Abstract
This chapter focuses on how student involvement in the selection and construction of course materials encourages student engagement with course content and helps to improves academic performance. This chapter discusses examples of how I involve non-specialist students in direct engagement with course material of their own choosing. These student-generated materials not only determine what material is covered on assessments, but also serve to reinforce effective study techniques for learning that content. Additionally, students are often asked to reflect on how their selected material from the past relates to aspects outside that original context. Making students contributors to course content promotes peer-to-peer learning and provides a variety of perspectives into course content.
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Notes
- 1.
Christopher S. Keator, The Digital Era of Learning: Novel Educational Strategies and Challenges for Teaching Students in the 21st Century (New York: Nova Science Publishers, 2021) x.
- 2.
A recent discussion about many of the non-objective factors influencing student choice can be found in J. S. Ravi Kumar, T. Narayana Reddy, and Syed Mohammad Ghouse, “Role of Servicescape on Student Institution Choice,” Asian Journal of Management 12, no. 3 (2021): 271–278.
- 3.
This comes from my experience with my own institution, which promised a completely “normal” 2021–2022 academic year that included a format change to face to face for most of the online and hybrid courses offered the previous academic year.
- 4.
While not all students reacted positively to approaches seen as effective online practices, their use still had a more positive impact overall, as seen in Barbara Means and Julie Neisler, “Teaching and learning in the time of COVID: The student perspective.” Online Learning 25, no. 1 (2021): 8–-27. While there are many good articles about specific online learning practices designed to improve online engagement and learning, I very much appreciate the holistic and non-directive approach outlined by David Starr-Glass, “Purposefully-Designed and Mindfully-Facilitated Online Courses,” in Handbook of Research on Managing and Designing Online Courses in Synchronous and Asynchronous Environments, eds. Gurhan Durak and Serkan Cankaya (Hershey, PA: IGI Global, 2021), 251–272.
- 5.
Jennifer Darling-Aduana, Sarah S. Barry, Henry T. Woodyard, and Tim R. Sass, “Learning-Mode Choice, Student Engagement, and Achievement Growth During the COVID-19 Pandemic,” EdWorkingPaper 22-536 (February 2022): 1–43, retrieved from Annenberg Institute at Brown University, https://doi.org/10.26300/jxcj-gs73.
- 6.
For example, see Travis R. McDowell et al., “A Student-Choice Model to Address Diverse Needs and Promote Active Learning,” Journal of Science Education and Technology 28 (2019): 321–328.
- 7.
Brett D. Jones and Devin Carter, “Relationships between students’ course perceptions, engagement, and learning,” Social Psychology of Education 22, no. 4 (2019): 819–839.
- 8.
Of course, there are many other factors that impact the development of self-determination skills in students, as explained in a report prepared by Christopher W. Brandt, Measuring Student Success Skills: A Review of the Literature on Self-Directed Learning (Dover, New Hampshire: National Center for the Improvement of Educational Assessment: 2020), https://www.nciea.org/sites/default/files/publications/CFA-SlfDirLearningLitReport-R2.pdf.
- 9.
Some recent discussions include Weber R. Irembere, “Fostering Creative Skills for Students Using Project-Based Learning,” International Forum Journal 22, no. 2 (2019): 102–115 and Caitlin Hayward and Barry Fishman, “Gameful Learning: Designing with Motivation in Mind,” Interdisciplinary Society of the Learning Sciences Proceedings 2 (2020): 1007–1014, https://doi.org/10.22318/ICLS2020.1007.
- 10.
Sascha Schneider, “Are there never too many choice options? The effect of increasing the number of choice options on learning with digital media,” Human Behavior and Emerging Technologies 3, no. 5 (2021): 759–775.
- 11.
For example, see the recent article discussing different schema for project-based learning courses designed engage student choice at a variety of levels by Eun Hye Son and Tara Penry, “Variations in Project-Based Course Design,” Journal of Problem Based Learning in Higher Education (2022): 1–16, https://journals.aau.dk/index.php/pbl/article/view/6821.
- 12.
I also support this approach with a recommended study technique that is not limited to notecards that focus on the style, context, and meaning of individual images required for the exam, but also notecards that explore important larger aspects of the culture that include its visual expression.
- 13.
Mary Ann Hollingsworth, “Pictures Worth a Thousand Words: A New Approach in Graduate School,” Journal of Literature and Art Studies 8, no. 1 (2018): 153–158.
- 14.
