Learner Experiences of Online Pre-lecture Resources for an Introductory Chemistry Course at an Irish Higher Education Institution

The principal aim of this case study was to investigate students’ experiences of using online pre-lecture resources and their perceptions of their learning environment for the Introductory Chemistry module concerned. A subsidiary aim was to probe the experience of the lecturer involved of designing and piloting these resources and his perception of their impact on students’ learning. The student cohort who participated were a group of 49 first year level 8 undergraduate chemistry students at Technologicl University Dublin. These students took an Introductory Chemistry module over their first semester, the aim of which was to bring the level of understanding and knowledge of the entire cohort to a similar standard in the topics covered. One of the module lecturers developed a series of online pre-lecture resources designed to reduce the cognitive load experienced by these learners during their lectures. The basis of this research was the investigation of the qualitative variation in the ways that learners experienced their use of these online pre-lecture resources and their learning environment. The methodology selected was phenomenography and a mixed methods approach was used which involved an initial quantitative phase (Likert scale survey) which informed the major qualitative phase (phenomenographic interviews) that followed. The survey was distributed twice to the entire student cohort; in the second week of the module and in the first week of the second semester when the module summative examination was complete. The individual phenomenographic interviews were performed with nine participants within the first month of the second semester. A semi-structured interview with the lecturer who had designed the pre-lecture resources was also carried out to allow a comparison to be made between his perceptions of the learning environment and those of the students. Following analysis of the interviews, categories of description were arrived at for the different experiences students described, four for using the pre-lecture resources and three for perceptions of the learning environment. They were analysed using referential and structural aspects to produce outcome spaces for both units of analysis (the pre-lecture resources and the learning environment). The categories of description for each could be related to surface, strategic and deep approaches to learning and the findings will inform further redesign of the resources, particularly in relation to the multiple choice quiz component. The lecturer interview provided reinforcement for many of the accounts of experiences that emerged from the student interviews with the exception of a difference in perceptions in relation to the importance of allocating a continuous assessment mark to the resources. The findings from this study will now be applied to ensure that the intended learning outcomes for this module will be met by students who experience the learning environment in a variety of ways

A phenomenographic study to explore tutors' perceptions of the role of written feedback in promoting self-regulated learning at Durham University.

This thesis explored academics’ perceptions of self-regulated learning and their perceptions of how their written feedback helps students develop self-regulated learning skills. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from thirty-seven academics from three academic faculties at Durham University; the Faculty of Science, the Faculty of Arts and Humanities and the Faculty of Social Sciences and Health. As the purpose of the study was to identify the variances in the perceptions and beliefs of the academics interviewed, the data were analysed according to phenomenographic principles. According to the data analysis, four different categories emerged in relation to academics’ perceptions of self-regulated learners: ‘a self-regulated learner is a student who tries to understand concepts introduced in the degree program’, ‘a self-regulated learner is a student who connects concepts with each other to develop their own meanings’, ‘a self-regulated learner is a student who develops their content knowledge to be able to critically evaluate the evidence to develop their own perspective', and ‘a self-regulated learner is a student who develops learning skills to change as a person to become a life-long learner'. As we move from the first to the fourth category, conceptions become increasingly sophisticated. That is, whilst the conceptions of self-regulated learners described by academics in the first category are the simplest, those described in the fourth category are the most sophisticated. In the four categories, conceptions of self-regulated learners described by academics in the fourth category seem to be the most in line with traditional definitions of self-regulated learning as found in the academic literature. The findings in this study also indicate that there are important differences in academics’ use of written feedback that are strongly related to their perceptions of what self-regulated learning is and how it might be developed. That is, whilst academics in the first category use their written feedback to help their students understand concepts, academics in the second category use their written feedback to help their students connect concepts with each other to develop their own meanings. While academics in the third category use their written feedback to support the development of students’ critical thinking skills, academics in the fourth category use their written feedback to help develop their students’ motivation because they think that students who have sufficient motivation are likely to take more responsibility for their own learning. Academics in the fourth category believe that students who have taken responsibility for their own learning can develop their learning skills so that they are likely to become life-long learners. The thesis concludes that while some academics’ perceptions seem to align with the definition of self-regulated learning presented in the literature, most academics’ perceptions do not seem to be in line with this definition. Such findings indicate that there are discrepancies between theory and academics’ perceptions. The strong associations between academics’ perceptions of self-regulated learning and beliefs about their use of written feedback have important implications for teaching and learning. Therefore, it is likely that only academics in category 4, and possibly some academics in category 3 are using their written feedback in ways that will actually support the development of self-regulated learning. Academics who hold category 1, 2 and 3 perceptions are likely to be promoting some forms of learning behaviour and skills but whether they are fully supporting self-regulated learning is unclear. The implications of such a finding are that academics see self-regulated learning as more complex in practice and there are variances in their perceptions about where self-regulated learning starts from. Thus, academics’ perceptions present us with a more nuanced understanding of how self-regulated learning is viewed in practice. The findings also show that written feedback is used differently in all categories. We, therefore, need to acknowledge different functions and formats of written feedback and how these relate to different aspects of self-regulated learning

