Traditional Lecture-based Course Research Articles

Rebooting nuclear medicine specialist education under the COVID-19 pandemic: From plenary lectures to active e-learning.

Despite major reforms of specialist training in the Nordic countries towards concrete learning outcomes and promoting active learning, most specialist courses continue to be based on lectures. We redesigned our mandatory 5-day course in clinical nuclear medicine (NM) that was last held in 2016 towards active learning. Thirty 1-h lectures were replaced with 10 thematic blocks of 3 h each. Each block was taught by a single teacher in a blend of short introductory lectures alternating with small groups of residents reading NM cases from our newly established national case library in diagnostic format. Due to COVID-19, the entire course in 2021 needed to be run on a videoconferencing system rather than in a computer laboratory as had been originally planned. At the end of the course, we conducted the same anonymized survey as in 2016. All 19 course participants responded. 74% fully agreed that the e-course format had been 'good'. One hundred per cent fully agreed that the practical exercises were 'useful' versus 50% in 2016 (p < 0.001). In their free text answers on the merits or downsides of e-learning, 12/12 respondents only mentioned advantages. Our newly established library of anonymized teaching cases within our national health network is an effective tool for organising courses based on active learning. Despite the change towards distance learning enforced by the pandemic, course participants reported the same high levels of satisfaction with active learning in small groups as in the earlier traditional lecture-based course format.

Interdisciplinary Project-Based Learning: Experiences and Reflections From Teaching Electronic Engineering in China

Continuous developments in the electronics industry have led to constantly changing career roles and graduate skills requirements. Students in the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China (UESTC) have complained that numerous courses in electronic engineering are heavily focused on theoretical knowledge that is disconnected from the needs of the industry. Thus, in an effort toward delivering student-centered educational programmes that meet the needs of the industry, this article introduces an innovative course that was developed using the project-based learning (PBL) method and situated in the electronic engineering undergraduate programme at UESTC. Since real-world engineering projects require teams to collaborate on ill-defined problems, we focused this innovative course on developing professional and technical skills, drawing from a range of more typical electronic engineering courses. We provide full details of two projects that were created for this PBL approach and evaluate them as practice examples that demonstrate the impact of this practical pedagogic innovation in UESTC. According to our evaluation, completed by all 40 of our enrolled students, our innovative course based on interdisciplinary PBL exercises demonstrated a significant improvement in student satisfaction and 65% of students preferred the interdisciplinary PBL course in comparison to traditional lecture-based courses.

A systematic review of using team-based learning in a pharmacokinetics course

Background: This systematic review aimed to summarise an application of team-based learning (TBL) in pharmacokinetics courses, to compare the learning outcomes of TBL to that of traditional lecture-based courses, and to identify the benefits of using a TBL strategy in pharmacokinetics courses. Method: PubMed, Scopus, and ERIC EBSCO databases were systematically searched, and 191 non-redundant articles were retrieved. Of these, seven articles were included. Results: Implementation of a TBL in pharmacokinetic courses resulted in several positive results including higher examination grades, improvement in professionalism aspects such as altruism, accountability, and honesty. Student engagement, peer learning, and the development of transferable skills could also be observed. Despite these positive benefits, some challenges exist, such as an increase in initial workload for faculty members, preparation of appropriate assignments, and suitable strategy to facilitate students. Conclusion: Future TBL implementation should be critically designed to optimise faculties’ workload and students’ engagement to the course.

Instructor strategies to aid implementation of active learning: a systematic literature review

