The undergraduate simulation framework: standardising design and delivery

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pauletta Marie Irwin ◽  
Robin A. Brown ◽  
Sonia Butler
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Social Constructivism ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
Clinical Environment ◽  
Simulation Framework ◽  
Simulation Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Enhance Student Learning ◽  
Health Programmes

PurposeHigher education organisations have the need and capacity to meet the expectations of industry partners to develop practice-ready graduates. Altered social and fiscal constraints have implications for the health workforce and, as such, decisions about how best to prepare undergraduate students should be considered. The purpose of this (conceptual) paper is to present the undergraduate simulation framework that has been designed to promote a standardised delivery of simulation, enabling graduates to have a higher capacity to meet workforce needs.Design/methodology/approachEducation and simulation literature were explored to inform the development of the undergraduate simulation framework. A working knowledge of accreditation standards of health professions was key in designing a framework that could be applied across disciplines.FindingsThe framework encompasses tenets of a learner-centred pedagogy as well as professional and simulation standards. Experiential learning, behaviourism and social constructivism are viewed as foundational pillars when developing and delivering a simulation and have been considered in developing the framework. Other constructs of the undergraduate simulation framework are prebriefing, debriefing, repetition in the form of simulation cycles and the roles of student and educator.Practical implicationsIt is recommended that this framework be incorporated into undergraduate health programmes to enhance student learning and potentiate the transference of knowledge and skills to the clinical setting.Originality/valueThe undergraduate simulation framework was developed to contribute to education and simulation research literature specific to health programmes to enhance student learning in readiness for the clinical environment.

Value add

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 131-143
Author(s):  
Sean Reid ◽  
Jason Muenzen ◽  
Rasoul Rezvanian
Keyword(s):  
Experiential Learning ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Business School ◽  
Business Schools ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Learning Opportunities ◽  
Academic Institution ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Enhance Student Learning

Purpose This paper aims to provide students with a career edge, business students require more than concepts and calculations to be successful in their future career. They require professional skill sets, mentors, relationship guides and as much real industry experience as they can gather before graduation. This study sheds some light on how a small business school (SBS) in a nonprofit private academic institution (NPAI) located in an isolated rural area of the USA has been able to tap its strong alumni relationships to provide mentoring and experiential learning opportunities to students using its student-managed investment funds (SMIFs) as the vehicle. Although this study uses a small, geographically isolated institution, the authors believe that the approach taken by this particular school can be replicated by any academic institution that strives to enhance student learning experience by promoting mentorship and experiential learning. Design/methodology/approach This study starts with a brief introduction (Section 1) and a short review of literature (Section 2) to highlight the numerous benefits of alumni engagement and student mentorship. Section 2 shows institutional background on the NPAI, the SBS and the SMIF. The major part of the study starts with a discussion on the set of rules to guide in the construction of a student-alumni relationship framework that could be easily modified to the unique characteristics of the institution. Next, the role and responsibility of the investment advisory board (IAB) and its members’ engagement with students are discussed. In the last part of the study, SBS is used as a case study to show how alumni contribute to SBS and enhance students’ experiential learning by contributing as mentor, IAB member, advisors to the FMIF and career mentorship. This study concludes with a discussion on potential areas of conflict and friction for alumni involvement. Findings This study shows that SBS in a NPAI has been able to tap its strong alumni relationship to provide mentoring and experiential learning opportunities to students using its SMIF as the vehicle. The authors believe that the approach taken by this particular school can be replicated by any academic institution that strives to promote mentorship and experiential learning. Research limitations/implications This case study is focused on a SBS in a NPAI that has a strong alumni relationship and enough resources to successfully tap on its alumni. It would be interesting to learn how this approach can be used in resource-limited public institutions. Practical implications As the case study shows, any business school that values experiential learning can rely on its alumni to enhance student learning experience by properly using its alumni resources. Social implications The results of this study show that business schools’ outreach opportunities and student experiential learning experience can be enhanced and business schools’ academic qualification and ranking, which leads to improvement in student enrollment, can be improved. Overall, the major beneficiary would be the business schools’ immediate and larger community. Originality/value The authors are positive that multiple universities are properly taking advantage of using their alumni relationship.

scholarly journals The Undergraduate Research Scholarship Scheme: A co-created approach to transforming student learning

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ruth L Ayres ◽  
Christopher J Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
Perceived Value ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
Research Scholarship

The value of student as researcher/‘co-producer’ has been well documented in the research literature.  This case study outlines an institutional 'student as researcher' initiative that was introduced to enable the co-creation of research by undergraduate students working in partnership with members of academic staff.  The paper outlines the establishment and implementation of the scheme and offers a reflection upon and exploration of its perceived value, through the lens of staff and students who participated in it.

Comparative Gamification Practices for Information Literacy Instruction in Higher Education

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nikki Squire
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Literacy Instruction ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
Information Literacy Instruction ◽  
Literacy Outcomes ◽  
Underperforming Students

Due to the recent call for the need to change information literacy instruction for 21st century skills, many scholars, educators, and librarians are exploring gamification as a teaching and learning pedagogy for information literacy instruction, design, and assessment for student learning. The research literature provides an overview of various information literacy tools, teaching methods, and pedagogies suggested by scholars and educators for improving information literacy instruction and student learning. Based on results from empirical studies, to improve information literacy outcomes for undergraduate students, especially literacy gains for at-risk or underperforming students, gamification can be used as a conceptual framework for pedagogy assessment for teaching and learning.

scholarly journals Evidence Beyond the Rules: A Critical Thinking Approach to Teaching Evidence Law to Undergraduate Students

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Arnott
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Liberal Arts ◽  
Transferable Skills ◽  
Approach To Teaching ◽  
Evidence Law ◽  
Enhance Student Learning

This article suggests that using a critical thinking approach in teaching undergraduate courses such as Evidence is not only consistent with education in the liberal arts but offers valuable opportunities to enhance student learning, develop transferable skills, and explore interdisciplinary connections.

