Impact of Perceived Supportive Learning Environment on Mathematical Achievement: The Mediating Roles of Autonomous Self-Regulation and Creative Thinking

A total of 1,281 Chinese students in grades 3–6 participated in a study that examined the relationships among student-perceived supportive learning environment (PSLE), mathematical achievement, autonomous self-regulation, and creative thinking. The results demonstrated that student PSLE is positively associated with autonomous self-regulation, creative thinking, and mathematical achievement. In addition, the study also demonstrated that the influence of PSLE on students’ mathematical achievements could be mediated through autonomous self-regulation and creative thinking, respectively. The results shed light on the effectiveness of a supportive learning environment on educational and psychological outcomes in Chinese mathematical classrooms.

COVID-19 and medical education in Africa: a cross sectional analysis of the impact on medical students

Background The African continent currently experiences 25% of the global burden of disease with only 1.3% of the world’s healthcare workers. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused unprecedented disruption to medical education systems, increasing the strain on already-vulnerable regions. Our study examines the impact of COVID-19 on medical students across 33 countries in the African continent. Methods A 39-item anonymous electronic survey was developed and distributed to medical students across Africa through social networks to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on medical education. The survey assessed the domains of: class structure changes and timing, patient interactions, exam administration, learning environment satisfaction, mental health impacts, and volunteer opportunities/engagement. Results 694 students across 33 countries participated. 80% of respondents had their classes suspended for varied lengths of time during the pandemic, and from these students 59% of them resumed their classes. 83% of students felt they were in a supportive learning environment before the pandemic, which dropped to 32% since the start. The proportion of students taking exams online increased (6–26%, p<0.001) and there was a decrease in the proportion of students seeing patients as a part of their education (72–19%, p<0.001). Conclusions COVID-19 is harming medical students in Africa and is likely to worsen the shortage of the future’s healthcare workforce in the region. Pandemic-related impacts have led to a degradation of the learning environment of medical students. Medical schools have shifted online to differing degrees and direct patient-care in training of students has decreased. This study highlights the urgent need for flexible and innovative approaches to medical education in Africa.

Developing a Culture of Caring in Classrooms: Best Practices During a Global Pandemic and Beyond

The past year has challenged educators in all directions, from switching courses to an online format overnight to addressing student needs within and outside the classroom, and many external factors have extensively affected student performance and engagement. In the United States, the COVID-19 pandemic and a myriad other sociopolitical movements highlight the need for faculty to go beyond educating and start building deeper connections with students. This article provides a rationale for providing an intentionally supportive classroom environment for public health students and outlines the benefits not only to the students but also to the faculty and institution. Furthermore, this article identifies necessary boundaries to caring, including setting appropriate limits and maintaining professional student–educator relationships. Creating an inclusive and supportive learning environment is important not only for training future health professionals but also for cultivating a culture of caring among the profession.

Face to Face Mode vs. Online Mode: A Discrepancy in Analogy-Based Learning During COVID-19 Pandemic

Reasoning skill is crucial for students to translate the learning material provided by the teacher in online mode during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many teachers choose analogy-based learning to explain a concept by bringing the concept to facts that are close to students’ daily lives. Analogy-based learning that was carried out face-to-face before the pandemic improved students’ reasoning skills, and now its implementation is tested in online mode. The study aims to analyze differences in reasoning skills in each indicator area and their factors. A significant difference was obtained by involving 72 students and doing a t-test for two data groups in the two sample groups. Students’ skills to identify problems and apply concepts have increased even though it is not as good as the increase in both aspects on face-to-face mode. The other two aspects (exploring the facts and concluding) are very unsatisfactory. There is a striking discrepancy between analogy-based learning during and before the pandemic with an unchanged syntax but different situations. The reduction in each reasoning indicator ranged from 10% to 25%. Signal constraints, a less supportive learning environment, and delayed communication between teachers and students are the main factors. This study provides an overview of discrepancies that can be addressed more wisely by strengthening the function of the media to optimize teacher and students communication and learning innovations that help students’ learning difficulties during the pandemic.

