Experience In Course Research Articles

Initial Learning of Japanese Undergraduate Students with No Prior Experiences in a Flag Football Basic Instruction Course

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to describe how Japanese undergraduate students engage in learning in a physical activity basic instruction course, specifically, flag football. The study was situated in the framework of andragogy theory and used an explanatory (holistic) case study design. Participants were five Japanese undergraduate students with no prior experiences of learning flag football at a public university. Data sources included ten weeks of individual weekly journal reflections. A constant comparative method was adopted to interpret the data. Three emergent themes were: (a) problem-solving based learning, (b) the importance of reflective, cooperative, and collaborative learning, and (c) application of flag football knowledge outside of class. To better support Japanese undergraduate students’ learning experiences in the course, we encourage faculty and students to learn how to develop a blueprint of flag football, game strategies, and performance analysis that enables them to capture the nuance of content learning through problem-solving experiences.

A feasibility study of the impact of a communication-skills course, 'Empowered Conversations', for care partners of people living with dementia.

ObjectivesTo examine the feasibility, acceptability and impact of an experiential course for family care partners of people living with dementia, Empowered Conversations (EC). This study aimed to assess the impact of participation in an EC course on care partner stress levels, communication and mentalization (a form of relational-based empathy).MethodThis study uses an uncontrolled pre–post-follow-up design. Follow-up was at 4-months after the initial EC session where baseline data were collected. One hundred and fifty-nine care partners were recruited. EC is a training course that has been designed to improve care partner communication, well-being and relationships. It is based on an integrative framework that targets the specific psychological, relationship and communication needs of carers. This framework informs targeted strategies and interactive exercises that facilitate carers to consider the goals and emotions of those they are caring for, alongside their own goals and emotions, and to use this to maximize good communication.ResultsStress was significantly reduced across the three time points. Communication significantly improved across time. There were no significant changes in reflective functioning (mentalization).DiscussionThis study provides preliminary evidence that a communication-skills training course for care partners of people living with dementia is an acceptable and feasible intervention and has an impact both post-intervention and at follow-up. These findings require validation in a rigorous, randomized study.

Culinary nutrition course equips future physicians to educate patients on a healthy diet: an interventional pilot study

BackgroundPoor-quality diet is associated with one in five deaths globally. In the United States, it is the leading cause of death, representing a bigger risk factor than even smoking. For many, education on a healthy diet comes from their physician. However, as few as 25% of medical schools currently offer a dedicated nutrition course. We hypothesized that an active learning, culinary nutrition experience for medical students would improve the quality of their diets and better equip them to counsel future patients on food and nutrition.MethodsThis was a prospective, interventional, uncontrolled, non-randomized, pilot study. Ten first-year medical students at the Wayne State University School of Medicine completed a 4-part, 8-h course in culinary-nutritional instruction and hands-on cooking. Online assessment surveys were completed immediately prior to, immediately following, and 2 months after the intervention. There was a 100% retention rate and 98.8% item-completion rate on the questionnaires. The primary outcome was changes in attitudes regarding counselling patients on a healthy diet. Secondary outcomes included changes in dietary habits and acquisition of culinary knowledge. Average within-person change between timepoints was determined using ordinary least squares fixed-effect models. Statistical significance was defined as P ≤ .05.ResultsParticipants felt better prepared to counsel patients on a healthy diet immediately post-intervention (coefficient = 2.8; 95% confidence interval: 1.6 to 4.0 points; P < .001) and 2 months later (2.2 [1.0, 3.4]; P = .002). Scores on the objective test of culinary knowledge increased immediately after (3.6 [2.4, 4.9]; P < .001) and 2 months after (1.6 [0.4, 2.9]; P = .01) the intervention. Two months post-intervention, participants reported that a higher percentage of their meals were homemade compared to pre-intervention (13.7 [2.1, 25.3]; P = .02).ConclusionsAn experiential culinary nutrition course may improve medical students’ readiness to provide dietary counselling. Further research will be necessary to determine what effects such interventions may have on the quality of participants’ own diets.

