Large Enrollment Research Articles

Writing to Learn Physiology: Leveraging Peer Review to Enhance Learning in a Large Enrollment Undergraduate Physiology Course

A significant challenge in STEM education is to transform undergraduate students from memorizers of scientific facts to critical, conceptual, scientific thinkers. Although increasing evidence supports the use of “Writing to Learn” (WTL) activities to promote higher‐level conceptual thinking ( Reynolds et al. 2012), WTL activities are not yet widely implemented in undergraduate science classrooms. Several barriers prevent the incorporation of WTL activities including the feasibility of grading written assignments in large enrollment classes and the degree of student participation and active engagement in such activities. Here we report a pilot study to evaluate the feasibility of and student participation in WTL activities in an undergraduate foundational physiology course with an enrollment of 250 students. The writing activity was a short response (3–5 sentences) to a prompt that asked the students to evaluate or explain a statement related to a physiological concept. The students submitted their responses to a web‐based peer‐review service ( EliReview.com), and then each student reviewed the work of four anonymous peers. Once the reviews were completed, each student viewed the anonymous reviews that he/she received and constructed a revision plan to improve the original submission. One instructor oversaw and managed this process, with technological support from Eli Review, but without TA support. Students were incentivized to participate in this activity by receiving a small number of bonus points (equivalent to 0.25% of their final grade). Primary study outcome measures were (1) student participation in the activity and (2) student perceptions of the activity. Secondary outcome measures included performance on exam questions related to the WTL activity topics, compared to students in a different section of the same course who did not participate in the WTL activities (secondary outcomes not yet analyzed at the time of abstract submission). Preliminary results of two trials of WTL activities during the Fall 2019 semester show that an average of 57% of students enrolled in the class submitted their written assignment to the web‐based peer review system. Of the students who submitted writing, an average of 85% completed four reviews of their peers’ work and an average of 68% completed revision plans based on the peer feedback they received. The average length of the peer reviews was 309 words, even though no word maximum or minimum was specified. No student reported inappropriate or disrespectful comments. In an in‐class electronic poll, 70% of students who participated in the activities agreed with the statement that “The opportunity to read and review drafts submitted by other students helped me to better understand the physiological principles related to the question”. The preliminary results of utilizing WTL activities in our 250‐student physiology class indicate that this is a feasible and time‐effective strategy to incorporate writing into the undergraduate biology curriculum, and that many students will participate and perceive a benefit from participating in such activities.Support or Funding InformationEVV and WFC were supported in part by NSF grant #1524967

To what extent have Disability Resource Centers evolved to accommodate the challenges of active learning in large enrollment STEM courses?

While active learning teaching methods have been shown to improve student achievement in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), the increased interactions among students can also present unique challenges for students from underrepresented social identities. One proposed underrepresented group of individuals who may face challenges with active learning are students with disabilities who request academic accommodations from Disability Resource Centers (DRCs). DRCs are offices on university campuses that provide academic and social services for students with disabilities and other diagnosed medical conditions. Academic accommodations often include note‐taking services, preferential seating, extended time for exams, closed captioning of videos, and interpreters. However, as more and more classes are moving away from traditional lectures to adopting active learning methods, are we providing the right accommodations for students? Could we be disadvantaging students who normally would be receiving accommodations in traditional lectures? In this exploratory study, we identified commonly implemented active learning strategies and reviewed the literature on what reported disadvantages these activities may present for students. We then contacted directors of DRCs from 305 universities with large undergraduate student populations and large enrollment science courses based on the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. We interviewed directors to identify how familiar they are with the term of active learning and what accommodations, if any, they currently have for students in active learning science classrooms along with any challenges they have experienced when accommodating students with disabilities in active learning science courses. Our data suggest that directors are generally aware of “active learning” and have encountered it in their position when talking with students and faculty. However, few DRCs have policies or protocols in place to specifically address accommodations needed for active learning courses. Thus, accommodations for active learning are generally determined retroactively or on a “case‐by‐case basis”, which requires students to be the ones responsible for identifying aspects of active learning courses that they struggle with and report these challenges to the DRC in order to receive appropriate accommodations. With this study, we hope to provide a foundation for creating more inclusive active learning classrooms for students with disabilities.Support or Funding InformationNational Science Foundation

Using gamification to encourage student success

Increasing computer science program enrollments have impacted college and university programs in many ways, usually resulting in additional curriculum offerings and larger courses enrollments. Stud...

