scholarly journals Faculty Perceptions of Mattering in Teaching and Learning: A Qualitative Examination of the Views, Values, and Teaching Practices of Award-Winning Professors

2021 ◽  
pp. 073428292110576
Author(s):  
Timothy A. Pychyl ◽  
Gordon L. Flett ◽  
Mallory Long ◽  
Elizabeth Carreiro ◽  
Rafik Azil
Keyword(s):  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Teaching Practices ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Faculty Perceptions ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Teaching Excellence ◽  
Award Winning ◽  
Relational Factors ◽  
Almost All ◽  
Effective Teaching And Learning

We summarize qualitative research conducted on the mattering construct and then describe a qualitative investigation focused on mattering as a key aspect of the relational factors which influence the learning and development of students. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 professors recognized for their teaching excellence. Specifically, we assessed professors’ attitudes towards student perceptions of mattering and awareness of mattering in terms of their own self-reported beliefs, attitudes, and teaching practices that convey to students that they matter. Thematic analysis confirmed that almost all the award-winning professors interviewed recognized students’ need to matter and found effective ways to convey to students that they matter. These professors tended to be more similar than different in their approaches and attitudes. Key themes included the need for professors to show students they care about them as students and as people, seeing and treating students as individuals who are collaborators in the learning process, and the need to avoid anti-mattering micro-practices that can result in students becoming disengaged and disillusioned. We discuss these findings in terms of how an explicit focus on mattering promotion is warranted as a central attribute of effective teaching and learning, how the current findings enhance understanding of the mattering construct and how it should be assessed.

Defining the Social Dimension of Sustainability in Product Design

2013 ◽  
Vol 572 ◽  
pp. 24-27
Author(s):  
Matthew Watkins
Keyword(s):  
Product Design ◽  
Design Education ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Social Dimension ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Doctoral Study ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
The Social ◽  
Sustainable Product ◽  
Effective Teaching And Learning

This paper presents a summary of a larger study into the formulation of a set of criteria for consideration of the Social criteria of Sustainable Product Design (SPD). A multidisciplinary literature review was conducted, which was developed further through semi structured interviews with nine experts in the field of sustainable design education. These interviews were conducted face to face and responses were analysed using the coding and clustering technique. A list of criteria was refined and these were used to inform a doctoral study which considered effective teaching and learning methods in the social aspects of SPD.

scholarly journals Teaching in Indian Higher Education: Six Principles for Improvement

2018 ◽  
pp. 28
Author(s):  
Sayantan Mandal
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Empirical Evidence ◽  
Teaching Practices ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Colleges And Universities ◽  
National Study ◽  
Current State ◽  
Indian Higher Education ◽  
Effective Teaching And Learning

While traditional, information-oriented lectures have been the de-facto practice in Indian higher education institutions (HEIs), they are often not effective in imparting learning. There is a need to reform instruction in colleges and universities, focusing on effective teaching and learning methods. As a first step in that direction, a national study of selected public HEIs attempts to assess the current state of teaching by focusing on different teaching practices at the undergraduate and master’s (graduate) levels. The study reflects on issues and challenges and suggests six principles to help improve teaching in Indian college and universities. This is a synthesis of the research, based on empirical evidence.

scholarly journals Using learning analytics to engage students: Improving teaching practices through informed interactions

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 231
Author(s):  
Justina Naujokaitienė ◽  
Giedrė Tamoliūnė ◽  
Airina Volungevičienė ◽  
Josep M. Duart
Keyword(s):  
Online Learning ◽  
Learning Analytics ◽  
Teaching Practices ◽  
Online Teaching ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
New Technology ◽  
Research Problem ◽  
Qualitative Inquiry ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Learner Engagement

Student engagement is one of the most relevant topics within the academic and research community nowadays. Higher education curriculum, teaching and learning integrate new technology- supported learning solutions. New methods and tools enhance teacher and learner interactions and influence learner engagement positively. This research addresses the need to explore new ways of improving teaching practices to better engage students with the help of learning analytics. The paper investigates how university teachers use the data from learning analytics to observe learners and to engage them in online learning. Qualitative inquiry was chosen to approach the research problem, and semi-structured interviews with the teachers using (blended) online learning were conveyed to explore teacher practices in students’ behaviour and engagement observations online, disclosing teachers’ abilities to understand the challenging learner engagement process based on the data from learning analytics. The new evidence provided by this research highlights the successful practices in the use of learning analytics data to observe students’ behaviour and engagement and to inform teachers on the presence needed in order to develop learner–centred activities and to make curriculum changes. The limitation of this study lies in the fact that the different online teaching experiences that research participants had might have restricted their understanding of the use of LA data for curriculum development and learners’ engagement.

