Improving Student Outcomes and Perceptions in First Year Biosciences by Enhancing Engagement: A Case Study

In order to test the general utility of models developed in the US for explaining university outcomes of Canadian and international students, a three year study is currently underway at four Canadian universities. As a first step in this research, a pilot study with two objectives was conducted at York University in Toronto. The first objective is to compare the experiences and outcomes of domestic and international students in their first year of study. The second objective is to test the applicability of a parsimonious general model of student outcomes derived from examinations of American students to Canadian and international students studying in Canada. The specific outcomes examined are academic achievement, credit completion, and program satisfaction in the first year of study.

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The Implementation of Biological Phosphorus and Nitrogen Removal with the Bio-Denipho Process on a 265,000 PE Treatment Plant

Water Science & Technology ◽

10.2166/wst.1992.0491 ◽

1992 ◽

Vol 25 (4-5) ◽

pp. 161-168 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

J. Einfeldt

Keyword(s):

Nitrogen Removal ◽

Treatment Plant ◽

First Year ◽

In Series ◽

Design Loads ◽

Last Stage ◽

Two Stages ◽

The City ◽

Biological Phosphorus

A process, called Bio-Denipho, for combined biological phosphorus and nitrogen removal in a combination of an anaerobic tank and two oxidation ditches is described. In this process the anaerobic tank consisting of three sections working in series is followed by two oxidation ditches. These too are working in series, but with both inlet to and outlet from the tanks changing in a cycle. The Bio-Denipho process is described specifically for the process itself and as a case study for the implementation of the process on a 265,000 pe wastewater treatment plant for the city of Aalborg in Denmark. The plant was designed and erected in two stages and the last stage was inaugurated October 31,1989. Lay-out and functions for the plant is described and design loads, plan lay-out and tank volumes are given in this paper together with performance data for the first year in operation.

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Differences in echocardiography interpretation techniques among trainees and expert readers

Journal of Echocardiography ◽

10.1007/s12574-021-00531-y ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

David Roy Anderson ◽

Sarah Blissett ◽

Patricia O’Sullivan ◽

Atif Qasim

Keyword(s):

Diagnostic Accuracy ◽

Systematic Approach ◽

Qualitative Case Study ◽

First Year ◽

Educational Tool ◽

Thought Processes ◽

Advanced Imaging ◽

Multiple Images ◽

Novice Readers

Abstract Background Trainees learn transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE) interpretation through independently completing and reviewing selected portions of the study with experts. The diagnostic accuracy of novice TTE interpretation is known to be low and schema for reading TTEs systematically are lacking. The purpose of our study is to identify techniques experts use while reading TTEs which could be used to more effectively teach novice readers. Methods We performed a prospective qualitative case study to observe how experts and trainees interpret TTEs in an academic institution using a concurrent think aloud (CTA) method. Three TTEs of intermediate complexity were given to 3 advanced imaging fellows, 3 first year fellows and 3 expert TTE readers Participants filled out a report while reading and described aloud their thought processes. Sessions were video and audiotaped for analysis. Results Experts and advanced fellows used specific techniques that novices did not including: previewing studies, reviewing multiple images simultaneously, having flexibility in image review order and disease coding, and saving hardest elements to code for the end. Direct observation of TTE reading informed trainee inefficiencies and was a well-received educational tool. Conclusions In this single centered study we identified several unique approaches experts use to interpret TTEs which may be teachable to novices. Although limited in generalizability the findings of this study suggests that a more systematic approach to TTE interpretation, using techniques found in experts, might be of significant value for trainees. Further study is needed to evaluate teaching practices at other institutions and to assess whether implementation of these techniques by novices improves can improve their diagnostic accuracy and efficiency of reading at an earlier stage in their training.

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Decolonising a landscape architecture studio: Spatial modelling of student narratives

Multimodality & Society ◽

10.1177/2634979521992737 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 1 (1) ◽

pp. 39-47

Author(s):

Christine Price

Keyword(s):

Spatial Model ◽

Meaning Making ◽

Three Dimensional ◽

Spatial Modelling ◽

First Year ◽

Spatial Form ◽

Public Park ◽

New Meanings ◽

Global North

This paper problematises the dominance of global north perspectives in landscape architectural education, in South Africa where there are urgent calls to decolonise education and make visible indigenous and vernacular meaning-making practices. In grappling with these concerns, this research finds resonance with a multimodal social semiotic approach that acknowledges the interest, agency and resourcefulness of students as meaning-makers in both accessing and challenging dominant educational discourses. This research involves a case study of a design project in a first-year landscape architectural studio. The project requires students to choose a narrative and to represent it as a spatial model: a scaled, 3D maquette of a spatial experience that could be installed in a public park. This practitioner reflection closely analyses the spatial model of one student, Malibongwe, focusing on his interest in meaning-making; the innovative meaning-making practices and diverse resources he draws on; and his expression of spatial signifiers of the Black experiences portrayed in his narrative. This reflection shows how Malibongwe’s narrative is not only reproduced in the spatial model, it is remade: the transformation of resources into three-dimensional spatial form results in new understandings and the production of new meanings.