Engineering Essential Attributes of Cooperative Learning and Quality Discourse in a Large Enrollment Course by Leveraging Clicker Devices

Engineering Essential Attributes of Cooperative Learning and Quality Discourse in a Large Enrollment Course by Leveraging Clicker Devices

Integration of a sustainability-oriented socio-scientific issue into the general chemistry curriculum: Examining the effects on student motivation and self-efficacy

This study evaluates the effects of integrating the socio-scientific issue of phosphate sustainability into a large enrollment general chemistry course. The integration was based on the use of a digital learning environment designed by the software Prezi. The learning environment introduced the structure and the properties of phosphate, its economic importance and uses, and the associated challenges, including supply risk. The study examined the effects of the intervention on students’ motivation and self-efficacy. A total of 760 students participated in the study and completed pre- and post-intervention surveys, as well as participated in group discussions with specific roles. The analysis of open-ended questions and the results of the statistical tests indicate that the topic and the associated digital materials were received positively by the students. The findings did not reveal any significant differences between male and female students, but the data showed that ethnic groups perceived the intervention differently.

Detecting the Depth and Progression of Learning in Massive Open Online Courses by Mining Discussion Data

In massive open online courses (MOOCs), learners can interact with each other using discussion boards. Automatically inferring the states or needs of learners from their posts is of interest to instructors, who are faced with a high attrition in MOOCs. Machine learning has previously been successfully used to identify states such as confusion or posting questions, but no solution has yet been provided so that instructors can track the progress of the learners using a validated framework from education research. In this paper, we develop a model to automatically label a post based on the first phase of the interaction analysis model (IAM). This allows instructors to automatically identify whether students are stating opinions, clarifying details, or engaging in activities such as providing examples to peers. Our model is tested on a Coursera MOOC devoted to Chemistry, for which we are able to correctly categorize the IAM status in 4 out of 5 posts. Our approach thus provides instructors with an intelligent system that generates actionable learning assessment data and can cope with large enrollment. Using the system, instructors can quickly identify and remedy learning issues, thus supporting learners in attaining their intended outcomes.

Performance Analyses of Graph Heuristics and Selected Trajectory Metaheuristics on Examination Timetable Problem

Examination timetabling problem is hard to solve due to its NP-hard nature, with a large number of constraints having to be accommodated. To deal with the problem effectually, frequently heuristics are used for constructing feasible examination timetable while meta-heuristics are applied for improving the solution quality. This paper presents the performances of graph heuristics and major trajectory metaheuristics or S-metaheuristics for addressing both capacitated and un-capacitated examination timetabling problem. For constructing the feasible solution, six graph heuristics are used. They are largest degree (LD), largest weighted degree (LWD), largest enrolment degree (LE), and three hybrid heuristic with saturation degree (SD) such as SD-LD, SD-LE, and SD-LWD. Five trajectory algorithms comprising of tabu search (TS), simulated annealing (SA), late acceptance hill climbing (LAHC), great deluge algorithm (GDA), and variable neighborhood search (VNS) are employed for improving the solution quality. Experiments have been tested on several instances of un-capacitated and capacitated benchmark datasets, which are Toronto and ITC2007 dataset respectively. Experimental results indicate that, in terms of construction of solution of datasets, hybridizing of SD produces the best initial solutions. The study also reveals that, during improvement, GDA, SA, and LAHC can produce better quality solutions compared to TS and VNS for solving both benchmark examination timetabling datasets.

A Multioutcome Experiment for the Williamson Ether Synthesis

Williamson ether experiments are commonly performed by students in undergraduate organic chemistry instructional laboratory courses. In this multioutcome experiment, students were provided 4-bromophenol and one of three alkyl halides: 1-bromopentane, 1-bromobutane, or 1-bromo-3-methylbutane. The alkyl halides served as the unknown component of the experiment, and students were given these three as unknown candidates. After isolating the product from the reaction mixture, students analyzed their products using FT-IR and benchtop 1H NMR spectroscopies. The experimental results herein summarize the inclusion of this experiment in the large enrollment second-semester organic chemistry laboratory course over four semesters.

Comparing attitudinal learning of large enrolment active learning and lecture classes

ABSTRACT Students’ self-reported attitudinal learning were compared between two different large courses that incorporated attitudinal learning objectives at a Midwestern US public university- a course on environmental sustainability utilising active learning instruction (100 participants) and a course on international economics utilising traditional lecture instruction (109 participants). Four factors of attitudinal learning were evaluated utilising a validated scale, the Attitudinal Learning Inventory (ALI): affective, cognitive, behavioural, and social learning outcomes. Results showed that students in the active learning instruction course perceived significantly higher attitudinal for all factors except for cognitive. Attitudinal learning components were not correlated with traditional course performance scores in the courses. Implications for assessing and designing instruction for attitudinal learning as well as implementing active learning instruction in large courses are discussed.

