Holistic Learning Experience Research Articles

Midwifery students’ experiences of working within a midwifery caseload model

BackgroundWork integrated learning opportunities account for approximately half of the Bachelor of Midwifery program with the goal being to ensure that on graduation students are skilled to provide woman centred evidenced based midwifery care within any environment. There is increasing concern, however, over the quality of clinical experiences students are afforded. ObjectiveThis study explored the experiences of third year Bachelor of Midwifery students in South East Queensland undertaking a clinical placement within a midwifery caseload model. DesignA qualitative descriptive approach was adopted. Data were collected using semi-structured, digitally recorded telephone interviews. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data set. SettingMidwifery student clinical placement in caseload practice ParticipantsTwelve third year Bachelor of Midwifery students from one university who had experienced a clinical placement in a caseload midwifery model of between 4 and 8 weeks. FindingsFive themes emerged. These were labelled ‘stepping in her shoes’, ‘bringing it all together’, ‘my own captive educator’, ‘knowing the woman’, and ‘it was hard – but it was worth it’. The three-way relationship between midwife, woman and student facilitated deep and active learning leading to a growth in confidence and readiness for practice. Students were afforded the opportunity to constantly integrate theory into practice within a woman centred social model of care where they also grew to understand how midwives operationalise caseload practice in a sustainable way. Students acknowledged the challenges they faced undertaking the placement, but all confirmed the value it had afforded them. Key conclusions and implications for practiceThis study has provided evidence that situating midwifery students within a continuity of care model facilitated a rich holistic learning experience for students. Not only did the placement enhance student's confidence and competence it also provided a real-world view of what working in that a caseload model could be like on graduation. This is vital if the profession is to support system level change ensuring all women have access to evidence informed maternity care.

Fostering Self and Peer Learning Inside and Outside the Classroom through the Flipped Classroom Approach for Postgraduate Students

Aim/Purpose: The flipped classroom approach is one of the most popular active learning approaches. This paper explores the effectiveness of a new pedagogy, known as FOCUSED, for postgraduate students. Background: The flipped classroom approach is a trendy blended learning pedagogy which capitalizes on the flexibility of online learning and the stimulating nature of face-to-face discussion. This article describes a pilot study involving post-graduate students who experienced the flipped classroom approach in one of their courses. Methodology: In additional to online activities, students adopted a newly learned approach to solve a related problem that was given by another group of students during classes. Quantitative data were collected from pre- and post-tests for both self-learned online materials and group discussion during classes so that the effectiveness of the flipped classroom pedagogy could be examined from the perspective of a holistic learning experience. Findings: It was found that the average scores for the post-test for the self-learned online video were much higher than for pre-test, even though the post-tests for both online and face-to-face learning were higher than the respective pre-tests. The qualitative data collected at the end of the flipped classroom activities further confirmed the value of the flipped classroom approach. Even though students could self-learn, more students valued peer interactions in the classroom more than the flexibility of online learning.

Effective approach in making Capstone project a holistic learning experience to students of undergraduate computer science engineering program

Final year or Capstone Project is an important and final phase of the undergraduate curriculum in Computer Science Engineering program. Final year project is a course where all the skills learnt by the students in previous semesters are applied and evaluated. The important aspects in the delivery of course are i) developing a model to train the students to deliver quality project work and documentation, ii) effective evaluation of the student based on rubrics which are mapped to course outcomes iii) Map the feedback from stakeholders as per graduate attributes and measure performance. This paper discusses the approach followed for three academic years 2014-2017 on a batch of 250 students per year. Training sessions, evaluation rubrics, usage of project management tools, mapping of their performance with the outcomes of the course and program, feedback from the stakeholders like companies and students themselves gives a clear view of improvement of the performance of the students after the Final Year Project course in three years.