scholarly journals Assessing faculty professional development in STEM higher education: Sustainability of outcomes

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. e1501422 ◽  
Author(s):  
Terry L. Derting ◽  
Diane Ebert-May ◽  
Timothy P. Henkel ◽  
Jessica Middlemis Maher ◽  
Bryan Arnold ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Teaching Strategies ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Teaching Practices ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Faculty Perceptions ◽  
Development Program ◽  
Faculty Professional Development ◽  
Learner Centered

We tested the effectiveness of Faculty Institutes for Reforming Science Teaching IV (FIRST), a professional development program for postdoctoral scholars, by conducting a study of program alumni. Faculty professional development programs are critical components of efforts to improve teaching and learning in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) disciplines, but reliable evidence of the sustained impacts of these programs is lacking. We used a paired design in which we matched a FIRST alumnus employed in a tenure-track position with a non-FIRST faculty member at the same institution. The members of a pair taught courses that were of similar size and level. To determine whether teaching practices of FIRST participants were more learner-centered than those of non-FIRST faculty, we compared faculty perceptions of their teaching strategies, perceptions of environmental factors that influence teaching, and actual teaching practice. Non-FIRST and FIRST faculty reported similar perceptions of their teaching strategies and teaching environment. FIRST faculty reported using active learning and interactive engagement in lecture sessions more frequently compared with non-FIRST faculty. Ratings from external reviewers also documented that FIRST faculty taught class sessions that were learner-centered, contrasting with the teacher-centered class sessions of most non-FIRST faculty. Despite marked differences in teaching practice, FIRST and non-FIRST participants used assessments that targeted lower-level cognitive skills. Our study demonstrated the effectiveness of the FIRST program and the empirical utility of comparison groups, where groups are well matched and controlled for contextual variables (for example, departments), for evaluating the effectiveness of professional development for subsequent teaching practices.

scholarly journals Teaching excellence and how it is awarded: A Canadian case study

2020 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 40-52
Author(s):  
Janice Miller-Young ◽  
Melina Sinclair ◽  
Sarah Forgie
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Teaching Excellence ◽  
Canadian Higher Education ◽  
Teaching Awards ◽  
Insight Into

Quality teaching and how to assess and award it, continue to be an area of scholarship and debate in higher education. While the literature demonstrates that assessment should be multifaceted, operationalizing this is no easy task. To gain insight into how teaching excellence is defined in Canadian higher education, this empirical study collected and analysed the criteria, evidence, and standards for institutional teaching awards from 89 institutions and 204 award programs across Canada. The majority of awards included criteria such as specific characteristics of teaching performance and student-centredness; while activities that had impact outside an individual’s teaching practice were also prevalent, including campus leadership, scholarship of teaching and learning, and contributions to curriculum. Lists of potential sources of evidence were heavily weighted towards student perceptions and artefacts from instructors’ teaching. Recommendations for individuals and institutions wanting to foster excellence in teaching are offered along with suggestions for future research.

scholarly journals Student and Faculty Perceptions of Professorial Attitudes: A Study and an Invitation to Study

1999 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Short
Keyword(s):  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Faculty Perceptions ◽  
Cultural Groups ◽  
Research Information ◽  
Student Expectations ◽  
Site Analysis ◽  
Faculty Expectations ◽  
International Comparative ◽  
Teaching In Higher Education

This paper is a call for participation in an ongoing international comparative study of faculty and student perceptions of professorial attitudes, and how professorial attitude affects successful learning experiences in an academic setting. Student expectations of faculty and the institutions in which they teach vary by year and level of study. Further variations are apparent as the pressures of employment andfinances weigh on students. Faculty expectations and understandings of students are also changing and mayor may not match the realities experienced by students. Data were gathered at Brock University in 1997 that indicated several trends in professorial attitudes and behaviour. The original study was conducted via a traditional paper questionnaire. The current study employs a questionnaire designed to be accessed and completed over the Web. Implications of the study will be considered as related to the following three areas: theory, practice, and further research. The following questions will be used to study the implications in these areas. Are there any differences or similarities between and among different nationalities and cultures in attitudes towards the professorate? To what might differences and similarities in attitudes between and among cultural groups be attributed? What areas has the study identified that require further research? Information gathered will be concerned with the following findings as derived from the data to be collected: site by site analysis of survey items for students and faculty at each participating institution; and statistical comparisons between and among sites. Findings will be used to develop a model to foster understanding of underlying issues in effective and not so effective teaching in higher education. Also included is a review of literature concerning the areas of successful learning, personality, epistemology, and the practice of teaching and learning

scholarly journals Teaching excellence and how it is awarded: A Canadian case study

