Large Class Teaching Research Articles

The use of lectures: effective pedagogy or seeds scattered on the wind?

This case study of large-class teaching at a UK university focuses on the place of large-scale lectures in academics’ approaches to teaching, their use by students in their studies, and their relationship to institutional quality assurance policies. The case is a second-year module comprised of 180 students, and it includes two-hour lectures as the primary mode of teaching. The data is drawn from a range of sources including observations, interviews, focus groups, institutional documentation, and a student survey. Observations revealed largely transmissive lectures with little student interaction. The analytic framework of constructive alignment and outcome-based education is used to examine the promoted educational values and the practice experienced by students. The results are further explored in relation to two texts celebrating 50 years since publication: Donald Bligh’s What’s the Use of Lectures and Benson Snyder’s The Hidden Curriculum, Both highlight the dissonance of espoused approaches to teaching, and the realities of large-class environments. While the institutional literature foregrounds student-centred, ‘active learning’ approaches, the teacher-centred practice observed would have been very familiar to Bligh and Snyder; the principles of constructive alignment were visible only at the policy level. The implicit reward mechanisms of the hidden curriculum ensure that the majority of students succeed and are satisfied with the educational offering. The students who attended the lectures appeared to enjoy them and indicated that the primary benefits are the structure offered by live lectures and the support of the peer networks which develop as a result of attendance.

Research on the Reconstruction Strategy of Public English Ecological Classroom under the Background of “Internet +”

In the era of “Internet plus,” the educational ecosystem is changing under the influence of modern educational technology, with teachers and students as the main players. The traditional teaching method of “books + classroom + large-class teaching” with teachers at the center has evolved into “two masters: teachers leading and students as the main body.” There are also some discussions in foreign language teaching about educational ecology, with a focus on ecological imbalance. Emotion analysis is divided into two categories based on emotional information: positive and negative. It can be considered a unique text classification, despite the fact that it differs from traditional text classification. Using the emotion recognition algorithm, this paper can provide simple access to WEB pages and carry out emotional experiences such as face emotion recognition. Third-party developers, on the other hand, have a lower entry barrier, allowing them to quickly create colorful applications based on their own ideas.

Exploring Teachers' and Students’ Attitudes towards English Language Large Classes at Herat University, Afghanistan

This study is qualitative research that seeks to investigate the large class teaching challenges and the instructors' coping strategies through the perspectives of five English language instructors of the English Department of Herat University. Furthermore, the perspectives of ten juniors and seniors of the English Department of Herat University on large EFL classes are also explored. The data collected through face-to-face semi-structured interviews were analyzed thematically. In other words, the data were divided into major and sub-themes, considering the study’s theoretical framework-Kumaravadevelu’s post-method pedagogy- and the research questions. The findings indicated that challenges, such as multi-level students, under-resourced context, a large number of students, giving feedback, assessing students, classroom management, and students' engagement, are the challenges behind large classes in Afghanistan. Further, reducing the number of students, providing teachers with capacity-building programs and teaching resources are also discussed.

Research on the Flipped Classroom of Online Open Courses Driving Piano Foundation Courses in Colleges and Universities: A Case Study of Piano MOOC

In recent years, with the rapid development of Internet and new media technology, the undergraduate teaching mode has shown new characteristics such as networking, interactivity, generative and fragmentation. Due to the continuous heating up of "piano fever" in China in recent years, the expansion of the music departments of major music colleges and normal colleges, and the strong demand for piano performance and teaching staff in the society, the traditional one-to-one piano teaching mode can no longer meet the needs of piano teaching in various music colleges, and the basic piano courses came into being. At present, most of the piano courses in colleges are large class teaching, the form of online "MOOC" in the teaching of piano basic courses can not only promote students' independent learning, greatly alleviate the shortage of teachers, but also make an important supplement and expansion of traditional classroom learning.

