scholarly journals Implementation of a Learning Assistant Program Improves Student Performance on Higher-Order Assessments

2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. ar62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadia Sellami ◽  
Shanna Shaked ◽  
Frank A. Laski ◽  
Kevin M. Eagan ◽  
Erin R. Sanders
Keyword(s):  
Active Learning ◽  
Student Performance ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Higher Order ◽  
Underrepresented Minority ◽  
Learning Gains ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Large Enrollment ◽  
Curricular Transformation ◽  
Positive Effect

Learning assistant (LA) programs have been implemented at a range of institutions, usually as part of a comprehensive curricular transformation accompanied by a pedagogical switch to active learning. While this shift in pedagogy has led to increased student learning gains, the positive effect of LAs has not yet been distinguished from that of active learning. To determine the effect that LAs would have beyond a student-centered instructional modality that integrated active learning, we introduced an LA program into a large-enrollment introductory molecular biology course that had already undergone a pedagogical transformation to a highly structured, flipped (HSF) format. We used questions from a concept test (CT) and exams to compare student performance in LA-supported HSF courses with student performance in courses without LAs. Students in the LA-supported course did perform better on exam questions common to both HSF course modalities but not on the CT. In particular, LA-supported students’ scores were higher on common exam questions requiring higher-order cognitive skills, which LAs were trained to foster. Additionally, underrepresented minority (URM) students particularly benefited from LA implementation. These findings suggest that LAs may provide additional learning benefits to students beyond the use of active learning, especially for URM students.

scholarly journals Redesigning a course to help students achieve higher-order cognitive thinking skills: from goals and mechanics to student outcomes

2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 194-202 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janet Casagrand ◽  
Katharine Semsar
Keyword(s):  
Active Learning ◽  
Student Performance ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Student Outcomes ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Skill Levels ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Traditional Lecture ◽  
Course Materials ◽  
Learning Assessments

Here we describe a 4-yr course reform and its outcomes. The upper-division neurophysiology course gradually transformed from a traditional lecture in 2004 to a more student-centered course in 2008, through the addition of evidence-based active learning practices, such as deliberate problem-solving practice on homework and peer learning structures, both inside and outside of class. Due to the incremental nature of the reforms and absence of pre-reform learning assessments, we needed a way to retrospectively assess the effectiveness of our efforts. To do this, we first looked at performance on 12 conserved exam questions. Students performed significantly higher post-reform on questions requiring lower-level cognitive skills and those requiring higher-level cognitive skills. Furthermore, student performance on conserved questions was higher post-reform in both the top and bottom quartiles of students, although lower-quartile student performance did not improve until after the first exam. To examine student learning more broadly, we also used Bloom’s taxonomy to quantify a significant increase in the Bloom’s level of exams, with students performing equally well post-reform on exams that had over twice as many questions at higher cognitive skill levels. Finally, we believe that four factors provided critical contributions to the success of the course reform, including: transformation efforts across multiple course components, alignment between formative and evaluative course materials, student buy-in to course instruction, and instructional support. This reform demonstrates both the effectiveness of incorporating student-centered, active learning into our course, and the utility of using Bloom’s level as a metric to assess course reform.

scholarly journals Improved Student Learning through a Faculty Learning Community: How Faculty Collaboration Transformed a Large-Enrollment Course from Lecture to Student Centered

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. ar22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily R. Elliott ◽  
Robert D. Reason ◽  
Clark R. Coffman ◽  
Eric J. Gangloff ◽  
Jeffrey R. Raker ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Active Learning ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Learning Gains ◽  
Introductory Biology ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Faculty Learning Community ◽  
Active Learning Strategies ◽  
Large Enrollment

Undergraduate introductory biology courses are changing based on our growing understanding of how students learn and rapid scientific advancement in the biological sciences. At Iowa State University, faculty instructors are transforming a second-semester large-enrollment introductory biology course to include active learning within the lecture setting. To support this change, we set up a faculty learning community (FLC) in which instructors develop new pedagogies, adapt active-learning strategies to large courses, discuss challenges and progress, critique and revise classroom interventions, and share materials. We present data on how the collaborative work of the FLC led to increased implementation of active-learning strategies and a concurrent improvement in student learning. Interestingly, student learning gains correlate with the percentage of classroom time spent in active-learning modes. Furthermore, student attitudes toward learning biology are weakly positively correlated with these learning gains. At our institution, the FLC framework serves as an agent of iterative emergent change, resulting in the creation of a more student-centered course that better supports learning.