BackgroundDespite the evidence supporting the effectiveness of active learning in undergraduate STEM courses, the adoption of active learning has been slow. One barrier to adoption is instructors’ concerns about students’ affective and behavioral responses to active learning, especially student resistance. Numerous education researchers have documented their use of active learning in STEM classrooms. However, there is no research yet that systematically analyzes these studies for strategies to aid implementation of active learning and address students’ affective and behavioral responses. In this paper, we conduct a systematic literature review and identify 29 journal articles and conference papers that researched active learning, affective and behavioral student responses, and recommended at least one strategy for implementing active learning. In this paper, we ask: (1) What are the characteristics of studies that examine affective and behavioral outcomes of active learning and provide instructor strategies? (2) What instructor strategies to aid implementation of active learning do the authors of these studies provide?ResultsIn our review, we noted that most active learning activities involved in-class problem solving within a traditional lecture-based course (N = 21). We found mostly positive affective and behavioral outcomes for students’ self-reports of learning, participation in the activities, and course satisfaction (N = 23). From our analysis of the 29 studies, we identified eight strategies to aid implementation of active learning based on three categories. Explanation strategies included providing students with clarifications and reasons for using active learning. Facilitation strategies entailed working with students and ensuring that the activity functions as intended. Planning strategies involved working outside of the class to improve the active learning experience.ConclusionTo increase the adoption of active learning and address students’ responses to active learning, this study provides strategies to support instructors. The eight strategies are listed with evidence from numerous studies within our review on affective and behavioral responses to active learning. Future work should examine instructor strategies and their connection with other affective outcomes, such as identity, interests, and emotions.

Reflections on Remote Teaching

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced us to reconsider the way we teach our students. The inability of UK-based lecturers to deliver via traditional lecture-based courses in China (due to ongoing travel restrictions) has been an obstacle to overcome but also an opportunity to investigate innovative remote-teaching methods. Here we review a case study based on teaching three different year groups at the Jinan University - University of Birmingham Joint Institute during the early part of 2020. We reflect on how technology was used, draw conclusions and discuss potential opportunities for the future of remote-teaching.

Student Perceptions of Team-Based Learning in the Criminal Justice Classroom

As instructors seek ways to increase student engagement and retention, several innovative pedagogical approaches have been developed that fosters critical thinking and quality group work. One of these approaches is Team-Based Learning (TBL), a flipped-classroom model that has been found to improve student outcomes and knowledge retention. While prior research has found students tend to have positive perceptions of TBL, these have been limited to other disciplines. The current study sought to examine how students perceive the use of TBL in two criminal justice courses through pre- and post-test surveys. Results indicated that students overall had positive perceptions of TBL as they found solving problems in teams to be effective and tended to prefer TBL to traditional lecture-based courses. Implications and future directions are also discussed.

P24 Exploration of Graduate Students’ Experience in a Flipped Course Using Learning Reflections

Objective To evaluate graduate students’ experience in a flipped advanced metabolism course using periodic learning reflections. Use of Theory or Research Although flipped learning seems to be beneficial for student learning, many studies comparing the flipped classroom to traditional lecture-based courses have focused on exam scores. This is not likely indicative of deeper level learning or how a student experiences the flipped classroom throughout the semester. Target Audience Two cohorts of graduate students (n = 17) in an advanced metabolism course that utilized a flipped learning approach during the fall 2017 and 2018 semesters were recruited. Program Description Students prepared for class by watching online videos and reading a textbook. In class, students worked in teams to apply material, in which the teacher served as a guide. Evaluation Methods Each student completed eight structured learning reflections throughout the semester. After the course ended, content analysis was applied to the learning reflections at each time point by two investigators. Themes were developed for each time point. Results Themes from the reflections aligned with the Staged Self-Directed Learning Model. At the beginning of the semester, students were motivated to learn (stage 2), but were frustrated with the time needed for preparation. Resistance to flipped learning peaked at week four of the semester and students reverted to being teacher-centered learners (stage 1). By the end of the semester, students continued to progress to involved learners (stage 3), and eventually self-directed learners (stage 4). Conclusions Even though students reported they were better self-directed learners at the end of the semester, it seems that students may have trouble with the flipped learning format during the first half of the semester. Because students reported feeling frustrated and anxious, instructors may need to adopt more scaffolding techniques with students initially. Funding None.

Blended learning in medical physiology improves nursing students' study efficiency.

The rapid development of mobile phones and communication networks is profoundly changing the lives of people in China. With the gradual growth of Wi-Fi on college and university campuses, Chinese schools are setting off a wave of teaching reform combining online material with traditional classroom instruction. We adapted a Chinese University massive open online course physiology course into a private university online course, specifically designed for second-semester bachelor's level nursing students at Taishan Medical University. This online course blended with classroom teaching was offered to 108 freshmen from two parallel reform classes. A third class of 55 students was offered the traditional classroom lecture-based course as a control. Impressive teaching effects were achieved in reform classes, as indicated by significant improvement in student performance on the final examination and positive student feedback. The student surveys showed that 68% of students preferred the blended course over traditional classroom courses. The most highly rated advantages of the blended course were flexible learning time (84%) and improvement of independent study skills (75%). As higher education enters the internet era, exploiting the high-quality cyber resources may be the fastest and most economical way to improve teaching efficiency and enhance students' study experience.