The “PAD + BOPPPS” Hybrid Mode of Large Class Teaching

China’s higher education has entered a new era of comprehensive quality improvement and innovation. The mode of university mathematics public courses mainly based on teacher’s teaching is facing more and more severe challenges in the innovation era. This paper proposes a new model of “PAD + BOPPPS”, which is suitable for college mathematics teaching in China and aims at solving the common key teaching problems in domestic universities at present. Taking the section of “Total Probability Formula” in “Probability Theory and Mathematical Statistics” as an example, this paper discusses the ideas and methods of innovative teaching design. In this case, through the data collected by classroom interaction tools, it can be seen that the method proposed in this paper has achieved good results in improving students’ interest in learning and classroom interaction. The method proposed in this paper can effectively improve the classroom teaching of college mathematics and has high promotion value.

Challenges Facing Counsellors in Nigerian Public Primary Schools and Way Forward

This paper discussed the challenges facing Counsellors in Public Primary schools in Nigeria. The paper depends on primary and secondary data. The secondary data was sourced from print and online publication. The paper concludes that inadequate funding, lack of working tools, inadequate infrastructural facilities, insecurity problem, poor supervision, teaching of large classes, negatives attitude of students towards Counsellors, negative relationship between counselors and school administrators,poor motivation and poor capacity development of supervisors are the challenges facing Counsellors working in public primary schools in Nigeria. To address these challenges, the paper suggested the following: increase in the funding of guidance and counseling programme, provision of more working tools, provision of adequate infrastructural facilities, provision of adequate security in public primary schools, improvement of supervision of guidance and counseling programme, employment of more trained counsellors, increment in the salaries of Counselors and ensure constant training and retraining programme for counselors.

Research on the Application of Intelligent Evaluation and Teacher-student Cooperation Assessment System in Teaching English Writing

Low efficiency in teaching and time-consuming in writing evaluation are two big problems for college English teachers. Therefore, it is necessary to create a new teaching model to solve these problems existing in traditional classroom-based teaching. This research adopts the research methods of test comparison before and after the students’ composition experiment, questionnaire and semi-open interviews. Empirical research on a new teaching model that integrates the intelligent composition review and reform system represented by Piangai.com and the collaborative evaluation of teachers and students is conducted. The research results show that the new writing teaching model improves the quality of students’ writing, promotes students’ learning initiative, and enhances students’ writing self-efficacy. This writing teaching model provides ideas for solving the problem of time-consuming and inefficient English writing teaching in large classes.

Research on College English Teaching Method Based on Multimedia Technology Embedding Literary Materials

Under the background of social and economic development, college enrollment expansion, constructivism learning theory and teaching technology development, A new teaching method of college English course is proposed and established. Compared with the traditional teaching method, this new teaching method has many advantages. In addition, its main purpose is to change the traditional single and boring classroom for teachers, make the classroom become free and active and personalized, and let students give full play to and express themselves. The operation mode of the new model is the combination of large class teaching and small class practice, classroom teaching and open independent learning, cd-ROM multimedia and network teaching, first-level classroom teaching and second-level classroom activities. The evaluation system under the new model is no longer a single summative evaluation, but a combination of summary and formation of the evaluation system. Under this new model, teachers pay more attention to the accumulation of their knowledge and the improvement of professional teaching skills, and students pay more attention to improve their learning methods and improve their learning ability.

Influencing Factors of Learning Experience in Online Large-Class Teaching ——Semantic Analysis Based on Students’ Classroom Feedback Language Materials

As the learners' perception and reaction in multiple aspects during the course learning, learning experience is of great importance for the study of educational evaluation and the optimization of teacher teaching and teaching management. According to the text semantic analysis and questionnaire survey on students' learning feedback in online large classes,the NLPIR-Parser big-data semantic intelligent analysis platform is used in this paper to carry on keywords extraction and analysis, text sentiment analysis, text clustering and abstract extraction after the processing of original corpus, and then SPSS22.0 software is used to conduct Pearson correlation analysis on the score of text sentiment and the statistical data of questionnaire survey.The results show that the results of text semantic analysis and questionnaire survey have the consistency in positive learning experience; students' negative emotional experience has a significantly reverse correlation with learning effect score; teacher teaching, student learning,course characteristics and learning environment are proved to be the main influencing factors of students' learning experience, in which, teacher teaching plays a leading role. Then, the specific thinking of improving students' learning experience is put forward on the basis of research results.