scholarly journals Discovery Learning: Development of a Unique Active Learning Environment for Introductory Chemistry

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura E Ott ◽  
Tara S. Carpenter ◽  
Diana S Hamilton ◽  
William R. LaCourse
Keyword(s):  
Active Learning ◽  
Learning Environment ◽  
Student Performance ◽  
Conceptual Knowledge ◽  
Discovery Learning ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Report Data ◽  
Large Enrollment ◽  
Learning Development

It is well established that active learning results in greater gains in student conceptual knowledge and retention compared to traditional modes of learning.  However, active learning can be very difficult to implement in a large-enrollment course due to various course and institutional barriers.  Herein, we describe the development and implementation of Discovery Learning, a novel active learning discussion/recitation for a large enrollment general chemistry course.  Drawing on the very successful cooperative learning pedagogies Process-Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL) and Student-Centered Active Learning Environment with Upside-down Pedagogies (SCALE_UP), Discovery Learning involves students working in self-managed teams on inquiry problems in a unique learning environment, the Chemistry Discovery Center.  In this case study, we will describe the design and implementation of Discovery Learning and report data on its successes, which include increased student performance and retention.

scholarly journals HIGHER AND LOWER-ORDER THINKING SKILLS: THE CASE OF CHEMISTRY REVISITED

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 467-483 ◽  
Author(s):  
Georgios Tsaparlis
Keyword(s):  
Student Performance ◽  
Lower Order ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Student Assessment ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Higher Order ◽  
Two Samples ◽  
Twelfth Grade ◽  
Low Performance ◽  
The Individual

This work analyses students’ failure in the 2019 Nationwide Chemistry Examination in Greece, which concerns secondary education graduates, competing for admission to higher education Greek institutions. The distinction of thinking skills into higher and lower order (HOTS and LOTS) is used as a theoretical tool for this analysis. The examination included several questions that contained HOTS elements that had been unusual in previous examinations. This led to a decrease in overall student performance but better discrimination between outstanding and good students. Based on two samples of examination papers, corresponding to very similar subsets of the student population, the 2018 and 2019 examinations are compared, and the individual 2019 questions are evaluated. It was found that section B of the 2019 examination paper (which included contexts unfamiliar to the students, and for which, a large effect size between 2018 and 2019 was calculated) may have caused the large drop. An important link is established between the 2019 low performance and the HOTS and LOTS features of the questions, and the role or non-role of algorithmic calculations is examined. In addition, the critical opinions of chemistry teachers are provided, with a consensus emerging in favour of connecting chemistry with everyday life. Keywords: chemistry examinations, higher-order cognitive skills, higher-order thinking skills, student assessment, twelfth-grade chemistry.

scholarly journals Developing Cognitive Skills Through Active Learning: A Systematic Review of Health Care Professions

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolette Harris ◽  
Cailee E. Welch Bacon
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Active Learning ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Problem Based Learning ◽  
Higher Order ◽  
Health Care Professions ◽  
Passive Learning ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
Assessment Measures

