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Vol. 20 No. 1 (2023)

Published: 1 January 2023

Articles

  • Personalising the student first year experience – an evaluation of a Staff Student Buddy System

    Nick Fewster-Young, Paul A Corcoran

    A student’s transition into higher education or a new learning environment can set the foundation for the remainder of their study, both in perception and academic ability. Mentoring is a transition intervention strategy and most types of these interventions are student peer to peer. However, there is a growing interest in academic involvement in mentoring and consequently this paper is an investigation into the effective implementation of assigning students with an academic staff buddy or mentor in the transition period of their first year of higher education i.e. the Staff Student Buddy System (SSBS). The analysis focusses on using two measures to inform the results by qualitatively analysing the feedback from the students, and quantitatively measuring the difference in academic performance of both student participants and non-participants. The sample of the students come from the University of South Australia, and the qualitative analysis indicated that students enjoyed SSBS, particularly with the ability to ask questions to those that would be teaching them. The quantitative statistical evidence indicated that SSBS could be a positive factor on a student’s Grade Point Average. Overall, the conclusion was that that the combination of the SSBS and these students produced improved academic performance while providing a positive student experience.

    Read article: Personalising the student first year experience – an evaluation of a Staff Student Buddy System 1,123 views. Recorded article-page views through the previous day; not unique readers or PDF downloads.

  • Participatory learning as a student-centered teaching technique during the COVID-19 pandemic

    Tafirenyika Mafugu

    The study aimed to determine if there is a significant difference between peer and lecturer assessment scores and to explore the relationship between peer assessment scores and the study year of preservice teachers. Furthermore, the study explored the effect of Blackboard Collaborate online group presentations on the development of pedagogical skills of undergraduate pre-service teachers. Two hundred and sixty-two peer and lecturer assessment scores were compared, while 53 students completed the Google form survey. A Wilcoxon signed-rank test showed a statistically significant difference between peer scores and lecturer-moderated scores in different courses. However, the test did not show a statistically significant difference in the course N2. There was a statistically significant negative correlation between the study year and the difference in scores. The data revealed that the group presentations and assessment improved the pedagogical and assessment skills of the pre-service teachers. The findings are expected to inform practitioners about group presentation and peer assessment practices and their potential to improve pedagogical and assessment skills for preservice teachers during a period of crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Read article: Participatory learning as a student-centered teaching technique during the COVID-19 pandemic 928 views. Recorded article-page views through the previous day; not unique readers or PDF downloads.

  • Collaborative creativity among undergraduate students as game creators during gamification in a university-wide elective course

    Julia Lee, Ruxin Lim, Fitri S. Mohamad, Kim Geok Chan, Faizah Mas’ud

    Collaborative creativity is an essential skill for unleashing university students’ skills in team building during complex problem-solving. The aim of this descriptive quantitative research was to examine undergraduate students’ perspectives regarding their collaborative creativity experience as game creators for a gamification group assignment within a university-wide elective course on learning disabilities. The Assessment Scale of Creative Collaboration (ASCC) questionnaire was completed by 14 students. The results provide insightful perspectives by undergraduate students regarding their experience in collaborative creativity during game creation. The findings from the closed-ended questions of the ASCC demonstrate that most of the students valued the diversity of knowledge and skills of their team members, shared different ideas, adapted their ideas and practices according to the project difficulties, trusted their team members, co-constructed the game together, overcame conflicts in positive ways, developed multiple versions of their game, and coordinated well for their team project. Data from the open-ended questions of the ASCC, which provided detailed but nuanced perspectives of the students, were analysed thematically. Three main themes were identified: the positive aspects of gamification, the constraints related to the gamification project, and teamwork and collaborative problem-solving approaches. This study provides evidence on the feasibility of game creation that is embedded within gamification group projects for fostering collaborative creativity among undergraduate students. Gamification has the potential in supporting the acquisition of 21st century learning and innovation skills in higher education. Implications of the application of gamification in higher education are discussed.

