Vol. 21 No. 1 (2024): Quarterly Issue 1

Student Experience

• Developmental Changes of the Responses to Peer Assessment of Group Projects: a Case Study of Civil Engineering Undergraduates

  Piyal Wasantha Pallewela Liyanage, Kirsten Black, Sam Fragomeni

  The changes in the responding behaviour to peer assessments of group projects as students progress through their studies were explored to assist educators in designing peer assessment tools to suit students’ maturity levels and better understand the students’ responses to peer assessments. We collected and analysed the responses to a peer assessment tool after group project assignments of a group of civil engineering undergraduate students in their second and third years. The responses displayed a relatively higher satisfaction level by the students on their peers’ contribution to the group projects in both units, with a markedly higher satisfaction level in the third year of study than in the second year. The data also suggests that smaller groups tend to have higher peer satisfaction levels among group members than in bigger groups. Average peer rating versus group mark comparison was identified as a reliable indicator to identify groups that had internal issues while working on group projects but were not openly disclosed. Responses to individual criteria of the peer assessment tool confirmed that the group members are highly satisfied with each other’s attendance in group meetings and are increasingly satisfied with each other’s intellectual contribution towards the group project as the year level progresses. Given the participants in this study belong to one specific discipline, the results may not be generalisable to the entire student population, and we encourage more research in this area.

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• Potholes and Patches: Lessons Learned From The Transition of Two Professional Programs to Online Learning

  Caroline L. Joyce, Nga Thanh Nguyen, Colin Clark, John Juriansz, Carl Parsons

  This paper reports on students’ perceptions of two different modes of delivery: synchronous online learning and face-to-face learning. The study examines the perspectives of both medical and law students and the factors influencing their preferred mode of delivery. Data were obtained from 11 focus group interviews conducted between 2020 and 2021 with 29 students from the Schools of Law and Medicine. Two themes were generated from the analysis and indicate that both groups of students preferred the flexible blended learning mode of delivery, appreciating the advantages of face-to-face and online learning. Although learning experiences between the empirical discipline of medicine and the more rationalist study of law showed contrasts, to some degree, both groups of students endorsed changes to programs that afforded greater flexibility in learning opportunities. Various factors, including the nature of the discipline, required skills sets, and individual preferences, were found to influence the students’ preferred mode of delivery. This study contributes to the understanding of students’ perceptions and preferences, providing insights for educational institutions in designing effective instructional strategies in a rapidly evolving educational landscape.

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• Health science students’ well-being during distance learning: a qualitative interview study

  Sari Pramila-Savukoski, Raila Kärnä, Heli Kuivila, Jonna Juntenen, Ashlee Oikarainen, Maria Kääriäinen, Krista Hylkilä, Kristina Mikkonen

  The recent shift from face-to-face learning to distance learning has affected students’ well-being, which could impact commitment to studies and lead to delays or interruptions. The aim of this study was to describe health science students’ experiences of well-being during the distance learning and social isolation resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. A qualitative descriptive interview study was conducted with virtual semi-structured individual interviews. A total of 15 first-year health science students participated. Content analysis was used to analyse the data. The study identified six main categories of well-being: social relationships; healthy lifestyle; versatile everyday life; psychophysical well-being; the physical living environment; and adaptation to a new situation. The participants mainly reported satisfactory well-being, but they needed support to maintain it. The study showed that students’ well-being and resilience increased when distance learning lasted longer. In the future, it will be important to study how to combine the flexibility of distance learning with the communality of contact teaching.

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