Student Attitudes toward Active Learning vs. Lecture in Cell Biology Instruction

Active learning increases performance in STEM courses, but many instructors are hesitant to adopt active-learning practices because they are afraid students will have negative attitudes toward them. It was hypothesized that students whose first college biology experience was in a course that used active learning would have more positive attitudes toward active learning than students who initially experienced a traditional lecture-based course. Students in an introductory Cell Biology course were queried regarding their attitudes toward active-learning practices used in the class. Responses to a Likert-scale survey indicated that students had positive attitudes toward active learning, and an analysis of variance indicated that there were no significant differences between the attitudes of students who had previously taken a lecture-based biology course at the same institution, students who had previously taken a biology course at another institution, and students who were enrolled in Cell Biology as their first college biology experience (n = 52, P = 0.530). Students strongly favored active-learning techniques over passive techniques but were less convinced of their learning benefits. Experienced students indicated that they preferred the teaching methods used in Cell Biology over the techniques used in their prior biology course. The results indicate that in the context of a small classroom setting, most students have positive attitudes toward active learning regardless of their prior biology lecture experiences.

The Role of EFL Teacher’s Talk and Identity in Iranian Classroom Context

Identity is a comprehensive and complicated concept in the process of language teaching and learning. The present study attempted to examine the effect of teachers’ talk and identity in the classroom context on EFL learners’ achievements. The Conversation Analysis (CA) approach was applied to gather and analyze naturally-occurring spoken interaction. The teachers’ interactions with their learners were audio-recorded and analyzed in terms of the IRF cycle (Initiation-Response-Feedback), turn-taking and renovate. The findings indicated that the plenty of interaction was assembled and retained through dissymmetrical and privileged relations. The teacher identified, and regulated most of the social actions that happened in the classroom context, most of which were also completely designed on a goal-oriented basis .It was concluded that it is time to re-assert the role of teacher as a dominant individual who controls learning inside and outside the classroom; educators and teachers should develop an instructional design that focuses on incorporating active learning and student-centered pedagogy into the traditional lecture-based courses.

Insights From the Science of Learning Can Inform Evidence-Based Implementation of Peer Instruction

Peer Instruction is a popular pedagogical method developed by Eric Mazur in the 1990s. Educational researchers, administrators, and teachers laud Peer Instruction as an easy-to-use teaching method that fosters active learning in K-12, undergraduate, and graduate classrooms across the globe. Research over the past 25 years has demonstrated that courses that incorporate Peer Instruction produce greater student achievement compared to traditional lecture-based courses. These empirical studies show that Peer Instruction produces a host of valuable learning outcomes, such as better conceptual understanding, more effective problem-solving skills, increased student engagement, and greater student retention in science majors. The diffusion of Peer Instruction has been widespread because of its effectiveness, simplicity, and the flexibility. However, a consequence of its flexibility is wide variability in implementation. Teachers frequently innovate or personalize the method by making modifications, and often such changes are made without research-supported guidelines or awareness of the potential impact on student learning. The present article presents a framework for guiding modifications to Peer Instruction based on theory and findings from the science of learning. We analyze the Peer Instruction method with the goal of helping teachers understand why it is effective. We also consider six common modifications made by educators through the lens of retrieval-based learning and offer specific guidelines to aid in effective implementation. Peer Instruction is a powerful way for educators to encourage active learning, but effective implementation requires making informed decisions about modifications. Educators must be free to innovate and adapt teaching methods to their classroom.

