Why Don’t We Just Ask Them? A Qualitative Study Regarding College Student Perceptions on What Topics Should Be Included in an Introductory Health Course

2020 ◽  
pp. 237337992092619
Author(s):  
Kristen Brewer ◽  
Aaron Diehr ◽  
Kadi Bliss
Keyword(s):  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Time Management ◽  
Liberal Arts ◽  
Sleep Time ◽  
Personal Health ◽  
Liberal Arts University ◽  
Course Content ◽  
Health Course ◽  
Academic Year

Student perceptions and opinions regarding the relevance of course content can influence their desire and motivation to learn. Instructors can benefit from including content relevant to students’ lives, possibly leading them to take a greater interest in gaining knowledge and applying the material. This study aimed to investigate the health topics included in an introductory health course offered at a medium-sized, public liberal arts university in Tennessee and to explore perceptions of current undergraduate students regarding the relevance of those topics. Over the 2018–2019 academic year, four focus groups were conducted with 14 students who discussed their perceptions, opinions, and experiences of the course and offered suggestions regarding topics they thought should be incorporated in future iterations of the course. Participants wished that topics currently covered in the course, such as nutrition and fitness, would incorporate more experiential learning to provide greater applicability to their lives as college students. Students also expressed a desire for greater coverage of topics that they considered particularly relevant to their lifestyle and health, such as mental health, sleep, time management, and decision making. Information from this study can be used to help develop course content for undergraduate personal health courses so students can feel more connected to the material.

scholarly journals Higher Education Course Content: Paper-Based Online or Hybrid Course Delivery?

10.28945/2794 ◽  
2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Glen Van Der Vyver ◽  
Michael Lane
Keyword(s):  
Distance Learning ◽  
Graduate Students ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Hybrid Models ◽  
Course Delivery ◽  
Education Programs ◽  
Hybrid Course ◽  
Course Content ◽  
Electronic Delivery

The emergence of the Internet has made many institutions involved in the delivery of distance education programs re-evaluate the course delivery framework. A variety of models and techniques co-exist in an often uneasy alliance at many such institutions. These range from the traditional distance learning model, which remains paper-based, to the purely online model. Recently, hybrid models have emerged which apparently attempt to forge elements taken from several models into a unified whole. Many of these hybrid models seek to eliminate paper-based materials from the tuition process. While many arguments are put forward about the efficacy of purely electronic delivery mechanisms, cost containment is often the driving motivation. This study explores student perceptions of the various delivery mechanisms for distance learning materials. In particular, it seeks to determine what value students place on paper-based delivery mechanisms. The study surveys a group of undergraduate students and a group of graduate students enrolled in the Faculty of Business at a large regional Australian university.

Investigating different options in course delivery – traditional vs online: is there another option?

2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 230-239 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashley Hass ◽  
Mathew Joseph
Keyword(s):  
Online Education ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Liberal Arts ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Liberal Arts University ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Traditional Courses ◽  
Southwest Region ◽  
Southwest Usa

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine students’ perceptions of online vs traditional (face-to-face) course offerings at the business school of a liberal arts university in southwest USA. The research compares perceptions of students who have been subjected to online education along with those who have not been exposed to online education and examines likelihood to take online courses. Design/methodology/approach Paper and pencil surveys were distributed in different classes in business classes at a university in southwest USA. The target group was undergraduate students. Findings The results indicate that overall, students have neutral perceptions about online courses, while favorable perceptions are strongly associated with likelihood to take online courses. Moreover, prior exposure with online courses is not a significant factor in forming favorable perceptions about online courses. Research limitations/implications The present research is limited in generalizability and the institution surveyed in the southwest region is new to online courses offering in their curriculum and not all the participants had prior experience with online courses. Originality/value Although this paper compares online education with traditional, another option for methods of education include hybrid models incorporating both. A possible third option not discussed through this research is a hybrid or blended learning course, a combination of both online and traditional courses. This opens the options for the student, as hybrid courses can be built with many different options. One includes using technology for “screencasts” or lectures online.

