Student Experience In Higher Education Research Articles

The Impact of COVID-19 on the Learning Experiences of Higher Education Students in the New Zealand Tertiary Institutions

The Impact of COVID-19 on the Learning Experiences of Higher Education Students in the New Zealand Tertiary Institutions

How Screen Readers Impact the Academic Works of College and Graduate Students with Visual Impairments

This study explored the effectiveness of screen readers on the academic life of higher education students with visual impairments, including reading, writing, access to the internet, exams, and general information for their courses. This study was designed as a qualitative study and applied a phenomenological approach in order to discuss the experiences of higher education students who use screen readers as assistive technology. One college student and six graduate students with visual impairments were interviewed in the United States. The findings revealed that higher education students with visual impairments benefitted from screen readers; however, they also noted some limitations: difficulties in accessing printed classroom materials, inaccessible digital content, and time lost due to technical issues. Students with visual impairments should be offered accessible documents such as electronic versions of classroom materials, accessible PDFs and websites, and software compatible with JAWS. Universities should provide accessibility training for lecturers who want to better serve students with visual impairments. University information technology services need to train their technical services staff about screen readers to provide 24/7 professional services for students with visual impairments.

Towards a Social Realist Framework for Analyzing Academic Advising in Global South Contexts

Academic advising is a proven high-impact practice, shown to have the potential to help increase students’ prospects of academic success, increase their sense of belonging and integration at their institution of higher learning, and provide unique insights into the lived realities and experiences of higher education students. For this reason, advising can be seen as a transformative activity within the student support space in South African higher education institutions. As a practice and profession, advising has existed in the Global North (GN) for decades. However, in South Africa – a developing country in the Global South (GS) – academic advising remains a nascent field. Consequently, the overarching ideas that inform academic advising in the South African context (both theoretically and practically), tend to be drawn predominantly from the GN and more developed countries. The unchallenged acceptance and tacit dominance of theoretical perspectives and practices from these countries can be considered problematic.

Mental health in the COVID-19 period: experiences of higher education students and teachers

Objective: to map the experience of the pandemic in relation to the mental health of teachers and students at UEMG- Divinópolis. Methods: It is a descriptive, quantitative and transversal study, carried out with professors and students linked to on-site courses offered by the State University of Minas Gerais – Divinópolis Unit. Conclusion: It is noted that the pandemic provided abundant changes within society, where individuals live in uncertainty about the future. Students and teachers demonstrate mental fatigue in the face of the new scenario, however, they managed to fit in with the online modality, having mostly positive the lived experience and without loss of academic performance.

Influence of entry pathway and equity group status on retention and the student experience in higher education

AbstractExpansionary policies to widen participation in higher education have led to a growth in alternative entry pathways into university. This study considers the experiences and retention outcomes of those entering Australian universities through different pathways, and how these vary across diverse student groups. Data were drawn from linked student administrative records for 81,874 students from sixteen Australian universities who commenced a Bachelor degree in 2015, with academic enrolment status tracked over five years, as well as data from a national survey of student experience conducted in 2019. Students from alternative pathways were associated with lower retention outcomes in the first year of study and poorer course completion outcomes, except those entering via pathway provider and enabling programs who reported more favourable retention compared to secondary school entrants. Students from equity group backgrounds were also associated with poorer retention outcomes, particularly Indigenous students, mature-age students, and those with disability. Associations between entry pathways, equity group status, and student experience were mixed. For example, equity group students generally had positive assessments of student experience, apart from those with disability, yet were associated with increased probabilities of intention to dropout from study. Social and personal reasons were found to be main drivers of dropout intention across different student groups. Findings highlight the need to address the varying factors that affect students entering through different pathways and from diverse backgrounds, rather than a one-size-fits-all approach. The study’s recommendations inform stakeholders seeking to improve the experience and outcomes of diverse student groups entering higher education.

