Abstract
There is evidence worldwide that governments seek to effect a change in the culture of tertiary institutions with increasing emphasis placed on the quality of education at the tertiary level. As a consequence, there is a need to understand the learning experiences of undergraduate students. Here we report on an investigation of first-year learning experiences in two first-year chemistry one-semester courses in a New Zealand tertiary educational institution. We sought to identify positive and negative learning experiences at the first-year undergraduate level for chemistry students. Students were surveyed using the learning experiences scale of the Chemistry Attitudes and Experiences Questionnaire (CAEQ) twice in the academic year (end of the first semester N=109; end of the second semester N = 84). In addition, 17 students enrolled in a first-year chemistry course were interviewed at the beginning of their tertiary education career and again at the end of their first and second-semester chemistry courses. The research findings suggest that students dislike a lecturing style that includes providing them with a complete set of notes before the lecture. They enjoy tutorials, but surprisingly are less positive about their practical learning experiences due, in part, to the emphasis on volumetric analysis.
Résumé
On note partout une tendance des gouvernements à vouloir effectuer un virage culturel dans les institutions post-secondaires, virage qui, de plus en plus, vise la qualité de l’enseignement à l’université. Il est donc nécessaire de bien cerner les expériences d’apprentissage des étudiants de premier cycle universitaire. Dans cet article, nous présentons une enquête sur les expériences d’apprentissage d’étudiants de première année dans deux cours de chimie d’une durée d’un semestre chacun, dans une institution post-secondaire en Nouvelle Zélande. Notre but était d’identifier les expériences d’apprentissage positives et négatives vécues par les étudiants de chimie au cours de leur première année universitaire. À deux reprises au cours de l’année universitaire, les étudiants ont participé à une enquête mesurant leurs expériences d’apprentissage au moyen des échelles du questionnaire CAEQ (Chemistry Attitudes and Experiences Questionnaire), (à la fin du premier semestre N= 109; à la fin du deuxième semestre N = 84). De plus, dix-sept étudiants inscrits à un cours de chimie de première année ont été interviewés au début de leurs études post-secondaires en chimie et de nouveau à la fin de leurs cours de chimie du premier et du deuxième semestre. Les résultats de ce questionnaire CAEQ indiquent que, bien qu’ils expriment un jugement plutôt favorable sur les trois types de cours suivis (exposés magistraux, laboratoires et travaux pratiques), les étudiants avaient vécu aussi bien des expériences positives que des expériences négatives. Les jugements positifs regardaient plus particulièrement les travaux pratiques. Les données qualitatives suggèrent que ce type d’environnement est sans doute celui qui est le plus utile aux étudiants en termes d’évaluation. Les étudiants avaient des attentes positives devant les séances de laboratoire, mais leurs expériences dans ces cours ont obtenu la même appréciation que dans les cours magistraux. Cette disparité s’explique entre autres par l’importance excessive accordée à l’exactitude et à la précision lors des analyses volumétriques. Les séances au laboratoire les plus appréciées des étudiants étaient celles qui leur offraient l’occasion d’utiliser de nouveaux instruments. L’opinion des étudiants sur les cours magistraux était équivalente à celle qu’ils avaient des cours au laboratoire. Les données qualitatives révèlent que les étudiants se concentraient surtout sur la structure et les techniques d’enseignement lorsqu’ils évaluaient les cours magistraux. Les expériences jugées positives comprenaient l’utilisation de notes schématiques qui permettaient de participer au cours en prenant des notes, mais aussi d’assimiler les contenus par la simple écoute. Les résultats de cette recherche suggèrent qu’il est possible pour le personnel enseignant universitaire d’améliorer les techniques d’enseignement de plusieurs façons afin de satisfaire aux exigences de qualité des institutions.
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Dalgety, J., Coll, R.K. Students’ Perceptions and Learning Experiences of Tertiary-Level Chemistry. Can J Sci Math Techn 5, 61–80 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1080/14926150509556644
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14926150509556644