{"title":"Active learning strategies and academic self-efficacy relate to both attentional control and attitudes towards plagiarism","authors":"Andrew R. du Rocher","doi":"10.1177/1469787418765515","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1469787418765515","url":null,"abstract":"Active learning strategies, goals, values, self-efficacy and thus study motivation are all thought to affect the depth of student engagement with their work. Plagiarism is a common problem and must reflect a shallow level of student engagement. Cognitive perspectives on learning and teaching should consider how variations in attentional control might be implicated in both study motivation and plagiarism. This study aimed to elucidate the relationship between these variables, with the intention of informing learning and teaching practices. Increased self-efficacy, active learning strategies and learning values were robustly related to a more negative attitude towards plagiarism. Attentional control was unrelated to attitudes towards plagiarism, but was robustly related to increased self-efficacy and active learning strategies. Research concerning how both active learning and self-efficacy are affected by attentional control processes should be instrumental in improving teaching techniques. Increasing students’ active learning and self-efficacy during their degree should prove to be of particular utility when developing plagiarism interventions.","PeriodicalId":47411,"journal":{"name":"Active Learning in Higher Education","volume":"21 1","pages":"203 - 216"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2020-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1469787418765515","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45430089","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Investigating the combined effects of group size and group composition in online discussion","authors":"Tingting Yang, Heng Luo, Di Sun","doi":"10.1177/1469787420938524","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1469787420938524","url":null,"abstract":"Discussion has been widely used in courses, both online and otherwise, as it provides opportunities for students to construct knowledge through interaction with peers and instructors. Grouping students is a prominent strategy in the use of discussion. However, simply dividing students cannot guarantee active participation and high learning performance. There is therefore a need to pay attention to the structure and/or features of grouping, especially group size and group composition. The study described in this article focuses on the combined effects of group size and group composition in online discussion. It investigates whether students in small groups have different participation behaviors and learning performance compared to students in whole-class discussion. In addition, the influence of group composition is examined by comparing students’ participation and learning performance from high, medium, and low social-connected groups. Furthermore, this study also investigates how students’ perceived learning experience differs among these three differently-connected group compositions. The results indicate significantly different participation behaviors and learning performance between small-group and whole-class discussion. The effects of group composition are also shown in students’ learning behaviors, performance, and perceived experience. The results also reveal both advantages and disadvantages of different group types. The findings are expected to inform the design and implementation of grouping methods and extend our understanding of online discussion.","PeriodicalId":47411,"journal":{"name":"Active Learning in Higher Education","volume":"23 1","pages":"115 - 128"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2020-08-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1469787420938524","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43549588","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Student engagement: The impact of positive psychology interventions on students","authors":"Jacqueline Hammill, Thinh Nguyen, Fiona Henderson","doi":"10.1177/1469787420950589","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1469787420950589","url":null,"abstract":"Positive psychology interventions are widely used in primary and secondary education to enhance student engagement and well-being. When used in the higher education sector, interventions tend to be used in psychology, psychotherapy and mindfulness programmes with successful outcomes in terms of student engagement, learning and well-being. However, there is little evidence to support the effectiveness of such interventions in disciplines outside of psychology. This triangulated action research study utilised student self-reported feedback to explore the link between positive psychology interventions and student engagement in a non-psychology related classroom. The study involved two intervention and one control group. In contrast to results obtained from psychology students, findings in this study showed a lack of student engagement in both intervention groups and a significant increase in student engagement in the control group compared to one of the intervention groups. The findings suggest that further consideration needs to be given to identify positive psychology interventions that might achieve a better fit with non-psychology students.","PeriodicalId":47411,"journal":{"name":"Active Learning in Higher Education","volume":"23 1","pages":"129 - 142"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2020-08-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1469787420950589","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45151767","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The value of a semi-formal peer mentorship program for first-year students’ studies, socialization and adaptation","authors":"Art Tsang","doi":"10.1177/1469787420945212","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1469787420945212","url":null,"abstract":"Mentoring is a widespread practice in different sectors in society. It is particularly prevalent in higher education. Many have acknowledged the various transitional challenges encountered by first-year tertiary-level students. Greater support is therefore needed for this particular student group. This mixed-methods year-long case study examined the value of a semi-formal peer mentorship program for 10 first-year students who were low-achievers. It focused on the assistance provided by peer mentors for their studies, socialization, and adaptation to college/university life. The three mentors’ views of the program were also explored. Data were collected via questionnaires administered three times to the mentees and end-of-program group interviews for both the mentees and mentors. The overall findings show that the students perceived the assistance from the mentors to be useful for academic studies, socialization, and adaptation to college/university life. However, their perceptions varied across the entire year. The metaphors used by the mentees to describe their mentors—shepherds, torches and candlewax—depicted different facets of the mentee-mentor relationships and the value of the program. The