ObjectiveTo systematically review current literature to determine whether active learning is more successful than passive learning at producing cognitive skills in health care professions students.Data SourcesAn electronic search was conducted in 4 databases: EBSCO-CINAHL, EBSCO-Sport Discus, Educational Resources Information Center, and PubMed. Search terms included: millennial AND health education, active learning AND knowledge retention, flipped classroom AND learning outcomes, problem based learning AND learning outcomes, problem based learning AND student confidence, active learning AND critical thinking, higher order thinking AND active learning.Study SelectionWe included studies if they were published in English between 2007 and 2017 and evaluated outcomes of an active learning intervention. Studies of nonhealth care disciplines, practicing health care practitioners, or studies that did not address the primary research questions were excluded.Data ExtractionStudy design, health care discipline, intervention used, assessment measures, outcome(s) measures, main results, and conclusions were extracted from each article, as appropriate.Data SynthesisArticles were categorized based on capacity to answer 1 or both of the research questions. Conclusions were summarized according to the learning technique used and its effectiveness in regard to studied learning outcome. Out of 85 studies on lower-order cognition, 61 (72%) indicated active learning techniques were effective at achieving improved recall, understanding, and/or application of course material. Of 69 studies on higher-order cognition, 58 (84%) supported active learning over passive instruction for improving students' confidence in or performance of analytical, evaluative, and creative skills.ConclusionsActive learning produces gains to both lower- and higher-order cognition at levels equal to, and more often, greater than the use of passive learning methods. Despite this evidence, we believe more high-quality, well-designed prospective studies using validated assessment measures are needed to endorse the value of these methods in producing cognitive skills.

scholarly journals Increasing the Use of Student-Centered Pedagogies from Moderate to High Improves Student Learning and Attitudes about Biology

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. ar3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Georgianne L. Connell ◽  
Deborah A. Donovan ◽  
Timothy G. Chambers
Keyword(s):  
Active Learning ◽  
Formative Assessment ◽  
Item Response ◽  
Cooperative Groups ◽  
Theory Analysis ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Student Demographics ◽  
Frequent Use ◽  
Item Response Theory Analysis ◽  
Large Enrollment

Student-centered strategies are being incorporated into undergraduate classrooms in response to a call for reform. We tested whether teaching in an extensively student-centered manner (many active-learning pedagogies, consistent formative assessment, cooperative groups; the Extensive section) was more effective than teaching in a moderately student-centered manner (fewer active-learning pedagogies, less formative assessment, without groups; the Moderate section) in a large-enrollment course. One instructor taught both sections of Biology 101 during the same quarter, covering the same material. Students in the Extensive section had significantly higher mean scores on course exams. They also scored significantly higher on a content postassessment when accounting for preassessment score and student demographics. Item response theory analysis supported these results. Students in the Extensive section had greater changes in postinstruction abilities compared with students in the Moderate section. Finally, students in the Extensive section exhibited a statistically greater expert shift in their views about biology and learning biology. We suggest our results are explained by the greater number of active-learning pedagogies experienced by students in cooperative groups, the consistent use of formative assessment, and the frequent use of explicit metacognition in the Extensive section.

scholarly journals Enhancing Diversity in Undergraduate Science: Self-Efficacy Drives Performance Gains with Active Learning

2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. ar56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cissy J. Ballen ◽  
Carl Wieman ◽  
Shima Salehi ◽  
Jeremy B. Searle ◽  
Kelly R. Zamudio
Keyword(s):  
Active Learning ◽  
Student Performance ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Underrepresented Minority ◽  
Social Belonging ◽  
And Mathematics ◽  
Undergraduate Science ◽  
Performance Gains

Efforts to retain underrepresented minority (URM) students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) have shown only limited success in higher education, due in part to a persistent achievement gap between students from historically underrepresented and well-represented backgrounds. To test the hypothesis that active learning disproportionately benefits URM students, we quantified the effects of traditional versus active learning on student academic performance, science self-efficacy, and sense of social belonging in a large (more than 250 students) introductory STEM course. A transition to active learning closed the gap in learning gains between non-URM and URM students and led to an increase in science self-efficacy for all students. Sense of social belonging also increased significantly with active learning, but only for non-URM students. Through structural equation modeling, we demonstrate that, for URM students, the increase in self-efficacy mediated the positive effect of active-learning pedagogy on two metrics of student performance. Our results add to a growing body of research that supports varied and inclusive teaching as one pathway to a diversified STEM workforce.

scholarly journals A Comparison Of Delivery Formats To Encourage Student-Centered Learning In A Power Engineering Technology Course

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 141-156
Author(s):  
Mathew J. Turner ◽  
Rustin D. Webster
Keyword(s):  
Active Learning ◽  
Student Performance ◽  
Power Engineering ◽  
Engineering Technology ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Student Centered Learning ◽  
Course Structure ◽  
Inverted Classroom ◽  
Content Coverage ◽  
Technology Course