Both of these points are addressed in the article by Krystyna K. Matusiak et al., “Visual literacy in practice: Use of images in students’ academic work,” College & Research Libraries 80, no. 1 (2019): 123–139.
- 15.
There are a number of academic articles from instructors in a variety of fields who documented improvement in exam performance with the use of images, but I even discovered one who also had the students prepare those aids to learning: Christopher Bozek, “Enabling Students to Create Materials for their Language Learning Classes,” in Proceedings of the 2021 International Workshop on Modern Science and Technology (Kitami, Japan: International Center of National University Corporation Kitami Institute of Technology, 2021), 309–312, https://kitami-it.repo.nii.ac.jp/records/2000142#.YpDfSajMLIU.
- 16.
Having student posts generate information beyond what is presented to them is an important element to the construction of learning and also promotes greater peer interaction with posts; see Mladen Raković et al., “Fine grained analysis of students’ online discussion posts,” Computers & Education 157 (2020): 103982, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2020.103982.
- 17.
For more about how both instructor and peer interaction can help student learning, see Vinothini Vasodavan, Dorothy DeWitt, Norlidah Alias, and Mariani Md Noh, “E-moderation skills in discussion forums: Patterns of online interactions for knowledge construction,” Pertanika Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities 28, no. 4 (2020): 3025–3045.
- 18.
While I certainly employ group projects, they are often understood as synonymous with active learning, as seen in the discussion by David W. Johnson and Roger T. Johnson, “Cooperative Learning: The Foundation for Active Learning,” in Active Learning – Beyond the Future, ed. Silvio Manuel Brito (London: IntechOpen, 2019), 59–70, https://directory.doabooks.org/handle/20.500.12854/40081.
- 19.
Guan-Yu Lin, Yi-Shun Wang, and Yong Ni Lee, “Investigating factors affecting learning satisfaction and perceived learning in flipped classrooms: the mediating effect of interaction,” Interactive Learning Environments (2022): 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2021.2018616.
- 20.
Even the process of how the works of visual culture have been studied and discussed through history can be a subject of inquiry, as seen in Lindsay Persohn, “Curation as Methodology,” Qualitative Research 21, no. 1 (2021): 20–41.
- 21.
I have written about my own experience about course teaching on African-American art as someone who was white as well as a non-content specialist in Glenda Swan, “Minorities’ Views and Minorities Viewed: Embracing Minorities in the Classroom and Visual Culture,” in Fostering a Climate of Inclusion in the College Classroom: The Missing Voice of the Humanities by Lavonna Lovern (Cham, Switzerland: Springer, 2018), 73–90. While there is no single path to success, presenting oneself as a fellow learner and integrating students into the interpretation and production of course content knowledge helps to build a relationship of trust and respect in the classroom; see also Jung-ah Choi, “Shared Authority and Epistemological Struggles: Tales of Three Racial Groups of Professors,” Voices of Reform: Educational Research to Inform and Reform 4, no. 1 (2021): 10–23.
- 22.
This is the foundation behind Constructivist Pedagogy, which is a core element of many active learning approaches. While this approach has a record of success and there is a push by many universities for more use of this approach within courses, it still needs to be thoughtfully and carefully applied; for more, see Kate O’Connor, “Constructivism, curriculum and the knowledge question: tensions and challenges for higher education,” Studies in Higher Education 47, vol. 2 (2022): 412–422.
References
Bozek, Christopher. “Enabling Students to Create Materials for Their Language Learning Classes.” In Proceedings of the 2021 International Workshop on Modern Science and Technology, 309–312. (Kitami, Japan: International Center of National University Corporation Kitami Institute of Technology, 2021). https://kitami-it.repo.nii.ac.jp/records/2000142#.YpDfSajMLIU.
Brandt, Christopher W. Measuring Student Success Skills: A Review of the Literature on Self-Directed Learning (Dover, NH: National Center for the Improvement of Educational Assessment, 2020). https://www.nciea.org/sites/default/files/publications/CFA-SlfDirLearningLitReport-R2.pdf.
Choi, Jung-ah. “Shared Authority and Epistemological Struggles: Tales of Three Racial Groups of Professors.” Voices of Reform: Educational Research to Inform and Reform 4, no. 1 (2021): 10–23.
Darling-Aduana, Jennifer, Sarah S. Barry, Henry T. Woodyard, and Tim R. Sass. “Learning-Mode Choice, Student Engagement, and Achievement Growth During the COVID-19 Pandemic.” EdWorkingPaper 22-536 (February 2022): 1–43. Retrieved from Annenberg Institute at Brown University. https://doi.org/10.26300/jxcj-gs73.