Equity and Excellence Among Arizona School Leaders: Encouraging Integration within a Segregative Policy Context

ABSTRACTWe present case studies of elementary school leaders in an Arizona district with a large enrollment of Latinx Spanish-speaking students who qualify for English language development services. The Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Leadership dimensions are used as a lens to examine how school leaders navigate Arizona’s restrictive language policies to support dual language learners’ (DLLs’) academic achievement and integration. Our analysis revealed the school leaders exhibited equity and excellence for DLLs in their leadership practices, working in opposition to the restrictive policy context through educator collaboration and curriculum design, valuing bilingualism, and integrating DLLs’ culture and language into the school community.

Exploring Species Interactions with "Snapshot Serengeti"

Authentic learning experiences are a valuable way for students to gain an in-depth understanding of the scientific process. However, implementing such experiences in large enrollment courses can be challenging. Here, we present a community ecology lab module that uses data from a long-term camera trap study to allow students to design and conduct their own scientific inquiries. "Snapshot Serengeti" is a 10+ year wildlife monitoring survey in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. Over 200 camera traps continuously collect fine-scale spatial and temporal data on the dynamics of ~50 animal species. The charismatic subject matter (large African animals) engages students, encouraging excitement about the topic, while the ample amount of processed data enables students to conduct real ecological research. In this lab, students collaborate in all stages of the research process. We present two lab variations: a four-week in-person and five-week remote-learning online option. From this module, students learn to generate testable research questions, produce and interpret graphs, participate in peer review, and communicate their results in both oral and written format. While originally developed for a 1000-level introduction biology course for non-majors, this material could easily be adapted to provide authentic hypothesis testing and data analysis experience to biology majors. In addition to a greater awareness of community ecology principles, students will come away from this lab with a better understanding of how exploratory research fits into the scientific process and confidence in their own ability to engage in the process of science. <em>Primary image: </em>Captured by camera trap - a wildebeest and zebra grazing in the Serengeti: Using camera trap images such as this from the long-term camera trapping program “Snapshot Serengeti”, students will analyze real data on Serengeti ecosystem dynamics and generate their own questions to explore African animal behavior and ecology. This image is available under a Creative Commons 4.0 International License.

Revisiting the use of concept maps in a large enrollment general chemistry course: implementation and assessment

In an effort to improve student conceptual understanding and help students better connect pre-existing knowledge to new ideas, a concept map assignment was implemented in a first-year college level general chemistry course. This implementation included a quasi-experiment that was carried out in discussion group recitation sections within a third-quarter general chemistry course. Students enrolled in a single section of the course were divided into two groups in which a concept map treatment was compared to a control group that completed short journal entries. Comparison of a concept inventory post-test using an independent samples t-test indicates students in the concept map treatment appear to perform better than the students in the journal control group (t = 2.34, mean difference = 0.844, p &lt; 0.05). However, a multi-variable regression analysis in which the concept inventory post-test scores were compared between the treatment and control groups, while traits related to incoming academic preparation were held constant, suggests there was no significant difference in performance (unstandardized b = 0.222, p = 0.540). The quality of the students’ concept maps was also evaluated and correlated to student performance on the concept inventory, and it appears students who were better at concept mapping made greater gains in conceptual understanding (Pearson's r = 0.295, p &lt; 0.05). When the relationship between the quality of concept mapping and concept inventory post-test was determined while holding constant covariates related to incoming academic preparation, the unstandardized B coefficient was positive, but was not significant at the p = 0.05 level (unstandardized b = 0.215, p = 0.134) This study does not provide unequivocal evidence that a concept map treatment leads to greater gains in conceptual understanding compared to a control population, or that students with better concept mapping skills performed better on the concept inventory instrument. Nevertheless, a template for implementing a concept map assignment in a large enrollment course is provided, and the results presented herein might prompt chemistry instructors to consider including concept map assignments in their instructional toolbox.

The Motivation and Experience of Distance Learning Engineering Programmes Students: A Study of Non-Traditional, Returning, Evening, and Adult Students

Undergraduate distance learning-based programmes in the field of engineering have become one of the popular educational qualifications internationally. Besides traditional-age university students, non-traditional, returning, evening, and adult (NTREA) students make up groups of large significant enrolments at many distance learning programmes. This study explored how undergraduate NTREA students enrolled at the undergraduate distance learning engineering programme described their learning experience and why they decided to enroll in the distance learning-based programmes. 28 participants with majors in civil engineering, computer engineering, environmental engineering, chemical engineering, and biomedical engineering were invited for a private online Skype interview for data collection. The results of this research provide direction for NTREA students, university administrators, educational professionals, career counsellors, human resource planners, policymakers, and governmental leaders to reform and improve human resource planning, educational programmes, and even international enrolment schemes through the development of instructional technology and applications.