This paper describes a student-centered approach to a power engineering technology course using the flipped or inverted classroom as well as active learning in the form of group discussions and team problem solving. The study compares student performance and perceptions of a traditional, teaching-centered classroom to two different flipped courses: one using video lectures and one using a media-enhanced electronic textbook. The authors compared courses in the areas of 1) student performance on multiple choice and numerical analysis problems, 2) students’ perceptions of course delivery format and satisfaction with the course and instructor, and 3) technical content coverage. Results show little difference in student achievement between the course formats, strong negative reactions by students to unfamiliar instructional methods, and little difference in content coverage. The authors believe that the outcomes of this study can be attributed to the benefits of small class sizes (n<12), which naturally enable active learning to be utilized without the need for rigid and formal course structure,

scholarly journals Does the Room Matter? Active Learning in Traditional and Enhanced Lecture Spaces

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. ar68 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon R. Stoltzfus ◽  
Julie Libarkin
Keyword(s):  
Active Learning ◽  
Student Performance ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Lecture Hall ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Traditional Lecture ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Based Instruction

SCALE-UP–type classrooms, originating with the Student-Centered Active Learning Environment with Upside-down Pedagogies project, are designed to facilitate active learning by maximizing opportunities for interactions between students and embedding technology in the classroom. Positive impacts when active learning replaces lecture are well documented, both in traditional lecture halls and SCALE-UP–type classrooms. However, few studies have carefully analyzed student outcomes when comparable active learning–based instruction takes place in a traditional lecture hall and a SCALE-UP–type classroom. Using a quasi-experimental design, we compared student perceptions and performance between sections of a nonmajors biology course, one taught in a traditional lecture hall and one taught in a SCALE-UP–type classroom. Instruction in both sections followed a flipped model that relied heavily on cooperative learning and was as identical as possible given the infrastructure differences between classrooms. Results showed that students in both sections thought that SCALE-UP infrastructure would enhance performance. However, measures of actual student performance showed no difference between the two sections. We conclude that, while SCALE-UP–type classrooms may facilitate implementation of active learning, it is the active learning and not the SCALE-UP infrastructure that enhances student performance. As a consequence, we suggest that institutions can modify existing classrooms to enhance student engagement without incorporating expensive technology.

scholarly journals Diverse Student Perceptions of Active Learning in a Large Enrollment STEM Course

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Benikia Kressler ◽  
Jochen Kressler
Keyword(s):  
Active Learning ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Quantitative Data ◽  
Underrepresented Students ◽  
Higher Order Thinking ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Higher Order ◽  
Class Attendance ◽  
Diverse Student ◽  
Large Enrollment

The concept of active learning as a superior mode of instruction has recently received great attention in the education research literature. It holds promise of steering students away from rote memorization towards higher order thinking. However, few studies focus on student perceptions of higher order thinking activities and diverse student voices are all but absent in this regard. This study applies a combined approach of exploratory qualitative and supplementary quantitative analysis to address this gap. We examined perceptions of underrepresented and non-underrepresented students regarding their engagement in active learning to foster higher order thinking.  The study was set within a large enrollment (198 students), undergraduate course in the area of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). The study sample comprised of 33 purposefully selected, ethnically and racially diverse students.  Data sources included class attendance/participation, graded activity assignments, and a perception survey. Class attendance and graded assignments were used to triangulate responses on the perception surveys. The Generic Inductive Approach supported our qualitative analysis. Quantitative data were analyzed via two-way ANOVA, non-parametric Mann-Whitney Test (when assumptions did not hold) and simple linear regression. Findings include three themes that cut across groups; participants perceived their higher order thinking skills improved, that there were benefits and challenges to active learning and a fear of failing the course. Quantitative data from the active learning activities and attendance supported similar engagement and achievement in higher order thinking activities across race/ethnicity groups as differences failed to reach the a priori established significance threshold. This study extends the knowledge on active learning and demonstrates that it was possible to engage underrepresented and non-underrepresented students equally and effectively in higher order thinking actives in large enrollment courses and that students perceived this as beneficial.

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