Digital Commons Network^™

A Multi-Case Study Of Student Perceptions Of Online Course Design Elements And Success, Liz Fayer Dr.

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Course design is viewed as a critical component of student success in online classes. The purpose of this qualitative multi-case study was to examine student perceptions of course design elements that supported student success. The study included three data sources for each of the three cases: responses to questionnaires, written responses during online peer discussions, and course data/documents. The course studied was a prerequisite to student teaching in the post-baccalaureate online teacher certification program at a small, rural, Midwestern university. Guiding this research was the idea that a fundamental pedagogical shift is needed for online student success due to …

Employing Concept Mapping As A Pre-Writing Strategy To Help Efl Learners Better Generate Argumentative Compositions, Ibrahim M. R. Al-Shaer Ph.D.

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

The purpose of this research was to examine the impact of employing concept mapping at a pre-writing stage on English as a foreign language (EFL) students' ability to generate better argumentative essays. Thirty-eight participants were randomly assigned to two groups participating in Writing II course at Al-Quds Open University (QOU). Both groups had the same teacher. The control group received instruction as required in the textbook only, and the experimental group were additionally required to construct concept maps at the pre-writing stage and compose essays based on the constructed maps. All participants were required to sit for pre- and post-tests …

Exploring The Feasibility Of International Collaboration And Relationship Building Through A Virtual Partnership Scheme, Kim K. Smith, Jane Mackenzie, Renee A. Meyers

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

International collaboration is an under-studied component of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL). This study sheds light on the process of international collaboration by illustrating an exploratory approach to the process of forming and maintaining collaborative partnerships. Participants in this study were put into pairs (each one comprised of one individual from the University of Glasgow and another from the University of Wisconsin System) and asked to participate in email correspondence over the course of one year. The text of participants’ emails was pooled and analyzed through a general inductive approach using NVivo software. The study, though small in …

A Sense Of Belonging: How Student Feelings Correlate With Learning About Race, Cyndi Kernahan, Wei Zheng, Tricia Davis

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Learning about race and racism can be a difficult process. Previous work has shown that courses in this area can help to increase awareness of racial bias and discrimination, but less work has focused on how that change occurs. We hypothesized that feelings of belonging within the classroom could correlate with student learning and our results indeed showed a strong correlation among these factors. Across three courses, all focused on race and diversity, feelings of belonging predicted not only perceptions of learning, but also graded forms of learning and increases in racial awareness. Results are discussed in terms of the …

From ‘Sage On The Stage’ To ‘Guide On The Side’: A Good Start, Charles D. Morrison

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

While the now-clichéd shift from ‘sage on the stage’ to ‘guide on the side’ that characterizes the changing role of teachers is a good start, it is just that – a start. In this paper, I argue for a detailed look at the concomitant shift in the role of students, as they leave the world of passive recipients and join the ranks of active participants in the teaching-learning nexus. The paper discusses the problematic conflation of the terms ‘information’ and ‘knowledge’ that surfaces in consideration of the shifting roles of teachers and students, and argues that, in addition to defining …

Learning Experiences In An International Email Exchange Project, Hyong S. Yeom, Hwa-Ok Bae, Carrie Mccann

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

This study examines students’ learning experience in a semester-long email exchange project as a normal class activity between U.S. and Korean social work undergraduate students in fall 2008 and fall 2009. We used a content analysis to analyze the qualitative data of the email content and of the end-of-semester surveys. The study found this email exchange helped students develop cross-cultural understanding; enhance their knowledge of social or social justice issues in both countries; learn the social work profession and its commonalities and differences in both countries; and expand their interest in other countries. This study also suggests ways to modify …

Course-Based Civic Engagement: Understanding Student Perspectives And Outcomes, Leila R. Brammer, Anna Morton

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Student reflections on course-based civic engagement provide insights into their experiences and can be a useful foundation for crafting assignments to meet student needs. Rich student narratives emerged from of an immersive semester-long community-based project in a public advocacy course. Although a number of interesting findings, including insights about student learning, personal growth, and empowerment, are embedded in the reflections, this paper focuses on how students described civic engagement, both their experiences and general conclusions about the nature of productive community involvement. Students identified five factors—research, collaboration, effort, passion, and responsibility—as useful and imperative for civic engagement.