Certainty and Uncertainty in Education - A Contemporary Challenge for Teachers

This study is a reflection on educational reality based on certainty and uncertainty coordinates. Exploring the significance of the binomial reality, generated by the different degrees of certainty, perceived by the actors involved in teaching, the article proposes a few acting options, in order to develop an appropriate orientation of the teacher training process, in a contemporary society marked by the “certainty of uncertainty”. Embracing the unknown, coping with unfamiliar situations, reflecting constructively on one’s own mistakes, as part of a teacher daily activity, are generated by a genuine positioning towards uncertainty in education, raising it from the status of a problem to the hypostasis of an opportunity. Mapping uncertainty through resilience, building confidence in experiencing doubt, reshaping learning by daring to approach dilemmas and stepping out of inaction can be viewed as valid alternatives in developing a professional self in a changing environment. That claims a rethinking of teacher training in terms of developing abilities for sustaining appropriate responses and a proper understanding of the relationship between certainty and uncertainty in education, having the intention of building quality learning experiences. The concepts of choice and change are about to conquer the ideas of standards and stability in educational context as proofs of a renewed approach in order to delineate core drivers of human development in contemporaneity. That is why rethinking teacher training needs to focus on articulating the reflective practicing with experiencing a constant change, integrating the multiplicity of opportunities in a supportive learning environment for developing a global competence, in order to respond effectively to the contemporary challenges.

Morning report goes virtual: learner experiences in a virtual, case-based diagnostic reasoning conference

Objectives Participation in case-based diagnostic reasoning (DR) conferences has previously been limited to those who can attend in-person. Technological advances have enabled these conferences to migrate to virtual platforms, creating an opportunity to improve access and promote learner participation. We describe the design and evaluation of virtual morning report (VMR), a novel case-based DR conference that aimed to expand access to these conferences, leverage a virtual platform to create new opportunities for learner participation, and improve learner confidence in performing DR. Methods VMR took place on a videoconferencing platform. Participants included health professions students, post-graduate trainees, and practitioners. In designing VMR, we adapted concepts from the experience-based model of learning to design opportunities for learner participation. Teaching strategies were informed by information-processing and situativity theories. We evaluated learner experiences in VMR using a survey with open and closed-ended questions. Survey items focused on accessing case-based teaching conferences outside of VMR, participant perceptions of the educational value of VMR, and VMR’s impact on participants’ confidence in performing DR. We used thematic analysis to manually code open-ended responses and identify themes. Results 203 participants (30.2%) completed the survey. 141 respondents (69.5%) reported they did not otherwise have access to a DR conference. The majority of participants reported increased confidence performing DR. Respondents highlighted that VMR supplemented their education, created a supportive learning environment, and offered a sense of community. Conclusions VMR can expand access to DR education, create new opportunities for learner participation, and improve learner confidence in performing DR.

Active learning through flipped classroom in mechanical engineering: improving students’ perception of learning and performance

Background To address some challenges that the large lecture-focused courses have faced in higher education, the flipped classroom model was implemented in mechanical engineering. The purpose of the study was to investigate mechanical engineering undergraduate students’ performance in the flipped classroom. A comprehensive analysis was conducted to investigate the pedagogical benefits of active learning in the flipped classroom from a self-determination theory perspective. To evaluate the effectiveness of the flipped classroom, students’ academic achievements in the flipped classroom were compared with the ones in the traditional lecture format. Moreover, to explore in-depth students’ learning experiences and their perceptions about the flipped classroom, students’ open-ended surveys were analyzed. Results Results demonstrated that students in the flipped classroom performed better and favored the new model, feeling that flipped classroom was useful and helpful in preparing for the course. The qualitative findings showed that students felt that they benefited from the pre-week online lectures in the flipped classroom to prepare for the course. Conclusions The current study shows that the flipped classroom model has the potential to create an autonomy-supportive learning environment and provide beneficial learning experiences. This study highlights the benefits of and future direction for implementing the flipped classroom in traditional mechanical engineering courses.