First-year Undergraduate Students Research Articles

The Effect of Dynamic Problem-Solving Learning Strategy on Students' Critical Thinking Skills

This study aims to examine the effect of dynamic problem-solving learning strategies on students' critical thinking skills. This research employed a quantitative approach with a true experimental design in the form of a posttest-only control group design. The population of this study was drawn from all first-year undergraduate students in the academic year 2022/2023 of the Physics department in the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences at Universitas Negeri Makassar. The sample was determined using simple random sampling, resulting in 25 students in the experimental group and 27 students in the control group. Based on the data analysis, it was found that the implementation of dynamic problem-solving learning strategies was well-executed and highly rated in terms of management, according to expert judgement. Meanwhile, the analysis results of the critical thinking skills of students in the experimental group were 80.10 in average and 59.81 in the control group. The analysis of the impact of physics learning strategies on students' critical thinking skills yielded a value of 0.00, which is smaller than 0.05. Therefore, it can be concluded that dynamic problem-solving learning strategies have a significant impact on students' critical thinking skills.

Exploring views on praxis possibilities of multilingualism in university literacy pedagogies

Background: South African literacy-as-social-practice theoreticians, language-in-education experts, educational linguists, and language policies advocate multilingual pedagogies to acknowledge and cater to diverse multilingual learners’ literacy development. Universities purport multilingualism to provide for the multilingual norm, students’ literacy, and educational development, as scholarship shows that multilingualism benefits academia and literacy education. Yet, these universities remain locations for monolingual and epistemological biases. Concerns about such praxis pretensions in pluralistic literacy education and the failures in literacy-as-social-practice strategies have been raised. However, the perceptions of lecturers and students on their role in implementing desirable praxis in multilingual literacy education are under-researched.Objectives: This qualitative study explores lecturers’ and students’ perceptions and their impact on practising linguistic plurality in literacy for educational development schemes.Method: The research uses in-depth individual and focus-group interviews with four lecturers and four first-year undergraduate students at a selected linguistically diverse university. An interpretivist paradigm was applied consisting of participants’ subjective experiences as members of a higher education institution (HEI).Results: Findings reveal that lecturers have difficulty coping with multiple languages due to inadequate training and misconceptions about multilingualism, and monolingual pedagogy perceptions carried over from their institutions whose culture denies students’ linguistic plurality.Conclusion: The study demonstrates the importance of shifts in epistemological orientation and adequate training, focused on multilingualism, to develop versatile and agile lecturers equipped for multilingual universities.Contribution: This research contributes to understanding the complex implementation problems regarding multilingual literacy education and possible solutions. It postulates new ways of forging multilingual literacy practices to erase praxis morbidity.

Enhancing Spatial Ability: A New Integrated Hybrid Training Approach for Engineering and Architecture Students

Spatial ability (SA) is the mental ability to create, maintain, and manipulate abstract visual representations. Studies have shown that SA is a strong predictor of success in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). More recently, attention has extended to the field of architecture, a discipline where spatial thinking skills are fundamental, yet students in this field have not been extensively examined in terms of their spatial abilities. Therefore, SA skills are essential for students in engineering and architecture during their initial academic phases. This research was conducted within an interdisciplinary academic college and describes in detail a new integrated and hybrid training program that is part of a recent mixed-methods study. This program was built to effectively enhance the SA of first-year undergraduate students in a cost-effective manner, using a multi-method teaching strategy. The training program spanned more than 20 h across four sessions. This article focuses on the training methodology, encompassing four key phases, and serves as a complementary article to the one that was just published separately, describing the effectiveness of this intervention program as measured using SA standard tests. Notably, in certain scenarios, these phases were combined rather than being standalone independent modules. The traditional teaching method (TTM) lays the foundation for SA knowledge via lectures and collaborative interactions. Subsequently, computer-based learning (CBL), using tools such as SketchUp and GeoGebra, facilitates in-depth virtual geometric exploration. Augmented reality (AR) training offers an immersive learning experience, allowing students to interact with 3D objects in real-world environments. Finally, the building real model (BRM) phase transforms 2D designs into tangible 3D structures. This study highlights the comprehensive training approach, emphasizing the robust learning environment facilitated by integrating these phases as part of the full mixed-methods research. The suggested integrated training program was qualitatively explored through post-intervention evaluations to understand participants’ experiences and perceptions.