scholarly journals Evaluation of Textbook “The Language of Evaluation: Appraisal in English” from the Perspectives of Thai EFL Students: Implications of Systemic Functional Linguistics and Appraisal Theory

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. p82
Author(s):  
Udomkrit Srinon
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Liberal Arts ◽  
Appraisal Theory ◽  
English Curriculum ◽  
Good Level ◽  
Level Of Satisfaction ◽  
Efl Students ◽  
Academic Year

The purposes of this case study were to explore Thai EFL students’ levels of satisfactions regarding the implication of the book “The Language of Evaluation: Appraisal in English”, and to explore their comments and recommendations on the use of the course book in the Subject of Selected Topics in English based on appraisal theory developed by Martin and White (2005). The study employed the appraisal theory to teach three undergraduate students who enrolled in the Course of Selected Topics in English Curriculum at the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Science, Kasetsart University, Thailand, in the 2019 academic year. A questionnaire was used to collect data of students’ level of satisfaction towards the course. Analysis of the study shows that for all sections of evaluation: the book, the lecturer and student’s learning and evaluation, the students evaluated the lecturer at the “good” level (mean=4.27) followed by the book (mean=3.394) and student’s learning and reflection (mean=3.53). In this regard, they evaluated the book from an overall perspective at the “good” level (mean=3.94). In more detail, the chapter they rated as the first rank is Chapter 1 Introduction which has the highest mean of 4.13 followed by Chapter 2 Attitude: Ways of feeling (mean=4.07), Chapter 3 Engagement and graduation: Alignment, solidarity and the construed reader (mean=3.93), Chapter 4 Evaluative key: Taking a stance (mean=3.93) and Chapter 5 Enacting Appraisal: Text Analysis (mean=3.60) respectively. For the section of student’s learning and reflection, they evaluated their learning at the “good” level (mean=3.53) which is the least mean of all sections. The students advised that some chapters of the book were difficult for them to understand since they were not familiar with terms used. The analysis also shows that the students mainly suggest that the book should be integrated into the course continuously every semester which would be beneficial for students in understanding how to evaluate language use in different contexts. However, more easy examples should be included in the book.

scholarly journals The educational use of facebook as a social networking site in animal physiology classes

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 258 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pınar Koseoglu ◽  
Gamze Mercan
Keyword(s):  
Social Networking ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Biology Education ◽  
Social Networking Site ◽  
Education Department ◽  
Spring Semester ◽  
Course Content ◽  
Animal Physiology ◽  
Sample Application ◽  
Academic Year

This study aims at performing a sample application of educational use of Facebook as a social networking site in Animal Physiology classes, and at determining sudents’ views on the application. The research sample was composed of 29 third year undergraduate students attending the Biology Education Department of Hacettepe University. The Applied part of the research was performed in the Spring semester of the 2014-2015 academic year in Animal Physiology classes. A Facebook group called “BIO 314 Animal Physiology” was created for sharing purposes in relation to the course content, and the lecturer as well as the students shared  several times in the group for fourteen weeks and they made comments on instances of sharing.  Besides, the lecturer assigned the students tasks for the activities and the students were expected to fulfill the tasks. Students’ views were obtained through a survey of open-ended questions prepared as the tool of data collection and then the views were put to qualitative analysis. The results showed that the use of Facebook for educational purposes made such things as sharing, helping each other, increasing communication, reaching the lecturer and visualising the content easier for students but that there were also students holding negative views on the issue.

scholarly journals An Analysis of the Students' Difficulties in Writing Undergraduate Thesis at English Education Study Program of Muhammadiyah University of Bengkulu

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 17
Author(s):  
Dwi Monica Lestari
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Research Methodology ◽  
Time Management ◽  
Quantitative Research ◽  
English Education ◽  
Research Topic ◽  
Study Program ◽  
Education Study ◽  
Academic Year ◽  
Undergraduate Thesis

