Journal on Excellence in College Teaching
The Journal on Excellence in College Teaching is a peer-reviewed journal published at Miami University by and for faculty at universities and two- and four-year colleges to increase student learning through effective teaching, interest in and enthusiasm for the profession of teaching, and communication among faculty about their classroom experiences. The Journal is published four times a year.
Access Agreement Journal on Excellence in College Teaching Before proceeding you must agree to the terms and conditions of usage as outlined below by clicking on the Accept button and/or by both parties’ signatures below. You will have to do this only once. After agreement, you will be redirected back to the main Journal page. A pdf copy of the terms is available for download. This Access Agreement (the "Agreement") is effective upon processing of payment ("Effective Date") and is entered into by and between the Journal on Excellence in College Teaching (“JECT”) and the Customer (“Customer"). This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement and supersedes and voids all prior communications, understandings, and agreements relating to the Product(s), including any terms of use displayed to Authorized Users via the online site of the Product(s). Alterations to the Agreement and to any Addendum to the Agreement are only valid and binding if they are recorded in writing and signed by both parties . I. Definitions "Authorized Users" shall mean individuals who are authorized by the Customer (which shall include those individuals authorized by the Institutions hereunder) to access the Customer's information services whether on-site or off-site via secure authentication and who are affiliated with the Customer as a student (undergraduates and postgraduates), employee (whether on a permanent or temporary basis), or a contractor of the Customer. Individuals who are not a current student, employee, or a contractor of the Customer, but who are permitted to access the Customer's information services from computer terminals within the physical premises of the Customer ("Walk-In Users"), are also deemed to be Authorized Users, but only for the time they are within the physical premises of the Customer. Walk-In Users may not be given means to access the Product(s) when they are not within the physical premises of the Customer. "Commercial Use" shall mean use for the purpose of monetary reward (whether by or for the Customer or an Authorized User) by means of the sale, resale, loan, transfer, hire, or other form of exploitation of the Product(s). For the avoidance of doubt, neither recovery of direct cost by the Customer from Authorized Users, nor use by the Customer or Authorized Users of the Product(s) in the course of research funded by a commercial organization, shall be deemed to constitute Commercial Use. "Educational Purposes" shall mean for the purpose of education, teaching, distance learning, private study and/or research as described in Section II below. "Institutions" shall mean the Customer's participating institutions, if applicable. "License" shall mean the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and use the Product(s) pursuant to the specific terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement. "Product(s)" shall mean the products, materials and/or information contained therein that are subject to this Agreement. Product(s) include the Journal on Excellence in College Teaching and the archive of the Learning Communities Journal. "Reasonable Amount" shall be determined based on guidelines set forth by 17 U.S. Code § 107 (Limitations on exclusive rights, Fair use). "Secure Authentication" shall mean access to the Product(s) by Internet Protocol ("IP") ranges or by another means of authentication agreed between the Publisher and Customer or Institutions (if applicable) from time to time. II. Authorized Use of Product(s) Customer, the Institutions (if applicable), and Authorized Users may use the Product(s) for Educational Purposes as follows: Analysis. Authorized Users shall be permitted to extract or use information contained in the Product(s) for Educational Purposes, including, but not limited to, text and data mining, extraction and manipulation of information for the purposes of illustration, explanation, example, comment, criticism, teaching, research, or analysis. Course Packs. Customer, the Institutions, and Authorized Users may use a Reasonable Amount of the Product(s) in the preparation of course packs or other educational materials. Digital Copy. Customer, the Institutions, and Authorized Users may download and digitally copy a Reasonable Amount of the Product(s). Display. Customer, the Institutions, and Authorized Users shall have the right to electronically display the Product(s) to the extent necessary to further the intent and purpose of this Agreement. Electronic Reserve. Customer, the Institutions, and Authorized Users may use a Reasonable Amount of each of the Product(s) in connection with specific courses of instruction offered by Customer. Interlibrary Loan. The Customer and the Institutions shall be permitted to use Reasonable Amounts of the Content to fulfill occasional requests from other, non-participating institutions, a practice commonly called Interlibrary Loan ("ILL"). Customer and the Institutions shall fulfill such requests in compliance with Section 108 of the United States Copyright Law (17 USC S108, "Limitations on exclusive rights: Reproduction by libraries and archives") and the Guidelines for the Proviso of Subsection 108(2g)(2) prepared by the National Commission on New Technological Uses of Copyrighted Works (CONTU). The electronic form of the Product(s) may be used as a source for ILL. Customer and the Institutions shall include copyright notices on all ILL transmissions. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, in no event shall any non-secure electronic transmission of files be permitted. Print Copy. Customer, the Institutions, and Authorized Users may print a Reasonable Amount of the Product(s). Recover Copying Costs. Customer and the Institutions may charge a reasonable fee to cover costs of copying or printing portions of Product(s) for Authorized Users. Scholarly Sharing. Authorized Users may transmit to a third party colleague in hard copy or electronically, Reasonable Amounts of the Product(s) for personal use, professional use, or Educational Purposes but in no event for Commercial Use. In addition, Authorized Users have the right to use, with appropriate credit, figures, tables, and brief excerpts from the Product(s) in the Authorized User's own scientific, scholarly, and educational works. Text Mining. Authorized Users may use the licensed material to perform and engage in text mining/data mining activities for legitimate academic research and other Educational Purposes. Those uses beyond educational use shall require permission from the Publisher. III. Restrictions Except as provided herein, the institution shall make reasonable efforts to inform its authorized users not to use, alter, decompile, modify, display, or distribute the Product(s) as follows: Alter Identification. Remove, obscure, or modify copyright notices, text acknowledging, attributions, or other means of identification or disclaimers as they appear. Alter Product(s). Alter, decompile, adapt, or modify the Product(s), except to the extent necessary to make it perceptible on a computer screen, or as otherwise permitted in this Agreement. Alteration of words or their order is strictly prohibited. Commercial Use. No Commercial Use of the Product(s) shall be permitted unless the Customer or an Authorized User has been granted prior written consent by an authorized representative of the Product(s). Use of all or any part of the Product(s) for any Commercial Use or for any purpose other than Educational Purposes. Distribution. Display or distribute any part of the Product(s) on any electronic network, including without limitation, the Internet, and any other distribution medium now in existence or hereinafter created, other than by a Secure Authentication; print and distribute any portion(s) of the Product(s)s to persons or entities other than the Customer or Authorized Users, except as provided in Section II. JECT acknowledges that the Customer cannot police or control the actions of its students, faculty, and other Authorized Users with respect to their use of the Product(s). In the event of abuse, the institution shall make prompt and reasonable efforts to heal the breach and notify the publisher. IV. Term and Termination This agreement shall commence on the Effective Date and shall remain in effect unless and until terminated as permitted herein (the "Term"). There is no perpetual electronic access to content made available during the term of the agreement. JECT may terminate this Agreement if Customer violates any of the terms and conditions set forth herein. In the event of any termination of access, JECT will promptly notify the Customer of the basis for termination. The Customer may terminate this Agreement if sufficient funds are not provided or allotted in future government-approved budgets of the Customer (or reasonably available or expected to become available from other sources at the time the Customer’s payment obligation attaches) to permit the Subscriber, in the exercise of its reasonable administrative discretion, to continue this Agreement. In the event of any unauthorized use of the Product(s) by an Authorized User, Customer shall cooperate with JECT in the investigation of any unauthorized use of the Product(s) of which it is made aware and shall use reasonable efforts to remedy such unauthorized use and prevent its recurrence. JECT may terminate such Authorized User's access to the Product(s) after first providing reasonable notice to the Customer (in no event less than two (2) weeks) and cooperating with the Customer to avoid recurrence of any unauthorized use. In the event of any termination of access, JECT will promptly notify the Customer . V. Refunds In the event that a subscription is canceled by the Customer prior to the subscription end date, the following will be used as guidelines for refunds. Electronic subscriptions. The Customer shall be entitled to a full refund within 14 days of the start of the most recent subscription term. Refunds requested after 14 days but no later than 60 days from the start of the most recent subscription term will be allowed, minus a 30% processing fee. Refunds will not be granted if requested more than 60 days after the start of the most recent subscription term.