Studying Geography Teaching: First-Year Undergraduate Students’ Concerns and Expectations

This article represents a new focus on how we can make student teachers’ images more explicit and voiced in teacher training in geography. The expectations and values of the generations of students entering teacher education constantly change, and undergraduate curricula and faculty must respond accordingly. This article addresses this need by exploring the educational needs, concerns, and beliefs regarding geography teaching of newly admitted undergraduate preservice geography teachers at a single university in Czechia (n = 75). Using an entry survey of two open-ended questions, we used interpretative phenomenological analysis to identify four groups of geography teacher education students with different concerns and expectations regarding initial teacher education (ITE). The findings show that beginner geography teacher education students represent an intrinsically distinct and difficult-to-read cohort. Some students were confident and close-minded, whereas others were reflective and asked specific questions. Additionally, some students cared only about practical tools without considering theoretical justifications or research. Students with high levels of professional identity were also identified. We conclude that long-term individualized and career-oriented student support that reflects and respects future geography teachers’ mutually distinct disciplinary identities is necessary.

A classroom market experiment: Data and reflections

In this article, the authors analyze data accumulated over 10+ years of teaching market interaction using a simple classroom experiment. The experiment is designed to teach first-year undergraduate students the basics of supply and demand and market efficiency. In total, they analyze data from 85 teaching sessions and 243 individual markets. They find that traded prices typically (90% of the time) move in accordance with market equilibrium comparative statics. They also find that average traded prices are rarely (5% of the time) consistent with market equilibrium but typically (70% of the time) “close” to the equilibrium. The traded quantity is often (60% of the time) more than equilibrium, which results in a loss of efficiency. The law of one price is strongly rejected.

Trends in Health-Risk Behaviors and Psychological Distress among Australian First-Year University Students.

University students are recognized as a high-risk population group who experience greater rates of poor health outcomes and mental ill-health. Commencing university is recognized as a major life transition, where students experience new financial, academic, environmental, and social pressures that can cause changes in their normal behaviors. This study explored trends in health-risk behaviors and psychological distress in commencing university students over four survey years. First-year undergraduate students, aged 17-24, from an Australian university were included. A secondary analysis was performed on data collected via cross-sectional surveys on four occasions (2016, 2017, 2019, 2020). Crude logistic regression models were utilized to investigate the association between meeting guidelines and survey year. Odds ratios for the pairwise comparison between each year are reported. In this analysis, 1300 (2016), 484 (2017), 456 (2019), and 571 (2020) students were included. Analyses showed two clear trends: students' probability of being at high/very high risk of psychological distress (35-55%) and consuming breakfast daily (44-55%) consistently worsened over the four survey years. These findings suggest that the odds of psychological distress and daily breakfast consumption worsened over time, whilst the proportion of students engaging in some health-risk behaviors was high, highlighting the importance of early intervention during the transition to university.

Using social media platform X to enhance student medical English learning: an attempt based on design-based research (DBR) in a medical English for specific purposes (ESP) course

This study aimed to (1) elaborate on microblogging-based instruction, which was built on social media platform X and designed based on the four phases of the design-based research (DBR) framework (Amiel and Reeves in J Educ Technol Soc 11(4):29–40, https://www.jstor.org/stable/jeductechsoci.11.4.29, 2008); (2) put microblogging-based instruction into practice in a medical English for Specific Purposes (ESP) course; (3) examine students’ perceptions of the pedagogical value of X platform usage on their learning experiences; and (4) investigate how well microblogging-based instruction enhances the students’ specialised-language performance. On the basis of the four phases of the DBR framework, a study was conducted with students studying a medical ESP course to identify the problems in the teaching practices used in ESP courses. To improve the identified problems, following the second phase, social media platform X was used to supplement ESP face-to-face instruction. Three tasks were designed for the students to do on X. These tasks were implemented and assessed on 19 EFL first-year premedical undergraduate students over 16 weeks at a university in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Data collected from the students included a copy version of the ESP final test, a questionnaire, and semi- structured interviews. The results revealed that X-based instruction improved students’ ability to use medicine-specialised language, offered opportunities for students to become more familiar with medicine-specific terms, perceived ability in using writing and reading skills, collaborative learning, and generated thoughtful discussions outside the confines of the classroom. However, the students’ inadequate knowledge of the specialised subject, the stress of making X mandatory, and log- in overload remain key challenges against the effective appropriation of X use in an ESP context.

