scholarly journals Assessing student desire for professional skills development within the undergraduate science curriculum: a focus on teamwork

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natasha Chinoy ◽  
Hayden Stoub ◽  
Yvonne Ogrodzinski ◽  
Katelyn Smith ◽  
Devika Bahal ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Science Curriculum ◽  
Skill Development ◽  
Oral Communication ◽  
Biomedical Science ◽  
Valuable Insight ◽  
Professional Skill ◽  
Professional Skills ◽  
Undergraduate Science

Professional skill development has emerged as an increasingly important facet of undergraduate training, specifically within science curricula. The primarily agreed upon professional skills for a well-rounded scientist include teamwork, oral communication, written communication, and quantitative skills. The demand for these skills has been driven by employers and graduate/professional schools. To this end, instructors in higher education have begun to integrate professional skill development into their course design and student learning goals. However, the attitudes of students towards the importance of different professional skills, the inclusion of these skills in their coursework, level of improvement and end confidence has yet to be thoroughly characterized. It was the aim of this study to ascertain students' desire for the aforementioned professional skills within their undergraduate science programs by exploring student perceptions of professional skills inclusion, importance, improvement, and confidence and identify the local courses students recognize as utilizing "teamwork activities." Here we detail these attitudes in biomedical science undergraduates at Michigan State University. By using the Science Student Skills Inventory (SSSI), a previously validated assessment tool, we observed differences in student perceptions of professional skills when compared to previous SSSI studies. We also observed significant differences in attitudes between age groups with respect to writing and communication skills, differing perceptions of what constitutes teamwork, as well as gender differences regarding communication and ethical thinking. Our results give valuable insight into student perspectives on how professional skills are developed in their program. These data may inform curriculum development within and across institutions.

Global Awareness Interest of College Students

2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-26
Author(s):  
Sadan Kulturel-Konak ◽  
Abdullah Konak ◽  
Mary Lou D'Allegro
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Skill Development ◽  
Business Environment ◽  
Global Awareness ◽  
Professional Skill ◽  
Global Business ◽  
Professional Skills ◽  
High Involvement ◽  
Survey Results ◽  
Interest And Knowledge

Professional skills are expected from college students; however, assessing students' professional skill development is challenging. In order to better prepare students for a career in today's global business environment, it is essential students develop interest and knowledge toward global awareness. This research is primarily concerned with the understanding of college students' interest toward global awareness. In order to unveil what factors affect students' interest toward global awareness, a survey was developed and data collected. Analyses of survey results suggested that gender, ethnicity and high involvement activities might positively affect interest toward global awareness.

Integrating Intercultural Competencies Into the Professional Skills Curriculum

2020 ◽  
pp. 863-879
Author(s):  
Svitlana Taraban-Gordon ◽  
Easton Page
Keyword(s):  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Education Program ◽  
Intercultural Competence ◽  
Skill Development ◽  
Learning Tools ◽  
Professional Skills ◽  
Intercultural Skills ◽  
Intercultural Competencies ◽  
Curriculum Intervention

Intercultural competence is increasingly seen by employers as a desirable graduate capability needed in today's diverse and intercultural workplace. This chapter reports on a curriculum intervention - a 20-hour online intercultural skills course - aimed at introducing a large number of undergraduate students enrolled in a co-operative education program to fundamental intercultural concepts and ideas. The chapter seeks to contribute to the literature on intercultural skill development by discussing the course model and its implementation, student perceptions of their level of intercultural competence prior to and after the course, and the challenges involved in the delivery of the course. The main purpose of the chapter is to discuss how courses and programs that aim to develop professional skills may offer a promising vehicle for fostering students' intercultural competence, particularly when these courses utilize online learning tools to enable greater access to intercultural learning.

