Perceptions Of Undergraduate Students Research Articles

Pre-Service Teachers’ Assessment of ChatGPT’s Utility in Higher Education: SWOT and Content Analysis

ChatGPT (GPT-3.5), an intelligent Web-based tool capable of conducting text-based conversations akin to human interaction across various subjects, has recently gained significant popularity. This surge in interest has led researchers to examine its impact on numerous fields, including education. The aim of this paper is to investigate the perceptions of undergraduate students regarding ChatGPT’s utility in academic environments, focusing on its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. It responds to emerging challenges in educational technology, such as the integration of artificial intelligence in teaching and learning processes. The study involved 257 students from two university departments in Greece—namely primary and early childhood education pre-service teachers. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire. Various methods were employed for data analysis, including descriptive statistics, inferential analysis, K-means clustering, and decision trees. Additional insights were obtained from a subset of students who undertook a project in an elective course, detailing the types of inquiries made to ChatGPT and their reasons for recommending (or not recommending) it to their peers. The findings offer valuable insights for tutors, researchers, educational policymakers, and ChatGPT developers. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, these issues have not been dealt with by other researchers.

University students facilitating hip hop in a community engagement project: experiences and perceptions

ABSTRACT Hip hop is the most popular music in the US and remains on the fringes of the music education profession as both under-integrated, researched, and utilised. The purpose of this project was to investigate the experiences and perceptions of undergraduate music students who facilitated a hip hop project with hip hop experts in a local youth arts organisation located in the southeastern region of the US. As a qualitative investigation, analysis of these data revealed four themes associated with undergraduate music student experiences, which included (1) adaptability, (2) connection, (3) discomfort, and (4) impact. These data suggest direct influences on participant understandings related to hip hop with implications for the field of music education to include hip hop experiences in democratic and learner-led classrooms.

Perceptions of undergraduate medical students on artificial intelligence in medicine: mixed-methods survey study from Palestine

BackgroundThe current applications of artificial intelligence (AI) in medicine continue to attract the attention of medical students. This study aimed to identify undergraduate medical students’ attitudes toward AI in medicine, explore present AI-related training opportunities, investigate the need for AI inclusion in medical curricula, and determine preferred methods for teaching AI curricula.MethodsThis study uses a mixed-method cross-sectional design, including a quantitative study and a qualitative study, targeting Palestinian undergraduate medical students in the academic year 2022–2023. In the quantitative part, we recruited a convenience sample of undergraduate medical students from universities in Palestine from June 15, 2022, to May 30, 2023. We collected data by using an online, well-structured, and self-administered questionnaire with 49 items. In the qualitative part, 15 undergraduate medical students were interviewed by trained researchers. Descriptive statistics and an inductive content analysis approach were used to analyze quantitative and qualitative data, respectively.ResultsFrom a total of 371 invitations sent, 362 responses were received (response rate = 97.5%), and 349 were included in the analysis. The mean age of participants was 20.38 ± 1.97, with 40.11% (140) in their second year of medical school. Most participants (268, 76.79%) did not receive formal education on AI before or during medical study. About two-thirds of students strongly agreed or agreed that AI would become common in the future (67.9%, 237) and would revolutionize medical fields (68.7%, 240). Participants stated that they had not previously acquired training in the use of AI in medicine during formal medical education (260, 74.5%), confirming a dire need to include AI training in medical curricula (247, 70.8%). Most participants (264, 75.7%) think that learning opportunities for AI in medicine have not been adequate; therefore, it is very important to study more about employing AI in medicine (228, 65.3%). Male students (3.15 ± 0.87) had higher perception scores than female students (2.81 ± 0.86) (p < 0.001). The main themes that resulted from the qualitative analysis of the interview questions were an absence of AI learning opportunities, the necessity of including AI in medical curricula, optimism towards the future of AI in medicine, and expected challenges related to AI in medical fields.ConclusionMedical students lack access to educational opportunities for AI in medicine; therefore, AI should be included in formal medical curricula in Palestine.

Enhancing employability through university-industry linkages: Omani engineering students’ perspectives of the Eidaad internship programme

Like many Middle East and North Africa countries, one of the main socio-economic challenges facing Oman is the creation of meaningful graduate employment opportunities. A combination of factors that include the gap between the expertise and skills acquired in higher education and workforce requirements means many students struggle to find suitable jobs upon graduation. Consequently, providing quality education and developing national talents are key objectives of the country’s Vision 2040 development roadmap. Higher levels of cooperation between tertiary institutions and industry within the framework of government policy are necessary to achieve these outcomes. This study explores undergraduate engineering student perceptions of one example of this collaboration – the Eidaad internship programme. To better understand interns’ perceptions of the programme’s personal and professional benefit across targeted areas and means for further improvement, a three-part on-line questionnaire was administered to current and former programme participants. Results indicate overwhelmingly positive perceptions of the programme, including in terms of enhancing interns’ teamwork skills, workplace participation, communication skills, clarity of career plans and objectives, and so on. Participant suggestions for improvement include the creation of concrete employment pathways and the provision of further on-the-job training opportunities. Implications for the Eidaad and similar internship programmes are discussed.