New Perspectives of Reciprocity in Community-Engaged Learning: A Case Study of a First-Year Post-Secondary Knowledge Exchange Project in an Over-researched Urban Community

This paper describes key discoveries and lessons learned about the practice of reciprocity in community-engaged learning (CEL). We draw from an example of a multi-partner, multi-year, CEL project that addresses a community-identified priority to access jargon-free research findings about their community. Our project benefits community members in an over-researched, equity-deserving, inner-city neighborhood without requiring the direct presence of large numbers of university students in the community. In this collaboration, first-year undergraduate students in introductory academic writing courses at the [Canadian post-secondary institution] create publicly accessible infographic summaries of research articles arising from studies that have taken place in [an over-researched inner-city] neighborhood. First-year students, in their position as novice scholars, bring helpful perspectives to the task of knowledge translation. As apprentice researchers not yet immersed in disciplinary languages, they are cognizant that the specialized types of discourse used in research writing are often not accessible to readers outside the academy. Pairing students with community-engaged researchers leads to multi-directional benefits: students develop their knowledge translation skills in an authentic research writing situation; researchers benefit from publication of supervised, student-authored infographics of their scholarship; and over-researched communities gain access to relevant research findings. A community-embedded institutional unit is crucial to the project’s success, providing the resources, relationships, and boundary-spanning expertise required to ensure this project is successful from the perspective of the community and the university.

A do-it-yourself demonstration of the magnetic force between parallel wires

This paper describes a nearly zero-cost device, manufactured using DIY techniques, intended to reveal the weak magnetic force between two parallel current carrying wires. The device is easily portable to the classroom, requiring a unique auxiliary instrument: a DC power source capable of supplying a few amperes. By changing the electrical connections it is possible to switch quickly between the modes of parallel and antiparallel currents. The device has already been successfully used in the classroom, with first-year undergraduate and final-year secondary school students.

Are smartphone use and nature contact predictive of depression in a UK university population?

PurposeThe number of university students exhibiting mental health concerns have surged considerably in the past decade. Amongst a number of potential contributing factors, this study aims to assess the role of a broader societal phenomenon; the shift in emphasis in our interactions from the physical to the virtual environments. Specifically, a decrease in nature contact and a contrasting increase in smartphone use are identified as two pathways in which this shift may impact negatively on mental health. Previous research evidences both facets as consistent correlates of depression, although limited research extends these associations to the student population or attempts to establish an interaction between the two.Design/methodology/approachThe current study recruited a sample of 380 first-year undergraduate students, via an online survey, to assess if problematic smartphone use (SAS-SV) and nature contact (NCQ) were significant predictors of depression (PHQ-9).FindingsNature contact frequency and smartphone use were significant predictors of depression.Originality/valueThis is the first study to concurrently assess the impact of smartphone use and nature contact in a student population.

Factors Affecting the Decision of First-Year Pharmacy Students to Study Pharmacy in Can Tho, Vietnam

Establishing and maintaining a highly-trained pharmaceutical workforce is crucial for serving the healthcare needs of the population. Globally, various factors have been associated with the decision of students leaving high school to pursue an undergraduate degree in pharmacy, however, this topic has not yet been explored in Vietnam. To explore the motivations of first-year undergraduate pharmacy students to study pharmacy at university. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 428 first-year pharmacy students enrolled in undergraduate pharmacy programs from across all universities in Can Tho, Vietnam, including one public university (193 students) and two private universities (235 students), from November 2022 to February 2023. Exploratory factor analysis identified five underlying factors associated with the choice of students to study pharmacy, with internal consistency assessed using Cronbach’s Alpha (α): personal factors (α = .86), career (α = .88), advice (α = .74), reputation (α = .84), and promotion (α = .76). Of these factors, personal factors had the greatest impact (mean = 4.13), while the least influential factor was promotion (mean = 2.92). Compared to public university students, private university students were more influenced by career ( p = .019), advice ( p = .002), and promotion ( p < .001) when making the decision to study pharmacy. This study identifies the factors associated with the decision to pursue pharmacy education. These findings may be of interest to educational institutions addressing how they attract students and meet the workforce needs of the pharmaceutical industry and healthcare system.

