scholarly journals Learning Literacies through collaborative enquiry; collaborative enquiry through learning literacies

2012 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jo Ashley ◽  
Freya Jarman ◽  
Tunde Varga-Atkins ◽  
Nedim Hassan
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Study Skills ◽  
Learning Task ◽  
First Year ◽  
Student Survey ◽  
University Departments ◽  
Digital World ◽  
Academic Information ◽  
Collaboration And Communication ◽  
Central Services

The extent to which university departments foster learning literacies that equip students with the diverse skills required for employment in a digital world is an issue that is under increased scrutiny in British higher education. The Learning Literacies in the Digital Age report (LLiDA by Beetham et al. 2009) offers a framework of learning literacies, which encompasses a range of literacies including academic, information, digital and media literacies. Building on the LLiDA framework, this article outlines and discusses an approach that aimed to extend the development of information literacies of first-year undergraduate students along with digital and media literacies. The central characteristics of this approach involved students working collaboratively, in teams, on an enquiry-based learning task using the institutional virtual learning environment’s wiki tool. The task involved developing and creating a wiki on exactly the kind of learning literacies that students were meant to acquire during this enquiry. This dual development was underpinned by the collaborative input of staff from academic and central services departments. Student survey feedback and observation were used to map the various gains in the areas of 1) collaboration and communication skills, 2) information literacy (IL), academic practice (study skills) and employability skills, 3) media and digital/computer literacies and, finally, 4) disciplinary skills. The findings confirm the usefulness of the LLiDA framework as well as point to its potential for further development to map literacies specific to the discipline.

scholarly journals Changes in approaches to learning over three years of university undergraduate study

2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 65 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fiona McDonald ◽  
John Reynolds ◽  
Ann Bixley ◽  
Rachel Spronken-Smith
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Study Skills ◽  
Approaches To Learning ◽  
First Year ◽  
Learning Approaches ◽  
Strategic Learning ◽  
Anatomy And Physiology ◽  
Undergraduate Study ◽  
Science Degree ◽  
Surface Learning

This study aimed to evaluate and compare approaches to learning by a longitudinal cohort of undergraduate students as they progressed from their first to third years of study in anatomy and physiology. The Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST) wascompleted at the beginning and end of their first year of university study, and in their final semester. At first year, a surface learning approach predominated; however, at third year, students showed a significant increase in their use of deep and strategic learning approaches compared to first year, although surface learning approaches were retained. The extent to which third-year students took both strategic and deep approaches to learning was positively correlated with their performance on assessment. As students progress through a three-year science degree, they develop deeper and more strategic learning approaches, and assessment and teaching styles probably promote these approaches to learning.

scholarly journals Effects of University Preparation and Engagement on Achievement

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Elizabeth Marie Chinlund
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Study Skills ◽  
School Achievement ◽  
First Year ◽  
University Preparation ◽  
Academic Challenge ◽  
University Degree ◽  
First Year University ◽  
Mainstream Students

<p>This study comprised an investigation of the longitudinal achievement of New Zealand first-year undergraduate students (n=967) who transitioned to their degrees through the Certificate of University Preparation (CUP) programme at Victoria University of Wellington between 2008 and 2012 and the role of preparation and engagement on their achievement. Certain student behaviours, development of study skills, importance of academic challenge, and emphasis on academic support were all correlated with later university achievement. Although engagement is a highly acclaimed concept, its links to achievement were unsubstantiated. Using linear regressions, students' academic perseverance and their achievement in CUP each uniquely predicted first-year university degree programme achievement. CUP students' university achievement was higher than mainstream students with similar secondary school achievement, based on a statistical model of achievement that accounted for the relative difficulty of achieving each result. These findings indicate that the CUP programme was effective in preparing learners to access and achieve in university.</p>

scholarly journals "Opening Doors Early to Academic Integrity" – aiding the transition to and managing expectations of academic practice at University

2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith Jurowska ◽  
John Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Academic Integrity ◽  
Study Skills ◽  
English Language ◽  
Pilot Project ◽  
Learning Technologies ◽  
Virtual Learning Environment ◽  
First Year ◽  
Essay Writing ◽  
Using Data