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Roles, relationships and emotions: Student teachers’ understanding of feedback as interpersonal

Research in Education ◽

10.1177/0034523721989370 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 003452372198937

Author(s):

Caroline Elbra-Ramsay

Keyword(s):

Teacher Education ◽

Student Teachers ◽

Small Scale ◽

First Year ◽

Case Study Methodology ◽

Study Methodology ◽

Undergraduate Programme ◽

Phenomenological Case Study ◽

International Teacher

This paper reports the findings of a small-scale study seeking to investigate how student teachers, within a three-year undergraduate programme, understand feedback. Feedback has been central to debates and discussion in the assessment literature in recent years. Hence, in this paper, feedback is positioned within the often-contradictory discourses of assessment, including perspectives on student and teacher feedback. The study focused on two first year undergraduate student teachers at a small university in England and considered the relationships between their understanding of feedback as a student, their understanding of feedback as an emerging teacher, and the key influences shaping these understandings. A phenomenological case study methodology was employed with interviews as the prime method of data collection. Themes emerged as part of an Nvivo analysis, including emotional responses, relationships and dialogue, all of which appear to have impacted on the students’ conceptual understanding of feedback as indelibly shaped by its interpersonal and affective, rather than purely cognitive or ideational, dimensions. The paper therefore seeks to contribute to the wider feedback discourse by offering an analysis of empirical data. Although situated within English teacher education, there are tentative conclusions that are applicable to international teacher education and as well as higher education more generally.

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Engaging in a University Curriculum Involving Sustainability Themes: A Two-Year Case Study of a First-year Writing Course

Writing & Pedagogy ◽

10.1558/wap.34315 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (2) ◽

pp. 223-252

Author(s):

Tara Hembrough

Keyword(s):

First Year ◽

First Year Writing ◽

University Curriculum ◽

Writing Course

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Correlation between Listening Anxiety and Listening Strategies of Chinese Postgraduate Students of Science and Engineering: A Case Study at SUES

International Journal of Learning and Development ◽

10.5296/ijld.v6i4.10123 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 6 (4) ◽

Author(s):

Shengli Wang

Keyword(s):

Foreign Language ◽

First Year ◽

Chi Square ◽

Postgraduate Students ◽

Listening Anxiety ◽

Medium Level ◽

Chi Square Test ◽

Listening Proficiency ◽

Listening Strategies

<p>English listening is one of the five basic skills such as listening, speaking, reading, writing and translation that a Chinese postgraduate should acquire, and it is also the most significant one. In this study, 194 first-year postgraduate students at Shanghai University of Engineering Science were invited to report their strategies use and listening anxiety in the questionnaire with the 5-Likert Indirect Foreign Language Listening Strategies Scale and the 5-Likert Foreign Language Listening Anxiety Scale. The SPSS13.0 was used to analyze the descriptive statistics, reliability analysis, correlation analysis, Chi-square test and One-way ANOVA, which indicated a medium listening anxiety and a medium level of strategies use. Metacognitive strategies were more frequently used than social and affective strategies, the correlation between listening proficiency and listening anxiety was significantly negative, correlation between listening proficiency and indirect listening strategies was significantly positive, and that between indirect listening strategies and listening anxiety was significantly negative. Indirect listening strategies were useful to allay listening anxiety and would be incorporated into our normal classroom teaching.</p>

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From Drug Literature Evaluation to Evidence-Based Medicine: Transforming the Focus of a First Year Pharmacy Curriculum

INNOVATIONS in pharmacy ◽

10.24926/iip.v7i2.425 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 7 (2) ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Shannon Reidt ◽

Keri Hager ◽

James Beattie ◽

Amy Pittenger ◽

Maureen Smith ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Student Performance ◽

Student Perceptions ◽

Evidence Based Medicine ◽

Integrated Design ◽

First Year ◽

Evidence Based ◽

And Performance ◽

Pharmacy Curriculum ◽

Based Medicine

This case study describes a longitudinal curricular sequence implemented to teach evidence-based medicine (EBM) skills. The longitudinal sequence is innovative in its approach, design, and assessment of EBM. This approach moves away from the conventional strategy of teaching drug information and drug literature evaluation as stand-alone courses and instead embraces the EBM Framework and its use in the context of authentic problem solving. The EBM Framework—Ask, Acquire, Appraise, and Apply—was used as the basis for defining seven EBM skills. These skills were targeted in the evidence-based, integrated design of 17 learning episodes delivered with eight faculty members through six courses in the first year. Student perceptions of relevance of EBM and performance on assessments and learning activities throughout the sequence suggest that integrating EBM across the first year of the curriculum is an effective strategy for teaching EBM skills. Three themes emerged from analysis of the data and experience, including the need for: a strong teaching team, a whole task approach with a focus on solving authentic problems, and care in interpreting the progression of assessments and patterns of student performance. Through instructor observations and peer review, the longitudinal sequence has been refined and has had an impact on the rest of the curriculum. Type: Case Study

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