Integrating Intercultural Competencies into the Professional Skills Curriculum

2016 ◽  
pp. 119-139
Author(s):  
Svitlana Taraban-Gordon ◽  
Easton Page
Keyword(s):  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Education Program ◽  
Intercultural Competence ◽  
Skill Development ◽  
Learning Tools ◽  
Professional Skills ◽  
Intercultural Skills ◽  
Intercultural Competencies ◽  
Curriculum Intervention

Intercultural competence is increasingly seen by employers as a desirable graduate capability needed in today's diverse and intercultural workplace. This chapter reports on a curriculum intervention - a 20-hour online intercultural skills course - aimed at introducing a large number of undergraduate students enrolled in a co-operative education program to fundamental intercultural concepts and ideas. The chapter seeks to contribute to the literature on intercultural skill development by discussing the course model and its implementation, student perceptions of their level of intercultural competence prior to and after the course, and the challenges involved in the delivery of the course. The main purpose of the chapter is to discuss how courses and programs that aim to develop professional skills may offer a promising vehicle for fostering students' intercultural competence, particularly when these courses utilize online learning tools to enable greater access to intercultural learning.

Student Anticipations and Reactions to Hybrid Format Education

2008 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 76-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah M. Ginsberg
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Learning Styles ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Learning Experiences ◽  
Traditional Classroom ◽  
Traditional Learning ◽  
Online Platform ◽  
Hybrid Format

Abstract This qualitative study examined student perceptions regarding a hybrid classroom format in which part of their learning took place in a traditional classroom and part of their learning occurred in an online platform. Pre-course and post-course anonymous essays suggest that students may be open to learning in this context; however, they have specific concerns as well. Students raised issues regarding faculty communication patterns, learning styles, and the value of clear connections between online and traditional learning experiences. Student concerns and feedback need to be addressed through the course design and by the instructor in order for them to have a positive learning experience in a hybrid format course.

Using Social Media to Support Presentation Skill Development in Traditional Classroom Environments

2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 68-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul M. Di Gangi ◽  
Samuel H. Goh ◽  
Carmen C. Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Skill Development ◽  
Traditional Classroom ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Classroom Environments ◽  
Learning Tool ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
Presentation Skill

Social media has become widely adopted in both society and business. However, the academy has been slow to leverage social media as a learning tool. The purpose of this study is twofold. First, this study explores student perceptions about the use of social media in face-to-face classroom environments. Second, this study examines how social media, as a learning tool, supports presentation skill development. Using a proprietary social media application, we conducted a sequential mixed method study using students enrolled in undergraduate introductory information systems courses that included a student presentation project. One hundred seventy-seven students responded to a survey based on a facilitator and inhibitor model of social media use and an open-ended questionnaire to understand how social media impacts presentation skill development. The implications of the results from this study are discussed along with directions for future research.

scholarly journals Curriculum creation: Reflection as a tool for enhancement

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 2
Author(s):  
Cameron J. Harris ◽  
Jackie D. Brown
Keyword(s):  
Curriculum Design ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Pedagogical Practice ◽  
Professional Skills ◽  
University Environment ◽  
Curriculum Creation ◽  
Course Outcomes ◽  
Past Experiences ◽  
The University ◽  
Required Courses

Reflection plays an important role in the development of new courses and curriculum. Professional skills development is the focus of two newly developed and required courses, one of which uses reflection as a primary pedagogical practice. These foundational courses are scaffolded by design. The scope of this presentation will be on the first of these two courses, designed for students entering the university environment and serving as early exposure to the field.  Presenters will share the role that reflection played, and continues to play, in the development of these courses. One assignment, a product of this reflection, will serve as a focus of this presentation. It was developed to challenge students to consider past experiences and how they might apply to the development of their professional skills, both now and in the future. Peer review and feedback sessions serve as another instructional tool to facilitate this critical thinking process.The first focus of this presentation will be on continual instructor reflection on course and curriculum design as a method for enhancing the pedagogical approach, instruction, and assignments, and it will continue to play a role in the assessment of course outcomes. The second focus will be on the role that critical reflection plays as a pedagogical practice in course design and classroom instruction. Session attendees will be asked to reflect on their pedagogical practice and the role reflection has played in their approach to classroom learning.

