scholarly journals The Role of Digital Technologies in Learning: Expectations of First Year University Students / Le rôle des technologies numériques dans l’apprentissage : les attentes des étudiants de première année universitaire

2012 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Martha Gabriel ◽  
Barbara Campbell ◽  
Sean Wiebe ◽  
Ronald J MacDonald ◽  
Alexander McAuley
Keyword(s):  
Focus Group ◽  
Digital Technologies ◽  
First Year ◽  
Focus Group Interviews ◽  
Student Body ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Construction Of Knowledge ◽  
Premier Cycle ◽  
Group Interviews ◽  
First Year University

A growing literature suggests that there is a disjuncture between the instructional practices of the education system and the student body it is expected to serve, particularly with respect to the roles of digital technologies. Based on surveys and focus group interviews of first-year students at a primarily undergraduate Canadian university and focus group interviews of professors at the same institution, this study explores the gaps and intersections between students’ uses and expectations for digital technologies while learning inside the classroom and socializing outside the classroom, and the instructional uses, expectations and concerns of their professors. It concludes with recommendations for uses of digital technologies that go beyond information transmission, the need for extended pedagogical discussions to harness the learning potentials of digital technologies, and for pedagogies that embrace the social construction of knowledge as well as individual acquisition. Des études de plus en plus nombreuses suggèrent qu’il existe un écart entre les pratiques d’enseignement dans le système de l’éducation et la population étudiante desservie, notamment en ce qui concerne le rôle des technologies numériques. La présente étude, fondée sur les résultats de sondages et d’entrevues de groupe auprès des étudiants de première année inscrits à une université canadienne principalement axée sur les études de premier cycle, ainsi que sur des entrevues de groupe auprès de professeurs du même établissement, explore les écarts et les concordances entre, d’une part, l’utilisation et les attentes des étudiants relativement aux technologies numériques dans l’apprentissage en classe et dans les relations sociales en dehors des classes, et, d’autre part, l’utilisation de ces technologies dans les pratiques d’enseignement, les préoccupation et les attentes des professeurs. L’étude se conclut par des recommandations concernant une utilisation des technologies numériques dépassant la transmission de l’information, et la nécessité de discussions pédagogiques poussées permettant d’exploiter le potentiel des technologies numériques dans le cadre de l’apprentissage ainsi que de méthodes pédagogiques adaptées à la construction sociale des connaissances et au mode individuel d’acquisition des connaissances.

Information Literacy Education: Perceptions, Proficiencies and Experiences of First-Entering Students at TUT

Mousaion ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cynthia Manamedi Molepo ◽  
Solomon Bopape
Keyword(s):  
Focus Group ◽  
Information Literacy ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Academic Library ◽  
Literacy Education ◽  
First Year ◽  
Focus Group Interviews ◽  
Library Resources ◽  
Entering Students ◽  
Group Interviews

For students to master information literacy skills, they must attend Information Literacy Education (ILE) offered by academic libraries. This study adopted both quantitative and qualitative research approaches using a questionnaire and focus group interviews, respectively, to investigate the perceptions of the concept “information literacy”, “students’ skills to use library resources”, and “students’ familiarity with different library resources” of first-year students at the library of the Polokwane campus of the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT), South Africa, all before and after attendance of the ILE session, as well as to analyse their experiences of the ILE programme which they had attended. The study found that most of the first-entering students had a different perception of the concept “information literacy” in relation to its usage in the academic Library and Information Science (LIS) environment. The questionnaire findings further showed that the students had no skills in using library resources and were not familiar with library resources before they attended the ILE programme. However, the findings from the focus group interviews showed that, after they had attended the ILE session, they became familiar with some of the library resources, and their abilities to use those resources positively improved from novice to advanced and proficient users of information. It is therefore recommended that ILE for students be continuous so that students do not forget or lose focus of what they have learned in the formal ILE programmes. To encourage students’ participation, the attendance of ILE should be compulsory for all first-year entering students across all faculties at the TUT.

scholarly journals Twitter in a Bachelor of Education Course: Student Experiences

2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 301-317 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane P. Preston ◽  
Brittany A. E. Jakubiec ◽  
Julie Jones ◽  
Rachel Earl
Keyword(s):  
Focus Group ◽  
Participatory Action Research ◽  
Digital Literacy ◽  
Student Experiences ◽  
First Year ◽  
Participatory Action ◽  
Focus Group Interviews ◽  
Bachelor Of Education ◽  
Collaboration And Communication ◽  
Group Interviews

The purpose of this article is to describe student experiences when incorporating Twitter into a Bachelor of Education (BEd) course. Data for this participatory action research were gathered from eight first-year BEd students who provided written answers to 16 open-ended questions and participated in two focus group interviews. Findings indicated that, after participants completed a Twitter assignment, their views of Twitter and its applicability in educational realms changed. Analyzed through the emerging concept of new pedagogy, the Twitter experience enhanced collaboration and communication between student and the instructor. An implication is that if BEd students are to effectively incorporate technology into future kindergarten to grade 12 classrooms, they need to experience digital literacy during undergraduate courses.

scholarly journals Pandemic Language Teaching: Insights from Brazilian and International Teachers on the Pivot to Emergency Remote Instruction

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 127-138
Author(s):  
Ana Sevilla-Pavón ◽  
Kyria Rebeca Finardi
Keyword(s):  
Focus Group ◽  
Online Education ◽  
Online Teaching ◽  
Language Teaching ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Digital Technologies ◽  
Institutional Support ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Focus Group Interviews ◽  
Group Interviews