Developing marketing curriculum to make students workforce ready

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate how to overcome the dilemma of the lack of student workforce readiness upon graduation. Based on experiential learning theory, the authors propose an innovative three-step approach to marketing curriculum to help address this dilemma.Design/methodology/approachThis study examines both quantitative and qualitative data. First, quantitative results were obtained from 5,222 end-of-course surveys of students taking an experiential learning course at a southeastern United States public university. Results were also obtained from 111 end-of-course surveys of students taking experiential learning courses in marketing. Second, qualitative results were obtained through a critical review of self-reflection assignments from over 1,000 students taking a variety of experiential learning marketing courses.FindingsThe authors identify a three-step process that can be used to develop curriculum that will better prepare students for entering the workforce. The advantages and disadvantages associated with this type of curriculum are also discussed. The outcomes indicate that an entire curriculum focused on experiential learning, self-reflection and ePortfolios will allow students to not only be better prepared for the workforce but also will help them be better communicators on what they have learned.Originality/valueIn this paper, the authors contribute to the literature by providing a curriculum-based approach to learning in order to minimize the gap between academic knowledge and workforce preparedness. Sample course projects, reflective prompts and grading rubrics are provided to aid others in the implementation of this type of curriculum.

Undergraduate Research Embedded Across Course Levels and Types Through Scaffolded Projects

This article explores how to embed an undergraduate research project within a course and summarizes the student experience in courses including undergraduate research. The authors specifically focus on how to modify and alter materials to fit with different course foci and different course levels. We have been leading an interdisciplinary, multi-year research project for the past four years. During that time, we have scaffolded a research project from year to year. Each piece of the project has been embedded within a course. However, the specific course level and content focus has changed from year to year. By embedding a research project within a class, faculty members have a unique opportunity to give their students a high-impact experience and further their own research simultaneously. We have successfully mentored and supervised students in the following formats: a freshman interdisciplinary honors course, two different undergraduate criminal justice courses made up of 5-10 students that were focused around criminological theory testing, individual directed study projects with graduate students, a 30-40 person upper level criminology research methods course, and a freshman individual directed study research project. Throughout all of these modalities, we have kept a core type of course design and course requirements but modified the components and grading criteria as needed for the type and level of course. We will summarize and discuss student assessment data both on their experience in the course as well as their achievement of student learning outcomes.

Lessons From Critical Race Theory: Outdoor Experiential Education and Whiteness in Kinesiology

Background: Outdoor experiential education (OEE) is often presented as a neutral and equitable curricular practice with positive learning outcomes. However, few studies have examined the experiences of racialized and queer White settler students or the representation of Whiteness in OEE curricular documents. Purpose: This article explores Whiteness, racialization, and Indigenous erasure in OEE as an undergraduate curricular practice at a Kinesiology program in a Canadian university. Methodology/Approach: Using critical race theory, a critical discourse analysis of six types of documents used to advertise and organize the outdoor experiential courses was combined with five semi-structured interviews with undergraduate students. Findings/Conclusions: This study demonstrates that students must negotiate Whiteness and settler colonialism to participate in OEE. Three main findings include the following: (a) The imagined student is wealthy and White, (b) students both assimilate to and resist codes of Whiteness, and (c) curricular documents and practices promote Eurocentricity and erase Indigeneity. Implications: OEE presents an opportunity for students preparing to become workers and educators in sport and recreation to learn about Whiteness, racialization, and Indigeneity. Kinesiology program design can use student narratives to shift from supposedly neutral curricular documents and pedagogies to ones that expose and work toward dismantling Eurocentricity.

Implementing an Integrated First-Year Engineering Curriculum with Mixed Teaching Approaches

Griffith University offers Engineering programmes over two campuses in South East Queensland, Australia. A large proportion of students are the first in their families to attend university, with many from low socio-economic backgrounds. In 2017, Griffith moved to a trimester system, and the School of Engineering and Built Environment restructured the first-year engineering curriculum to provide an improved engineering experience focusing on key educational outcomes for its diverse student population.This article describes and evaluates the new integrated first-year curriculum, which includes a mix of traditionally taught, partially experiential, and fully experiential courses. The curriculum structure is discussed, and the outcomes evaluated in terms of student achievement, progression, and satisfaction. Findings of this evaluation indicate that teaching staff have a crucial role in ensuring courses are well received, traditionally taught mathematics courses do not appear to be meeting the needs of the students, and that ‘C’ is unlikely to be a good choice for a first programming language for engineering students. However, the restructuring shows some preliminary success in terms of increased retention when coupled with proactive outreach. Further research into student perceptions and performance across courses with different teaching approaches is recommended.

Delivering Experiential Learning Through Virtual Study Tour and Alternative Internship Options During a Pandemic

The unprecedented impact of COVID-19 recreated our learning environment. With nearly all institutions shifting to remote teaching during the outbreak, our program was quickly tasked to transition to online instruction for two experiential courses: The May intersession New York study tour for undergraduate students and the summer internship program for graduating seniors whose internships were cancelled or could not be secured due to the pandemic. We integrated experiential learning through appointment journaling in the May intersession New York study tour and through weekly activity reports in the virtual alternative summer internship. Throughout the entire process and in logical sequence, students in both courses were able to engage in the experiential learning cycle developed by Kolb (1984). These modifications successfully connected students to fashion companies and exploratory career experiences.

