The impact of a quality, technology-enhanced teaching support medium on student success in a first-year financial accounting module at an open distance learning institute

2013 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
H Muller ◽  
A du Plessis
Keyword(s):  
Distance Learning ◽  
Student Success ◽  
Financial Accounting ◽  
First Year ◽  
Support Medium ◽  
Teaching Support ◽  
Quality Technology ◽  
The Impact

scholarly journals Developing Faculty Communities of Practice to Expand the Use of Effective Pedagogical Techniques

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Hoyert ◽  
Cynthia O'Dell
Keyword(s):  
Student Success ◽  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Retention Rates ◽  
First Year ◽  
Scholarship Of Teaching ◽  
Pedagogical Techniques ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Faculty Group

The scholarship of teaching and learning literature is replete with examples of pedagogical techniques that have been demonstrated to be effective in improving learning, motivation, and student success. The extension of these techniques beyond the original context has tended to be slow, difficult, and incomplete. The following paper examines an intervention designed to encourage the exploration and use of a variety of pedagogical techniques by faculty in a traditional, four-year college faculty within the context of the AASCU Re-imagining the First Year Initiative. Small groups of six to eight faculty, joined and created communities of practice. The groups were known as Pedagogical Interest Groups, or PIGs for short. The faculty read about and analyzed a series of pedagogical techniques and committed to introducing at least one technique into their courses to further explore the techniques. When the techniques were successful, the faculty members redesigned entire classes to expand the impact. The communities of practice were successful in encouraging faculty to explore a wide variety of techniques. The average faculty group explored eight different pedagogical techniques. Faculty were able to use the opportunity to experiment with techniques with the support from their colleagues in their PIG. A dozen techniques were explored across the PIGs and dozens of class sections have been completely redesigned. To date, over 2000 students have experienced redesigned courses. Measures of student success, satisfaction, and interest in those sections have increased. The effort has been accompanied by a robust increase in the campus-wide retention rates. ​

scholarly journals Belonging in general chemistry predicts first-year undergraduates’ performance and attrition

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 1042-1062 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angela Fink ◽  
Regina F. Frey ◽  
Erin D. Solomon
Keyword(s):  
General Chemistry ◽  
Student Success ◽  
Sense Of Belonging ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
First Year ◽  
Psychosocial Variable ◽  
Underrepresented Minority ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Stem Disciplines ◽  
The Impact

Feeling a sense of belonging in a learning environment can have positive effects on student success. The impact of this psychosocial variable on undergraduates’ achievement and retention has been demonstrated in STEM disciplines, especially for women within physical sciences where large disparities in gender representation persist. The current study explores the relationship between belonging and student success in undergraduate chemistry, where greater gender parity has recently emerged. In particular, this research investigates the belonging of first-year students enrolled in a two-semester General Chemistry course sequence. The study begins by examining whether students’ early sense of belonging in the course, indexed by two survey measures (perceived belonging, belonging uncertainty) varies depending on their demographics and academic preparation. The belonging measures are then used as predictors of performance in General Chemistry 1 and 2 and attrition from one semester to the next. Paralleling research in other STEM disciplines, the results show that female students, especially those from underrepresented minority groups, reported lower belonging and higher uncertainty than male students within the first weeks of the course. After accounting for demographics, preparation, and participation in a course supplemental program, the belonging measures predicted performance and attrition for all students. These findings suggest that course-level belonging in General Chemistry can have practical consequences for student success, and early disparities in belonging may have downstream effects on the retention of women and other groups underrepresented in STEM. Strategies for creating an inclusive and engaging environment that supports the success of all students are discussed.

scholarly journals Assessing the Impact of Embedding Online Academic and Information Literacy Resources into a First Year Business Course

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Rae ◽  
Margaret Hunn
Keyword(s):  
Student Success ◽  
Student Satisfaction ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Business Students ◽  
Online Resources ◽  
First Year ◽  
Literacy Support ◽  
Online Resource ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Objectives – Literature supports the concept that embedding academic and information literacy support into first year university courses enables students to proceed more confidently with researching and writing their assignments, and thus contributes to student success in their course. A need was identified for academic and information literacy support for a cohort of first year business students as part of the development of online course content for Griffith Online, the institution’s online study degree option. This led to a collaboration between information literacy librarians, learning skills advisers, educational designers, and academic course convenors to develop and implement online resources. This paper will present findings on the impact of these online resources. Methods – Drawing on measures and methods identified in ISO16439 “Information and documentation: Methods and procedures for assessing the impact of libraries” (International Organisation for Standardization, 2014), in conjunction with the indicators offered by Lizzio’s (2006) Five Senses of Success framework, evidence was collected and combined from a variety of sources over semester 2, 2014, and semester 1, 2015 to assess the impact of the online resource. Inferred evidence was gathered from usage statistics (number of hits on the sites) and from performance measures (comparing student essay grade between those that did and did not use the resource). Solicited evidence was gathered from a survey of students, students in focus groups, and interviews with course lecturers, tutors and other stakeholders. Results – The inferred evidence showed a positive impact on the student success indicators of the sense of resourcefulness, capability, connection, purpose and identity. The solicited evidence suggests that students saw the online resource in a positive light and that staff were happy with the impact it had on students’ work and learning. It is believed that the gathered evidence indicates the Module did achieve the impact objective of a positive impact on the contribution to student success for these first year business students. Conclusions – The evidence has shown that this resource contributed to student success, and that staff and student satisfaction with the resource contributed to increased confidence with student academic skills and information literacy in respect to their assignment task. Assessing the impact of the online resource on student success has helped to demonstrate the value of the library at Griffith University to the wider community. The four-pronged collaboration relationship required for this approach was fostered with stakeholders outside of the library.

