEACHER EDUCATION

Abstract

Teacher educators are often searching for methods and/or techniques to enhance and expand the content of their courses. As teacher educators, we do not want to introduce new methodology that detracts our students’ attention away from the course content. However, we need to keep our courses current and interesting for ourselves as well as for our students. Several teacher educators at one institution have begun including service‐learning projects into their preservice and inservice teachers’ courses as a way to augment the standard curriculum. The focus of this study is to illustrate how service‐learning was incorporated into the existing children's literature course and share the five cooperative projects that resulted from this integration.     

“I was giving someone who didn’t have a voice a voice”: exploring qualitative mini-research projects as a tool to teach students about aging

ABSTRACT

In the study of gerontology, fieldwork with older adults is often used to enhance students’ understanding of the aging process. While assignments based on interactions with older adults are a common practice in teaching students enrolled in gerontology studies, we know less about the impact of such activities on students from other disciplines. This paper summarizes students’ experiences with an assignment offered to a diverse cohort of undergraduate students who took a course in social gerontology. To complete this assignment, students had to interview an older adult, summarize the life story of the participant, apply a theoretical perspective to the older adult’s life story, and reflect on the process. Analyzing data derived from 72 assignments and 10 semi-structured interviews with students who were enrolled in the course, this paper examines students’ experiences with this assignment. Specifically, we identify what aspects of the assignment students found beneficial, what aspects they found challenging, and in what ways this assignment helped students to enhance their understanding of aging. Our findings suggest that students found it challenging to recruit an older adult for an interview and struggled with the semi-structured nature of the interview process. All students found the actual interview process to be extremely rewarding and beneficial for their learning. In discussion, we provide some recommendations on how to offer this type of assignment to a diverse group of students enrolling in the courses on social gerontology.     

Empowering Students in a Feminist Social Work Practice Course

Abstract

Since 1993, a faculty collective has team-taught a feminist social work practice course. The course, designed to heighten student knowledge of feminist practice, was expected to empower students. An overview of the course is presented with an analysis of its impact on student perceptions of personal and professional power. Pre and post measures of empowerment were analyzed and used to derive outcome measures of change in student views of themselves as empowered persons and practitioners. Findings indicate that students had significantly higher perceptions of their personal and professional power upon completion of the feminist practice course than before. Implications for social work students and practitioners are discussed.     

Research,writing, and racial identity: Cross‐disciplinary connections for multicultural education

Abstract

This paper describes a classroom‐based research study designed to determine how students in an undergraduate multicultural education course experience difficult and emotional content about racism. Samples of students’ reflective writing were used as sources of data, and Janet Helms’ theory of racial identity development served as the framework for analysis. Findings suggest that coursework in multicultural education can influence white students’ racial identities. In addition, the experiences of one white student are highlighted as she grappled with issues of white privilege and multicultural teaching. This study illustrates how reflective writing in combination with teaching practices informed by psychological theory helped to expand students’ understanding of racism while facilitating the development of their racial identities.     

How teams learn to regulate collaborative processes with technological support

We examined the utility of a technologically enhanced collective regulation system for improving students’ collaborative sense-making processes, i.e., discussion quality, over time. Participants were 27 online undergraduate students enrolled in an introductory information science course. Students were divided into teams tasked with carrying out five online synchronous discussions and collective reflection activities in the system focusing on improving their processes over a ten-week period. Discussion quality was evaluated by a trained graduate student, using the same assessment rubric used by teams. Both qualitative and quantitative analysis techniques were used to examine teams’ collaborative discussion quality and socio-metacognitive processes over time. Findings suggest teams significantly improved discussion quality and used the features in the system to do so. The results also suggested that while individuals were generally inaccurate in assessing their team’s discussion quality, group assessment accuracy and identification of team’s weaknesses improved over time in select areas.

     

Using argumentation as a learning strategy to improve student performance in engineering Statics

ABSTRACT

Research suggests that a significant reason that a large number of students earn low grades in the fundamental engineering science course Statics is that they may be entering the course with incorrect conceptual knowledge of mathematics and physics. The self-explanation learning approach called collective argumentation helps k-12 students to understand their misconceptions of mathematical principles that often appear abstract to them. This study investigated collective argumentation as an instructional approach that helps engineering students identify and correct their misconceptions of topics taught in Statics. Results suggest that argumentation improves student performance as measured by grades earned on semester exams. Survey and focus group results suggest that students did not understand the argumentation process. Therefore, the students did not like using it as a learning approach.     

Using personalized learning as an instructional approach to motivate learners in online higher education: Learner self-determination and intrinsic motivation

Abstract

In this qualitative comparison study, we examine the perceived efficacy of using personalized learning (PL) activities based on PL principles to support students’ psychological need satisfaction and intrinsic motivation in an online course using a traditional one-size-fits-all model. We apply self-determination theory as a framework to investigate students’ perceptions of their psychological need satisfaction (e.g., competence, autonomy, and relatedness) and relation to students’ intrinsic motivation when enrolled in an online course implementing PL principles. Overall, the study results showed the potential of implementing personalized learning principles in online courses to support students’ psychological need satisfaction (e.g., autonomy and competence) and intrinsic motivation. Furthermore, students perceived the PL interventions as engaging and effective in meeting their learning needs and interests.     

Social and cognitive effects of professional communication on software usability

We designed and piloted a technical communication course for software engineering majors to take concurrently with their capstone project course in software design. In the pilot, one third of the capstone design course students jointly enrolled in the writing class. One goal of the collaborative courses was to use writing to improve the usability of students’ software. We studied the effects of writing on students’ user‐centered beliefs and design practices and on the usability of their product, using surveys, document analyses, expert reviews, and user test results. When possible, we compared the usability processes and products of teams who did and did not take the writing class. Our findings suggest that the synergy of this interdisciplinary approach effectively sensitized students to user‐centered design, instilled in them a commitment to it, and helped them develop usable products.