    Read article: Collaborative creativity among undergraduate students as game creators during gamification in a university-wide elective course 1,107 views. Recorded article-page views through the previous day; not unique readers or PDF downloads.

  • Self-agency and Academically High-performing Students’ Success: Towards a Praxis for Academic Support in one South African University

    Victor Nnadozie, Samukelisiwe Khumalo

    Globally, student support mechanisms focus almost exclusively on academically 'under-performing' students, especially as insofar as academic development practices are concerned. This article makes a case for a shift in approach. Using the context of one country, South Africa, we sought to better understand the strengths that academically high-performing students (AHSs) employ in order to succeed. We drew on a conceptual lens based on Bandura’s theory of the self. Data was collected by means of document analysis, individual interviews and focus group interviews with ten (n = 10) purposively selected academically high-performing fourth-year undergraduate students in a school of education at one university. The findings show that beyond typical family and institutional factors, the students’ capability of effecting change through intentional and cognitive agentic influences is critical to their success. Importantly though, in finding their self-agentic capabilities, some found mutual support with and for peers who shared in their passion for success. This asserts the relevance of Ubuntu as a concept that underpins the understanding of ‘self’ in this context. The findings are important for theory in problematising Bandura’s self-agentic theory and expounding its application to peer learning support. It is also important for practice because understanding the AHSs’ negotiation of self-agency brings refreshing insight to the student success conundrum.

    Read article: Self-agency and Academically High-performing Students’ Success: Towards a Praxis for Academic Support in one South African University 1,043 views. Recorded article-page views through the previous day; not unique readers or PDF downloads.

  • Book Review: Contemplative practices in higher education: Powerful methods to transform teaching and learning (by D. Barbezat and M. Bush)

    Erin A. Hopkins

    This book review on Daniel Barbezat and Mirabai Bush’s book titled Contemplative Practices in Higher Education: Powerful Methods to Transform Teaching and Learning aims to provide exposure to the possibility of enhanced student experience through contemplative practices across various fields of study and across universities globally. This book review summarizes and evaluates the book with the hope that it will help readership decide if this is a book they would like to purchase as part of their strategy for student learning. This book review, based on a contemplative approach to teaching and learning at the university, is important because it can inspire faculty to implement these strategies for deeper learning within university students. Also, varied contemplative practices are introduced that cultivate the common outcome of greater focus that can serve as a foundation for an internal ethical compass of a university student. Barbezat and Bush’s book is significant to university learning and teaching practice as it challenges the notion of narrowly focused technical training and instead encourages faculty and students to examine how their thoughts and actions affect themselves and others. This book proves a worthy contribution to university learning and teaching practices across fields of study by offering an introduction and guidance on how to implement a fresh yet at the same time age-old practice to pedagogy that can cultivate deeper student learning by helping bring abstract concepts into embodied understanding.

    Read article: Book Review: Contemplative practices in higher education: Powerful methods to transform teaching and learning (by D. Barbezat and M. Bush) 558 views. Recorded article-page views through the previous day; not unique readers or PDF downloads.

  • Curriculum and learning designers’ epistemological views of learning and how they inform design work in universities

    Jason M Lodge

    Universities globally have been increasingly looking to bring in professionals with expertise in learning and curriculum design to help with educational innovation. The aim of this study was to explore the epistemological views of learning that people in curriculum and learning design roles use to inform their practice. In this study, ten learning and curriculum designers were interviewed in depth. The participants demonstrated wide and deep knowledge of learning and teaching, drawing on both established notions of constructivism but also on emerging theories and evidence. Combined with extensive experience, the interviews revealed that these learning designers demonstrate high levels of epistemic fluency, adapting and using processes and practices in a dynamic way as task requirements demand. The findings make a contribution to the limited understanding of the knowledge base that curriculum learning designers draw on to carry out their work. The implications of these findings for universities are also discussed.

    Read article: Curriculum and learning designers’ epistemological views of learning and how they inform design work in universities 843 views. Recorded article-page views through the previous day; not unique readers or PDF downloads.

Showing 14–19 of 19 articles