Capturing, the experiences of undergraduate student nurses undertaking a pre-registration nursing degree course using an adapted experience based co-design approach

BackgroundThe quality of student experience in higher education plays an increasingly important role in attracting and retaining pre-registration nurses. Identifying and understanding the students' experiences of their course is a necessary step in the move towards improving the student experience. Experience Based Co-design (EBCD) is successfully established as an effective process for improving patient experience in a health care setting. This study presents the use of EBCD outside of healthcare, specifically in a higher education setting. ObjectivesTo capture, explore and understand the experiences of students' undertaking a pre-registration (adult) nursing course, and co-design potential improvements for future experiences through the application of an EBCD approach. MethodsAn adapted EBCD approach was utilised for gaining insight into what shapes students' experience of the nursing course and to collaboratively produce priority recommendations for course improvement. Semi-structured interviews, emotional touchpoint mapping and co-design events were conducted with undergraduate nursing students (n = 22) and staff stakeholders in a pre-registration (adult) nursing course (n = 19). Findings were analysed using the ‘Six phases of thematic analysis’ (Braun & Clarke, 2006). ResultsStudents had varied experiences on the nursing course, both positive and negative, particularly with student support. Three priority recommendations for course improvement were identified from the findings including: facilitating and supporting student development of independent study skills, enhancing student support in the clinical practice placement environment and clarifying and enhancing the role of the academic advisor. ConclusionsFindings from this study highlight areas for improvement on a pre-registration nursing course that could impact future students' experience. Furthermore, this study appears to be the first documented as using EBCD in a higher education setting with the focus on students, that enabled students and staff stakeholders in the nursing course to co-design priority recommendations for course improvement.

‘They don't realise how hard it is’. Investigating the lived experiences of higher education students with parental responsibilities during the Covid‐19 pandemic

AbstractAnecdotal reports of student parents’ challenges during the Covid‐19 pandemic prompted this explorative study; investigating the lived experiences of UK student parents and the provision of Higher Education support. Data was derived from 91 online surveys, 20 follow‐up interviews, and analysis of 100 university websites. This occurred during the pandemic lockdowns whenthe stresses, challenges and opportunities of balancing their simultaneous roles of parent and student were intensified due to school closures. The Double ABC‐X model provided a framework for examining participant's lived experiences, and the role that Higher Education institutions could play in effecting positive coping and adaptation. Findings indicate that universities need to implement strategies to enhance support for this sector, including greater awareness of the vulnerabilities and challenges involved, more flexibility and adaptability in the university ethos, formal and informal policies and structures to provide more effective support and advice for juggling these simultaneous demands.

How Did the Brown V. Board of Education Encounter the White Resistance to Black Enrollment Achievement in Higher Education?

Brown V. Board of Education is an opportunity for black to enroll and persist in higher education. However, blacks faced barriers through the resistance of the group of dominant white supremacists. Scholars are interested in challenging black enrollment in higher education to help understand the black students’ experiences after Brown V. Board of Education, which outlawed Plessy V. Ferguson in the concept of “separate but equal” to keep black students from white students. In this essay, some cases regarding black enrollment will be investigated to bring light to black student experiences in higher education.

Got sick of surveys or lack of social capital? An investigation on the effects of the COVID-19 lockdown on institutional surveying.

The use of surveys to better understand students’ experiences and teaching quality in higher education has a long history of implementation and critical review. Although research on student feedback surveys has highlighted a number of areas of concern, a well-designed student survey on teaching and learning will produce a strong foundation of evidence to inform action by academics and universities. Prior to the pandemic of 2020, analysis of the student surveys on teaching and learning highlighted lower rates of participation than in previous decades. This article examines the impacts of COVID-19 on the uptake of student surveys on teaching and learning within an Australian university. While students are affected by survey fatigue, some are more affected than others, especially those who are suffering from lack of academic and peer interaction. Using Bourdieu’s concept of social capital, this article finds that first year students who started university during COVID-19 had a higher drop in response rate than other cohorts, highlighting the importance of interactions with peers when completing surveys. This article also complements the expanding literature on the impacts of COVID-19 on the experiences of higher education students.

Seeing Infrastructure, Interrogating Infrastructure: Making explicit the implicit of LIS education and learning environments

Seeing Infrastructure, Interrogating Infrastructure: Making explicit the implicit of LIS education and learning environments

Exploring Students’ Engagement of Using Mediating Tools in E-Learning

People are looking for flexible learning ways to meet educational needs in today's world context. There is an increasing need and expectation for universities to incorporate technologies into the design and delivery. It is of significant interest whether the increased use of electronic tools and the provision of online teaching resources positively impact students. The function and influence that a mediation tool can have should be evaluated more closely, rather than viewing them as just assistance. Student involvement is generally regarded as an important benchmark and indication of the quality of the student experience in higher education. Still, the idea is challenging to define and is interpreted in various ways throughout the literature. Hence, this study explores how students experience online learning using the mediating tool. Semi-structured interviews were applied to determine the types of student engagement. The interviews were recorded and transcribed by thematic analysis (Braun and Clarke, 2006). The results showed that the mediating tool positively supports social engagement, behavioral engagement, collaborative engagement, emotional engagement, and cognitive engagement. Implications shed light on teachers, designers, and students when using the mediating tool in online learning.

