Author(s):
Need:Numerous studies have shown that evidence-based teaching strategies, such as Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL), lead to better student outcomes, from higher grades to increased self-efficacy and sense of belonging. The research community is only beginning to understand why POGIL has these effects on students and what aspects of POGIL are most important for maximizing learning and other outcomes. Our research seeks to understand what actually happens in the same classrooms that use POGIL and other pedagogies, how practices change over time (e.g., during an academic term), and the impact on student engagement, perceptions of learning, and other outcomes. In particular, engagement is known to be important to student learning, but the nature and extent of this engagement are not well documented.Guiding Question:To explore the relationship between pedagogical approaches and student engagement, we seek to measure the engagement of the same students in different class periods taught by the same instructor, using different pedagogies (e.g., POGIL, interactive lecture, and computer laboratory). We seek to enhance understanding of classroom practice by combining data from student surveys, instructor surveys, and classroom observations (both live and video recorded). The results will provide insights into how specific practices can impact instructor and student experiences, leading to more engaging teaching practices and better student outcomes.Outcomes:This poster describes a new classroom observation protocol, named FASTOP, intended to monitor the Focus (e.g., solo, pair, team, or whole class) and Action (e.g., discuss, speak/present, watch/listen, or distracted) of Students and Teachers (instructors). The observation protocol and the student survey have been found to have strong concurrent validity in terms of student self-reports of their behaviors and their actual behaviors. Both also have content and construct validity as well. In addition, initial data analysis has found that, based on observation data, student self-report of their behavior, and student attitudes, they are much more involved in POGIL classes than they are in other classes (interactive lectures and labs) taught by the same instructors.Broader Impacts:Ultimately, the long-term impact of this project will be (1) to improve undergraduate STEM teaching and learning, and (2) to identify best practices to increase student engagement. The project will lead to a better understanding of what instructors and students do in POGIL and interactive lecture classes and how instructors’ actions and teaching practices affect students’ engagement, sense of belonging, and learning. Six faculty from two public research institutions with very different student populations have participated in this study, and so far, over 400 undergraduate students have been impacted by the study. Our project will support the further adoption of POGIL and related research-based instructional approaches in computer science and other STEM fields.
Coauthors
Helen H. Hu, Westminster University, Salt Lake City, UT; Patricia Campbell, Campbell-Kibler Associates, Groton, MA; Chris Mayfield, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA; Clif Kussmaul, Green Mango Associates, Bethlehem, PA