study highlights the value of such semi-formal peer mentoring for low-achieving first-year students especially for institutions which lack resources.","PeriodicalId":47411,"journal":{"name":"Active Learning in Higher Education","volume":"24 1","pages":"125 - 138"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2020-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1469787420945212","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42040189","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"From teacher transmission of information to student feedback literacy: Activating the learner role in feedback processes","authors":"D. Carless","doi":"10.1177/1469787420945845","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1469787420945845","url":null,"abstract":"For feedback processes to be effective, they need to involve students actively in generating, processing and responding to feedback information. Teacher transmission approaches are unlikely to provide a good investment of time and resources because they fail to draw sufficiently on student agency. In this conceptual article, it is argued that students need to be at the centre of feedback processes in making productive use of feedback inputs of various forms. The educator role lies in designing learning environments which provide plentiful opportunities for students to make evaluative judgments and take action in response to feedback information. The analysis is framed through the interlocking concepts of internal feedback which students generate for themselves; and students’ feedback literacy, the capacities to involve themselves productively in feedback processes. Student peer review with a written response, and using exemplars as proxies for teacher feedback are proposed as pedagogic options which stimulate the production of internal feedback and promote student feedback literacy. These two learning activities are analyzed to illustrate research-informed ways of enabling students to generate internal feedback by making comparisons between their own production and that of others. Digital affordances and possibilities are also discussed with particular emphasis on video peer feedback and annotated online exemplars. The main implications for practice are summarized in relation to educator and student roles, and related digital affordances. Challenges for implementation are discussed and addressed. An important consideration is to develop workload-friendly strategies which avoid the wastefulness of much current unproductive marking practices. The analysis suggests that shared teacher and student feedback literacy carries potential to facilitate principled research-informed ways forward for feedback processes.","PeriodicalId":47411,"journal":{"name":"Active Learning in Higher Education","volume":"23 1","pages":"143 - 153"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2020-07-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1469787420945845","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43160505","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
A. Tassone, Jenny J W Liu, M. Reed, Kristin Vickers
{"title":"Multitasking in the classroom: Testing an educational intervention as a method of reducing multitasking","authors":"A. Tassone, Jenny J W Liu, M. Reed, Kristin Vickers","doi":"10.1177/1469787417740772","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1469787417740772","url":null,"abstract":"Increasingly, students engage in multitasking during lecture by shifting their attention between class material and irrelevant information from texts and webpages. It is well established that this divided attention impairs memory and learning. Less is known about how to correct the problem. This study used an educational intervention in the form of a PowerPoint presentation that informed students in the experimental condition about the deleterious effects of multitasking. Students were randomly assigned to the experimental condition, the placebo condition (a slideshow about sleep), or no intervention. Participants self-reported the percentage of the time they multitasked in class and paid attention at two time points, baseline (before the intervention), and in a second lab visit 3 weeks later. The experimental intervention did not reduce student multitasking or increase student attention, relative to the other conditions. Supplementary research questions examined students’ beliefs about multitasking, finding that most thought it decreased their grades. The correlations between grade point average, stress, and boredom proneness, on one hand, and baseline attention and multitasking in class, on the other, were also inspected, revealing that students with higher grade point average pay more attention in class and multitask less. Suggestions for future research to reduce multitasking are made, including having students engage in multitasking to observe the effect on their memory retention.","PeriodicalId":47411,"journal":{"name":"Active Learning in Higher Education","volume":"21 1","pages":"128 - 141"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2020-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1469787417740772","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41413430","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Editorial","authors":"L. Baldwin","doi":"10.1177/1469787420914814","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1469787420914814","url":null,"abstract":"Our journey in life brings us many opportunities, and these can be very positive indeed. However, an opportunity might, at the same time, be something that taxes us in some way, whether physically, mentally or both. Some of them might be fairly easily resolved, but some of them can prove to be a major challenge. This is the case whether this concerns our work environment or our personal one, and it is no less so for us, academics, as it is for our students. As the authors of the first article in this issue tell us, whether we need to maximise the opportunities that come our way or when presented with situations that might perhaps cause us setbacks of some type, we have to draw on the personal characteristics, our psychological reserves, that we possess, such as being adaptable, flexible, our level of optimism and our confidence. Whether in response to a positive opportunity or instead to a tricky challenge, resilience is one of the personal characteristics that we need to draw on. As with any other characteristic, skill or ability, some of us have high levels of resilience and others may have very low levels of this. The authors, Anne E Goodenough, Hazel Roberts, David M Biggs, James G Derounian, Adam G Hart and Kenny Lynch, all at the University of Gloucestershire in the United Kingdom, tell us that resilience is multifaceted, and that if our students are to respond as well as they might to the opportunities and also to the setbacks that they face, the higher their level of resilience that they possess, the better. Entitled ‘A higher degree of resilience: Using psychometric testing to reveal the benefits of university internship placements’, as the title makes clear, this article looks at resilience when it comes to something that we encourage all of our students to undertake, that is, an