2020 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 40-52
Author(s):  
Janice Miller-Young ◽  
Melina Sinclair ◽  
Sarah Forgie
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Teaching Excellence ◽  
Canadian Higher Education ◽  
Teaching Awards ◽  
Insight Into

Quality teaching and how to assess and award it, continue to be an area of scholarship and debate in higher education. While the literature demonstrates that assessment should be multifaceted, operationalizing this is no easy task. To gain insight into how teaching excellence is defined in Canadian higher education, this empirical study collected and analysed the criteria, evidence, and standards for institutional teaching awards from 89 institutions and 204 award programs across Canada. The majority of awards included criteria such as specific characteristics of teaching performance and student-centredness; while activities that had impact outside an individual’s teaching practice were also prevalent, including campus leadership, scholarship of teaching and learning, and contributions to curriculum. Lists of potential sources of evidence were heavily weighted towards student perceptions and artefacts from instructors’ teaching. Recommendations for individuals and institutions wanting to foster excellence in teaching are offered along with suggestions for future research.

scholarly journals Teaching in Indian Higher Education: Six Principles for Improvement

2018 ◽  
pp. 28-29
Author(s):  
Sayantan Mandal
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Empirical Evidence ◽  
Teaching Practices ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Colleges And Universities ◽  
National Study ◽  
Current State ◽  
Indian Higher Education ◽  
Effective Teaching And Learning

While traditional, information-oriented lectures have been the de-facto practice in Indian higher education institutions (HEIs), they are often not effective in imparting learning. There is a need to reform instruction in colleges and universities, focusing on effective teaching and learning methods. As a first step in that direction, a national study of selected public HEIs attempts to assess the current state of teaching by focusing on different teaching practices at the undergraduate and master’s (graduate) levels. The study reflects on issues and challenges and suggests six principles to help improve teaching in Indian college and universities. This is a synthesis of the research, based on empirical evidence.

scholarly journals Technology in ELT: Iranian EFL Teachers’ Perception towards Using Fotobabble in English Classes

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 25-30
Author(s):  
Hamid Ashraf ◽  
Bahman Kazemi ◽  
Sara Kazemi
Keyword(s):  
Technology Use ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
English Classes ◽  
Language Classes ◽  
Efl Teachers ◽  
Effective Teaching And Learning

Teaching with technology has gained attention around the globe and internet use has become an integral part of teaching. Web- based tools are used in language classes to enhance interaction among learners and increase learning and teaching opportunity. Thus, the aims of this study are to introduce fotobabble which is a web tool that can be used in English language classes for teaching purposes, and to know the Iranian EFL teachers’ perception towards it. To collect data, 30 EFL teachers teaching at schools and private English institutes were randomly selected and their attitudes and opinions were investigated through semi- structured interviews. The participants were sent via telegram and e- mail an informative text about fotobabble and then were asked to talk about their opinions about its benefits and merits in language classes. The collected qualitative data was analyzed by means of content analysis and it was revealed that the majority of Iranian EFL teachers had a positive attitude towards the use of this web- based tool in their classes; however, a few number of teachers shared their concerns about its application in English classes. It is believed that studies about technology use in classes can help increase effective teaching and learning.

Hundred Chart Challenge

2015 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 65-70
Author(s):  
J. Matt Switzer
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Effective Teaching ◽  
Teaching Practices ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Success For All ◽  
Mathematical Representations ◽  
Mathematical Success ◽  
Effective Teaching And Learning

NCTM's Principles to Actions: Ensuring Mathematical Success for All (2014) outlines eight teaching practices for effective teaching and learning of mathematics. One of them, Use and connect mathematical representations, involves engaging students in “making connections among mathematical representations to deepen understanding of mathematics concepts and procedures and as tools for problem solving” (p. 10).

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