Understanding Perceptions of Undergraduate Students on Academic Plagiarism

Plagiarism, as a type of academic misconduct, is a significant issue in higher education institutions and is described as the spreading of moral panic in academics. Prompted by concerns with the frequency of plagiarism, this investigation examined undergraduate students' perceptions of academic misconduct, forms of plagiarism, and the underlying causes of plagiarism among first- and second-year biology and chemistry majors at the University of Guyana, Turkeyen campus in 2018. The paper also presents students’ recommendations on how to best address the issue in the program. Although the findings of this study cannot be generalised, it was found that more than 90% of students who participated were acquainted with the interpretation of the terms academic misconduct and plagiarism but still plagiarized. Interestingly, the most prevalent form of plagiarism was found to be substituting the author's words with synonyms while maintaining the overall organization and meaning of the original work, and the most common cause of plagiarism was determined to be heavy assessment workload. According to this survey, students favoured penalties over grade loss when it came to avoiding plagiarism. Ultimately, the results reveal how conscious students are of academic integrity and strategies that could lower the quantity of plagiarism cases at the institution.

Entrepreneurship Education Position and Entrepreneurial Intention: The Perception of Malaysian Undergraduate Students

The objective of this study is to evaluate the influence of Entrepreneurship education factors, as well as personal attitude, perceived behavioural control, and subjective norms on entrepreneurial intentions among undergraduate students. Primary data were obtained from 311 final year students at public universities in east coast Malaysia involving two fields of study (social sciences and science and technology). Descriptive and multiple regression methods were used to analyse the study data. Entrepreneurship education was found to be positively and significantly related to entrepreneurial intention in social science students and the overall study sample. Both variables under the category of entrepreneurial cognitive factors (Personal attitude and Perceived behavioural control) revealed a significant positive influence on entrepreneurial intention. Meanwhile, only for the overall sample did the perceived subjective norm factor have a positively significant relationship with entrepreneurial intention. The findings of the study also revealed that social science students showed higher entrepreneurial intentions compared to science and technology students. This study can accentuate to policymakers and university management that the formation of entrepreneurial intentions among students is dependent not only on cognitive factors, but also on the empowerment of the entrepreneurship curriculum and the entrepreneurship ecosystem on campus.

A scoping review of the questionnaires used for the assessment of the perception of undergraduate students of the learning environment in healthcare professions education programs.

The learning environment (LE) includes social interactions, organizational culture, structures, and physical and virtual spaces that influence the learning experiences of students. Despite numerous studies exploring the perception of healthcare professional students (HCPS) of their LE, the validity evidence of the utilized questionnaires remains unclear. This scoping review aimed to identify questionnaires used to examine the perception of undergraduate HCPS of their LE and to assess their validity evidence. Five key concepts were used: (1) higher education; (2) questionnaire; (3) LE; (4) perception; and (5) health professions (HP). PubMed, ERIC, ProQuest, and Cochrane databases were searched for studies developing or adapting questionnaires to examine LE. This review employed the APERA standards of validity evidence and Beckman et al. (J Gen Intern Med 20:1159-1164, 2005) interpretation of these standards according to 5 categories: content, internal structure, response process, relation to other variables, and consequences. Out of 41 questionnaires included in this review, the analysis revealed a predominant emphasis on content and internal structure categories. However, less than 10% of the included questionnaires provided information in relation to other variables, consequences, and response process categories. Most of the identified questionnaires received extensive coverage in the fields of medicine and nursing, followed by dentistry. This review identified diverse questionnaires utilized for examining the perception of students of their LE across different HPs. Given the limited validity evidence for existing questionnaires, future research should prioritize the development and validation of psychometric measures. This will ultimately ensure sound and evidence-based quality improvement measures of the LE in HP education programs.