The use of electronic voting systems in lectures within business and marketing: a case study of their impact on student learning

This article presents a case study of the impact on student learning of introducing an electronic voting system (EVS) into large‐group lectures for first‐year undergraduate students undertaking degrees in marketing and business systems. We discuss the potential for using EVS‐style interactive lectures in marketing and business programmes. We then describe how we planned the session and selected and implemented the EVS system. We go on to present an evaluative research project, which was undertaken on the innovation using case‐study methodology, and assess its impact on student learning. Data for the evaluation were collected through questionnaire and focus groups with a sample of students. The data were analysed using thematic analysis. The findings show how students perceived the use of EVS in large lectures and how their learning was affected. A ‘three‐fold typology’ emerged that explains how students related to the EVS and how their perceptions of EVS changed over time. The discussion links these findings to the literature on different paradigms of learning and teaching, using Renshaw’s framework, and examines how the EVS‐style lectures promote deep and active learning within the constructivist, social constructivist and metacognitive learning paradigms identified in Renshaw’s model. The conclusions show how the use of a user‐friendly EVS in large lectures motivates students, develops students’ cognitive and social learning skills, and improves learning effectiveness

Contemporary developments in teaching and learning introductory programming: Towards a research proposal

The teaching and learning of introductory programming in tertiary institutions is problematic. Failure rates are high and the inability of students to complete small programming tasks at the completion of introductory units is not unusual. The literature on teaching programming contains many examples of changes in teaching strategies and curricula that have been implemented in an effort to reduce failure rates. This paper analyses contemporary research into the area, and summarises developments in the teaching of introductory programming. It also focuses on areas for future research which will potentially lead to improvements in both the teaching and learning of introductory programming. A graphical representation of the issues from the literature that are covered in the document is provided in the introduction

Conceptions of learning held by students in the lower, middle and upper grades of primary school

Conceptions of learning are the fundamental beliefs and ideas people hold about their own learning. To a large extent, these understandings determine the way in which learning tasks are tackled and, ultimately, the outcome of learning experiences. Using a phenomenographic approach, this study explored the conceptions of teaming held by six students in the lower, middle and upper grades of primary school. Data collected from a series of individual in-depth interviews resulted in the identification of six distinctly different conceptions of learning. At the most basic level, the students articulated their understanding of learning in a very general sense. This level is a unique finding of this study and has been termed Generic Learning. At the next level, students associated learning with being physically involved and Doing Things. As they progressed to more advanced understandings, the importance of Knowing More Things and Knowing Harder Things about their world was evident. Making sense of material was characteristic of the two final and most sophisticated conceptions which were labeled Searching for Meaning and Constructing New Understandings. These six categories show that primary school students perceive learning in a variety of ways. Therefore, teachers must not assume that all students perceive learning homogeneously, but rather endeavour to understand the differences and the implications these differences are likely to have on the way students approach their own learning. This knowledge will enable teachers to develop improved teaching methods that will facilitate learning, whatever their students\u27 conceptions of learning may be

Embedding social innovation and social impact across the disciplines: identifying "Changemaker" attributes

Purpose—This paper proposes an attributes framework for embedding “Changemaker”—a university initiative for promoting social innovation and social impact—across the disciplines at the University of Northampton. Design/methodology/approach—The study is based on the authors’ (2014) phenomenographic study that proposed five different conceptions of Changemaker held by academic staff: 1) Changemaker as institutional strategy; 2) Changemaker as critical thinking, perspective shifting and problem solving; 3) Changemaker as employability; 4) Changemaker as social betterment and 5) Changemaker as personal transformation. The present study explores pedagogic literature to identify skills, behaviours and attributes associated with each of these five categories. Findings—Findings from this literature review inform a taxonomy of Changemaker attributes, which offers a catalogue of skills and behaviours associated with the five conceptions of Changemaker. Research limitations/implications—The conceptions of Changemaker, that form the basis of the Changemaker attributes, represent the beliefs of teaching staff at the University of Northampton. Despite inherent limitations, the approach of using practice-based empirical findings to develop pedagogical tools may be of direct benefit to other education providers as they develop their own models for teaching and learning. Practical implications—The Changemaker attributes will be used by the University of Northampton during the design, approval and review of courses to ensure that social innovation and social impact is embedded across the disciplines. Academic staff can refer these attributes when designing assessments and for inspiration toward innovative teaching practice. Originality/value—The findings of this study will provide a point of reference for other higher education institutions as they look for guidance on embedding social innovation and social impact into their curriculum