Student Interest in Client-Sponsored Projects: The Quest for Engagement in Marketing Research Courses

Student engagement is regarded as a critical educational outcome. However, it has proven to be elusive to educators within technical domains, such as marketing research and analytics, which has inspired the exploration of experiential course design elements. Client-sponsored projects (CSPs) have become a popular tactic to meet this objective in such courses. The authors utilize a mixed-methods design to examine CSPs and their effectiveness in marketing research and analytics courses. In Study 1, qualitative research yields student insights regarding the desired characteristics of a CSP. Study 2 illustrates that CSPs boost student engagement through perceptions of course relevance. However, students’ subjective interest in the client represented a boundary condition for this effect. That is, CSPs did not offer value to students who lacked inherent interest in the client. In Study 3, a discrete choice model analysis outlined what attributes make clients interesting for students. Finally, Study 4 utilizes a field experiment to identify project-framing tactics that increase student interest through enhanced client familiarity. A series of recommendations are provided to maximize the efficacy of CSPs to marketing research and analytics courses.

Experiential Graduate Course Prepares Transdisciplinary Future Leaders to Innovate at the Food-Energy-Water Nexus

Food, energy and water (FEW) systems are critically stressed worldwide. These challenges require transformative science, engineering and policy solutions. However, cross-cutting solutions can only arise through transdisciplinary training of our future science and policy leaders. The University of Maryland Global STEWARDS National Science Foundation Research Traineeship seeks to meet these needs. This study assessed a foundational component of the program: a novel, experiential course focused on transdisciplinary training and communication skills. We drew on data from the first two offerings of the course and utilized a mixed-method, multi-informant evaluation that included validated pre–post surveys, individual interviews and focus groups. Paired Mann–Whitney–Wilcoxon tests were used to compare pre- and post-means. After the course, students reported improvements in their ability to identify strengths and weaknesses of multiple FEW nexus disciplines; articulate interplays between FEW systems at multiple scales; explain to peers the most important aspects of their research; and collaborate with scientists outside their field. Students also reported improvements in their oral and written communication skills, along with their ability to critically review others’ work. Our findings demonstrate that this graduate course can serve as an effective model to develop transdisciplinary researchers and communicators through cutting edge, experiential curricular approaches.

Experience in Course of Anti-IgE Therapy of Bronchial Asthma in Children

The results of the clinical approbation of Patient-specific therapy of bronchial asthma in children using the course method of applicationof the monoclonal antibodies (anti-IgE-therapy) by the Ministry of Health are summarized in order to assess the effect of this typeof treatment on the disease exacerbation rate, including those associated with the seasonal acute respiratory infections. The conclusion was made regarding the high clinical efficiency in relation to all parameters studied and safety of this type of the treatment. Itwas determined that the monitoring of the level of specific IgE receptors on basophils using the cytoflowmetry method, which is concomitant to anti-IgE therapy, makes it possible to predict the efficiency and individual duration of anti-IgE therapy for uncontrolledatopic bronchial asthma in children.