Assessment of Understanding And Perception of Undergraduate Medical Students Regarding Medico-legal Autopsy

Objective: To address the declining interest in forensic medicine and contribute to curriculum improvements by identifying knowledge gaps and exploring perceptions of undergraduate medical students in Pakistan regarding autopsies. It seeks to investigate the impact of autopsy exposure on students' attitudes toward pursuing forensic medicine as a career. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional study based on a questionnaire was conducted among 272 third and fourth-year MBBS students at a private medical college, over a six-month period. Results: According to the results of this study, most of the of students correctly understand the basic purpose of forensic postmortem examination, which is to determine the cause of death. However, there are knowledge gaps in understanding the legal and procedural aspects of autopsy. Additionally, the study highlights the students' perception of autopsy, with a substantial portion feeling uncomfortable or considering it disrespectful to the body. Conclusion: The findings provide insights into how the curriculum can be enhanced to prepare medical students for the ethical, emotional, and professional aspects of forensic pathology.

Sun Exposure and Usage of Sun Protection: Knowledge, Perception and Practice among University Students.

Exposure to the sun is vital for the body but is associated with problem ranging from pigmentation to cancer. Therefore, knowledge about protective measures is critical. This study aims to assess undergraduate students' knowledge, perception and practices towards the adverse effects of sun exposure and the usage of sun-protective measures. A cross-sectional study was conducted between 1 September 2022 and 20 September 2022 using a web-based questionnaire. Undergraduate students from medical and non-medical colleges in Iraqi universities participated in this study. Descriptive and inferential statistics and logistic regression were performed to analyse the data. A total of 655 students participated in this study. The knowledge level of more than one-half of the students (53%) was inadequate. Approximately three-quarters of the study sample used sunscreens products. Skin type was the main factor in choosing the appropriate sunscreen product. Media and advice from specialists were the main factors affecting participants' usage of sunscreens. Gender (females), college (medical), year(s) of study (sixth), residence (urban), daily sun exposure (1 h-3 h) and less-than-normal vitamin D levels were found to be significantly associated with better knowledge (P-value < 0.05). Age, gender, being a student in medical colleges and not knowing vitamin D levels were found to be significant predictors of participants' knowledge. The low level of knowledge reported among the participants' calls for more attention from health authorities in educating the public about the harmful effects of sun exposure and the importance of adopting protective measures.

Attitudes, Behaviors, and Perceptions of Students Vaping in Three Mexican Universities.

The increase in the popularity and use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) has consistently risen worldwide and has become associated with adverse health outcomes. This study has identified the attitudes and perceptions of undergraduate students who vape in three universities in Mexico. A cross-sectional study involving 495 participants was conducted using a survey from October to December 2023. Three universities in different states in Mexico collaborated with colleges in Yucatan, Durango, and Nuevo Leon, Mexico. Descriptive statistics include frequencies and percentages, and four logistic regression models were employed. In the sample, 31% and 17.54% of participants reported smoking and vaping, respectively. Students who reported vaping in the last month reported that their first experience with vaping was at an average of 17.3 years of age, and of those, 71.26% (n = 62) reported having vaped for over 100 days, while the remaining 38% reported vaping for between 2 and 100 days. Students from Veracruz and Yucatan began vaping at a younger age than in the central and northern regions. There is a need to educate students about the dangers of the chemicals in the liquids they use, the secondary exposure vapers, and the health dangers they pose.

Knowledge, Perception, and Practice of Safe Medical Circumcision on HIV Infection Risk Reduction among Undergraduate Students of a Public University in Northern Uganda: A Cross-Sectional Study.

About 70% (25.6 million) of the global HIV/AIDS burden is from Sub-Saharan Africa. Safe male circumcision (SMC) is one of the measures that were adopted by the Ugandan government aimed at reducing the risk of HIV infection contraction, as recommended by the WHO. Its main goal was to maximize HIV prevention impact with voluntary medical circumcision services to all adult men and adolescent boys. The objective of our study was to assess the knowledge, perception, and practice of safe medical circumcision on HIV infection risk reduction among undergraduate students of a public university in Northern Uganda. We conducted a cross-sectional survey among 556 randomly selected Lira University undergraduate students from March 2023 to June 2023. With the use of a self-administered questionnaire, we collected data on the knowledge and perceptions of undergraduate students towards safe medical circumcision. Data were exported to Stata® 17 statistical software. Univariate, bivariate, and multivariate regression analyses were done at a statistical level of significance P value < 0.05. Our 556 study participants had an age range of 21-25 years. The majority (81.29%) of the respondents knew that safe medical circumcision reduces the risk of acquiring HIV. However, the perception is that close to 3 in 4 (74.46%) of the students were unsure if they would opt for safe medical circumcision as risk reduction measure against HIV. The practice of safe medical circumcision was 64.8% among the study participants. More than three in four of the undergraduate students have knowledge on safe medical circumcision as risk reduction measure for HIV infection. And close to 3 in 4 (74.46%) of the student's perception were unsure if they would opt for safe medical circumcision as risk reduction measure against HIV. The practice of safe medical circumcision was 64.8% among the study participants. Therefore, in an effort to increase SMC's adoption for HIV/AIDS prevention, the Ministry of Health of Uganda and related stakeholders in health should work hand in hand with university study bodies in order to optimize SMC uptake among university students.