The Effect Of Instructor Title On Student Instructional Expectations, Katharina Denise Kendall, Elisabeth E. Schussler

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

This study investigated undergraduate pre-semester instructional expectations of two types of introductory biology course instructors based on four titles (faculty member [FM], graduate teaching assistant [GTA], lecture instructor, laboratory instructor). Data were collected via an online survey administered before students had met their instructors. All students enrolled in first-semester non-majors and majors introductory biology were invited to participate, and 199 students completed the survey. Results identified different instructional expectations for instructors based on the four titles. Significantly, students anticipated differences between FMs and lecture instructors, and GTAs and lab instructors, despite these being the same individual. These results suggest that …

Content, Affective, And Behavioral Challenges To Learning: Students’ Experiences Learning Statistics, April L. Mcgrath

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

This study examined the experiences of and challenges faced by students when completing a statistics course. As part of the requirement for this course, students completed a learning check-in, which consisted of an individual meeting with the instructor to discuss questions and the completion of a learning reflection and study plan. Forty psychology students enrolled in two sections of an introductory statistics course volunteered for the research study. The types of questions raised by students during their meetings and the themes found in their learning reflections are presented. Results from this study provide information about the content, affective, and behavioral …

Let’S Talk! Facilitating A Faculty Learning Community Using A Critical Friends Group Approach, Julie A. Moore, Joya Carter-Hicks

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

This article focuses on the complex process of facilitating a Critical Friends Group as a form of a professional learning community by teacher education faculty. During a three-year initiative, seven faculty members created a forum for collegial conversations regarding pedagogical dilemmas in efforts of improving teaching practice and student achievement. Critical Friends Groups use protocol guides to actively engage its members in learning, thinking, reading and discussing dilemmas from interdisciplinary perspectives. This article reviews the literature of Critical Friends Groups, the work of this particular Critical Friends Group and concludes by providing a rationale for sustainability of Critical Friends Groups …

Investigating Transnational Collaboration Of Faculty Development And Learning: An Argument For Making Learning Culturally Relevant, Dr. Janine F. Allen

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Professional development offered to higher education faculty is meant to enhance pedagogy and improve practice. Inspired by a transnational partnership in Southeast Asia, this study aimed to discover how teacher education faculty perceived faculty development offered to them by university partnership colleagues from the United States. Survey findings indicate that certain faculty development strategies improved teaching and assessment practices and enhanced self-reflection. However, evidence also showed some negative faculty perceptions in relation to the US partner’s methodologies, and qualitative responses indicated a lack of relevancy to the Southeastern Asia context. Furthermore, negative correlations were found between faculty development workshops and …

Assessing The Impact Of A K-12 Engagement Program On Graduate Learning Outcomes For Communicating With Diverse Audiences, Pedagogy, And Community Engagement, Faith Weeks, Jon Harbor

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

A large midwestern university has developed a program that places graduate students in middle school classrooms to enhance the graduate students’ communication skills with diverse audiences, develop pedagogical knowledge, and provide a foundation for effective future K-12 engagement. After observing and co-teaching, participants develop and implement a standards- and inquiry-based lesson that brings their graduate research theme into the classroom. To provide insights into impacts on graduate students, qualitative methods were used to identify emergent themes in narratives written by graduate student participants. Major themes included new awareness of challenges in effective teaching for diverse audiences, insight into effective strategies …

So, You Think You Can Teach? - Reflection Processes That Support Pre-Service Teachers’ Readiness For Field Experiences, Denise Mcdonald, Michele Kahn

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

This paper discusses and examines the effectiveness of course assignments designed to promote reflection processes and critical thinking of pre-service teachers. Specifically, the study explores and identifies the range of students’ level of reflectivity and critical examination of their own developing pedagogy, with foci on content knowledge, dispositions and teaching skills. In general, initial findings indicate students’ levels of reflectivity ranged from “self” to “outside of self” to “beyond self” concerns or focus. Analysis further revealed that the students’ existing epistemological beliefs possibly mediate their level of reflectivity by either inhibiting the reflective process (most evident with those focused on …

Opposing Forces: Institutional Theory And Second-Generation Sotl, Laura Cruz

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

This essay suggests that institutional theory has much to offer the SoTL movement by identifying the specific forces that oppose teaching and learning initiatives and offering solutions for nudging cultural change towards the desired outcomes.

