Project Team
Taru Malhotra, Engineering
Carolyn MacGregor, Engineering
Richard Li, Centre for Teaching Excellence
Project Summary
The theory of student involvement highlights the importance of involving students at physical and psychological levels for better experience and learning (Astin, 1999). While using hands-on instructor-designed activities may increase student participation, such strategies may not always translate to meaningful interactions, meet the needs of all students, or satisfy them (Owston et al., 2019; Malhotra, 2022). Offering choice of learning activities to students may cater to diverse learning styles, increase engagement, and deepen learning (Gay & Betts, 2020).
Thus, this project investigates student experiences (learning, course engagement and satisfaction) and if and how it varies when students are offered choices in their course activities. This student experience is measured in the Fall 2022 and Winter 2023 offerings of ExpecTAtions, a teaching assistant (TA) training in the Faculty of Engineering. Findings will help create a professional development workshop for instructors interested in adopting a student involvement strategy.
References
Aji, C. A., & Khan, M. J. (2019). The impact of active learning on students’ academic performance. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 7(03). Retrieved from https://par.nsf.gov/servlets/purl/10299278
Astin, A. W. (1999). Student involvement: A developmental theory for higher education. Journal of College Student Development, 40(5), 518–529.
Douglas, J., Douglas, A. and Barnes, B. (2006), "Measuring student satisfaction at a UK university", Quality Assurance in Education, Vol. 14 No. 3, pp. 251-267. https://doi.org/10.1108/09684880610678568
Fielding, A., Dunleavy, P. J., & Langan, A. M. (2010). Interpreting context to the UK’s National Student (Satisfaction) Survey data for science subjects. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 34(3), 347-368.
Gay, G. H., & Betts, K. (2020). From Discussion Forums to eMeetings: Integrating High Touch Strategies to Increase Student Engagement, Academic Performance, and Retention in Large Online Courses. Online Learning, 24(1), 92-117. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1249245.pdf
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Malhotra, T. (2022). University Instructors Beliefs, Attitudes, and Practices Across Stem and Non-Stem Blended Courses. Dissertation, York University.
Muñoz, M., Martínez, C., Cárdenas, C., & Cepeda, M. (2013). Active learning in first-year engineering courses at Universidad Católica de la Santísima Concepción, Chile. Australasian Journal of Engineering Education, 19(1), 27-38.
National Survey of Student Engagement, (2018). NSSE 2018 Overview. Retrieved from https://nsse.indiana.edu/nsse/reports-data/nsse-overview-2018.html
Owston, R., York, D. N., & Malhotra, T. (2019). Blended learning in large enrolment courses: Student perceptions across four different instructional models. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 35(5), 29-45.
Owston, R., & York, D. (2018). The nagging question when designing blended courses: How much time should be devoted to online activities? Internet & Higher Education, 36, 22 – 32. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.iheduc.2017.09.001
Prince, M., Felder, R., & Brent, R. (2020). Active student engagement in online STEM classes: Approaches and recommendations. Advances in Engineering Education, 8(4), 1-25. Retrieved from http://www.kfupm.edu.sa/deanships/dad/Documents/ActiveLearningInOnlineClasses.pdf
Razinkina, E., Pankova, L., Trostinskaya, I., Pozdeeva, E., Evseeva, L., & Tanova, A. (2018). Student satisfaction as an element of education quality monitoring in innovative higher education institution. In E3S Web of Conferences (Vol. 33, p. 03043). EDP Sciences. Retrieved from https://www.e3s-conferences.org/articles/e3sconf/pdf/2018/08/e3sconf_hrc2018_03043.pdf
Wegmann, S., & Thompson, K. (2014). Scoping out interactions in blended environments. In Blended Learning: Research Perspectives, Vol. 2 (pp. 73-92). New York, NY: Routledge.