The objectives of this research are: 1) To find out the undergraduate students’ Difficulties In Writing Thesis at The English Study Program of Muhammadiyah University Bengkulu (UMB) in Academic Year 2018-2019, and 2) To find out the most difficult variable they faced in writing theses. The design of this research is descriptive quantitative research. 74 students of the Seventh Semester Students of English Education Study Program of Muhammadiyah University of Bengkulu in the Academic Year of 2018-2019 took part in this study. The instruments were questionnaires and interview. The data were collected by assigning the students to fill out the questionnaires and being interviewed afterward. The data were analyzed by checking the students’ answer in the questionnaire, classifying the students’ answers, calculating the students’ scores of difficulties in writing a thesis, describing the data and concluding the results. The results  showed the students' difficulties in writing a thesis; a) Orderly, the students' difficulties in writing a thesis are: related to difficulties of students' English proficiencies; related to difficulties of students' time management; related to difficulties of students' research methodology; related to difficulties of students' attitude; related to difficulties of students' research topic; and the least related to difficulties of a co-advisor relationship, students' plagiarism, students' personalities, the big number of supervised students and advisor workload; and difficulties of students motivation. b) The most difficulties in writing thesis are related to their English proficiency which are still low and limited. Both have become the first cause that they cannot develop their writing thesis well.  The implication of this study ; 1) the students should minimize their difficulties and find the solution in the way of  a) Improve their English, or at least have adequate English before writing a thesis. b) Should manage their time wisely in doing their thesis. c) Read more relevant sources that can support their research. d) Give more attention to avoid plagiarism. 2) Further researchers are suggested to do similar research and add more data with adding research instruments, such as interview guides. 

scholarly journals Faculty Perception on International Students in Turkey: Benefits and Challenges

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erkan Acar
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Learning Environment ◽  
Time Management ◽  
Liberal Arts ◽  
Faculty Perceptions ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Administrative Staff ◽  
Liberal Arts University ◽  
System 2

<p class="apa">The purpose of this qualitative case study is to examine faculty perceptions on international students with respect to benefits and challenges of having them in a liberal arts university located in Istanbul, Turkey. The research data were collected through evaluation of pertinent documents of the school and interviews with sixteen faculty members and one administrative staff member. Revealed themes for the benefits of having international students within the institution included: (1) escalading the overall academic and disciplinary success of the school, (2) creating diversity in learning environment and (3) generating competitive learning environment. Themes that are revealed for the challenges of having international students included: (1) adaptation to a new educational system, (2) language accents, (3) time management issues, and (4) isolation and grouping.</p>

An Exploration of the Perceived Application Preparedness of Undergraduate Students Applying for Professional School

The Advisor ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashley M. Prentice ◽  
Aarek W. Farmer ◽  
Wendy Gean
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Liberal Arts ◽  
Series Data ◽  
Professional School ◽  
Application Process ◽  
Liberal Arts University ◽  
Application Service ◽  
Personal Strengths ◽  
Seminar Series ◽  
Before And After

Abstract This research study investigated the perceived application preparedness of undergraduate students preparing to apply for professional school. Perceptions of preparedness were measured before and after attending a seminar series focusing on the Centralized Application Service (CAS) portal, writing a personal statement, identifying personal strengths and weaknesses, and interview skills. Data was collected from pre-and post-surveys from undergraduate students enrolled at a small, private liberal arts university in West Tennessee. Electronic surveys were distributed to undergraduate students in a pre-health arts professional program hosted by the university before and after attending the seminar series. Data from 44 students were analyzed to determine if there was a significant impact on perceived level of preparedness before and after attending the seminar series. The data revealed that students had higher perceived application preparedness after receiving formal instruction compared to having no instruction regarding the graduate application process.

