Using Random Forests to Identify Factors of Student Motivation in a Project-Based Learning Course

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauren Cooper ◽  
Daria Kotys-Schwartz ◽  
Derek Reamon
Keyword(s):  
Random Forest ◽  
Service Learning ◽  
Student Motivation ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Research Focus ◽  
University Of Colorado ◽  
Service Project ◽  
Component Design ◽  
The University

Grounded in motivation theory, the purpose of this research is to use random forest analysis to identify factors of motivation of students who participate in a project-based learning experience. Our research aims to answer: 1) How does project-based service learning affect students’ motivation as compared to conventional (non-service) project-based learning? 2) How are women affected differentially by project-based service-learning? The research, which began in 2011, was completed over a two-year period. The students and activities in Component Design, an existing junior-level course at the University of Colorado at Boulder served as the research focus. Specifically, project-based service-learning curriculum was implemented into a required design and build activity for Component Design students. Using a conventional design project as the control, how the context of project-based service learning affects aspects of student motivation was studied. This paper discusses the research design, theoretical framework, data analysis methods, and random forest results. Our findings indicate that students’ initial non-technical skills were the most important predictor of motivation in the conventional project-based learning experience and that students’ perceived value of the course and the project were the most important predictors of motivation in the project-based service-learning experience.

scholarly journals Project-Based Service-Learning and Student Motivation

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauren A. Cooper ◽  
Daria Kotys-Schwartz ◽  
Derek T. Reamon
Keyword(s):  
Service Learning ◽  
Student Motivation ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
First Year ◽  
Motivation Theory ◽  
University Of Colorado ◽  
Service Project ◽  
Component Design ◽  
The University ◽  
Learning Interest

We know from motivation theory that enhanced motivation in students is positively correlated with engagement and active learning, interest, and value. We know less about the types of instructional strategies and curricular interventions that work to enhance student motivation in a typical engineering course. Grounded in motivation theory, the purpose of this research is to evaluate how the context of project-based service-learning affects aspects of student motivation in a required undergraduate Mechanical Engineering course. Our research aims to answer: 1) How does project-based service learning affect students’ motivation as compared to conventional (non-service) project-based learning? 2) How are women affected differentially by project-based service-learning? The research, which began in 2010, is being completed over a two-year period. The students and activities in Component Design, an existing junior-level course at the University of Colorado at Boulder, will serve as the research focus. Specifically, project-based service-learning curriculum will be implemented into a required design and build activity for Component Design students. Using a conventional design project as the control, how the context of project-based service learning affects aspects of student motivation will be studied. This paper will discuss the research design, theoretical framework, and the results from our first year of research. Our objective is to provide a more thorough understanding of the effects of service-learning on engineering education. Although service-learning may not be appropriate for every engineering course, we can strive to identify and implement specific elements of service-learning that are correlated with student motivation.

International Service-Learning

2016 ◽  
pp. 420-445 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joellen E. Coryell ◽  
Trae Stewart ◽  
Zane C. Wubbena ◽  
Tereza Cristina Valverde-Poenie ◽  
B. J. Spencer
Keyword(s):  
Service Learning ◽  
Transformative Learning ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Comparative Case Study ◽  
Future Research ◽  
International Service Learning ◽  
International Service ◽  
Working Together ◽  
Cultural Dialogue ◽  
The University

International Service-Learning (ISL) is a structured service-learning experience in another country where students learn from interaction, cross-cultural dialogue, and reflection. This humanistic pedagogy was utilized at the University of Canterbury after earthquakes rocked Christchurch, New Zealand (NZ) in 2010 and 2011. The present comparative-case study examined United States (US), European Union (EU), and Kiwi students' transformative learning through working together in a university-based ISL course designed around re-building Christchurch. Data were analyzed through the Kiely's (2005) Transformative Service-Learning Model. The findings of this study contribute new elements to the dimension of the model and argue that the concept of global citizenship may better explain a mixed cohort of international students' service-learning experiences in a post-disaster setting. Implications to the study's findings and recommendations for future research are briefly discussed.

scholarly journals Global U: Exploring Curricular Development and Outcomes in Three University of Utah Experiential Learning Abroad Programs

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-45
Author(s):  
Lisa H. Gren ◽  
L. Scott Benson ◽  
Caren J. Frost
Keyword(s):  
Service Learning ◽  
Experiential Learning ◽  
Mission Statement ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Authentic Learning ◽  
The United States ◽  
Global Learning ◽  
Short Term ◽  
University Of Utah ◽  
The University