Assessment of Diversity Through Student Isolation

As higher education institutions grow as a commodity with diversified groups of local and international students, it is imperative for students, educators and policy makers to identify and address concerns that might arise from such amalgamation of cultures and experiences. In light of this interest, this article shares qualitative findings on how experiences of student isolation can cause deleterious effects on students' university learning experiences. In-depth interviews were conducted with a total of five Malaysian and International students to discuss their student isolation experiences and how it engaged them in the overall university learning experience. The findings disclosed key factors that can potentially cause student isolation in aspects of academic, social and emotional development, and these key factors were critically examined to identify mitigation measures. Findings from this study addressed clear evidence to how student isolation can negatively affect one's university learning experience, especially among international students who are not used to diverse education process, curriculum and expectations. UCSI University anchors great depth of interest in engaging students on holistic and successful university learning experience to ensure holistic development of graduates.

Developing Personal and Social Responsibility: Committing Time to Reflection

This article further describes the importance of integrating personal and social responsibility with movement in physical education, and offers strategies to promote reflection and discussion, ensuring that children are being provided an empowering and holistic learning experience.

Meta-modes of learning that support and influence the millennial student’s holistic learning experience at an academic institute in South Africa

Teaching in diverse ways to a diverse generation, globally, academic institutes must ensure that learning is responsive, appropriate and supportive of cohorts in emerging and involving modes of learning. However, the pedagogy, processes and learning methods are of paramount importance for this diverse student generation in order to recognise subsequent cohorts for whom motivation and engagement in a holistic learning experience for millennial students could be maximised. While it has been recognised that current learning practices may not address the holistic learning experience of the millennial student, the purpose of this study, through the adoption of the Student-Owned Learning-Engagement (SOLE) model, its nine elements and 42 meta-modes of learning, is to investigate and identify the confluence of meta-modes of learning that could support and influence the millennial student’s holistic learning experience. In response to the needs of aspiring millennial learners, data were obtained from 69 students and 15 teachers by means of a self-administrated questionnaire. A comparison was drawn between the theories that the millennials preferred meta-modes of learning and the modes of teaching that the teachers had adopted. Hence, this study offers strategies to improve the holistic experience of learning. This is performed in a manner that support new empirical emerging and involving modes of learning for the millennial student.

Project-based collaborative engineering learning to develop Industry 4.0 skills within a PLM framework

Training and learning methods for engineering students, in the disciplines of product design and manufacturing, are becoming more difficult and complex since they have to integrate theoretical technical knowledge, skills in computer-aided applications (CAx) and skills in collaborative work practices. Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) tools support structured collaborative practices and CAx supports engineering content creation. Both types of software applications are key in the Industry 4.0 development. They also evolve over time, incorporate new functionalities, and change their graphical user interface (GUI), adding complexity to the learning process. Traditionally, engineering education addresses the learning of CAx and PLM tools separately, hindering a holistic learning experience to the students. This communication presents a structured integrated vision of these tools and their learning. Project-Based Learning (PBL) is proposed as a learning approach suitable to provide a learning experience that facilitates the development of Industry 4.0 skills and competences.

Institutional resource centres and design education

Purpose The physical environment of education is not contained within the classroom but extends to the library and archival resource centres in higher education institutes of design. The institutional resource centre (RC) includes textual and material repository sections which support institutional objectives by creating space and opportunity for interface between the learner and theoretical–practical aspects of the curriculum. This purpose of this paper is to highlight the role of the RC where the viewing of exhibits enhances the pedagogy of design education. Design/methodology/approach This paper uses the participant observation method to construct a case study of the experiential learning process in an institutional setting. It analyses how students make use of specialized design-related resources in libraries and adapt their approach to learn with, from and about objects as cultural artefacts. Findings The institutional resource centre provides opportunities for haptic experiences in design education that may be unavailable within the classroom. Design students make their own connections between the objects and the embedded lifeworld of the creator-artisan to create personalized meaning. The resultant combination of cognition and emotional responses to the exhibits stimulates diverse learning trajectories. Originality/value The collections of displayed design objects in the institutional RC enable students to appreciate cultural history by developing the understanding of fashion, textile and handcrafting traditions in India, thus stimulating cognitive and sensory learning. This is a manifestation of constructivism with the potential for diverse learning trajectories for design students. Thus it acts as an adjunct to classroom teaching-learning by facilitating a multi-faceted and holistic learning experience driven by a spirit of enquiry that supplements and supports pedagogic practices, enabling and encouraging self-learning.