Learning by Doing: Student Experiences in a Mixed Methods Research Course

Aim/Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to detail the experiential learning processes of an 11-week doctoral-level intermediate mixed methods research (MMR) course in which student-researchers conceptualized and implemented an MMR study to apply theoretical and methodological learning in a practical manner. Our aim is to emphasize the value of an applied MMR course for improved student learning and curriculum planning for faculty by highlighting meaningful insights on study design, data integration, team collaboration, and the challenges and opportunities involved in project execution within a time-limited academic course. Background: MMR courses are increasingly being integrated into graduate programs, yet few offer intermediate or advanced courses that go beyond introductory topics and engage students in applied learning. Furthermore, most articles on MMR courses are written from the instructor perspective and not from the student perspective. Methodology: This article is organized by each week of the course curriculum, and the output of the research project, couched within reflections of the applied process, is presented. While this paper is grounded in an experiential reflection of learning, the research project itself is referred to frequently to help elucidate and capture this learning in a systematic way. The applied study employed an explanatory sequential mixed methods design to examine career satisfaction and career preference changes over time in doctoral candidates and graduates. Contribution: This paper contributes to higher education by providing a student-led exemplar of applied learning in MMR pedagogy for doctoral students irrespective of discipline and research topic. It provides a sample research project, executed start to finish with a guiding blueprint that can be adapted by faculty and students in various academic departments, within a quarter or semester long course. Findings: Ultimately, this course led to increased confidence and preparation to conduct interdisciplinary mixed methods research. Unique to mixed methods research, the areas in which we witnessed the most growth included developing mixed methods research questions, choosing a design based on these questions, and engaging in data integration. Recommendations for Practitioners: We provide the following recommendations to instructors interested in developing intermediate- or advanced-level MMR courses: a) obtain input from students on what they are most interested in learning during course conceptualization or early on in implementation; b) consider that a great deal of time outside of the classroom may need to be dedicated to the class project, which may impact the feasibility and successful execution of an experiential course; and c) sufficient class time is dedicated to data integration from quantitative and qualitative inputs. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers interested in further examining learning and proficiency garnered from MMR and other research courses may benefit from including students as co-researchers. In addition, engaging in systematic qualitative research on student and professor experiences in learning and teaching MMR courses could highlight further areas for course refinement and topics for future research. Impact on Society: Given the increasing prevalence of MMR being included in research funding announcements as a preferred methodology, it is imperative to rigorously train researchers in mixed methods research at varying levels of advancement (i.e., introductory, intermediate, and advanced). Future Research: Our small explanatory sequential mixed methods study began as a class project, yet highlighted areas that could be studied further for doctoral candidates and graduates in clinically oriented fields, such as learning what types or qualities of training and mentorship may yield more career preparedness and satisfaction.

Integrating Marketing Concepts in Competitive Decision Making — A Case Study

Students experienced applying Marketing concepts while making decisions in multiple disciplines (including Marketing, R&amp;D, and Production) in a Competitive Decision-Making course. Marketing students competed to achieve desired performance outcomes (such as, Market Share, ROS, and Cumulative Profit) in a realistic business simulation. Marketing students applied an array of ten traditional Marketing concepts in this experiential course: 1. Market Scaling; 2. Market Segmentation; 3. Product Pricing; 4. Product Ageing; 5. Product Positioning; 6. Product Reliability; 7. Promotions Budgets and Media Selection; 8. Sales Staffing and Channel Selection; 9. Market Research; and 10. Sales Forecasting.

Why Age Matters: A Mixed-Methods Analysis of Intergenerational Contact With Older Adults With Dementia

This integrated mixed methods analysis examined outcomes for students enrolled in an experiential course (BATL), a didactic psychology of aging course, and introductory psychology courses. Students in the experiential course showed increased empathy, F(2, 345) = 29.058, p = .000 (M = 47.52, SD = .75), improved attitudes towards persons with dementia (PWDs), F(2,355) = 8.98, p < .0001 (M = 14.25, SD = .36), and greater increased interest in working with older adults, F(2,361) = 30.228, p=.000 compared to the other courses. A qualitative phase II follow-up explanations model (Creswell et. al., 2003) of participants’ journals using a hermeneutic coding process was employed to explore underlying mechanisms for such changes. These identified underlying mechanisms have significant implications for increasing interest and ability among students to work effectively with older adults with and without cognitive impairment. Further, this information yields insights for addressing workforce shortages in geriatric care.

Bridging the Past and the Future: Why Age Matters in Behavioral Health Training

This symposium presents data from three applied clinical research projects that involve intergenerational interaction as one component of effective treatment. The first paper describes learner outcomes in an intergenerational art therapy and reminiscence program provided in an adult day service facility. Results show that, in comparison with students in a didactic psychology of aging course or an introductory psychology course, learners in the experiential learning course demonstrated increased empathy, as well as better attitudes toward and increased interest in working with persons with dementia (PWD). The second paper focuses on observed outcomes for older PWD participants in this art therapy and reminiscence program, showing that intergenerational communication engagements exceed engagements with art. Mixed method data across time indicated that PWD benefitted from the treatment, facilitated by undergraduate student learners. The third paper focuses on cultural humility and the importance of racial diversity in providers conducting behavioral health screening in an integrated geriatric primary care clinic. Training issues and behavioral health outcomes regarding assessment of cognitive status, cultural mistrust, and test validity are considered. The fourth and final paper considers how intergenerational dynamics facilitated group cohesion and allowed for increased normalization of common challenges in mindfulness practice. Training issues for graduate student therapists are described. Consideration of level of behavioral health integration in each site, treatment efficacy, and the impact of intergenerational relationships are the foci of discussion. This symposium will show why age matters in behavioral health training.