The University of Utah is a publicly funded, R1 university located in the United States, with a mission statement that includes recognition of its global role, asserting that “. . . we engage local and global communities to promote education, health, and quality of life.” As part of that engagement, the University of Utah has offered learning abroad opportunities since 1967. Approximately 1 in 10 students participates in a global learning experience, and 80% of programs are short term (defined as 10 weeks or less). The pedagogical theories that guide these short-term programs are experiential learning, authentic learning, and intentional targeted intervention. We describe three short-term learning abroad programs in public health and social work—for students at the high school, undergraduate, and graduate level—connecting the reported benefits to the pedagogical model and theories used to develop the specific curriculum for these short-term programs. Faculty use a variety of reflective tools to help students learn to function in their new setting (experiential learning); explore and meaningfully construct concepts and relationships as they address real-world problems (authentic learning); and facilitate intercultural growth (intentional targeted learning). The University of Utah has adapted a three-stage model for learning abroad that incorporates principles from these theories to drive program activities: Plan (predeparture), Learn (program participation), and Integrate (postprogram). Immediate benefits to students of participating in a global-learning experience include intercultural learning, personal, and career development. Benefits to faculty include scholarly products in the domains of education and service learning, community-engaged participation, and research.

Leveraging Community-Based Service Learning Experiences into Academic Credit in Engineering Curricula

2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-85
Author(s):  
John Tharakan
Keyword(s):  
Service Learning ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Independent Study ◽  
Academic Credit ◽  
Project Assessment ◽  
Howard University ◽  
Service Project ◽  
Assessment Visit ◽  
Service Activity ◽  
Rural Kenya

Service learning (SL) has been formally defined as engagement of students in course-based, credit bearing educational experiences where students participate in a service activity and are provided a framework within which to engage in guided reflection. In this paper, a pedagogical model is suggested to leverage volunteer service activities and projects into service learning requiring rigorous academic engagement with defined deliverables worthy of engineering academic credit. This requires students on the service project teams to register for an independent study course in the semester following the service activity. Students work with the faculty adviser and develop and execute independent projects configured to enhance the experiential learning acquired during the service. Two independent study projects are reported on, developed following an Engineers Without Borders-USA (Howard University Chapter – EWB-HU) site and project assessment visit to rural Kenya. All independent study projects were executed under close guidance and supervision of the faculty adviser who was the mentor on the assessment site visit to Kenya. These provide the necessary context for students to seriously reflect on and study their service activity and its impacts, leveraging the service activity into a true service learning experience.

scholarly journals An Entrance to Exit Polling: Strategies for Using Exit Polls as Experiential Learning Projects

2012 ◽  
Vol 45 (03) ◽  
pp. 501-505 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael J. Berry ◽  
Tony Robinson
Keyword(s):  
Experiential Learning ◽  
Research Methods ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Competitive Learning ◽  
Learning Activity ◽  
Teaching Tool ◽  
Exit Poll ◽  
University Of Colorado ◽  
The University ◽  
Learning Projects

AbstractEngaging students in the design, administration, and postelection analysis of an exit poll can be an excellent experiential learning activity. Lelieveldt and Rossen (2009) argue that exit polls are a “perfect teaching tool” because they provide students with a cooperative (rather than competitive) learning experience; help students better connect theory, methodology, and course substance; and allow students to move outside of the classroom by branching out into the community. As professors at the University of Colorado, Denver (UCD), we have organized student exit polling during the 2008 and 2010 elections in the Denver area for research methods and elections classes. Although we have found these exit polls to be rewarding experiences for instructors and students alike, the reality is that conducting an exit poll with a group of polling neophytes, in the confines of a single semester, can be challenging. In this article, we discuss strategies and issues for instructors to consider when using an exit poll as an experiential learning exercise.

scholarly journals Service Learning in Human Service Classes

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 33-39
Author(s):  
Baomei Zhao
Keyword(s):  
Service Learning ◽  
Real World ◽  
Human Service ◽  
Ecological Model ◽  
The United States ◽  
Academic Disciplines ◽  
The Real ◽  
Service Project ◽  
Service Learning Projects ◽  
The University

Service Learning is a form of application learning that applies what the students learned in the classroom to the real world in the context of a community service project. In recent years, Service Learning has been included in many academic disciplines throughout the United States. Most often these service-learning activities need students to use more than what they learned in the classroom to apply critical thinking on the real world cases. This requires the faculty to work on establishing community relationships to develop service-learning projects for relevant courses, site deputies to work closely with the professor and students, and students’ passion to apply theory to practice. This paper used the Ecological Model and demonstrates Service Learning designs for four human service classes at The University of Akron to help students’ success.