Visualising structure and agency in a MOOC using the Footprints of Emergence framework

Reviews of research into MOOCs have identified two areas needing further research; the individual learner experience and the role of the teacher/facilitator. In this paper we examine the teacher/facilitator’s role as MOOC designer in achieving an appropriate balance between structure and agency in the design of a specific MOOC, and consider whether this balance was achieved by analysing the learners' experience of this MOOC. To do this we used a tool known as Footprints of Emergence, which enables designers, teachers, learners and researchers to visualise the course design and their learning experience in any course. Drawing Footprints of Emergence requires deep reflection on 25 factors which influence learning in complex learning environments, such as MOOCs. The context for this research was the Competences for Global Collaboration MOOC (cope15) offered by FH Joanneum, in Graz, Austria, in Spring 2015. Through negotiation and taking advantage of a diversity of competences and experiences, the team designed a hybrid learning space with a multitude of resources and learning paths. They used an approach which combined Salmon's model for moderating small groups of learners with the principles of connectivism and the structuring of xMOOCs. In using this approach the teachers needed to adopt unfamiliar roles as open practitioners and relinquish control over their students. The visualisation offered by the design footprint of cope15 helped to frame their discussion and planning. The MOOC design required learners to assume responsibility for their own learning, deal with uncertainty and be open to a holistic learning experience. At the end of the MOOC they were asked to draw a Footprint to reflect on their learning experience and provide a written reflection. 30 participants agreed to their Footprints and written reflections being analysed for this research. The Footprints show that a balance between structure and agency was achieved for these learners. They experienced neither too much prescription nor too much chaos in the MOOC design and learning processes. These preliminary findings suggest that attention to structure and agency using the Footprints of Emergence visualisation tool enables the design of a MOOC to meet learners’ needs, and supports end of course reflection and evaluation.

Leadership, Service, and Exploration: An Evaluation in the Local, National, and International Context

Leadership, service, and exploration are three concepts that have been a growing focus in the academic world over the course of many years. Higher education institutions have begun incorporating leadership curriculum, service learning initiatives, and experiential learning into academic curriculum to provide students with a more holistic learning experience in preparation for the professional world, which is becoming more internationalized each year. This article explores the ideas of learning about leadership, service, and exploration in the local, national, and international context as a part of a cohort experience.

Toolkits for Real Time Digital Audio Signal Processing Teaching Laboratory

This paper describes an audio digital signal-processing toolkit that the authors develop to supplement a lecture course on digital signal processing (DSP) taught at the department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering at the University of Rwanda. In engineering education, laboratory work is a very important component for a holistic learning experience. However, even though today there is an increasing availability of programmable DSP hardware that students can largely benefit from, many poorly endowed universities cannot afford a costly full-fledged DSP laboratory. To help remedy this problem, the authors have developed C#.NET toolkits, which can be used for real-time digital audio signal processing laboratory. These toolkits can be used with any managed languages, like Visual Basic, C#, F# and managed C++. They provide frequently used modules for digital audio processing such as filtering, equalization, spectrum analysis, audio playback, and sound effects. It is anticipated that by creating a flexible and reusable components, students will not only learn fundamentals of DSP but also get an insight into the practicability of what they have learned in the classroom.

Transformative Higher Education Teaching and Learning: Using Social Media in a Team-based Learning Environment

This study aims to assess the effectiveness of social media to enhance teaching and learning in a team-based learning environment involving large classes. The use of digital technology via Facebook, enhanced team-based learning outside the classroom, complementing face-to-face lessons. Students were also exposed to several student-centered learning mechanisms including poster presentations and expert forums in an effort to provide them with a more holistic learning experience. The theoretical framework of the study is based on the educational theories of constructivism and social learning. The students” learning experience and motivation was assessed through content analysis of their reflective portfolios and their Facebook postings. The results clearly showed the positive impact that team-based strategy had on the students” learning experience and motivation. Facebook was indeed perceived as an innovative and effective tool in a student-centered learning environment that enriched students” educational experiences, increasing the relevance of the subject matter and encouraging students to collaborate effectively with their peers and faculty. From the perspective of the educator, the use of Facebook in a team-based pedagogy setting significantly enhanced the teaching and learning process as it allowed the educator to tap into the digital learning styles of the students and provided innovative ways of involving and motivating students in the learning process.