Providing quality improvement training in an advanced pharmacy practice experience elective

Background and purposeQuality Improvement (QI) science is a burgeoning component of healthcare systems and the practice of pharmacy. There is limited published literature on the implementation of QI training in undergraduate pharmacy education. We describe the development and implementation of QI training in an experiential course. Educational activity and settingA QI curriculum was developed for an existing eight-week pharmacy practice elective experience for year four pharmacy students. The curriculum was divided into two, four-week blocks, combining didactic instruction and applied learning activities. A partnership between university departments and a local health organization provided a QI preceptor along with an interdisciplinary clinical team in an acute care setting to improve clinical services. FindingsSix students have completed the elective along with completing three QI projects. The Kirkpatrick 4 level model guided course evaluation. A curriculum strength was no additional cost or educational burden on the faculty of pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences. Students recognized benefit from (1) course flexibility and independence to learn, (2) clear expectations and weekly guidance from the preceptor, (3) alignment of weekly readings and real-time application of QI concepts, and (4) the Institute for Healthcare Improvement education modules. Reducing the number of assigned tasks per week and improving availability of the clinical QI team to support student learning were identified as areas for improvement. SummaryThis elective course demonstrated a starting point from which QI education can be formally included in pharmacy undergraduate education.

Læringsstrategier på ungdomsuddannelserne

Formålet med denne artikel er at identificere mønstre i gymnasieelevers gengivelser af egne læringsstrategier. Situation i sensommeren og efteråret 2020 tilbød muligheder for at undersøge elevernes oplevelser af forløb, der vekslede mellem blended learning, virtuel undervisning og hybride formater. Det viste sig, at eleverne beskrev deres håndtering af udfordringerne og mulighederne meget forskelligt - og at beskrivelserne afspejler strategiske handlemønstre.&#x0D; Med udgangspunkt i et teoretisk rammeværk, der muliggør undersøgelse af læringsstrategier i et økologisk perspektiv, opstilles to forskningsspørgsmål: 1) Hvilke dimensioner anvender eleverne i deres selvfremstilling af egne læringsstrategier? Og 2) Hvilke læringsstrategiske mønstre kan identificeres?&#x0D; Artiklens metode udgøres af abduktive sekvenser, der veksler mellem teoretisk rammesætning, tematiske analyser af elevernes selvfortællinger samt ’kontrol-interviews’, der validerer de identificerede dimensioner og mønstre.&#x0D; Undersøgelsen afslører, hvordan eleverne fremstiller de forskellige – digitale og ikke-digitale – ressourcedimensioner i håndteringen af hybride uddannelseskontekster. Afslutningsvis opsummeres de studerendes læringsstrategiske selvforståelser i fem sammenhængende mønstre af læringsstrategier.

Begin the Begin: Re-Envisioning and Re-Designing the Capital Capstone Course in the Interdisciplinary General Education Program at the University of the District of Columbia

ABSTRACT This critical reflection briefly chronicles the transition of a general education program from a distributive model to an integrative model and the resulting Capital Capstone Course (CCC) at the University of the District of Columbia (UDC). The article describes a year long, team-based, experiential course that “caps” off our Interdisciplinary General Education program (IGED). The authors illustrate how “backward design” and backward/forward communication of Student Learning Outcomes inform the ongoing revision to the program and the CCC.

An Exploration of the Dynamic Nature of Psychological Ownership in a Classroom-as-Organization

Background: Feelings of ownership play an important role in experiential education and are associated with several positive outcomes. However, researchers have yet to explore the dynamic nature of psychological ownership and its antecedents in experiential courses from the perspectives of the students. Purpose: The authors used the lens of psychological ownership theory to explore the experiences of students in an experiential learning setting. Methodology/Approach: In this study, the authors used repeated waves of semi-structured interviews in a two-semester classroom-as-organization (CAO). They then used a five-step process to identify themes describing the students’ experience. Findings/Conclusions: The authors found that different antecedents to psychological ownership worked together at different points in the development of the CAO, that students did not want full control of the CAO (despite their feelings of ownership toward it), and that students anticipated feelings of ownership that persisted after the class had ended. Implications: Educators may struggle to identify the level of control students’ need in a CAO to reap the benefits of the experience. Persistent feelings of ownership after experiential learning ends can contribute to student development.

Research and Investigation on Learning Experience of Ideological and Political Course for Social Science Students Wenbin Li

Teaching effect of ideological and political courses can be practically enhanced by developing investigation and research on the learning experience of social science students. Being the most critical course in their study life, ideological and political learning, from the practical researches, is considered to have a high satisfying level. However, there are different attitudes towards some teaching details and measures. Questionnaire survey and random interview are adopted in this article to judge the learning experience of the courses for social science students from the actual data. Some suggestions are put forward for developing the course system for reference.