Two Case Studies Comparing Flipped Teaching and Online Teaching with the Traditional Lecture‐based Teaching

Flipped teaching has expanded into many classrooms over the recent years due to its student‐centered focus. Similarly, online teaching has also gained popularity due to the flexibility it offers to students. In the first case study, we compared scores on exams from the traditional lecture‐based teaching method with that of a flipped teaching style in a graduate level Advanced Human Physiology (NURS514) course for the Nurse Anesthesia (CRNA) students. In the second case study, we compared scores on exams between a traditional and an online NURS514 course from the Nurse Practitioner (NP) program between two semesters. Since the exam averages were consistently high in every exam whether it was lecture‐based or flipped teaching, there was no significant difference between the two methods of teaching among the CRNA classes. However, over 80% of the CRNA students reported that they would recommend flipped teaching in the future. The NP class, on the other hand, performed significantly better in their exams in the online course compared to the face‐to‐face class (p &lt; 0.05). The success with online student performance is partly due to the flexibility students have in pacing their learning through lecture videos instead of the continuous four‐hour weekly lectures in the face‐to‐face setting. Newer teaching methods such as flipped teaching and online class could successfully replace traditional lecture‐based courses.This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2018 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.

Assessment of the effects of using the cooperative learning pedagogy in a hybrid mechanics of materials course

Literature shows that the cooperative learning pedagogy increases engineering students’ performance in a traditional lecture-based course. This study investigated whether a similar positive effect ...

Gaming the Classroom: The Transformative Experience of Redesigning the Delivery of a Political Science Class

Game mechanics can motivate users beyond what is normally expected. Research has shown that this technique can be used to enhance the learning experience for students on all educational levels. The paper details the experiences of transforming traditional lecture-based courses in undergraduate political science to gamification and game-based learning, and it presents the reader with a toolkit for how to make such a conversion based on the author’s experiences. An overview of selected scholarly literature on teaching informs the reflection on this transformation. The paper concludes that gamification and game-based learning can provide benefits in political science education when leveraging formative assessment, flipped classrooms, and game-based learning. It also finds that there might be some institutional barriers to the adoption of these tools, primarily associated with the institutionalization of the bell curve as a guideline for the distribution of student grades. The paper ends with some reflections on possible future research areas DOI:10.2458/azu_itet_v5i2_hellstrom

Psychology course redesign: an interactive approach to learning in a micro-flipped classroom

A micro-flipped classroom combines the traditional lecture-based course and the flipped classroom for a blended mixture of the two pedagogical approaches. It allows the instructor time to lecture in class, while promoting more interactive discussions between the students. In this study, we compared the differences between a traditional lecture-based course and a micro-flipped course to see if there were differences in three exam grades and overall course grades. Exam specific analyses revealed that exams delivered in the early and mid-semester (Exams 1 and 2) resulted in slightly higher grades in the micro-flipped class group, and the statistically significant benefits of the micro-flipped course emerged during the third exam. We conclude that all increases in student performance are meaningful, and benefits of the micro-flipped classroom can be realized within the course of one semester.

Experiences Flipping an Undergraduate Advertising Course

This article discusses the positive outcomes of changing to a flipped classroom instructional approach and how creating a greater sense of influence and control for students in group projects can positively impact multiple measures of student performance and self-reported attitudes. Two sections completed the same readings and videos covering 13 course content modules. Rather than a traditional lecture-based course, most of the class time was used on experiential learning activities. Students worked with real-world clients to create advertising campaigns. One section completed research and pitched their ideas for a social media campaign to a franchise with over 50 restaurants. This section was seen as “low ownership” because students did not know if their ideas would be implemented. The second section created an integrated marketing campaign for an event on campus that drew over 400 attendees. This section is labelled as “high ownership” because the students felt more involved with their project as they imagined, created, and executed the advertising and organization for an event. Overall, most students in both sections preferred the flipped approach to traditional lecture. While the percent of videos watched and grades did not differ between the two sections, students in the high ownership section reported more interest in their project, were more likely to recommend keeping the flipped approach, were more likely to recommend the course to others, found the flipped classroom more interesting than lecture-only classes, and said they learned more using a flipped approach vs. a lecture-only class. These results demonstrate how flipped classrooms and experiential learning exercises with real-world results can improve marketing education.