Using Advocacy Exercises to Promote Academic Identity and Ownership
Many science students leave their discipline before graduation. To combat this trend, educators use laboratory experiences and independent research to foster positive scientific attitudes. A non-laboratory Neuroscience pilot course was structured around advocacy to determine if advocacy-themed exercises would also enhance student attitudes. At the end of the semester, students in the advocacy course, but not a comparable control course, scored higher on the Persistence in the Sciences (PITS) questionnaire. This result suggests that advocacy efforts can enhance students’ academic identity and ownership. Further studies within and across disciplines are needed to determine the full extent of these effects.
Copyright (c) 2025 Journal on Excellence in College Teaching
Permitted or Prohibited? Mapping AI Use Across University Disciplines
Examining the implementation of AI policies in different disciplines in the postsecondary context is relevant for understanding this changing terrain. This study examines potential disciplinary differences between postsecondary educators’ strictness level in the adoption of AI policies in their courses and use of generative AI in policy creation, using a publicly available dataset that describes syllabi policies for generative AI use at a variety of institutions in the United States. Implications from this study offer insight into AI integration and use based on broader discussions of levels of strictness and ethics in higher education.
Student Attitudes & Perceptions of Learning When Completing Activities That Integrate Generative Artificial Intelligence
Generative AI (GenAI) technologies directly impact learning environments. This study captures undergraduate student attitudes and perceptions of learning in courses integrating their usage of GenAI across disciplines. Course activities focused on fostering critical thinking skills, scientific writing and communication skills, information literacy skills, storytelling, and gamification. After completing the activities, scores remained relatively stable in students' reported knowledge of, and concerns about, GenAI, and statistically significant differences were seen in students' willingness to use GenAI, as well as by demographics (first-generation, neurodivergent, and disability status). Many students described the value of using GenAI while acknowledging limitations, highlighting complexity within their attitudes.
Designing Together: How Generative AI Can Support Faculty–Instructional Designer Collaboration in Online Course Development
This paper explores how generative AI (GenAI) can enrich collaboration between faculty and instructional designers in online course development. Through personal reflection and a co-developed graduate course, we show how GenAI can support ideation, alignment, and creativity. Discomfort, we argue, is not only inevitable but essential to this work. When used intentionally, GenAI fosters curiosity, experimentation, and deeper dialogue. By reframing GenAI as a partner in meaning-making rather than automation, we invite teams to embrace course design as an evolving, relational process—where connection, not speed, becomes the foundation for innovation.
generative AI, instructional design, faculty-ID collaboration, course development
College Program for Academic Success: A Case Study on the Experiences of Students
This study examines the experiences of participants in a student success program at a midwestern U.S. university, focusing on the 2021 cohort. The program predominantly serves first-generation, non-traditional students and those from low socioeconomic backgrounds and marginalized communities, including Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). Through a case study approach, three core themes emerged regarding the barriers these students face in college: personal investment, self-doubt, and confusion. The findings highlight a disconnect between the services offered by the program and the students’ perceived needs, suggesting areas for improvement to better support student success.
Inspiring Students to Seek the Meaning of Global Citizenship in Their Lives: Lessons From Personal Pedagogy and Research
Inspiring students to seek the meaning of global citizenship in their personal lives is a critical responsibility of a higher education curriculum that aims to provide students with indispensable knowledge and skills to participate successfully in an increasingly pluralistic and interconnected global society. This article relates personal reflections from teaching and research to offer a view that higher education should provide all learners with a holistic global citizenship education. Both curricular and extracurricular activities are needed that intentionally cultivate the requisite knowledge and skills associated with global awareness, social responsibility, and engaged civic action.