scholarly journals The Impact Of Online Quizzing On Student Success In An Introductory Financial Accounting Class

2006 ◽  
Vol 3 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
G. R. Cluskey Jr. ◽  
Charles W. Hodges ◽  
Sondra Smith
Keyword(s):  
Student Success ◽  
Financial Accounting ◽  
Pass Rates ◽  
The Impact

We document the impact of transitioning to online quizzing in an introductory Financial Accounting course.  Results show significantly increased course pass rates, significantly increased individual exam averages, and lower overall drop rates.

scholarly journals The Impact Of A Cohort Model Learning Community On First-Year Engineering Student Success

2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-40
Author(s):  
Toni L. Doolen ◽  
Erin Biddlecombe
Keyword(s):  
Student Engagement ◽  
Collaborative Learning ◽  
Student Success ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Control Group ◽  
First Year ◽  
Cohort Model ◽  
Orientation Course ◽  
Learning Techniques ◽  
The Impact

This study investigated the effect of cohort participation in a learning community and collaborative learning techniques on the success of first-year engineering students. Student success was measured as gains in knowledge, skills, and attitudes, student engagement, and persistence in engineering. The study group was comprised of students registered in an engineering orientation course. Two sub-groups were compared: a) a test cohort and b) a control group. Students registered in the test cohort shared four courses. The control group shared only one course, an engineering orientation course. An exit survey was used to measure gains in skills and attitudes, student engagement, and student perceptions of collaborative learning techniques. Participation in the learning community test cohort was not found to improve student success. Participation in the learning community test cohort model was, however, linked to more positive student attitudes towards engineering and higher levels of student satisfaction with the collaborative learning techniques used in the course. 

Accelerating to Success: The Impact of Florida's Developmental Education Reform on Credit Accumulation

2020 ◽  
Vol 122 (12) ◽  
pp. 1-38
Author(s):  
Christine G. Mokher ◽  
Toby J. Park-Gaghan ◽  
Shouping Hu
Keyword(s):  
Student Success ◽  
Education Reform ◽  
Developmental Education ◽  
Support Services ◽  
Underprepared Students ◽  
First Year ◽  
College Level ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Education Courses

Background/Context Underprepared students at community colleges are often assigned to a sequence of developmental education courses that can substantially delay, or even halt, their progress to degree completion. In 2014, Florida implemented a comprehensive reform under Senate Bill (SB) 1720 that allowed the majority of incoming students to enroll directly into college-level courses, while remaining developmental education courses were offered in new instructional modalities that were designed to be completed more quickly than traditional semester-long courses. Colleges provided extensive advising and academic support services intended to help students succeed while progressing at a more accelerated pace. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study In this study, we examined the impact of Florida's developmental education reform on early momentum. More specifically, we defined early momentum as student success in early outcomes (such as the number of credits attempted and earned), which may set students on a promising long-term trajectory on subsequent postsecondary outcomes. Population/Participants/Subjects Our sample included all first-time-in-college students enrolled in all 28 public state colleges. We included three cohorts of students before the reform and up to three cohorts of students after the reform. Each cohort consisted of approximately 70,000 students. Research Design We used an interrupted time series design to compare student outcomes three years before the reform with those up to three years after the reform. Our outcome variables, measured one and three years following initial college enrollment, represented continuous indicators for the number of college-level credits attempted and the number of college-level credits earned. We also examined whether the data revealed heterogeneity in the reform's impacts by race/ethnicity, family income status, and level of high school academic preparation. Findings/Results We found small positive effects on all outcomes, indicating that the reform accelerated student success in both the short term and longer term. The impacts of the reform were even greater for Black, Hispanic, Indigenous, low-income, and underprepared students (particularly in the first year), thus reducing existing achievement gaps. Conclusions/Recommendations Florida's SB 1720 consisted of a complementary set of reform efforts that may together have a larger impact than any single component alone. The results suggest that initial momentum gains in the first year may have set some students on a more successful long-term trajectory, particularly those most likely to be assigned to developmental education before the reform. Colleges should continue to provide comprehensive student support services to help students succeed while progressing at a more accelerated pace.

scholarly journals Breadth of knowledge vs. grades: What best predicts achievement in the first year of health sciences programmes?

2012 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. 7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Boaz Shulruf ◽  
Meisong Li ◽  
Judy McKimm ◽  
Melinda Smith
Keyword(s):  
Secondary School ◽  
Student Success ◽  
Grade Point Average ◽  
Grade Level ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
Demographic Variables ◽  
First Year ◽  
Grade Point ◽  
The Impact ◽  
School Curricula

This study aimed to identify those features within secondary school curricula and assessment, particularly science subjects that best predict academic achievement in the first year of three different three-year undergraduate health professional programmes (nursing, pharmacy, and health sciences) at a large New Zealand university. In particular, this study compared the contribution of breadth of knowledge (number of credits acquired) versus grade level (grade point average) and explored the impact of demographic variables on achievement. The findings indicated that grades are the most important factor predicting student success in the first year of university. Although taking biology and physics at secondary school has some impact on university first year achievement, the effect is relatively minor.

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