Moving Away from Lecture in Undergraduate Mathematics: Managing Tensions within a Coordinated Inquiry-Based Linear Algebra Course

This study describes how nine university professors managed their teaching when a shift from lecturing to inquiry-based learning was mandated in a large enrollment course, linear algebra for math majors. We describe the tensions that emerged and how they were resolved, in part via the production of worksheets that were used in teaching. We describe the way in which professional obligations towards the discipline and towards the institution shaped the tensions and the ways in which they were resolved by this group of faculty. We offer a conceptualization of the enactment of instruction that was prompted by the study and implications for continued investigation of change strategies in undergraduate mathematics.

Geographic Trends in Team-based Learning (TBL) Research and Implementation in Medical Schools

PurposeTeam-based learning (TBL) is an active approach to learning that can be implemented in large enrolment classes. This study aims to document the extent of implementation of TBL in medical schools and characterize the geographic distribution in the trends of TBL research. MethodTo examine the geographic distribution and curricula of medical schools from the published TBL literature, a systematic review of the Web of Science Core Collection was performed on articles published between 2000 and 2018. To fill in the gaps on implementation of TBL outside of the published literature, a questionnaire was developed and sent to a global network of TBL researchers and practitioners. The articles and questionnaire responses were assessed according to seven core design elements described in TBL implementation guidelines. ResultsThe systematic review yielded 69 journal articles, with 39 (56.52%) from schools that use TBL in their curriculum. Publications in earlier years were mainly from North America, although Asia is now a key driver in TBL research and implementation. The questionnaire which received 27 valid responses indicated that TBL in most schools (74.07%) feature all seven core elements. Both the systematic review and questionnaire revealed that TBL is used more in the pre-clinical curriculum, often as an adjunct to other teaching methods. Survey respondents cited reasons such as inertia and faculty preference for TBL's limited use. However, a few schools in the US and Singapore report using it extensively throughout the medical curriculum. DiscussionTBL is rapidly becoming established in Asia, hence more work needs to be done to uncover research and implementation in various non-English contexts. Factors that enable institutions to scale and sustain TBL as a main educational tool throughout the curriculum also merit further research.

421 Addressing the diverse needs and career interests of animal sciences undergraduate students in a career preparations course

Abstract Diverse career opportunities and interests exist for undergraduate students in animal sciences. Educational programs should expose students to diverse careers and prepare them personally and professionally for future success, though individualized opportunities and effectiveness for a large enrollment course is challenging. At Kansas State University, Animal Sciences Career Preparations is a compulsory course for junior or seniors (average enrollment=232). This one-credit course meets once/week with the overarching goal being to help students describe and “move forward” in their career goals. From 2013–18, to determine their intended career path, enrolled students (n = 1394) were asked at semester onset, “Which […] most closely characterizes what you expect to be doing (position/activity) within the 1st year following graduation from [college]?” Most students (32%) selected “Begin school in a college of veterinary medicine.” while 26% selected “Work for an agri-industry/biosciences business/organization.” Fifteen percent indicated, “Begin graduate school (Master of Science, Master of Business Administration, […])” Seven percent chose “Work on [their] family’s ranch/farm/feedlot” and 11% chose “Work for someone other than [their] family on a livestock production operation.” Nine percent selected “Other,” indicating careers with zoo/wildlife organizations or military, for example. Polishing resumes and cover letters, facilitated engagement with university career services, discussion of how social media can influence their career path, and consideration of benefits packages in job offers are examples of activities that all students engage in regardless of career goals. Students can select from several “tailored” assignments/activities specifically relevant to individual paths such as generational transition planning for students returning to family businesses, GRE exam preparation insight, and mock interview participation with businesses for jobs/internships or for admission to veterinary school. Providing flexible structure to course assignments and activities helps students progress in personal and professional preparedness yet allows exploration as students continue to navigate their paths and make career-related decisions.