Hayward, Caitlin and Barry Fishman, “Gameful Learning: Designing with Motivation in Mind.” Interdisciplinary Society of the Learning Sciences Proceedings 2 (2020): 1007–1014. https://doi.org/10.22318/icls2020.1007.
Hollingsworth, Mary Ann. “Pictures Worth a Thousand Words: A New Approach in Graduate School.” Journal of Literature and Art Studies 8, no. 1 (2018): 153–158.
Irembere, Weber R. “Fostering Creative Skills for Students Using Project-Based Learning.” International Forum Journal 22, no. 2 (2019) 102–115.
Jones, Brett D. and Devin Carter. “Relationships Between Students’ Course Perceptions, Engagement, and Learning.” Social Psychology of Education 22, no. 4 (2019): 819–839.
Johnson, David W. and Roger T. Johnson. “Cooperative Learning: The Foundation for Active Learning.” In Active Learning – Beyond the Future. Edited by Silvio Manuel Brito, 59–70. (London: IntechOpen, 2019). https://directory.doabooks.org/handle/20.500.12854/40081.
Keator, Christopher S. The Digital Era of Learning: Novel Educational Strategies and Challenges for Teaching Students in the 21st Century (New York: Nova Science Publishers, 2021).
Kumar, J. S. Ravi T. Narayana Reddy, and Syed Mohammad Ghouse. “Role of Servicescape on Student Institution Choice.” Asian Journal of Management 12, no. 3 (2021): 271–278.
Lin, Guan-Yu, Yi-Shun Wang, and Yong Ni Lee. “Investigating Factors Affecting Learning Satisfaction and Perceived Learning in Flipped Classrooms: The Mediating Effect of Interaction.” Interactive Learning Environments (2022): 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2021.2018616.
Matusiak, Krystyna K., Chelsea Heinbach, Anna Harper, and Michael Bovee. “Visual Literacy in Practice: Use of Images in Students’ Academic Work.” College & Research Libraries 80, no. 1 (2019): 123–139.
McDowell, Travis R., Emmalou T. Schmittzehe, Amanda J. Duerden, Dan Cernusca, Harvest Collier, and Klaus Woelk. “A Student-Choice Model to Address Diverse Needs and Promote Active Learning.” Journal of Science Education and Technology 28 (2019): 321–328.
Means, Barbara and Julie Neisler. “Teaching and Learning in the Time of COVID: The Student Perspective.” Online Learning 25, no. 1 (2021): 8–27.
O’Connor, Kate. “Constructivism, Curriculum and the Knowledge Question: Tensions and Challenges for Higher Education.” Studies in Higher Education 47, no. 2 (2022): 412–-422.
Persohn, Lindsay. “Curation as Methodology.” Qualitative Research 21, no. 1 (2021): 20–41.
Raković, Mladen, Zahia Marzouk, Amna Liaqat, Philip H. Winne, and John C. Nesbit. “Fine Grained Analysis of Students’ Online Discussion Posts.” Computers & Education 157 (2020): 103982. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2020.103982.
Schneider, Sascha. “Are There Never Too Many Choice Options? The Effect of Increasing the Number of Choice Options on Learning with Digital Media.” Human Behavior and Emerging Technologies 3, no. 5 (2021): 759–775.
Son, Eun Hye and Tara Penry. “Variations in Project-Based Course Design.” Journal of Problem Based Learning in Higher Education (2022): 1–16. https://journals.aau.dk/index.php/pbl/article/view/6821.
Starr-Glass, David. “Purposefully-Designed and Mindfully-Facilitated Online Courses.” In Handbook of Research on Managing and Designing Online Courses in Synchronous and Asynchronous Environments, edited by Gurhan Durak and Serkan Cankaya, 251–272. (Hershey, PA: IGI Global, 2021).
Swan, Glenda. “Minorities’ Views and Minorities Viewed: Embracing Minorities in the Classroom and Visual Culture.” In Fostering a Climate of Inclusion in the College Classroom: The Missing Voice of the Humanities edited by Lavonna Lovern, 73–90. (Cham, Switzerland: Springer, 2018).
Vasodavan, Vinothini, Dorothy DeWitt, Norlidah Alias, and Mariani Md Noh. “E-moderation Skills in Discussion Forums: Patterns of Online Interactions for Knowledge Construction.” Pertanika Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities 28, no. 4 (2020): 3025–3045.
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Swan, G. (2023). Letting Students Shape the Future. In: ReEnvisioning the Material Past. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-24027-0_5
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