IJCM_138A: Small group teaching- Perceptions of Students and Faculty of a Medical College in Mangalore, India

Background: The demands on Medical Education have greatly increased in the 21st century. For this very reason, there has been an unprecedented growth in the number of medical colleges in India. The teacher’s role is to facilitate rather than to direct, to coordinate as much as to communicate. Small group teaching offers students’ opportunity to discuss and refine their understanding of complex issues, to problem solve and apply their knowledge to new situations and to reflect on their attitudes and feelings. The study aims to assess the perception of undergraduate medical students regarding small group teaching, the perception of faculty regarding Small group teaching, compare the perception of students on small group teaching, with respect to their academic performance and attendance. Methodology: 93 faculty and 499 undergraduate MBBS students participated in the study and were given a self- administered semi-structured questionnaire. The perception of undergraduate students and teaching faculty on small group teaching was assessed using the 5-point Likert Scale. Independent t-test was applied to find difference in mean perception. Students were categorized based on their academic performance and on their attendance aggregate for the concluded semester. Results: In total, 404 students and 45 faculty members responded thus giving response rates of 80.9% and 48.4% respectively. The overall response rate was 75.8% Conclusion: The study found that both students and faculty members are favorable to the concept of SGT. They found it not only enhances the academic performance of students but also contributes to the personality development of students. Clinical correlations in all the subjects is well appreciated by students and faculty. Suggestions for improvement of SGT such as exam-oriented study, use of innovative and interactive aids can make SGT sessions more effective.

The Perception of Undergraduate Students From Different Educational Systems on Sustainability

Sustainable education is key to advancing environmental awareness and global responsibility. Institutional procedures can provide pressure points and opportunities to help foster the mainstreaming of sustainable development. This study aims to analyze how higher-level educational institutions influence environmental awareness and global responsibility in engineering students by evaluating the perception and knowledge of sustainability issues in three universities with different educational systems. This study considers the results of a questionnaire from a sample of 620 industrial engineering students from a Higher Education Institution in northern Mexico. The application of the instrument was random among students from the fourth to ninth semester. The survey included items on demographic aspects, behavior, knowledge, attitudes, and how the educational institution fosters sustainable practices. Only 16% understand sustainable development in the three axes, and 50% recognize that they play an essential role in promoting a sustainable culture. The results show that students do not clearly understand the scope and environmental benefits of implementing, creatively and assertively, environmental innovation through savings and optimization in the matter, time, and natural resources. The findings offer an opportunity for educational institutions to raise awareness and incorporate new measures and strategies to implement sustainability among their students.

Undergraduate Students’ Perception of Social Media Use: Opportunities and Threats

Studies on the effective use of social media for academic purposes are not new, but limited studies exist on undergraduate students’ perceived social media use. Anchored on Grounded Theory, this study explored undergraduate student perception of social media use at two universities in the Philippines and the Kyrgyz Republic. Results show that undergraduates use social media for communication, education, awareness of current events, entertainment, self-expression, doing and engaging in business, and as a source of motivation and inspiration. Moreover, the perceived negative impact of social media use includes a negative impact on health, productivity, psychological and mental health, socialization, and information veracity. Slight differences between the two groups were noted. A reflection on the opportunities and threats of social media use deduced from the findings vis-à-vis the literature are provided.

Metaphorical perceptions of undergraduate tourism students towards the concepts of English and Professional English: the case of Türkiye-Spain

The primary purpose of this research is to determine the metaphorical perceptions of the student’s tourism in Türkiye and Spain regarding the concepts of English and professional English and to compare these perceptions. The phenomenology technique was adopted and used in this research. The data were collected in person using a two-question questionnaire. A purposeful sampling technique was used for this research. Data were collected from May 24 to May 28, 2022. The content analysis method was applied in the analysis of the research data. The results show that students' metaphorical perceptions of English and Professional English concepts are positive and different. The research findings show that English and professional English learning interact with the inner worlds of the students.