Effective online education under COVID-19: Perspectives from teachers and students

ABSTRACT Making online education effective and engaging has been a policy priority in the higher education (HE) sector since the COVID-19 pandemic arose in 2020. Based on an online survey and qualitative interviews, we examine experiences of HE students and teachers in Hong Kong, and provide recommendations that can enable countries/economies to leverage on the good practices of online education to rejuvenate HE in the post-COVID era. We find a need for greater institutional support beyond its current availability. Students’ perception of online education is less optimistic than what such labeling as “digital natives” suggests. However, with time, online education is being viewed more positively. Teachers find their online education workload to be higher. More female teachers cite difficulties in balancing work and life, while older teachers report more technological difficulties. Since many respondents come from public affairs programs, which emphasize interaction in the classroom, the findings suggest that a rethinking of pedagogical strategies of public affairs education is required.

Understanding Latinas/os/xs Undergraduate Experiences in a Business School through the Working Identity Lens

ABSTRACT Our study presents some of the voces of Latinas/os/xs undergraduates in a western U.S. business school to explore the concept of “working identity” in employment discrimination law under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. While overt racial discrimination is outlawed, racial salience through factors such as phenotype, accent, demeanor, associations and assimilation all impact the way employers see potential applicants and fit with future corporate job roles. We used this conceptual framework to gain insights into ways that some Latinas/os/xs students initially experienced the pressure of “working identity” through their education in schools of business. We selected students majoring in business because it is a popular major and diversity, equity and inclusion efforts have taken hold in business school contexts. The five participants in our study were majoring in accounting, business administration and management, and preparing for their future as employees in the business world. The first part of our paper provides an overview of the context of business schools and diversity; research on Latina/o/x student experiences in higher education, and the significance of the “working identity” concept; followed by our methods section, results and interpretation of how the pressures to perform working identity negatively impacts Latinas/os/x students.

The student experience in higher education reshaped by the pandemic: The autoethnographic perspective of a business school staff member

Covid-19 has impacted the lives of millions of students who experienced various well-being-related difficulties due to the lack of social relations. Contrary to what most studies suggest, it is challenging to delineate particular categories of students significantly affected by the pandemic. Therefore, this research relied on autoethnography as a method to study students’ lived experiences through the author’s subjective lens. It considers developing a digital and inclusive student experience to overcome the lack of social relations and provide a fair opportunity for the students to find their path in life during and after the pandemic. The findings show that we need to consider the student experience as a holistic experience, including the academic, professional, social and extracurricular experiences. Moreover, the individuals live it differently depending on their traits. The research confirms that the lack of social relations profoundly affects their well-being. It suggests developing a social constructivist approach and notably authentic learning activities, linking the academic, professional and extracurricular experiences to support students in engaging with their peers online, adapting their behaviour to a new environment and developing new, meaningful perspectives beyond the meritocratic notion of “success” in higher education.Keywords: student experience; student development; well-being; wellness; Covid; social distancingPart of the special issue Autoethnography in online doctoral education <https://doi.org/10.21428/8c225f6e.9415e58d>

The Experiences of Higher Education Students with Disabilities in Online Learning during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Although institutions of higher learning had been gradually exposed to blended and online methods of learning, most of them still preferred and utilised traditional, face-to-face learning for various reasons. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic that caused lockdowns in countries worldwide, blended or online learning became more important to enable continuity of education. The inevitability of change during the pandemic and the hurried paradigm shift from traditional methods of learning came with different implications to institutions of higher learning. Online learning experiences have been extensively researched, however, they have not been adequately focused on students with disabilities. Students with disabilities are expected to be accommodated in learning environments at institutions of higher education. Using the Social Model of Disability, the study elucidates the experiences of students with disabilities of an institution of higher education in South Africa with online learning. The study is crucial in that it determines the extent to which online learning promotes inclusivity. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews and analysed using thematic analysis. The study concluded that online learning has both advantages and disadvantages for students with varying disabilities. Students with mobility and visual disabilities preferred online learning, which allows them to study in the comfort of their residences while students with intellectual disabilities preferred traditional/contact methods of learning. Most participants indicated that their online lecturers are not aware of their disabilities and thus, their methods of instruction and assessment are not as inclusive.