Sotl Principles And Program Collaboration In The Age Of Integration, George Rehrey, Greg Siering, Carol Hostetter

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

The increasing acceptance of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) on our campus has led to spreading SoTL principles outside of the usual faculty classroom research projects and teaching/learning center. Three programs examined how SoTL principles aided in integration and initiative building. The programs are the Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning, the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Program, and the Faculty Colloquium on Excellence in Teaching. Attempts at integration and collaboration have successfully brought SoTL principles into community building, consensus building, and program assessment. A unified voice, mutual respect, and responsiveness to institutional needs have been the necessary …

The Scholarship Of Teaching And Learning: An Opportunity For Clinical Faculty Members In Academic Pharmacy And Other Health Professions To Develop A Program Of Scholarship, Paul O. Gubbins

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Expansion in academic pharmacy and other health professions has increased the demand for clinical faculty members. The requirement to provide clinical service is unique to clinical faculty and creates a competing demand with the expectation to excel in the tripartite missions of their institution. The efforts of clinical faculty are heavily focused towards the institution’s educational mission. However, often they lack formal training in educational methodology and require ongoing professional development to hone their teaching skills. Therefore, as clinical faculty develop as scholarly teachers, the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) represents an ideal form of scholarship for them to …

Graduate Student Perceptions Of The Use Of Online Course Tools To Support Engagement, Stephanie B. King

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Graduate students in six online courses were asked to complete a questionnaire related to dimensions of engagement including participation and interaction, performance, studying, and relevance of material. Students were asked to indicate the importance of various online course features (e.g., online discussions) in enhancing their engagement in each dimension using a Likert scale. Twenty-six (29%) students completed the questionnaire. Students rated most course management system features as extremely important or very important. When the ratings for the four engagement areas were grouped by course site feature, the feature with the highest mean rating was “instructor feedback on assignments/assessments.” The feature …

Assessing The Effectiveness Of Reality-Based Focusing Events Across The Curriculum, Eloy Nunez, Ernest G. Vendrell, Nancy Ryan

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

A mythical Democratic-Republican National Convention (DRNC) was created as a focusing event which serves as the overarching theme for all newly redesigned courses in the graduate Criminal Justice Department at Saint Leo University. The study examines the effectiveness of focusing events in a graduate level curriculum. Students in the newly redesigned DRNC courses were surveyed. The results indicate that the overarching theme was perceived as being a valuable learning tool. The respondents indicated that the DRNC scenarios were highly realistic and would strengthen decision-making skills in their individual criminal justice careers. Somewhat surprising was the finding that the newly designed …

Using Clickers To Collect Formative Feedback On Teaching: A Tool For Faculty Development, Erica Gunn

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Incorporation of clicker technology in an introductory chemistry class is described as a method for collecting and automatically tabulating student feedback for use in formative faculty development. Students are polled in real-time on issues of classroom management and the success of various teaching methods. Tabulated data is displayed on the classroom screen and used to facilitate classroom discussion. This method was introduced in a first-year general chemistry class for non-majors and resulted in unusually high student evaluation marks in categories related to communication with the instructor. The success of the method was evaluated using mid-semester and final student evaluations, informal …

Building Capacity For The Scholarship Of Teaching And Learning (Sotl) Using International Collaborative Writing Groups, Elizabeth Marquis, Mick Healey, Michelle Vine

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Objective: To understand participants’ perceptions of the impact of an innovative International Collaborative Writing Group (ICWG) initiative on their individual and collective SoTL capacity.

Methods: A mixed method research design included participant surveys (phases 1 and 3), and focus groups and interviews (phase 2). Data from all three phases of research have been triangulated in order to facilitate an in-depth understanding of participants' experiences.

Findings: Findings reveal four key themes: mentoring and leadership, the creation of community, diversity of perspectives, and experiential learning and professional skill development.

Discussion and Implications: Through the opportunities presented in relation …

‘Methodologically Sound’ Under The ‘Big Tent’: An Ongoing Conversation, Nancy L. Chick

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

This essay synthesizes ongoing conversations as it explores the third and arguably most complicated of Peter Felten’s “Principles of Good Practice in SoTL,” “methodologically sound.”

Context Matters For Teaching And Sotl: Economic Constraints, Contingent Faculty, And Technology, Maxine P. Atkinson

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

The social contexts within which we live have a remarkable impact on our daily lives as well as our trajectory. Contexts are also more specific. We teach in a context of a changing higher education institution. The purpose of this essay is to review some of the current conditions in higher education under which teaching and learning occur in the hope that it will help us consider their implications, suggest how we how we might take advantage of the opportunities that allow better teaching, and lessen the impact of the conditions that threaten improvements to teaching and learning. The economic …

Creating A Transformational Learning Experience: Immersing Students In An Intensive Interdisciplinary Learning Environment, Shelley K. White, Mindell Reiss Nitkin

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

The Simmons World Challenge is a unique, interdisciplinary program recently developed at Simmons College. It immerses students in an intensive winter-session course that challenges them to tackle a pressing social issue, such as poverty or hunger, and create actionable solutions to the problem. The program was conceived and designed to harness the strengths of pedagogical theories on transformational teaching and learning. This article describes the Simmons World Challenge and presents assessment findings from the program’s third iteration in 2013, as well as on the long-term impact of the program based on follow-up assessments with the first two cohorts of students. …

Introductory Biology Course Reform: A Tale Of Two Courses, Michele I. Shuster Phd, Ralph Preszler

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Over the past eight years we have undertaken iterative cycles of course reform in two introductory biology courses: Biology 111 and Biology 211. Our revisions of these formerly “traditional” lecture courses have included in-class case studies with and without peer facilitators and peer-facilitated small-group workshops.