The Erasmus Student Mobility Program and Its Contribution to Multicultural Education : The Case of Tecnological Education Institute of Thessaly

Erasmus is an EU action plan in education that enables both students and academics to be "moved" between European universities, in the twenty-eight EU member countries, including the countries of the European Economic Area and Turkey. It took its name after the philosopher, theologian and humanist of the 15th century, Erasmus, also known as the "spiritual father of the reform". The Erasmus program was first established in 1987, providing the possibility for 3,000 students to move within the EU domain in the same year. Currently 90% of the European Higher Education Institutions participate in the program. It has after all evolved into a social and cultural phenomenon that goes beyond its conventional establishment providing a multi-perspective and holistic learning experience, and creating a space where young people can meet and share ideas, knowledge and experiences within a convenient and relaxed context. The Erasmus can be studied in two dimensions. The first dimension is dictated by the opportunities provided to students to come into contact not only with the culture of the country they stay during the Erasmus program, but also with many other different cultures. This is attributed to the fact that students from around the world live together for several months, but also organize trips to neighboring European countries. Through this program, students have the opportunity to learn a completely different educational system and compare it to their own countries’ one, become familiar with other cultures, broaden their horizons, meet people who would otherwise never get to know, become witnesses of different cultures and create new opportunities. The Erasmus program helps students become familiar with other learning processes and gain additional work experience within a different context. At the end of the program, there might be a number of students earning an academic and/or work position either at the graduate level or in their professional field.One of the main educational activities of the TEI of Thessaly is the Erasmus action, which offers the opportunity to students, who have completed at least the first year of their study, to attend part of their course work at an Institution in another country of the European inter-university cooperation. The experience of the Erasmus program is particularly important for intercultural and employment, leading to new perspectives for better and more stable jobs. An attempt to explore the views and concerns of students of the TEI of Thessaly, who benefited either by being moved to another country within the Erasmus program activities or interacted with students from other EU countries, is the focus of the present study. DOI: 10.5901/jesr.2013.v4n3p181

Senior Capstone Seminar: A Comprehensive Learning Experience

Over the last four years of the senior capstone seminar at Western Carolina University, we have redesigned the course substantially to comply with our institutional Quality Enhancement Plan for engaged student learning and to follow the guidelines proposed by the Mathematical Association of America's Committee on Undergraduate Programs in Mathematics. The capstone course has been structured around critical student objectives representing recommendations from both initiatives. The redesigned course balances between the dual roles that it is asked to play while preserving a comprehensive and holistic mathematical learning experience.

The influence of randomly allocated group membership when developing student task work and team work capabilities

This study explores whether randomly assigning group membership enhances the student learning experience. The paper starts with a critical analysis of the approaches to student learning within higher education and how these approaches conflict with findings from applied psychology on group behaviour. The study adopts a serendipitous qualitative methodology to explore how changes to assessment requirements can result in a more holistic learning experience. The findings suggest that students perceive the adoption of randomly allocated groups as an unnecessary risk to their performance within assessment as opposed to an opportunity to enhance their learning. This raises questions regarding the conflict that can exist within education between assessment and learning. The results suggest students operate in a ‘comfort zone’, which can be detrimental to their overall learning experience. Getting students to leave the comfort zone is a particularly stressful situation for both student and educator. Once students leave the comfort zone, competencies that have been dormant surface and they are able to utilise and acquire a wider range of skills. Leaving the comfort zone also results in the creation of a critical incident, which can assist the student in developing their reflective capabilities. The results suggest that randomly allocated groups enhance both an individual’s task capabilities and their teamwork capabilities. The paper concludes that the findings have significant implications for those involved in the design of assessment. The paper also provides an interesting commentary on the issues educators face when undertaking education research within a higher educational context.