Where Is Psychology Teaching and Learning Research Conducted? An Analysis of Institution Setting and Class Sizes

This article presents a census of empirical studies on the scholarship of teaching published in Teaching of Psychology, Psychology Learning and Teaching, and Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology over the past decade. All articles from each issue were coded for characteristics identifying the teaching context in which the research was conducted, focusing on institution type using Carnegie classifications and average class size. The majority of studies on the scholarship of teaching and learning in psychology were carried out in smaller classes (less than 40 students/class) in settings characterized as Master’s or Doctoral institutions. These data suggest an underrepresentation of studies from 2-year Associate’s colleges, as well as from larger enrollment classrooms. Implications are discussed for conducting research in the diverse classroom settings representative of psychology instruction.

Expanding anaplastic lymphoma kinase therapeutic indication to early stage non-small cell lung cancer.

Oncogene-addicted non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients have been witnessing overwhelming therapeutic improvements, especially in advanced disease management, due to the advent of more potent tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). However, the concrete chance to cure anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-rearranged patients remains prerogative of surgical and peri-operative medical approaches to early disease stage. Clinical investigations in the adjuvant setting of genotype-restricted lung cancers (i.e., EGFR+, ALK+, etc.) are under-represented owing to the need of large patients' enrollment and solid overall survival (OS) data, which solely can show real long-term impact of these therapeutic interventions. Current available radiological and molecular technologies will widely increase the number of surgical early stage patients, including ALK+, spurring the development of rational approaches aimed to prevent disease recurrence and prolong patients' survival. Ongoing clinical trials, evaluating crizotinib and alectinib as adjuvant treatments, will gauge the real impact of TKIs in terms of patients' disease free survival (DFS) and OS; other peri-operative investigations (e.g., neo-adjuvant strategies) will add information about ALK inhibitors' tumor growth restraint capacities and early adaptation mechanisms to ALK targeting. Nevertheless, multiple questions are and will remain unanswered: if should be treated indifferently all ALK+ patients or, alternatively, should be stratified in different risk groups based on the detectable residual disease [i.e., minimal residual disease (MRD) after surgery]; whether ALK inhibitors administration could facilitate the accumulations of persister cells driving resistance mechanisms to targeted therapies; if alternative strategies, as combined treatments targeting different molecular hubs, could enhance disease control and cancer eradication.

Automatic grading software for 2D CAD files

AbstractUndergraduate computer‐aided design (CAD) courses can have large enrollments, making it difficult for instructors to thoroughly assess each student's assignments and provide individualized feedback. While in some subject areas textbook companies are developing online platforms that adapt problem sets to meet each individual student's needs, there has been apparently little attention to the area of individualized CAD instruction. This paper presents a program that compares students’ two‐dimensional CAD drawings to a solution, computes the number of missing or erroneous features in each student's drawing, and generates a visual comparison of each student's drawing with the solution. The system is implemented both as an offline version for batch processing and an online version for immediate student feedback on assignments. While the system lacks the “smartness” of a human grader, the offline version substantially reduces time spent grading exams and improves grading accuracy and consistency, and the online version encourages students to focus on important details of drawing and provides immediate online feedback for students as they complete assignments, as well as providing after‐the‐fact feedback on exams.

A Pilot Study of a Standardized Smoking Cessation Intervention for Patients with Vascular Disease

The goal of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of a smoking cessation intervention performed by a vascular surgery provider compared with current smoking cessation practices. Patients with peripheral arterial and aneurysmal disease who presented to the vascular surgery service at a tertiary care center over a 9-month period were randomized to either control or intervention group. Both control and intervention groups received 2weeks of free nicotine patches and referral to an outpatient smoking-cessation program. The intervention group additionally received a brief presentation by a vascular surgeon regarding the benefits of smoking cessation, with a focus on vascular complications. At enrollment and at follow-up, patients underwent carbon monoxide breath testing and completed a survey. The primary outcome was smoking cessation or reduction among control and intervention groups in patients who underwent medical management, endovascular procedures, or open surgical procedures. Fisher's exact test was used to assess the primary outcome among groups. Fifty-nine patients were enrolled in the trial initially, but 55 had 1-month follow-up (control n=28, intervention n=27) and 52 had long-term follow-up (control n=28, intervention n=24). By long-term follow-up, 40 patients (77%) had reduced smoking by at least 50% and 16 patients (31%) had quit completely. At long-term follow-up, 88% of patients in the intervention group and 68% of patients in the control group reduced smoking (P=0.1). A large proportion of vascular patients who received 2 weeks of nicotine replacement with or without the addition of brief smoking cessation counseling delivered by a vascular surgery provider were able to reduce smoking and maintain reduction after 6months. Delivery of a brief standardized smoking cessation counseling session by a vascular surgery provider is safe and feasible. Additional randomized controlled trials with large enrollment periods and long follow-up are needed to determine the efficacy of this intervention in comparison to standard care.