Based on analyses of overall pass rates, as well as pass rates by gender and by underrepresented minority (URM) status, we have found that there are differences in the effectiveness of alternative course models in the two courses. In Biol 111, required peer-facilitated workshops improved overall student performance, especially for URM and female students (Preszler, …

Disentangling The Effects Of Student Attitudes And Behaviors On Academic Performance, Susan Janssen, Maureen O'Brien

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

The interplay among motivation, ability, attitudes, behaviors, homework, and learning is unclear from previous research. We analyze data collected from 687 students enrolled in seven economics courses. A model explaining homework and exam scores is estimated, and separate analyses of ability and motivation groups are conducted. We find that motivation and ability explain variation in both homework and exam scores. Attitudes and behaviors, such as procrastination and working with others directly, affect homework score, but not exam score. These effects are not the same within all motivation and ability groups. Given that homework is the strongest predictor of exam score, …

Improving Mathematics: An Examination Of The Effects Of Specific Cognitive Abilities On College-Age Students’ Mathematics Achievement, Gordon E. Taub, Nicholas Benson, Judit Szente

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

This study investigated the effects of general intelligence and seven specific cognitive abilities on college-age students’ mathematics achievement. The present investigation went beyond previous research by employing structural equation modeling. It also represents the first study to examine the direct and indirect effects of general and specific cognitive abilities, simultaneously, on the mathematics achievement of college-age students. A model developed using the Cattell-Horn-Carroll theory of intelligence was the theoretical model used in all analyses. Data from 1,054 college-age students who participated in the standardization of the Woodcock–Johnson III (Woodcock, McGrew, & Mather, 2001) were divided into a calibration sample set …

Students Perceptions Of Volunteering During The First Two Years Of Studying A Social Work Degree, Sherryl Gaston Ms, Mellissa L. Kruger Ms

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

There are benefits to volunteering for both the community and the student undertaking the volunteering, it can help to enhance the students understanding of the area they are moving into, or it can show them where they do not want to work. It can assist the student to connect with the community and develop an awareness of the society around them. In most social work programs in Australia there is no practical experience until the last half of the program. This study wanted to identify if social work students undertaking volunteer work during the first two years of their course, …

Fostering Significant Learning In Sciences, Tolessa Deksissa, Lily R. Liang, Pradeep Behera, Suzan J. Harkness

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

The new global economy depends on workforce competencies in science, technology, engineering and mathematics more than ever before. To prepare a strong workforce, attracting and educating underrepresented minority students in science is a challenge within our traditional American educational approach. To meet this challenge, fostering significant learning in science that nurtures 21^st Century skills in students is crucial. The purpose of this study was to analyze the effectiveness of a set of teaching and learning approaches that foster significant learning in sciences. Using a new introductory environmental science course in urban water quality management, the effect of a set …

Reconciling Apples & Oranges: A Constructivist Sotl Writing Program, Nancy L. Chick, La Vonne Cornell-Swanson, Katina Lazarides, Renee Meyers

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Faculty new to SoTL, especially when they consider writing for publication, often react by focusing on how different it is—apples and oranges—from their familiar disciplinary processes and products. Although there are indeed significant differences between individual disciplines and SoTL, appealing to the similarities can demystify SoTL as disciplinary experts reach out of their comfort zones and into areas of research and writing that often make them doubt themselves. We fill a gap in the SoTL literature by describing how to go from data analysis to publication in SoTL. We also report on our descriptive study delving into the complexities of …

An Applied Learning Experience Field Research And Reporting At The 2012 National Party Conventions, Carolyn S. Carlson, Joshua N. Azriel, Jeff Dewitt, Kerwin Swint

International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Scholarship in teaching and learning demonstrates how academic understanding may be best achieved, and values of civic engagement best inculcated, when class materials are delivered within a experiential context. The goal for instructors, therefore, is to develop pedagogic techniques and teaching platforms that enhance learning by doing by directly engaging students with educational content. Courses that focus on American political processes provide especially fruitful opportunities for such applied learning experiences. In this paper, we discuss and assess experiential learning as facilitated in a pair of undergraduate courses taught at a southern state university that focused on the study of American …