Factors Affecting Students’ Intention to Use Massive Open Online Courses

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) attract many researchers because of their massiveness, openness, machine and peer assessment, yet there are still many questions to be answered. This study was conducted at FPT University in Can Tho during the 2020-2021 academic year using the quantitative approach. A purposeful sampling technique was used to select 226 participants who partook at least one MOOC on the Coursera platform. The questionnaire consists of 18 items adapted from Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) developed by Davis (1989), and Learning Strategies, by Marton and Säljö (1976). The findings showed that perceived ease of use (PEOU), and perceived usefulness (PU) have a great impact on students’ intention to use MOOCs in the future, PU, however, has a stronger and more direct correlation to the acceptability of MOOCs. Furthermore, surface learning strategy has a negative effect on the intention to enroll in MOOCs while deep learning strategy was not significantly correlated with intended future use of MOOCs. More importantly, a valuable finding was that surface learning strategy was in inverse proportion to courses variable and it can be lessened. Our findings are expected to offer a multi-dimensional view for students, especially those in the current context as well as MOOCs developers in order to design curricula.

Multiple feedback sources in learning clinical history-taking skills: Developing evaluative judgement

Introduction: Contemporary feedback models emphasise the value of multiple feedback opportunities. Effective feedback participation requires evaluative judgement—the ability to discern the quality of one’s own and others’ work. Self and peer assessment may enable repeated practice and feedback for developing evaluative judgement. However, attitudes to self and peer assessment may present a barrier to effective implementation. This study explored whether congruence between marks from self and peer assessment improved with assessment task participation. Participants’ attitudes towards self and peer assessment and approaches to learning were also evaluated.Methods: Participants undertook simulated history-taking tasks in semester 2, 2018. Group 1 undertook formative and summative assessments and participated in self and peer assessment . Group 2 undertook formative and summative assessment. Group 3 undertook only summative assessment. All groups received faculty feedback for each submitted assessment. Participants completed the modified Study Process Questionnaire (mSPQ) and the Peer Perception of Assessment (PPA) before (T1) and after the formative task (T2) and after the summative task (T3).Results: Summative task scores improved for group 1 (n = 9, p 0.01) and group 2 (n = 26, p 0.01). Within-group (p = 0.02) and between-group differences (p = 0.01) were identified for surface learning approaches. All groups’ perceptions of peer assessment decreased significantly (p 0.01) across all three time periods.Conclusions: Participants receiving self and peer assessment and faculty feedback improved performance and increased congruence of their self- and peer-assessment marks, potentially developing their evaluative judgment skills. Peer assessment perception became less positive, while surface learning approaches increased. Future research should assess the role of self and peer assessment in developing evaluative judgment.

EVALUATION OF COVID 19 IMPACT ON THE LEARNING STRATEGIES OF HEALTH SCIENCE STUDENTS: A SURVEY

Background: The lockdown period following the COVID 19 pandemic has affected students in many ways. The present study aims to investigate any changes in learning practice during this pandemic. We conducted this study to investigate any variations in the learning approach by health science students during the Covid 19 pandemic and also to assess possible confounding factors on learning. Methods: A survey was conducted on 630 health science students from South Indian states through 2 pre-validated questionnaires - Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST) and Generalised Anxiety Disorder Assessment (GAD 7), to assess learning approach and anxiety levels respectively. Another set of questionnaire consisting 10 questions were prepared that may affect learning approach. These questionnaires were shared via Google forms across various health science institutions of South India. Results: A signicant decrease in strategic and deep learning scores and increase in surface learning scores were observed after Covid 19 pandemic. Anxiety scores were increased after pandemic. A signicant negative correlation was observed between change in deep learning scores vs change in anxiety scores and change in strategic scores vs change anxiety scores. A positive correlation was observed between change in surface learning scores vs anxiety scores. Decrease in strategic and deep learning scores were signicantly correlated with students perceptions on worsening study environment, decreased effectiveness of academic assessments, decreased time devoted for studies, decreased ability to gure out high yielding questions and a decreased ability to frame quality answers. Increase in surface learning negatively correlated with worsening study environment and decreased study time. A negative correlation was observed between suitable study environment and change in anxiety scores. Conclusion: Increased anxiety level was associated with decrease in deep and strategic learning and increase in surface learning approach after Covid 19 pandemic. Appropriate measures are essential to improve students' academic performance

LEARNING NOT BURNING (OUT): SUSTAINABLE TIME MANAGEMENT IN ENGINEERING EDUCATION

In recent years, there has been some concern raised regarding decreased mental health andwellbeing and increased reports of surface-learning tendencies in Canadian engineering students. Prior papers have noted possible links between these trends and the manner in which students use their time. Having completed a study on student time use, this paper presents some initial results – including a frequency assessment of reasons for student absences – which seem to support some of the previously hypothesized systemic problems. Following this, an overview of institution- andinstructor-imposed constraints precedes a discussion on how these constraints may be contributing to student time use difficulties, and ultimately to decreased wellbeing and learning capacity. A sampling of possible interventions are then presented, and important validity considerations for conducting such research are discussed. Research into the efficacy of these interventions, due to lack of existing empirical proof, should be conducted.

Active entrepreneurship education and the impact on approaches to learning: Mixed methods evidence from a six-year study into one entrepreneurship educator’s classroom

Taking an active and experiential approach to teaching is often assumed to be the best way to promote learning. However, the empirical evidence to support this assertion in entrepreneurship education is inconclusive, and current practice suggests that delivery in higher education is still quite passive and traditional. This 6-year, mixed method study sets out to demonstrate that, in a final-year International Entrepreneurship module at a UK university mapped through the lens of ‘about’, ‘for’ and ‘through’ entrepreneurship, a more innovative, active, experiential and constructively aligned approach to teaching, learning and assessment impacts positively on students’ deep and surface approaches to learning. Students viewed the module as significantly more active than passive and the level of deep learning was significantly greater than the level of surface learning. Additionally, the more active approach was significantly correlated to increased deep learning and reduced surface learning. Students highlighted the active teaching approach and the creation of videos for a local company as part of the authentic assessment as catalysts for deeper learning approaches. The study provides empirical evidence that active entrepreneurship education has a positive impact on student approaches to learning.