internship/a work placement. Part of our role as academics is to prepare our students for the workplace, and the authors cite research which points to the role that plays when it comes to not only attainment and engagement but also employability. The article provides an overview of the importance of resilience, and it covers aspects such as the view held by those who employ our graduates that they often do not possess the skills and abilities required of them in the workplace, thus leading employers to have to provide extra training. Whether the expectations of the employers are reasonable or not, or that we, in universities, are doing enough to prepare them for the workplace is, as the authors rightly say, a moot point. However, regardless of anyone’s view on this, no one could or would argue that our role is to foster the skills and abilities that our future graduates need for the workplace, or, more accurately, for life more generally. Such skills and abilities are not workplace specific, after all, and while all of us spent many hours at work, we spend far more of them outside of the workplace, where the opportunities and setbacks are no less important or c","PeriodicalId":47411,"journal":{"name":"Active Learning in Higher Education","volume":"21 1","pages":"101 - 95"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2020-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1469787420914814","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41388306","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
A. Goodenough, Hazel Roberts, David Biggs, J. Derounian, A. Hart, K. Lynch
{"title":"A higher degree of resilience: Using psychometric testing to reveal the benefits of university internship placements","authors":"A. Goodenough, Hazel Roberts, David Biggs, J. Derounian, A. Hart, K. Lynch","doi":"10.1177/1469787417747057","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1469787417747057","url":null,"abstract":"Resilience is a multifaceted concept but, in the context of learning, it can best be thought of as an individual’s capacity to create and maximise opportunities as well as responding positively to setbacks and challenges. Developing students’ resilience is becoming increasingly important. Research has shown resilience links to attainment, retention, engagement and employability. However, very little work has examined what aspects of curricula enhance resilience and the particular role of active learning frameworks in achieving this. In this study, we analyse the effects of optional real-world internship placements on eight measures of resilience. Psychometric testing was conducted twice per student – at the start of their second academic year and again at the end. Students choosing an internship had significantly higher challenge orientation and adaptability scores than other students in the same cohort. Adaptability of both interns and non-interns improved over the academic year, but improvement was significantly higher for interns. Scores for optimism, purposeful direction and ingenuity significantly increased between start-of-year and end-of-year tests for interns versus a decline for non-interns. We conclude that facilitating student engagement with real-world issues and challenges through supported internships within an active learning framework is an important mechanism for increasing students’ resilience.","PeriodicalId":47411,"journal":{"name":"Active Learning in Higher Education","volume":"21 1","pages":"102 - 115"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2020-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1469787417747057","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47000374","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Mobiles in class?","authors":"J. Derounian","doi":"10.1177/1469787417745214","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1469787417745214","url":null,"abstract":"Change and exploration offer students and staff the opportunity to positively embrace use of mobile devices in higher education teaching, so that the much-vaunted pursuit of technology-based co-production of learning can become a reality. There is a need to evaluate the incidence and effect of the use of mobile devices in class, however, given the newness and rapidly changing nature of the technologies. This study presents a review of the pros and cons of students using mobile phones, smartphones, laptops and tablets in contact sessions. It sets out to determine how the potential of mobile devices for learning may be realised, and negatives minimised, given that the literature paints a very mixed picture of both positive and negative impacts of using mobile devices for higher education teaching and learning. In addition, there are insights from students about how they and lecturers can practically enhance use of technologies in class. There remain gaps in research around this topic, for example, looking at whether students undertaking different subjects respond differently to the use of mobile devices for study.","PeriodicalId":47411,"journal":{"name":"Active Learning in Higher Education","volume":"21 1","pages":"142 - 153"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2020-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1469787417745214","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43783845","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Intensity of activity involvement and psychosocial well-being among students","authors":"Casey A. Knifsend","doi":"10.1177/1469787418760324","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/1469787418760324","url":null,"abstract":"The transition to university, while a time of growth, can also be difficult for many students, with declines in psychosocial well-being common. Specific stressors can include both those related to academics and those related to life transitions during this time, like moving out or being away from one’s family. Understanding the factors that can bolster well-being, such as campus activity participation (e.g. in sports or social organizations), is likely to be especially important to student success. The study examined linear and curvilinear associations of campus activity intensity and psychosocial well-being. Results suggested the greatest benefits to belongingness, loneliness, and social anxiety at the highest levels of activity intensity, over 10 hours a week spent in activities. An interaction tested by ethnicity showed that effects of activity intensity on belongingness differed for underrepresented minority students versus non-underrepresented students. Findings suggest that students may benefit from getting involved as much as they can, and that universities may highlight the importance of engaging in activities outside of the classroom through messaging or in-class presentations about the utility of campus involvement.","PeriodicalId":47411,"journal":{"name":"Active Learning in Higher Education","volume":"21 1","pages":"116 - 127"},"PeriodicalIF":5.0,"publicationDate":"2020-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/1469787418760324","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47284535","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"教育学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}