This article reflects on the experiences of language teachers from Brazil, Spain, France, Cyprus, Costa Rica and Taiwan during the pivot to emergency remote/online instruction during the 2020 pandemic. The research question motivating the study was what language teachers’ perceptions regarding online teaching during the pandemic were. Data were analyzed qualitatively, contrasting data from a questionnaire shared in an asynchronous online form with data from focus group interviews carried out via videoconferencing. The analysis of the questionnaire data showed that the vast majority of respondents used different digital technologies to teach online, both synchronously and asynchronously, but felt unprepared to work in this modality, mostly because of lack of institutional support and training. The analysis of the focus group interviews suggested that most teachers expressed concerns as to the limitations of online teaching for interaction and exams. In addition, some teachers displayed negative attitudes towards online teaching due to the lack of preparation and institutional support. This was aggravated by political implications of migrating to online education that could result in precariousness of the teacher profession. The positive aspects highlighted were the possibility of developing more self-directed and autonomous learning, as well as experimenting with different technologies and approaches. Overall, the analysis of the data suggests that, after the pandemic and with due preparation and support, some of the digital technologies and approaches experimented with will be incorporated into pedagogical practices in blended approaches, which represent a real trend and possibility for language teaching in the post-pandemic context.

scholarly journals Nursing students’ attitudes towards ICT in education and clinic in Denmark

Seminar.net ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Raymond Kolbæk
Keyword(s):  
Nursing Education ◽  
Nursing Students ◽  
Focus Group ◽  
First Year ◽  
Learning Context ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Methodical Approach ◽  
E Learning ◽  
Students Attitudes ◽  
Group Interviews

It is well known that in an era of emerging use of ICT in nursing education and health care it is important to have knowledge of the attitudes towards ICT within the profession. However, nursing students and nurses have been notoriously reluctant to embrace/implement ICT in their work and studies.This paper focuses on the construction of ICT-habitus amongst bachelor nursing students displayed by four positions of attitudes that describe the ICT-habitus of the group of nursing students included [under consideration] in the study. Quotes from the students are used to support and illustrate the findings. The methodical approach was based on Pierre Bourdieu’s multi-faceted data collection approach and Steiner Kvale’s technical guidelines for interviewing were used for conducting focus group interviews.In order to carry out the construction a mapping of ICT implementation in the Danish primary and secondary education and nursing education from 1970 – 2001 was undertaken. A questionnaire concerning attitudes towards ICT in Healthcare was conducted amongst first year students and focus group interviews were completed. A bibliography and other sources has been included. These datasets made it possible to construct the field of ICT in nursing education and +to construct nursing students' ICT habitus and ICT capital, which was were categorized in four descriptive positions, called "The endorser", "The sceptic", "The adversary" and "The critical".These positions can be used for developing strategies for implementing ICT and development of e-learning in educational and clinical settings for nursing students, thereby contributing with new knowledge and understanding of the ICT-based learning context and the processes within.

scholarly journals First-Year Accounting Student Teachers’ Constructivist Learning Experiences, The Lecturer’s Role and Implications for Curriculum Implementation

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-119
Author(s):  
Medson Mapuya
Keyword(s):  
Focus Group ◽  
Student Teachers ◽  
Curriculum Implementation ◽  
Learning Experiences ◽  
Constructivist Learning ◽  
First Year ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Focus Group Interviews ◽  
Group Interviews ◽  
Accounting Student

The purpose of this study was to explore the constructivist learning experiences of first-year accounting student teachers and the implications these learning experiences have for curriculum implementation. The study employed a phenomenological research design and followed a qualitative research approach in which data were collected using focus group interviews. Content analysis and qualitative coding were used to analyse the qualitative data generated by the focus group interviews. Premised on the findings, the study recommends that as key stakeholders involved in curriculum implementation, lecturers should engage empathically with students on issues regarding pedagogy and subject didactics. Of central importance to the recommendations made in this study is that key questions regarding teaching and learning activities should be informed by the dynamic learning needs of students. It therefore follows that lecturers ought to adopt a more student-participative, collaborative and consultative approach towards curriculum implementation and obtain regular feedback from students about their learning experiences.

Management Strategy for Distributing Questionnaires and Interview Guidelines in the Research Data Collection Process

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 104-111
Author(s):  
Po. Abas Sunarya ◽  
George Iwan Marantika ◽  
Adam Faturahman
Keyword(s):  
Focus Group ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Management Strategy ◽  
Research Data ◽  
Accurate Information ◽  
Focus Group Interviews ◽  
Good Management ◽  
Research Activities ◽  
Data Collection Process ◽  
Group Interviews

Writing can mean lowering or describing graphic symbols that describe a languageunderstood by someone. For a researcher, management of research preparation is a veryimportant step because this step greatly determines the success or failure of all researchactivities. Before a person starts with research activities, he must make a written plan commonlyreferred to as the management of research data collection. In the process of collecting researchdata, of course we can do the management of questionnaires as well as the preparation ofinterview guidelines to disseminate and obtain accurate information. With the arrangement ofplanning and conducting interviews: the ethics of conducting interviews, the advantages anddisadvantages of interviews, the formulation of interview questions, the schedule of interviews,group and focus group interviews, interviews using recording devices, and interview bias.making a questionnaire must be designed with very good management by giving to theinformation needed, in accordance with the problem and all that does not cause problems at thestage of analysis and interpretation.

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