Viés Alternativo Para a Compreensão do Mundo? Uma Análise da Percepção de Graduandos em Ciências Biológicas Sobre Pseudociência

Pseudoscience is able to deceive even the most skeptical individuals due to its tactic of mimicking the processes of science, from simulating a methodology and a scientific language, to inducing a rationality. Therefore, considering this trick of pseudoscience, this study aimed to analyze the perception of undergraduate students in Biological Sciences about the general characteristics of pseudoscience, since these students are in the process of training and may act to combat the anti-science front. To achieve our goal, we applied a questionnaire of agreement with a Likert-type scale, and its results were analyzed from the average ranking of the answers obtained. In total, 56 undergraduate and 32 bachelor students participated. The results of the research show that students do not differentiate scientific denialism from pseudoscience and remain in a field of neutrality, when dealing with the criterion of falsifiability to characterize the Sciences.

Effects Of Online Peer Learning On Speaking Performance And Language Learning Anxiety

This study investigated the effects of an online peer learning program on undergraduate student English speaking proficiency, language anxiety, and perceptions of online peer learning. The study adopted a case study design and recruited 32 undergraduate students from the Department of Applied Foreign Languages at a university in central Taiwan. The online peer learning program improved students’ English communication skills and reduced students’ learning anxiety by facilitating interactions with online foreign peers. Quantitative data from oral proficiency tests and the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale were collected before and after the online peer learning program. Qualitative data were analyzed and coded to determine students’ perceptions of the online peer learning program. A significant improvement in the students’ oral proficiency was observed in the pretest and posttest scores. However, no significant reduction in overall speaking anxiety levels was noted, although the students reported a noticeable decrease in anxiety levels following the intervention, particularly when they talked about general or familiar topics. The results of this study demonstrate that the online peer learning program effectively enhanced the speaking proficiency of students of English as a foreign language and moderately alleviated their learning anxiety. On the basis of these findings, this study provides suggestions for foreign language teachers.

Perception of undergraduate students of Nigeria’s premier university on the use of emergency remote teaching during Covid-19

This study reports preliminary findings on undergraduate students’ perception of the Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, during Covid-19. Proportional to size sampling was used in obtaining the sample size of 366, while respondents were selected using convenience sampling. Data collection was through a structured questionnaire containing both open and closed ended questions and data was collected on the factors - attitude, affect, motivation; perceived behavioural control (accessibility, self-efficacy, ease of use,); and cognitive engagement. Findings showed that students’ positive attitude towards face-to-face learning was significantly higher than towards ERT and correlation analysis showed a relationship between preference for face-to-face learning and struggling with ERT. Also, the average difference in students’ motivation for learning before and after commencement of ERT was not statistically significant. Students reported more frequent use of educational technologies after ERT commenced than before and the difference was statistically significant. Increase was reported in all the self-efficacy and cognitive engagement constructs. Positive changes reported were mainly acquisition of additional hobbies as well as business, social and technology skills. Challenges to online learning included poor power supply, cost of data subscription, network disruptions and distractions from family and friends.

Video Conferencing in Music Performance Learning from The Perspective of Selected Music Students

Video conferencing has become part of the new norm in music education and music performance since the world was affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. From solo to large-ensemble music, people can watch live musical performances through their smartphones, computers, televisions, or any internet-connected device. Therefore, this study focuses on documenting the perceptions of undergraduate students from the UiTM Faculty of Music towards online music performance learning. To gather necessary information, a survey was distributed, enquiring the selected UiTM music students about their experiences engaging in one-to-one studio lessons and other performance-based lessons in an online environment and the advantages and disadvantages of video conference streaming from their perspectives. The outcomes of this study provided the required information that can serve as a practical guide or point of reference to music lecturers and students who want to incorporate online platforms in their teaching and learning method, whether through synchronous or asynchronous approaches, especially when it involves demonstrating music performance skills. Through observing and analysing the survey results regarding significant issues within the online learning environment, this study outlines and justifies how potential improvements in the online music performance classes can be realised based on the suggestions of those who took the survey, which will benefit the musicians, music educators and music students in Malaysia.

Student perception of the use of Information and Communication Technologies in undergraduate course in veterinary medicine

The aim of this study was to assess the perception of undergraduate students in Veterinary Medicine regarding the use of Information and Communication Technologies at a Higher Education Institution in São Luís - MA. To this end, a descriptive and quantitative exploratory study was carried out with 47 regularly enrolled students, using a questionnaire with closed questions applied using the Google forms®platform to collect data. It was observed that the vast majority of students have a computer, but use their smartphone as their main means of accessing the internet. They surf for more than 3 hours a day for entertainment, research and communication purposes. It was also observed that the students have a good knowledge of digital tools and say that it is important to use technological tools to understand the content, as they facilitate learning and report that these technologies should be used in all subjects on the course. Increasingly, the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) is part of theoretical and practical studies in all areas of knowledge. And this study has made it possible to reflect on its intensification and use in veterinary medicine courses.