Using Social Media to Support Presentation Skill Development in Traditional Classroom Environments

2018 ◽  
pp. 336-362
Author(s):  
Paul M. Di Gangi ◽  
Samuel H. Goh ◽  
Carmen C. Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Skill Development ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Mixed Method Study ◽  
Classroom Environments ◽  
Learning Tool ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
Presentation Skill

Social media has become widely adopted in both society and business. However, the academy has been slow to leverage social media as a learning tool. The purpose of this study is twofold. First, this study explores student perceptions about the use of social media in face-to-face classroom environments. Second, this study examines how social media, as a learning tool, supports presentation skill development. Using a proprietary social media application, we conducted a sequential mixed method study using students enrolled in undergraduate introductory information systems courses that included a student presentation project. One hundred seventy-seven students responded to a survey based on a facilitator and inhibitor model of social media use and an open-ended questionnaire to understand how social media impacts presentation skill development. The implications of the results from this study are discussed along with directions for future research.

Using Gagné's Events of Instruction to Analyze Online Course Quality

2011 ◽  
pp. 2231-2238 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc R. Robinson
Keyword(s):  
Instructional Design ◽  
Online Education ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Design Quality ◽  
Course Quality ◽  
Events Of Instruction

Student perceptions of online courses are likely influenced by two overarching aspects of quality: instructor quality and course design quality (Ortiz-Rodriguez, Telg, Irani, Roberts & Rhoades, 2005). Both of these forces in online education may be analyzed using a well-known model of instructional design - Gagnés instructional design and cognition theory, the centerpiece of which are the nine events of instruction (Gagné, Wager, Golas, & Keller, 2004). Multiple studies positively correlate learner attitudes and perceptions of the online course to instructor quality. Early studies evaluating instructor quality attempted to correlate instructor quality with the attitude and perception of the learner, but not directly to learner success or course design quality. Researchers of online courses, such as Palloff & Pratt (2003), discussed the role of the instructor in depth while neglecting the roles of the learner, the institution, and course design. The main focus remained instructor-centered, and highlighted key instructor tasks such as understanding the virtual learner in terms of roles the learner plays, fostering team roles for the learner, designing an effective course orientation, and identifying potential legal issues the instructor might face (Palloff & Pratt, 2002, p. 16). A distant secondary focus was on effective course design. This highlighted instructor tasks in building an effective online learning community without highlighting the roles effective communication tools would play.

Undergraduate accounting students’ perception of a course in accounting research and theory

2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 217-233 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ron Baker ◽  
Sara Wick
Keyword(s):  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Academic Career ◽  
Accounting Education ◽  
Accounting Students ◽  
Student Interest ◽  
Faculty Shortage ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Accounting Research ◽  
Accounting Practitioners

Purpose This study aims to measure the response of undergraduate accounting students to a stand-alone course in accounting theory and research. The aim of the study was to gauge students’ perceptions of the usefulness of this course and to determine if exposure to this material would increase student interest in accounting research and in pursuing a career in academia. Design/methodology/approach Three cohorts of students enrolled in the course completed an in-class survey. The study was conducted from 2015 to 2017. Findings The results of the survey show that student interest in accounting research and theory increased substantially as a result of the course. Students felt that learning about accounting research and the theories used in accounting research enhanced their overall understanding of accounting and would be useful to them as accounting practitioners. This study also reports that students interested in pursuing a PhD and/or an academic career also increased. Research limitations/implications Data were only collected at a single university and represent student perceptions only. Practical implications The results of this study and the description of the course design will inform academics seeking to answer the American Accounting Association Pathways Commission’s call to integrate accounting research and education. This study also suggests a pathway towards addressing the chronic academic accounting faculty shortage. Finally, the results will be of interest to those designing undergraduate accounting curriculum. Originality/value This study contributes to the literature on the “teaching-research nexus” in accounting by providing evidence, from the perspective of undergraduate accounting students, of the usefulness of integrating research into undergraduate accounting education. While many accounting researchers view accounting research and teaching accounting as separate activities, the response from students suggests that there is value in fostering a more complementary relationship between these two activities.

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