Qualitative impact assessment of COVID-19 on the pedagogical, technological and social experiences of higher education students in Taiwan.

COVID-19 has imposed a rippling effect on educational institutions globally, substantially impacting nearly 1.6 billion learners in more than 190 countries. Recognizing Taiwan as an atypicality during this crisis for suffering from a relatively moderate mortality/morbidity compared with the rest of the world, the present paper qualitatively explores the pedagogical, technological and social impact of COVID-19 on higher education students in Taiwan. Employing the focus group discussion methodology, we recruited a cohort of 23 students, comprising of 15 local and 8 international students. Findings show diverse pedagogical experiences in students’ instructional modalities. Trending by either discipline of study, students from Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics disciplines expressed a greater preference for face-to-face instruction compared to their humanities counterparts. Distance learners reported a decrease in study efficacy and a lack of sense of belongingness to their university. All students demonstrated a high sense of perceived safety and reported minimal changes in their socializing norms during the pandemic. In terms of career planning, local students expressed minimal concerns about potential changes in their careers, versus international students who expressed high degrees of uncertainty, fear and pessimism in the same regard.

Editorial Volume 13 Issue 1 2022

In 2022 we are still dealing with the impact of COVID-19 across the tertiary education sector and the themes and topics of submissions the Journal has been receiving recently, is indicative of the challenges being faced by staff and students. We recognise the disruption and increased workload demands on academic and professional staff in these times of unprecedented change and we acknowledge and thank all our reviewers for their ongoing dedication to supporting the Journal. Student Success currently has a pool of more than 100 reviewers, some of which have been reviewing for the Journal for more than a decade. All reviewers are experts in their disciplinary fields and importantly, have a profound understanding of the student experience in higher education. Student Success would not be the Journal it is without them. Thank you!

Student eXperience: A Systematic Literature Review

Students’ experiences have been covered by a large number of studies in different areas. Even so, the concept of student experience (SX) is diffuse, as it does not have a widely accepted meaning and is often shaped to the specific purposes of each study. Understanding this concept allows educational institutions to better address the needs of students. For this reason, we conducted a systematic literature review addressing the concept of SX in higher education, specifically aiming at undergraduate students. In this work, we approach the concept of SX from the perspective of customer experience (CX), based on the premise that students are users of higher education institutions’ products, systems and/or services. We reviewed articles published between 2011 and 2021, indexed in five databases (Scopus, Web of Sciences, ACM digital, IEEE Xplore and Science Direct), trying to address research questions concerning: (1) the SX definition; (2) dimensions, attributes and factors that influence SX; and (3) methods used to evaluate the SX. We selected 65 articles and analyzed various SX definitions, as well as scales and surveys to evaluate SX, mainly relating to satisfaction and quality in higher education. We propose a holistic definition of SX and recommend ways to achieve its better analysis.

The double-edged sword of 'best aspects' and 'needs improvement' in student experiences: A qualitative analysis

Improving student experiences in higher education is of ongoing interest to colleges and universities across the globe. Non-university higher education institutions (NUHEIs) have outperformed universities in Australian national surveys on student experience. The present study examines qualitative responses of the Student Experience Survey within the context of Alphacrucis College (AC), a faith-based, private NUHEI to provide a contextualised understanding of NUHEIs as well as to explore reasons why NUHEIs outperform universities in most student experience categories. Content analysis revealed several themes in areas of ‘best experience’ and ‘needs improvement.’ Results were examined across AQF levels and three study modes, namely online, blended, and on-campus. Findings are discussed in terms of the NUHEI student experience, lecturer training, lecturer performance indicators, and institutional infrastructure.

Students’ experiences of a first‐year block model curriculum in higher education

AbstractThe first year in Higher Education (HE) is an international priority because of its importance to the retention of students. While initiatives to improve students’ commencing experience continue to develop one area that has received limited consideration is the first‐year curriculum. The aim of the research reported in this paper was to enhance the student experience in HE by expanding understandings of the first‐year curriculum. Focus groups and an online questionnaire were the research methods used to, explore students’ experiences of learning in a newly developed First‐Year Block Model (FYBM) curriculum, implemented at a university in Australia. Findings from the research revealed that features in the design of the FYBM framed and permeated the students’ experiences of learning. The students explained that a sense of familiarity, curriculum leadership, teaching and teachers and curriculum customisation influenced their engagement and achievements. The study highlights that HE requires staff who possess deep knowledge and expertise in the first‐year curriculum because this valuable asset can positively influence student learning and success.