What psychosocial support do first year university students need? A mixed creative methods study

Higher education students need help and support to enable them to cope with the challenges of their studies. The aim of this study was to investigate the perspectives of first-year undergraduate students on predictors of psychosocial support in challenging situations. A creative art-based descriptive research design was employed utilising an individual One-Page Profile form to gather data from 240 first-year students from two different universities in Slovakia. Data was collected and analysed using a content-thematic and visual approach. Four significant individual predictors of psychosocial support were identified: emotional, instrumental, informational and appraisal. Emotional support consists of desirable mental health, defined by the students as experiencing happiness, self-satisfaction, self-development, relationships which are satisfying, loving and safe, trust, empathic acceptance, and care from others. Instrumental support varies from personnel up to material resources e.g., people, animals, and assistance such as financial services. The preferred informational support is peer-to-peer counselling, followed by professional counselling. When students describe appraisal support their needs are primarily in the areas of well-being and self-efficacy. The study makes various suggestions on how University staff can provide first-year students with support and counselling in their everyday challenges.

Dukungan sosial teman sebaya dan resiliensi dengan stres akademik pada mahasiswa rantau tahun pertama

The number of universities in Java Island and the uneven quality of universities in Indonesia have resulted in the tendency of students to travel. Both academic and other adjustments, culture shock, communication difficulties can cause stress and anxiety. This also happens to first-year students who are in the stage of emerging adulthood where students will experience transitions that cause change and stress. Among the factors believed to impact academic stress levels are peer social support and resilience. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between peer social support, resilience, and academic stress among first-year students from regional areas. The research sample consisted of 395 first-year undergraduate students (S1) from the University of Muhammadiyah Malang who originated from areas outside Greater Malang. Accidental sampling was employed as the sampling technique. The sampling technique uses accidental sampling. The research design used was correlational with spearman correlation analysis techniques and multiple correlations using SPSS 24. The results showed that the value of sig. F change of 0,142 > 0,05 means that there is no simultaneous or shared relationship between peer social support and resilience with academic stress. The implication of this study suggests that first-year regional students should actively maintain peer social support through frequent communication and engagement in campus activities to alleviate academic stress.

Relationship of emotional intelligence and capability of answering higher-order knowledge questions in physiology among first-year medical students.

Emotional intelligence (EI) has a positive correlation with the academic performance of medical students. However, why there is a positive correlation needs further exploration. We hypothesized that the capability of answering higher-order knowledge questions (HOQs) is higher in students with higher EI. Hence, we assessed the correlation between EI and the capability of medical students to answer HOQs in physiology. First-year undergraduate medical students (n = 124) from an Indian medical college were recruited as a convenient sample. EI was assessed by the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Test (SSEIT), a 33-item self-administered validated questionnaire. A specially designed objective examination with 15 lower-order and 15 higher-order multiple-choice questions was conducted. The correlation between the examination score and the EI score was tested by Pearson's correlation coefficient. Data from 92 students (33 females and 59 males) with a mean age of 20.14 ± 1.87 yr were analyzed. Overall, students got a percentage of 53.37 ± 14.07 in the examination, with 24.46 ± 9.1 in HOQs and 28.91 ± 6.58 in lower-order knowledge questions (LOQs). They had a mean score of 109.58 ± 46.2 in SSEIT. The correlation coefficient of SSEIT score with total marks was r = 0.29 (P = 0.0037), with HOQs was r = 0.41 (P < 0.0001), and with LOQs was r = 0.14 (P = 0.19). Hence, there is a positive correlation between EI and the capability of medical students to answer HOQs in physiology. This study may be the foundation for further exploration of the capability of answering HOQs in other subjects.NEW & NOTEWORTHY This study assessed the correlation between emotional intelligence (EI) and the capability of medical students to answer higher-order knowledge questions (HOQs) in the specific context of physiology. The finding reveals one of the multifaceted dimensions of the relationship between EI and academic performance. This novel perspective opens the door to further investigations to explore the relationship in other subjects and other dimensions to understand why students with higher EI have higher academic performance.