The Geography Department at Durham University has long recognized that Freshers/newly arrived undergraduate students are suddenly asked to juggle a whole new skills set on arrival at University, often without the level of assistance they have previously experienced at school. As Smith states: The first year is widely acknowledged as a critical period in determining a students? success at University. However, the period immediately prior to commencing University is also critical. (Smith, 2010, p. 1) This pilot project was designed to help new undergraduate students understand the differences between studying at school and reading for a degree (this British-English term is useful in this context as it refers to a requirement for students to read widely and engage critically with their "major" discipline) and to becoming active participants in a community of practice while at university. Collaboration between the Geography Department, English Language Centre, Learning Technologies and University Library developed a set of discipline specific study skills exercises, based around the concept of Academic Integrity. The study skills packages were launched within the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) on September 1, 2011 with an expectation that students would have completed the tasks by mid-October. Answers were collected using the test canvas and students received comprehensive online feedback after they submitted their responses. Postgraduate tutors and module convenors monitoring answers were able to identify areas of concern in terms of student comprehension, powers of analysis and identifying which students had not engaged with the tasks. Using data from focus groups with tutors, student surveys and comparison of essay writing performance over past years, we were able to show that cases of recorded plagiarism had fallen to zero saving staff time on plagiarism panels, whilst there was a marked improvement of marks from 2:2 to 2:1 grades.

scholarly journals Effects of University Preparation and Engagement on Achievement

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Elizabeth Marie Chinlund
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Study Skills ◽  
School Achievement ◽  
First Year ◽  
University Preparation ◽  
Academic Challenge ◽  
University Degree ◽  
First Year University ◽  
Mainstream Students

<p>This study comprised an investigation of the longitudinal achievement of New Zealand first-year undergraduate students (n=967) who transitioned to their degrees through the Certificate of University Preparation (CUP) programme at Victoria University of Wellington between 2008 and 2012 and the role of preparation and engagement on their achievement. Certain student behaviours, development of study skills, importance of academic challenge, and emphasis on academic support were all correlated with later university achievement. Although engagement is a highly acclaimed concept, its links to achievement were unsubstantiated. Using linear regressions, students' academic perseverance and their achievement in CUP each uniquely predicted first-year university degree programme achievement. CUP students' university achievement was higher than mainstream students with similar secondary school achievement, based on a statistical model of achievement that accounted for the relative difficulty of achieving each result. These findings indicate that the CUP programme was effective in preparing learners to access and achieve in university.</p>

scholarly journals INTERVENSI BERBASIS WEB SWADAYA TERAPI SEBAGAI ALTERNATIF PROGRAM PENINGKATAN KETERAMPILAN BELAJAR MAHASISWA

2014 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 129
Author(s):  
Eka Wahyuni, Djunaedi, Nabilah
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Therapeutic Intervention ◽  
Study Skills ◽  
Intervention Study ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Active Participant ◽  
Digital World ◽  
Self Help ◽  
Key Word

Abstract: This research investigates conceptual framework and empirical bases of web-based self-help therapeuticintervention as an alternative programme to enhance students’ study skills in higher education. Urgency to provideonline services through web-based self-help therapeutic intervention is indicated by students’ digital participationand study skills result. In this study, 326 college students participated in the survey involving 7 faculties in TheState University of Jakarta. The result shows that more than fifty per cent of undergraduate students in State Universityof Jakarta have low study skills. This condition has to proactively respond by online programme provisiondue to boost students’ achievement. As an active participant in digital world, students would prefer more to onlineservices namely self-help web-based therapeutic intervention. Based on the findings, suggestions and implicationwere made for Tanya Binga website. Key word: self-help web-based therapeutic intervention, study skills.

scholarly journals Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST) in an Introductory Course in Chemistry.

2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 66-78
Author(s):  
Stephen Brown ◽  
◽  
Sue White ◽  
Lara Wakeling ◽  
Mani Naiker ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Learning Style ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Study Skills ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
First Year ◽  
Strategic Learning ◽  
Surface Approach ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Approaches To Study ◽  
Surface Learning