A Critical Perspective of an Online Hands-On Laboratory Framework for Environmental Engineering Courses

In environmental engineering education at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels, laboratory exercises are a key component for a holistic learning experience. This project gives an outlook of online learning related research and teaching linked to a lab-based learning environment. The advent of the internet and online resources such as weblogs as a major communication methodology in higher education has showed a great deal of interest. In this project a further step into the realm of providing an online support system for student’s access to remote and distributed laboratory facilities in water and environmental engineering modules has been conducted. The approach demonstrates the feasibility of using an online laboratory effectively which can enable learners to reinforce their learning through hands-on practicals and can also be carried out in a flexible environment. An online weblog related the research and interlinked teaching for water and environmental engineering modules which can be implemented in reforming a lecture-based course for students undertaking water and wastewater engineering subjects

Translating change into improved practice

In Scotland, substantial changes in the management of education at national, local authority and school/community levels are afoot. Central to future improvements are how teachers translate curriculum guidelines, with an increased focus on health and wellbeing and holistic learning experiences, into constructivist inclined pedagogical practices. Through reviewing semi-structured interviews and planning conversations, this article reports on five teachers’ attempts to introduce new teaching approaches in primary school physical education programmes. Each of the teachers had completed a new Postgraduate Certificate in Physical Education, which aimed to help teachers understand more about developmentally appropriate physical education. We investigate their responses in trying to cultivate an emergent pedagogy with a greater emphasis on creating pedagogical opportunities that are inclusive and clearly connected with national educational priorities. Findings illustrate the diverse ways in which teachers used their professional development experiences as the basis for engaging with curriculum policy and the means by which they implemented new practices and knowledges in their schools.

Putting the Laboratory at the Center of Teaching Chemistry

This article describes an effective approach to teaching chemistry by bringing the laboratory to the center of teaching, to bring the excitement of discovery to the learning process. The lectures and laboratories are closely integrated to provide a holistic learning experience. The laboratories progress from verification to open-inquiry and culminate in an independent lab project. The lectures are presented in an interactive format that invites students to be actively involved in the learning process. The effectiveness of this method from students’ perspective is also presented.

A Learning, Research and Development Framework to Design for a ‘Holistic’ Learning Experience

The design of experiences and, in particular, educational experiences is a complex matter and involves not only using effective technologies and applying cognitive triggers, but there is a need to think outside the box in order to also design for the affective dimension of human experiences; the impressions, feelings and interactions that a learner might/could have with the online content and technology. The purpose of this article is to delve deep into this complex entity and, in doing so, to identify how one might approach designing for ‘holistic’ educational experiences. The article presents a case study describing the journey of a group of learning technologists and educators through the design and development phases of an action research online ABCD module, and it highlights the learner's experiences. It discusses the development of a learning, research and development framework to support the ABCD learning experience and, in particular, what was actually required to undertake the design for this learning experience. In summary, the article reports on a learning, research and development framework that provides solutions and support to a number of aspects involved in the design of holistic learning experiences and, in particular, the often neglected, yet complex, issues around experience design.

Beyond the Studio: Collaboration and Learning Outside the Formal Design Studio

The Design Studio is seen as an integral part of all design practice, both professional and educational. It is the creative environment where ideas are conceived, developed and shared amongst the collective. In the design student’s eyes, however it can sometimes have associations with ‘work’ and assignments causing negative connotations. These associations can dilute the creative atmosphere of the studio and lead to strategic learning on the students’ part where they strive for marks instead of a holistic learning experience. This paper explores student design ‘work’, undertaken outside the conventional studio setting, through a series of novel design-based activities which emphasise collaboration and participation. The intention of these is to encourage voluntary (not assessment driven) participation in creative practices within an environment that is fun and light-hearted. The first activity was a co-design project between design students and community partners. The second involved a number of short multi-disciplinary projects between Product Design, Marketing and Architecture students, using a design slam format (short design challenges where the ideas developed during these projects are generated and realised over a limited period of time). The final activity was a strategy used to encourage informal interclass dialogue between design students through an open platform where parity exists between students and lecturers. This paper draws together the experiences of both students and tutors from these activities and reflects on how informal learning activities can engage, excite and encourage students to become more pro-active in their own teaching and learning experiences.