Boosting First-year Undergraduate Student Motivation for physical fitness workouts through Quality Instruction: A Study at Bahir Dar University

There is a relationship between quality physical fitness instruction and motivation of students for its workouts. However, the degree that quality physical fitness instruction predicts the motivation of students' for its workouts is not examined. The purpose of this study was to examine the extent that quality physical fitness instruction to predict the motivation of first-year undergraduate students for physical fitness workouts. For this, the study used a cross-sectional survey design, collecting quantitative data. The sample included 323 students from 32 sections at Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia, who volunteered to participate in the study. The study used adapted standardized questionnaire for assess the motivation of students and quality of physical fitness instruction. The analysis involves Pearson correlation and multiple linear regressions. The correlation results indicate students' motivation for attending physical fitness course workouts is strongly and directly associated with most quality physical fitness service variables (p&lt;.01). In this study, the regression analysis confirmed that students' identified regulation and external motivation for physical fitness course workouts was moderately (26.7%), 16% and 10.7% predicted by quality physical fitness instructional service variables (p&lt;.05). This finding suggests that providing high-quality fitness instruction is crucial for enhancing student motivation in exercise programs within higher education contexts.

The questionnire on learning strategies “Mes Outils de Travail Intellectuel”: Adaptation and validation among Moroccan nursing students

IntroductionThis study aims to adapt and assess the validity and reliability of the “Mes Outils de Travail Intellectuel” (My Intellectual Work Tools) scale for measuring learning strategies among Moroccan nursing students. Subjects and methodsThe validation study was conducted in the Marrakesh-Safi region of Morocco, utilizing the “Mes Outils de Travail Intellectuel” scale developed by Wolfs in 1998. To accommodate the Moroccan linguistic context, the scale was maintained in French, undergoing revision by local experts and pre-testing with 30 nursing students. Subsequently, it was administered to a comprehensive sample of 465 first-year undergraduate students for psychometric validation. Acceptability was evaluated by examining refusal rates, missing data, and item comprehension. Factorial validity was assessed through principal component analysis for each questionnaire construct, while reliability was determined using Cronbach's alpha coefficient. Results and discussionThe questionnaire achieved a response rate of 98%, with no instances of misunderstanding or missing data. Principal component analysis facilitated the removal of irrelevant items and extraction of essential factors from the dataset. The reliability of the questionnaire constructs was satisfactory, with Cronbach's alpha exceeding 0.7. These findings affirm the efficacy of the adapted “Mes Outils de Travail Intellectuel” scale for evaluating learning strategies among Moroccan nursing students. Although the study is limited to first-year students, it establishes a framework for the instrument's application in the specific context of nursing education in Morocco.

Applying narrative medicine to prepare empathetic healthcare providers in undergraduate pharmacy education in Singapore: a mixed methods study

BackgroundNarrative medicine demonstrated positive impact on empathy in medicine and nursing students. However, this pedagogical approach had not been evaluated in pharmacy education. This study sought to apply and evaluate the narrative medicine approach in extending empathy in Asian undergraduate pharmacy students.MethodsNarrative medicine was applied through workshops which used narratives of people with different experiences and perspectives. First-year undergraduate pharmacy students who volunteered and attended these workshops formed the intervention group (N = 31) and the remaining first-year cohort formed the control group (N = 112). A sequential explanatory mixed methods approach was adopted in which quantitative methods were first used to measure impact on pharmacy students’ empathy using the Jefferson Scale of Empathy– Health Professions Student (JSE-HPS), and qualitative methods (i.e. group interviews) were then used to assess pharmacy students’ emotional responses to narratives, and the perspectives of pharmacy students and faculty of this pedagogical approach.ResultsThere was no difference in JSE-HPS scores between intervention and control groups across baseline (i.e. upon matriculation), pre-intervention, and post-intervention timepoints. Pharmacy students in the intervention group had lower scores in Factor 3 (“Standing in People’s Shoes”) following the intervention. Five themes, guided by internal and external factors in cognition, emerged from the Group Interviews: (1) incongruence between students’ motivation and faculty’s perception, (2) learning context, (3) academic context, (4) cognitive system, and (5) affective system. Themes 1, 4 and 5 referred to internal factors such as students’ motivation, perceived learnings, and feelings. Themes 2 and 3 referred to external factors including workshop materials, activities, content, and facilitation.ConclusionThis study is the first to demonstrate that pharmacy students engaged with the narrative medicine approach as narratives elicited emotional responses, exposed them to diverse perspectives, and deepened their appreciation of the importance of empathy and complexities of understanding patients’ perspectives. Scaffolded educational interventions using narratives and real-life patient encounters, alongside longitudinal measurements of empathy, are necessary to bring about meaningful and sustained improvements in empathy.