Innovative Teaching Reform in the Division of Higher Mathematics in Colleges

Advanced mathematics is the basic knowledge required for the development of science and technology in industry and agriculture, so it is the most important link in the basic curriculum framework of universities of science and technology. The level of students' mastery of it will affect the entire university period of study, later advanced studies, and the choice of graduate employment. Because of its large content and difficulty, teachers often spend a lot of energy, but students are not interested, and the overall teaching effect is not good. In particular, the usual large-class teaching leads to great differences in the degree of mastery of the learning content of students. Statistics show that the distribution of test scores is very different, which does not conform to the normal distribution. In response to this situation, our school has carried out analysis and research, proposed and implemented the teaching reform of unified teaching in large classes and reorganization of small classes in tutoring. This new teaching method has improved students' learning enthusiasm and mastery of knowledge, which is better than previous years. Significant improvement was made, and very positive feedback was obtained in the follow-up study of other courses.

ADAPTATION OF A CLASSROOM OBSERVATION PROTOCOL FOR ACTIVE LEARNING

In our work, we are focusing on the use of classroom observation to provide feedback on instructional space design. An initiative to redesign teaching space began a decade ago at a large, research-intensive institution. In September 2018, a large-scale (477 seat) active learning classroom became operational. The affordances of this space are intended to enable active teaching and learning in large classes. However, it is difficult to assess how successful this space is for active learning. A multi-year study has been undertaken to observe teaching practice in situ, with the goalof developing design principles for instructional space and technology that support the development, design, and implementation of teaching activities. Existing teaching observation protocols do not fully capture the interaction between the instructor and the space because such protocols were generally intended for other purposes. The goal is to develop a protocol that captures activities that are both intrinsic and extrinsic to teaching. This paper describes the development and use of an observation protocol. The core of the protocol is the wellknownTeaching Dimensions Observation Tool (TDOP). The scope of the TDOP is extended to active learning activities drawing from the Active Learning Classroom Observation Tool (ALCOT). The resulting extended protocol, TDOP+, was used for coding both live and recorded classroomobservations in the Winter 2020 term. This extended protocol allows the researchers to capture information that characterizes the intersection of pedagogy, space, and technology through Activity Theory. In future work, the data gathered through observations will be analyzed using theDifferentiated Overt Learning Activities (DOLA) framework, to provide insight into what types of teaching activity happens in a large-scale active learning classroom across STEM education and how active learning in large classrooms compares to pedagogy in other spaces.

Learning from student experience: large, higher education classes transitioning online

In March 2020, Irish universities closed their doors and teaching, learning and assessment moved online, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This paper arises from a Dublin City University (DCU) research study with a three-fold purpose: Examine the sudden transition of large classes (100+ students) from face-to-face teaching and learning to remote online provision from the perspectives of staff and students. Contextualise these perspectives by reviewing relevant literature. Inform the work of teaching large classes in future online teaching and learning spaces. Presented here, are findings informed by; a rapid, systematised literature review; analysis of student and staff survey responses who experienced the swift move online; and academic support data mined by the Teaching Enhancement Unit (TEU) between March and June 2020. This paper will contribute to prompt, timely reflection on the lived student experience of engagement and isolation during the sudden pivot for large class cohorts. These reflections and analysis will add to the growing body of literature on large class teaching and online pedagogy, specifically in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. The authors provide conceptualised solutions as we move out of the emergency pivot and into more considered, planned approaches to better engage students in online, hybrid and face-to-face contexts.