Institutions collaborating on an information literacy assessment tool

2014 ◽  
Vol 35 (8/9) ◽  
pp. 538-546 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Sharun ◽  
Michelle Edwards Thomson ◽  
Nancy Goebel ◽  
Jessica Knoch
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Assessment Tool ◽  
Multiple Choice ◽  
Clear Understanding ◽  
Multiple Choice Questions ◽  
Student Responses ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Wide Range

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to create an information literacy (IL) instruction assessment tool that responds to the unique needs of individual institutions and provides a strategic and relevant model for assessing IL skills among undergraduate students. Design/methodology/approach – The research team designed a post-test questionnaire comprised of two demographic questions, two open-ended questions and a pool of skill-based multiple-choice questions mapped to Association of College and Research Libraries Information Literacy (ACRL IL) Competency Standards for Higher Education. Participating librarians used a customized questionnaire to assess student learning at the end of their one-shot instruction sessions. Findings – In their responses to the multiple-choice questions, students demonstrated a clear understanding of ethical use of information and a strong ability to select appropriate tools for accessing information sources. Student responses to the open-ended questions revealed a wide range of confidence and ability levels, and provided insight into the frequency, depth and breadth with which various ACRL Standards are being addressed in library sessions. Research limitations/implications – This paper reports on student responses to questions that have subsequently been identified as problematic; therefore, strong inferences cannot be made about student learning from these responses. Questions have since been improved with further revision. In addition, the sample sizes for individual questions were too small to be generalizable. Practical implications – The intentional and strategic approach to the development of the assessment tool and its implementation is that it be practical and easy to implement for partner libraries. It is intended to make assessment of IL in the undergraduate context be assessable to all academic librarians who desire to participate. Originality/value – This paper describes a unique assessment tool that is designed to be responsive to local needs and provide a cost-free assessment option for academic libraries.

Assessment of undergraduate students’ environmental stewardship reasoning and knowledge

2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 492-502 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christie-Joy Brodrick Hartman ◽  
Christine E. DeMars ◽  
Heather Peckham Griscom ◽  
Harold Martin Butner
Keyword(s):  
General Education ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Environmental Stewardship ◽  
Assessment Instrument ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Second Year ◽  
Over Time

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present a public university’s design and implementation of an assessment approach that measures the change in undergraduate students’ environmental stewardship reasoning and knowledge abilities over time. Design/methodology/approach In support of a university’s strategic emphasis on environmental stewardship, members of a university committee developed environmental stewardship learning outcomes for undergraduate students. The learning outcomes were not required in specific academic courses or in general education. Subsequently, volunteers from a variety of roles, in cooperation with committee members, developed a corresponding assessment test that focused on reasoning and knowledge. The instrument was revised between Spring 2011 and Spring 2014, and its validity was evaluated. An exploratory analysis of student learning over time was conducted using 22 items shared by different test forms. Findings A series of implementations and revisions resulted in a 50-question test, the Environmental Stewardship Reasoning and Knowledge Assessment (ESRKA), which showed good reliability (0.83). A comparative analysis provided evidence of the validity of the instrument. Results from a small sample of students showed that second-year students generally performed better on the 22 items than incoming first-year students. Those taking the assessment as second-year students, 18 months after their initial assessment, scored significantly higher on the 22 items by about 10.4 percentage points (0.61 standard deviation units, t68 = 6.23, p < 0.0001). Research limitations/implications Because of the small sample size and revision of the items, the analysis of student learning is only exploratory. Originality/value The learning outcomes and validated assessment instrument may be used either in whole or part by other institutions. The approach to measure changes in students’ environmental stewardship reasoning and knowledge abilities as cohorts over time could assist universities in tracking environmental stewardship learning and could inform strategic implementation of learning opportunities through the curriculum, as well as through other student learning experiences.

Assessing the university student perceived learning gains in generic skills

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 993-1008
Author(s):  
Joseph Chow ◽  
Ada Tse ◽  
Christine Armatas
Keyword(s):  
Student Learning ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Longitudinal Design ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
University Student ◽  
First Year ◽  
Learning Gains ◽  
Generic Skills ◽  
Content Type

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to report undergraduate students’ learning gains in six areas of generic skills. The paper reports on students’ responses to the First Year Experience (FYE) Survey completed at the end of their first year and Graduating Student Survey (GSS) in the final semester of their final year. Design/methodology/approach In this study, a longitudinal design was applied in data collection, analysis and reporting of assessment if student learning gains. The undergraduate students who were the first cohort of four-year curriculum students in a Hong Kong university were selected as the sample. Repeated measures of reported learning gains of a longitudinal sample based on stacking of both FYE and GSS data were analysed using the Rasch model. Findings The results showed that the scale for measuring the six areas of generic skills had high reliability and good person separation. Comparison of repeated measures from the same group of students at the two time points were examined to explore whether there is growth in the generic skills during their university studies. Research limitations/implications One limitation of the study was the relatively small sample size of 359 students in one higher education institution. Practical implications The findings of the study provide insight into conceptual understanding and measurement of university student learning gains. Originality/value Whilst several studies have investigated university student learning gains, there is limited research which explores the use Rasch modelling in assessment of student learning gains in multiple areas towards completion of their undergraduate studies.

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