“When They Are Real With Us”: Student Perceptions of Inclusive Teaching and Learning Practices
Instructors are encouraged to use inclusive learning strategies, but few studies examine student perceptions of these approaches (Cook-Sather et al., 2021). In this mixed-methods study, participants completed a 14-question survey assessing their perceptions of inclusive learning, including which strategies they consider inclusive and supportive of learning processes and which they consider exclusionary. Overall, participants noted that positive reinforcement, clear communication, and group-based learning support inclusivity, while instructor bias and poor communication make students feel excluded. Based on the findings, the authors recommend promoting inclusivity by being transparent, building clear expectations, recognizing personal biases, and facilitating a culture of grace.
Is All Active Learning the Same? Exploring Mathematically Derived Inquiry-Based Learning
This article explores inquiry-based learning (IBL) pedagogy, particularly in mathematics education, examining how it differs from problem-based learning (PBL) and case-based learning (CBL). IBL is defined as a student-centered approach involving sequenced problems or tasks that build engagement and understanding through group work. While IBL, PBL, and CBL share characteristics like problem solving and self-directed learning, each has distinct practices. The article presents a mathematics education community definition of IBL and provides detailed comparisons and examples to help readers understand IBL’s potential for broad application in scholarship beyond mathematics education.
A Collaborative Self-Study to Explore Assessment and Feedback in Online/Hybrid Courses
This collaborative self-study explored the teaching experiences of five faculty members who focused on elevating student experiences in their online/hybrid courses. The researchers were interested in assessment and feedback mechanisms to center students’ learning, de-emphasize grading, and engage in equitable practices. A basic qualitative approach uncovered themes throughout the semester of learning and grappling; stressors, uncertainty, and support/advice; and reflections on pedagogy and value of the approach. This work demonstrates the value of making small changes to pedagogical practices in online/hybrid courses and the value of a supportive cross-disciplinary reflective community of practice when making those changes.
self-study, online/hybrid teaching, Community of Practice, feedback
Who is Not Passing Statistics? Trends in an Undergraduate Statistics Course
A behavioral science statistics course is required for a number of majors at the author’s institution. Due to the challenging nature of the course, almost every semester there are students who do not earn a passing grade, which means that they must either retake it or find a new major that does not require it. The study found that students with lower SAT scores, lower class participation grades, and who are non-white did not pass statistics. The findings should aid colleges and universities in identifying and assisting students who are at risk of failure.
Pedagogy, Regression Analysis, Statistics
A Study of the Effectiveness of Using Team-Based Learning in College Courses
Building on previous research, the authors introduced formal team-based learning (TBL) to their classrooms and measured the quality of students’ team learning, professional development, and team satisfaction. They assessed students’ perceived fairness of work distribution and analyzed its effect on these outcomes and found that TBL resulted in increases in quality of team learning, professional development, and team satisfaction. Perceived fairness did not affect team learning or professional development. Team satisfaction was significantly related to perceived fairness, with students who perceived themselves as doing more work being more dissatisfied with the team experience. The authors provide suggestions for future research.
Team Based Learning, Professional Development, Team Satisfaction, Teamwork Skills
Building Connections With First-Year Students Through Peer Mentorship and Teachable Moments
To build connections among students studying education, the researchers implemented a First-Year Experiences (FYE) peer mentorship program with embedded professional development workshops called Teachable Moments for first-year students. This innovative approach to meeting the needs of first-year students was measured through a mixed-methods project using an open-ended survey and the coding of qualitative data from communication logs. Data revealed that the programmatic and curricular guidance and support provided to the first-year students led to the establishment of vital connections and positively impacted retention from their first to their second year.