Practice of Comprehensive Intervention Program for Left‐behind Children's Inferiority Complex -- Taking a Middle School in Xian'an District of Xianning City of Hubei Province as an Example

Starting from the inferiority complex of Left‐behind children, this study aims to establish an education mode combining classroom teaching and psychological group assistance for the Left‐behind children in junior middle school. Through psychological evaluation, group counseling and other related activities, a comprehensive intervention scheme of inferiority complex under the large class teaching mode is formed to help the Left-behind children reduce their inferiority complex and improve their mental health. In this study, the experimental group and the control group were designed as pre‐test and post test, and the experimental group was given comprehensive intervention. The results showed that after the intervention, there was a significant difference in the level of inferiority between the experimental group and the control group. Conclusion: the comprehensive intervention model adopted in this study can effectively reduce the students' Inferiority level, and provide a certain practical basis for inferiority intervention.

Application of Wittgenstein’s Sprachspiel in Speaking English Teaching: A Linguistic Philosophical Perspective of Speaking English Teaching for Non-English Major Graduate Students in China

“Sprachspiel(Language Game)”, a language philosophical term proposed by Wittgenstein, indicates that the meaning of language is in the use of language in all kinds of language games. This concept helps to transfer our focus from abstract language analysis to practical language uses, which throws a light on college English teaching in China. Based on this language philosophical point of view, this paper intends to have some practices on speaking English teaching for non-English major graduates. Based on the analysis of the difficulties and problems of the target students’ English learning, this paper puts forward some tentative ways for speaking English teaching in large class. The experimental teaching of a whole school year proves that this new teaching mode enhances students’ interests in English and improves students’ studying method as well as their Speaking English level. From the survey result, it finds out that this paper also makes an analysis of the surveys conducted both at the very beginning and the end of the school year.

Peer Learning as a Key Component of an Integrated Teaching Method: Overcoming the Complexities of Physics Teaching in Large Size Classes

Over the last decade, policy makers have urged universities to innovate their teaching methodologies. Although educational research has shown that active methods lead to improvements in learners’ performance more than traditional lectures in small classes, some factors impede active methods from spreading in large size classes. In this paper we aim at fostering these methodological innovations by showing the effectiveness of an integrated teaching methodology that employs peer learning, technology, and traditional lectures in large size classes. In the academic years 2017–2018 and 2018–2019 a quasi-experiment involved more than 600 engineering students per year attending an introductory physics course at Politecnico di Milano. These learners were assigned to two sections and their outcomes in a pre-test and a post-test were analyzed through descriptive and inferential statistics. The learning results of the experimental group were always better than the outcomes of the control group, regardless of the difficulty of the physics topics addressed. Furthermore, a very low threshold for the exposure to peer learning has been highlighted in order for it to be effective. These promising results may thus foster ongoing changes in university policy towards the renewal of the teaching methodology.

Research on PE Tutoring Service Strategy under the Background of New Curriculum Standard

With the development of social economy, the implementation of the national fitness plan and people’s attention to their health, physical education has become a unique way of life. Tutoring institutions are educational institutions that provide “one-to-one” individual academic guidance for learners in their families or tutoring institutions. The emergence and development of tutoring institutions has its historical inevitability, which is closely related to the enhancement of social competition consciousness, the disadvantage of large class teaching, the lack of social and economic status of teachers and the educational concept of parents. The target range of physical education has been broadened. For children please sports tutoring is a very common social phenomenon, but this does not mean that only children need to please family tutoring, in a narrow sense, the main object of sports tutoring is for children (primary and middle school students) groups. With the continuous development of the society and the different needs of the members of the society, the target range of physical education has been expanded. In a broad sense, all the people who have sports training needs can ask for sports tutoring, therefore, sports tutoring is a kind of personalized sports education services in essence. At present, although the physical education institutions have obtained unprecedented development, but through the investigation found that physical education also has some problems, such as through non-standard publicity, random fees, tutoring quality is difficult to guarantee. The existence of these problems is not correct, driven by interests, internal management strategy is not in place, the idea of running a school of sports tutoring institutions is too profit-oriented. To solve these problems, PE tutors should pay attention to the content and ensure the quality; Reasonable publicity, create brand; Stabilizing teachers, strengthening training, expanding scale, strengthening marketing and so on. At present, whether the development needs of students can be taken as the ultimate starting point is an important factor affecting the survival and development of tutoring institutions. This paper adopts a variety of research methods such as literature method, interview method, questionnaire survey method and mathematical statistics method. All of these situations are the actual problems that all of us sports workers must face. Facing these problems, we must effectively solve the problems, in order to provide theoretical basis for the research of sports tutoring service strategy under the background of the new curriculum standard.