Words of Experience: Semantic Content Analysis and Individual Differences among Successful Second Language Learners

Individual differences (IDs) in second language (L2) learning have traditionally been studied as separate, isolated variables (Dörnyei, 2005), but this reductionist approach has led to a fragmented and inconclusive understanding of how IDs influence L2 learning. The present study takes a different approach to IDs by starting at the level of L2 learning experience and identifying the most basic differences between learners. To do this, a new L2 experience methodology is introduced. Participants are 123 matriculated non-native English speaking students at two urban universities in the South. First, learners were interviewed following a strict interview protocol which ensured that all learners received the same input in the same setting. Next, the interviews were analyzed using the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count software (Pennebaker, Booth, & Francis, 2007), which provides quantitative output showing the types and frequency of psychosocial words each learner produced. These psychosocial semantic categories then formed the basis of a cluster analysis that identified groups of learners who use similar semantic categories. Learners who tend to use similar psychosocial words to describe their L2 learning experience are assumed to share a similar approach to L2 learning and are grouped together into L2 learning profiles. Results show that these participants can be grouped into three types of successful L2 experiences: Doing, Thinking, and Feeling. An ANOVA and follow-up ad hoc statistical tests reveal significant differences in admissions TOEFL scores among these groups of students, suggesting that learners who describe their L2 experience differently do in fact show significant differential performance. Qualitative analysis of interview transcripts further suggests that the influence of family plays an important role in differential TOEFL scores, and that L2 learning experience may change in important ways over time. Based on the results of the study, a L2 Experience Model of Individual and Social Differences is proposed that accounts for life importance, effort, ability, and L2 experience. Implications of this new methodology and model are discussed, along with suggestions for future research, teaching, and L2 learning

'Democracy begins in conversation’: the phenomenology of problem-based learning and legal education

Learning is complex for any number of reasons. One of these is that it doesn’t take place in a laboratory: it happens in real places, within and between real people, and as a consequence it takes place in multi-factorial environments. At every stage of learning in Higher Education (HE), from student choice of institution and programme, to the transfer of learning from theory to practice, to a single institution’s or a teacher’s evaluation of teaching and learning, there are many causal factors that affect educational process and outcome. The complexities and variables created by the interaction of such multiple factors, well known in the field of education, make learning a highly complex phenomenon to analyse and understand

Assessing Organic Chemistry Students? Understanding Of Chemical Bonding Concepts and their Perception of a Project-based Lab

Organic Chemistry students’ understanding of Organic Chemistry is shaped by their prior experiences, in-class experiences, and laboratory experiences. One essential prior General Chemistry experience that affects Organic Chemistry students is the understanding of chemical structures and bonding. This fundamental topic is the basis of the structure-function relationship and it highlights the numerous conceptual interconnections present in chemistry. However, many students possess incoherent knowledge structures regarding this topic. Therefore, more effective assessments are needed to identify these interconnected misconceptions. The use of concept-mapping and think-aloud interviews were used to investigate the knowledge structures of undergraduate Organic Chemistry students’ understanding of bonding concepts, resonance and Lewis structures for the first chapter of this dissertation. The study found that understanding of electronegativity was weak among students with low concept map scores (LS students) in comparison to students with high concept map scores (HS students). Additionally, several common misconceptions over the three topics were revealed through student interviews. An examination of LS student interviews further revealed that a lack of understanding of electronegativity led to a misunderstanding of polar covalent bonding. The think-aloud interviews reflected the connections students made with the concepts of electronegativity and polar covalent bonding in their concept maps. Chemistry labs are also considered a critical component of Organic Chemistry education. Laboratory instruction is presented in a variety of styles such as traditional or “cookbook”, project-based, open inquiry, and guided inquiry. Students can experience these laboratory environments in a variety of ways which directly affects how they learn or what they take away from the laboratory experience. The second half of this dissertation characterizes undergraduate students’ perspectives of a project-based Organic Chemistry laboratory and their perceptions of success and purpose in that laboratory using the theoretical framework of phenomenography. Eighteen participants were interviewed in a semi-structured interview format to collect their perspectives. A situated cognition framework was also used to design an outcome space that describes students’ engagement in the laboratory environment and its relationship to learning