scholarly journals Teaching practices that promote student learning: Five experiential approaches

2009 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Donald Wurdinger ◽  
Jennifer Louise Bezon
Keyword(s):  
Service Learning ◽  
Text Messages ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Retention Rates ◽  
Teaching Approaches ◽  
Learning Problem ◽  
Innovative Teaching ◽  
University Level ◽  
Methods Of Learning ◽  
The University

University students are disengaged with learning. One reason is because educators continue to overuse the lecture format, which creates a situation where students engage in other tasks, such as sending text messages to their friends, instead to listening to the information being given by the instructor. If institutions and educators want to improve learning environments and increase retention rates, it is argued that they should consider embracing more active methods of learning that inspire and motivate students to learn. Five innovative teaching approaches discussed in this article include: project-based learning, problem based learning, service learning, place-based education, and active learning. Practical considerations are provided to help educators understand how to use and apply these approaches. It is contended that using these five innovative practices at the university level will help inspire and motivate students to learn, resulting in more exciting classrooms and a better-educated society.

scholarly journals Service-learning: experience of teacher-tutors in the nursing career

Medwave ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (06) ◽  
pp. e8218-e8218
Author(s):  
Jessica Godoy-Pozo ◽  
Daniela Bustamante ◽  
Tania Valenzuela ◽  
Jesús Sánchez Güenul ◽  
Mónica Illesca-Pretty ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nursing Students ◽  
Service Learning ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Generic Competencies ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Level 3 ◽  
Analysis Of Results ◽  
Nursing Career ◽  
The University

Introduction The learning process demands appropriate and effective strategies. Furthermore, the service-learning methodology implies significant challenges for both the student and the teacher-tutor. Objective To reveal the experience of community-based teacher-tutors work with nursing students from the Austral University of Chile, using the service-learning methodology. Method Descriptive and exploratory qualitative research through an intrinsic case study. Non-probabilistic and intentional sample of cases by criteria and convenience. Five teachers from the Austral University of Chile Nursing Institute hired by the university were interviewed. They fulfilled the role of teacher-tutor after signing the informed consent. The information was obtained through semi-structured interviews, and the analysis was carried out through the data reduction methodology, which considers the analysis of results at three levels. The Scientific Ethics Committee of the Austral University of Chile School of Medicine approved the study. Results At level 1: One hundred and seven (107) units of meaning were identified, grouped into five descriptive categories. At level 2, three meta-categories were formed: "opinion of the tutor-teachers on working with the service-learning methodology", "factors that influence working with the service-learning methodology" and "generic competencies developed with the service-learning methodology. Finally, at level 3, two qualitative domains were identified: "Teacher-tutors appreciation for the development of the service-learning methodology" and "Contributions of the service-learning methodology for developing generic competencies". Conclusions The efficient implementation of the methodology requires training and motivation of tutors, teachers, students and community partners.

scholarly journals PROJECT-BASED LEARNING IN AN EFL SETTING – A CASE STUDY AT A UNIVERSITY IN VIETNAM

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (38) ◽  
pp. 223-236
Author(s):  
Le Thi Chi Giao ◽  
Bich Dieu Nguyen
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Creative Thinking ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Language Instruction ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Local Context ◽  
The University ◽  
Enhanced Learning

Teaching for enhanced learning experience has well-received great interest from many teachers and educators around the world. In the EFL setting, tremendous efforts have been recognized in taking students out of a conventional classroom to experience a new way of learning which stimulates interest and creative thinking, which improves communication and collaborative skills, and which exposes students to more meaningful real-life situations. Project-based learning (PBL) is an answer to this, and it has developed as an alternative to teaching a foreign language with a focus on enhanced learning experience and increased creative teambuilding and group skills through meaningful projects. This paper presents how PBL has been adopted at the University of Foreign Language Studies – the University of Danang (UFLS-UD). It revisits the significance of PBL, the structure of a PBL activity, and reports how PBL has been situated in the local context of teaching English to students majoring in English in Vietnam. The reflections reported here showcase the gains through the path of action research enacted by individual teachers who act as change agents or enablers of this innovative teaching and learning approach and whose efforts have been recognized by means of several adaptations made to bring real life and a sense of community into language instruction.

USING A PROJECT BASED LEARNING EXPERIENCE TO IMPROVE SUSTAINABILITY WITHIN THE UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Mirari Antxustegi ◽  
Alain Ulazia ◽  
Roberto Palos ◽  
María González Alriols ◽  
Alvaro Campos Celador ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Learning Experience ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
The University ◽  
University Community
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