Lecturer teaching styles and student learning involvement in large classes: a Taiwan case study

ABSTRACT Previous studies have indicated the challenges posed by large classes in promoting quality education and better student learning. This paper argues that empirically exploring other latent variables inherent in the pedagogical triangle of the teacher, the learner and the content hold a number of promises in elucidating the dynamics of large classes as an emerging phenomenon in global higher education. This study intends to examine how university lecturers’ teaching styles moderate the relationship between teaching job and student learning involvement in the context of large classes. A multi-aspect survey was conducted with 446 electrical engineering students from six public universities in Taiwan. The use of inferential statistics revealed marked differences in the lecturers’ teaching job involvement and teaching styles when grouped according to institutional types, positions at their respective universities, and years of service. Notably, among the various teaching styles, the expert-model and delegator teaching styles can significantly predict students’ learning involvement; the formal authority teaching style moderates the relationship between lecturers’ teaching job involvement and students’ learning involvement. General implications are drawn from these findings and are discussed as they apply to the teaching of large classes.

Challenging, Exciting, Impersonal, Nervous: Academic experiences of large class teaching

Massification of Higher Education has resulted in a rapid increase in undergraduate populations, without an increase in the number of teaching staff. One consequence is that students are typically taught in larger classes. While the impact of class size on student satisfaction and attainment is debated, there has been little attention paid to the academic experience of large class teaching. We present results of a questionnaire completed by 80 academics, primarily based in the UK. Academics perceived classes of 100 or more as large, and most had taught classes of several hundred students. Academic perceptions of large class teaching varied considerably. We find no evidence that institution type or contract type affects perceptions of large class teaching. We also find a lack of training that specifically addresses the demands of large class teaching. We call on academic developers to support academics teaching large cohorts to ensure effective education at scale.

Feedback: a reflection on the use of Nicol and Macfarlane-Dick’s feedback principles to engage learners

ABSTRACT Feedback is an intrinsic part of the learning process in higher education. Despite the development of teaching and learning strategies underpinning the usefulness of feedback, lecturers continue to feel frustrated when students do not implement the feedback or feed it forward into their studies. There is a disconnect in literature and also in practice between lecturers’ perception of how important feedback is, and students’ perception of what feedback actually means. This paper draws upon the experience of two law clinicians in two very different law clinic settings, reflecting on their use of feedback in clinical legal education and how it has led to a more proactive dialogue on feedback in their large class teaching. The outcome is a recognition of feedback as a form of communication, which builds upon a foundation of good relationships and an atmosphere of trust in our teaching spaces.

Designing Cases for Case-Based Immunology Teaching in Large Medical School Classes.

Case-based, interactive sessions for small groups (in a large medical school class of 150 students) reinforces basic immunology concepts by including clinical scenarios that stimulate student learning and consolidate critical concepts. Careful design of cases (designing backwards from the key concepts) leads students through successively more complicated and linked group-work questions. This paper details why cases are effective learning tools, how to design an effective case, how to ask appropriate questions and how to help students apply basic immunology concepts to a case. Each group work session is facilitated and followed by a question and answer presentation by faculty, where student groups are directly asked to answer the questions and also challenged with “bonus questions” not presented with the original case. This allows students to “put together” immunology information into a “story” that they can tell and prevents student frustration by summarizing the results at the end of each case. Case design is carefully discussed including clinical relevancy and accuracy, how to write questions that do not give away the answers, how to emphasize mechanistic questions that allow students to “clinically explain as a physician” the immunological basis for the answers. Additionally, students better understand the role of immunity in both normal and disease states. A case-based approach promotes student learning by re-emphasizing basic concepts in the context of the case and promotes better students understanding of critical immunological concepts.