Approaches to study and learning may enhance or undermine educational outcomes, and thus it is important for educators to be knowledgeable about their students’ approaches to study and learning. TheApproaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students(ASSIST) – a 52 item inventory which identifies three learning styles (Deep, Strategic, and Surface), was given to first year undergraduate students undertaking an introductory chemistry course. Completed inventories (n=103, 85% response), included 30 BSc Biomedicine, 15 BSc Food and Nutrition, 22 BSc Geology, 18 BSc Science students, and a further 18 students on unnamed BSc pathways. The dominant learning style adopted was the Surface approach, with a mean score (SD) of 2.94 (0.54). The preference of the surface approach was consistent for all BSc pathways.There was a higher mean score for the strategic learning style in males (n= 59) compared to females (n=44) with no gender-based differences in either the deep or the surface learning styles.A surface approach may not necessarily indicate a lack of interest in chemistry, rather chemistry may be perceived as being peripheral to the students’ interests – this may be a problem when students with a diverse range of career aspirations study common content in large, first year introductory courses. Identifying students that adopt a surface learning style at an early stage in the undergraduate education journey is an important step in effectively targeting educational resources aimed at enhancing students’ learning habits.

scholarly journals CoLecTer KIN: Mobile Application for Collaborative Bilingual Glossary Compilation in the ESP Classroom

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-106
Author(s):  
Martina Paradiž
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Mobile Applications ◽  
Mobile Application ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
First Year ◽  
Student Survey ◽  
Collaborative Project ◽  
Mobile Assisted Language Learning ◽  
Technology In Teaching

The ubiquitous use of smartphones has shown to offer great advantages in language learning, which still remain to be harnessed in the field of mobile-assisted language learning (MALL), ESP teaching and translator training in higher education. Language teachers are predominantly the users of existing mobile applications and not their producers, which may narrow their range of choices and options in using mobile technology in teaching. This paper presents the results of a student survey on the usability, perceived benefits, and feedback on the features of an Android mobile application built by the author. The CoLecTer KIN application was used by first-year undergraduate students of Applied Kinesiology in a collaborative project of compiling a Slovene-English bilingual glossary of topic-specific terminology. The design of the application makes it suitable for use in the ESP and translation classroom and in collaborative translation projects.

Acquiring business knowledge through Business English reading materials: pre-experience students’ perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 433-451
Author(s):  
Jolanta Łącka-Badura
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Tertiary Education ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Basic Knowledge ◽  
First Year ◽  
Student Survey ◽  
Business English ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Reading Materials ◽  
Based Instruction

Abstract The paper investigates how the type of business content found in the reading materials offered by a popular Business English course book as well as the degree of the content’s relevance and usefulness, are perceived by pre-service students learning Business English as part of their university curriculum. Twelve groups of first year undergraduate students at the University of Economics in Katowice, with no prior experience of learning either Business English or the principles of business, were asked to compare pairs of texts related to three business topics: international marketing, management styles, and stock market investment. One of the texts in each pair was selected from the Student Book of the third edition of a widely used Business English course book (upper-intermediate or intermediate level), and the other, on the same topic, extracted from online repositories of business-related articles. The results of the student survey indicate that first year students, while appreciating the course book ‘real-life examples’ of successful companies, express strong preference for the Internet-based texts which provide them with the opportunity to acquire ‘basic knowledge’ related to specific business issues. The findings also appear to confirm the rationale behind integrating the two approaches: LSP (languages for specific purposes) and CBI (content-based instruction) in the tertiary education context, as well as the importance of properly selected professional content in fostering learners’ motivation and engagement.

scholarly journals Embedding the development of graduate qualities of international postgraduate IT students in the disciplinary curriculum

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ping Yu ◽  
Siyu Qian ◽  
Zhenyu Zhang ◽  
Lina Markauskaite ◽  
Jun Shen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Learning Task ◽  
Content Management ◽  
Steady Increase ◽  
First Year ◽  
Learning Tasks ◽  
The Subject

There has been a steady increase in international students pursuing postgraduate coursework education in English speaking countries. Like first-year undergraduate students, these international students need assistance transitioning into the new educational environment and preparing for self-directed, collaborative learning throughout their careers. Drawing on the social constructivist pedagogical approaches, we developed learning tasks that foster self-regulation and collaboration among postgraduate coursework IT students, aligning these tasks with the learning outcomes of the subject Information Design and Content Management. This paper presents the rationale and method for the design of the learning tasks, and how these learning tasks to not only align with the subject learning outcomes but also facilitate self-regulation. A study involving preand post-subject surveys and interviews with 133 subject students will provide us with further insights into the effectiveness of the learning task design and the areas for improvement.

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