Follow-up assessment of problem-based learning in dental alveolar surgery education: a pilot trial

Limited information exists on the effects of an oral and maxillofacial surgery integrated problem-based learning (PBL) course for dental undergraduates and the performance of these students after graduation. Therefore, we designed a PBL-implemented course with integrated dental alveolar surgery to evaluate its effects on the preparedness of graduates for clinical practice, their lifelong learning habits and their ability to collaborate, compared with the results of traditional courses. A randomised controlled trial was performed with 90 undergraduate students. The undergraduates were asked to perform a theoretical examination and to complete a clinical case analysis at the end of the course. Three years later, a follow-up survey was administered via a telephone interview and a questionnaire that measured self-perceived and supervisor-rated preparedness for clinical practice related to professional knowledge of dental alveolar surgery, lifelong learning habits, attitude and collaboration ability. All results were analysed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and a t-test. At the 3-year post-graduation time point, both PBL graduates and their supervisors rated their preparation for clinical practice as higher than those who received traditional lecture-based courses. In addition, the respondents in the PBL group believed that they were more likely than their counterparts in the traditional group to consult with professionals and other health-care staff members. No significant between-group differences were observed in the graduates' habits or lifelong learning attitudes. The PBL mode of teaching integrated dental alveolar surgery may improve preparedness for clinical practice and help undergraduates to develop the desire to collaborate.

The Ever Challenging Environment of Producing Knowledgeable and Skillful Graduates: Changing the Culture of Higher Education of Institutions in Teaching and Learning Approaches

The education system of modern society can be understood as an institution whose functions include its capacity to reproduce its host society, both economically and culturally [1]. Higher institution of learning is no more seen as a place of mass production of graduates willingly believes that they are now ready to perform their duties. The newly developing higher education system has expanded to prepare a new workforce which can assist in the economic growth of the nation and thus the outputs that fulfill this must be able to perform to the needs of the industry. What the industry wants is students too show that they have entered and translated into what they have learned practically. Thus, today educators and academicians has to aggressively re-look and change the teaching and learning approaches and environment in order to make the teaching and learning process more effective and relevant. It is not sufficient by merely changing the content of the curriculum but it is more than that. This paper analyses the feedback of students on the current method of teaching and learning in comparison to the contemporary approach of teaching such as active learning, outcome-based learning and problem-based learning. The study will also explore the process of integrating these active learning strategies into traditional lecture-based courses and also intend to underscore the motivation and incentives required for bringing about changes, and the support needed for sustaining and disseminating active learning approaches among the educators.

The use of debates as an active learning tool in a college of pharmacy healthcare delivery course

Background and purposeTo describe the use of debates, and to evaluate student performance and perceptions, when student debates are incorporated as an active learning tool in a required pharmacy healthcare delivery course. Educational activity and settingStudent live debates replaced 15% of a traditional lecture-based course. Twelve healthcare controversies were debated by student teams each year. Student perception of debate utility and opinion on topics, pre- and post-debate, were measured via a voluntary survey. Both peer and instructor's assessments of team performances, as well as individual student performance on the debate-based questions on course exams, contributed to course grade. FindingsThe average survey response rates were 76% (2014) and 86% (2015). Fifteen-54% of student respondents changed their opinion on individual debate topics due to the debates. Although exam performance on debate-based questions was no better than on lecture-based questions, respondents who found the debates useful or very useful in mastering course material increased by 19% post versus pre-debate surveys. SummaryDebates are an effective active learning tool for engaging students in controversial subjects. Assessment of student performance should include student and instructor evaluations, and can be incorporated into the course grade.

Learning about Chemiosmosis and ATP Synthesis with Animations Outside of the Classroom.

Many undergraduate biology courses have begun to implement instructional strategies aimed at increasing student interaction with course material outside of the classroom. Two examples of such practices are introducing students to concepts as preparation prior to instruction, and as conceptual reinforcement after the instructional period. Using a three-group design, we investigate the impact of an animation developed as part of the Virtual Cell Animation Collection on the topic of concentration gradients and their role in the actions of ATP synthase as a means of pre-class preparation or post-class reinforcement compared with a no-intervention control group. Results from seven sections of introductory biology (n = 732) randomized to treatments over two semesters show that students who viewed animation as preparation (d = 0.44, p < 0.001) or as reinforcement (d = 0.53, p < 0.001) both outperformed students in the control group on a follow-up assessment. Direct comparison of the preparation and reinforcement treatments shows no significant difference in student outcomes between the two treatment groups (p = 0.87). Results suggest that while student interaction with animations on the topic of concentration gradients outside of the classroom may lead to greater learning outcomes than the control group, in the traditional lecture-based course the timing of such interactions may not be as important.