Supporting student awareness: understanding student preconceptions of their subject matter within introductory courses

Abstract

The present study is concerned with how educators might support students in developing a better awareness and understanding of themselves as learners. The context for the paper is widening participation within higher education and the growth of first‐year ‘introductory’ modules, which are taught to large numbers of students, including both specialists and non‐specialists. Such large, heterogeneous student cohorts present particular challenges to educators. The paper describes how the Reflections on Learning Inventory (RoLI) may be used, in conjunction with a subject‐specific inventory, to identify the ways in which variations in student preconceptions about the subject are related to different types of learning processes. The paper then discusses the implications of the findings for pedagogic development. In particular, it proposes that course design should involve the development of student awareness and understanding about motivations and beliefs about the subject.