scholarly journals Using a personal response system as an in-class assessment tool in the teaching of basic college chemistry

2013 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tzy-Ling Chen ◽  
Yu-Li Lan
Keyword(s):  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Student Performance ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Assessment Tool ◽  
Large Classes ◽  
Course Content ◽  
College Chemistry ◽  
Effective Use ◽  
Actual Learning

<p>Since the introduction of personal response systems (PRS) (also referred to as "clickers") nearly a decade ago, their use has been extensively adopted on college campuses, and they are particularly popular with lecturers of large classes. Available evidence supports that PRS offers a promising avenue for future developments in pedagogy, although findings on the advantages of its effective use related to improving or enhancing student learning remain inconclusive. This study examines the degree to which students perceive that using PRS in class as an assessment tool effects their understanding of course content, engagement in classroom learning, and test preparation. Multiple, student-performance evaluation data was used to explore correlations between student perceptions of PRS and their actual learning outcomes. This paper presents the learning experiences of 151 undergraduate students taking basic chemistry classes and incorporating PRS as an in-class assessment tool at the National Chung Hsing University in Taiwan. While the research revealed positive student perceived benefits and effectiveness of PRS use, it also indicated the need for further studies to discover what specific contribution PRS can make to certain learning outcomes of a large chemistry class in higher education.</p><br />

scholarly journals Chemistry Student Perceptions of Transferable & Workplace Skills Development

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dylan P Williams ◽  
Sandeep Handa
Keyword(s):  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Time Management ◽  
Chemistry Education ◽  
Oral Communication ◽  
Skills Development ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Workplace Skills ◽  
Transferable Skills ◽  
Perceived Importance

The perceptions of transferable and workplace skills development of year one and two chemistry undergraduate students at the University of Leicester were measured using two questionnaires. This group of students is taught be a variety of approaches including Problem and Context Based Learning (C/PBL). Over 60% of respondents agreed that all discipline specific and transferable skills included in the first questionnaire were important skills for chemistry graduates to have. The perceived importance of most skills does not vary between year groups but there are small increases in perceived importance for most transferable skills. In a separate questionnaire, first year students were asked to rate their skills development following a series of Context and Problem Based Learning (C/PBL) activities. "problem solving", "time management", "working in a team“ and "oral communication" were the most developed skills based on student responses. This element of the study also provided evidence to suggest that students believe the “real-world”, authentic nature of C/PBL problems may be an important factor in determining the extent of skills development.Keywords: Transferable skills, Workplace skills, Employability, Chemistry education

scholarly journals A New Method of Assessing the Effects of a Service-Learning Class on Engineering Undergraduate Students

2014 ◽  
pp. 29-47
Author(s):  
Patricia Maloney ◽  
Lauren Dent ◽  
Tanja Karp
Keyword(s):  
Service Learning ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Time Management ◽  
Interpersonal Skills ◽  
State University ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Assessment Of Student Learning ◽  
Growth Assessment

Increases in engineering service learning courses and enrolled undergraduates necessitate further research and recommendations concerning the assessment of student learning and growth. Assessment of such growth may be difficult in service learning courses because of the types of skills it fosters: interpersonal skills, critical thinking, and other professional skills not easily tested for in a classroom. Some previous attempts at assessment were predominantly standards-based and designed to measure what researchers thought students should gain from the course, rather than being based in what students thought. In this paper, we first ask students what skills they learned in service learning, determine their thoughts about the usefulness of different kinds of assessment, and then use their words to construct a naturalistic assessment that can serve as a pre- and post-test to measure growth in engineering service learning courses. The data come from 96 students and three semesters of a service learning section of a large Introduction to Engineering course at a large state university. Overall, we conclude that students perceive that they have grown at statistically significant levels in communication skills, teamwork, leadership, time management, and other engineering skills noted below. We argue that student perceptions of growth matter for their persistence in engineering and resilience after professional or academic setbacks.

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