Spirituality and the Health of U. S. College Students: A Partial Replication and Extension

Spirituality has been linked with numerous positive effects, and the university experience is generally viewed as an important time for students to develop their spiritual identities. The purpose of this study was to partially replicate and extend the findings of Nelms et al. (2007) on the relationship between spirituality and the health of university students. In a survey study of 968 first-year undergraduate students in the western United States, we found that spirituality was associated with higher levels of physical health, emotional health, and exercise, and these relationships were generally different for white individuals and men than for minorities and women.

Variations in anxiety and emotional support among first-year college students across different learning modes (distance and face-to-face) during COVID-19.

College students with more emotional support experience lower levels of anxiety and other psychosocial and behavioral problems. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the emotional well-being of college students was additionally challenged by an abrupt shift to distance learning followed by a return to face-to-face classes. In this exploratory study, we compared the levels of perceived emotional support and anxiety among incoming first-year undergraduate students, prior to starting classes, which included different learning modes in five semesters of instruction from 2021-2023 (three distance semesters and two face-to-face semesters). Data from 8659 undergraduate students were extracted from a Mexican state university database, corresponding to students' responses collected during new student orientation week. Participants were students in the arts and humanities (9.7%), social and legal sciences (38%), life and health sciences (28.9%), and engineering and architecture (23.4%). Anxiety levels were measured with the GAD-7 scale, and emotional support was measured using a subscale of the PERACT-R (To go through with resilience) inventory. Comparisons of emotional support and anxiety scores among semesters revealed highly significant differences with small effect sizes. Anxiety levels increased significantly with mean average of 6.65 SD(5.52) during the baseline measure to the highest in 2022-2 to 7.53 SD(5.3) and Emotional Support decreased systematically each semester from baseline mean = 8.03 SD(2.0) to the lowest 7.52 SD(1.8) in 2022-2. The results show that a return to face-to-face classes was associated with increased anxiety levels, whereas levels of emotional support systematically decreased across the five semesters. MANOVA analysis revealed significant differences in anxiety and emotional support scores between semesters, with peaks during the learning mode semester that students returned to face-to-face classes after distance learning even after adjusting for gender. Given that the effect of emotional support on anxiety may be related to success in future educational and professional activities, it is important to develop interventions to restore and increase college students' emotional support levels and develop anxiety management strategies.

Examining the Issues of English-Speaking Skills that University EFL Learners Face

Speaking English is a regular part of the academic routine for EFL students enrolled in Vietnam's top undergraduate English programs. Occasionally, this approach poses numerous issues for first-year undergraduate students at both public and private universities. Despite its significance, not enough information was discovered regarding the difficulties Vietnamese university students have speaking English. One hundred and one students and twelve teachers from six universities participated in the current study, which used mixed methods to investigate the speaking issues encountered by undergraduate students. The outcome demonstrates that English majors at public and private universities encounter numerous difficulties when trying to communicate in the language. But according to this survey, students at public universities have somewhat better English proficiency and experience fewer issues than those at private universities. The participants shared their varied perspectives on how curricula, methods of instruction, and specific institutions might help students overcome their limited proficiency in speaking English. Lastly, the study offers the relevant stakeholders a number of highly detailed recommendations based on the findings.