First-year Experience, mentoring, mentees, mentors, professional development, connection, relationship, postsecondary outcomes, transitions
Critical Discourse Analysis of Disability Disclosure Statements in Academic Syllabi
This study used critical discourse analysis (CDA) to explore how course syllabi may impact disability disclosure in higher education. By examining 15 syllabi from across three disciplines at a public university, the analysis reveals the use of neutral but bureaucratic disability terminology and impersonal tones that may fail to foster an inclusive climate. These patterns may discourage disability disclosure by creating a distance between faculty and students. The study’s findings suggest that inclusive syllabi language affirming disability could encourage disclosure. Limitations include a small sample size and a lack of data triangulation. Further research incorporating faculty perspectives is recommended.
The Limits of Understanding: Lacanian Pedagogy in the Composition Classroom
This article presents a challenge to notions of clarity—and its relation to understanding—within the college composition classroom by relying on Lacanian pedagogical theory. While the field of composition has issued criticisms against clarity in student writing, there has been less emphasis on interrogating clarity in instruction. By delineating Lacanian pedagogy, the article provides a theoretical and pedagogical framework for integrating Lacanian non-sense into the composition classroom. Through this integration of Lacanian non-sense through metaphor, the author argues that a procedural knowledge that exceeds conventional notions of understanding and provokes thought can emerge.
Impact of Metacognition on Academic Performance in College Courses: A Systematic Review
This study contributes a systematic literature review of the effectiveness of incorporating metacognition instruction into college-level courses. The interventions examined were limited to course-level metacognitive strategies explicitly intended to enhance students’ academic performance, that is, graded assignments, course grades, or pass rates. Fifty-nine research studies involving 11,153 college students were analyzed. At least one statistically significant finding in which the intervention increased academic performance was found in 91.5% of the studies analyzed. These findings indicate that course-level metacognitive instruction is positively associated with improved academic performance, with positive correlations observed across various disciplines and geographic locations.
Exploring Student and Faculty Experiences in a HyFlex Learning Environment
Almost five years after the COVID-19 pandemic began, the higher education learning environment has been transformed, and research on this transformation is just starting to emerge. This article contributes to this effort by reporting the results of a study comparing two-course delivery formats: hybrid in-person and HyFlex. Results found no significant differences in student performance, attendance, or course ratings across formats. Results also revealed that students rate the HyFlex format favorably compared to other delivery formats. The authors examine the lessons learned and their implications for designing learning environments that are engaging, effective, and accessible.
Developing Culturally Relevant Continuous Case Studies for Child & Adult Advocacy: A Curriculum Development Project
Preparing mandatory reporters—those responsible for identifying and reporting abuse and neglect—requires innovative approaches. One effective method is the continuous case study. This article discusses the creation and implementation of culturally relevant continuous case studies within a multidisciplinary child and adult advocacy certificate program. Professionals from midwestern child welfare agencies created five case studies aligned with program learning objectives. Cases were used for student learning through multidisciplinary discussions, applying course content, and a virtual simulation for mandatory reporting and suicide prevention. The approach received positive feedback for its realism and contextual accuracy, fostering multi-system collaboration and trauma-informed care.
continuous case study, interprofessional, mandatory reporter training
A Union of Collaborative Learning and Cooperative Learning: An Overview of This Issue
Although the idea of collaboration and cooperation in education is hardly new, the use of two specific pedagogies, collaborative learning and cooperative learning, has rapidly grown in prominence during this decade. These two approaches to teaching are often confused because of the similarities in their names. Collaborative learning is the broader con- cept and may encompass any kind of collaboration between students as well as various other forms of collaboration, such as team-taught cours- es, learning community models, and other interactions between faculty and students. Many regard cooperative learning as a more structured, and hence more focused, form of collaborative learning. Others view collaborative learning and cooperative learning as lying on a continu- um, with collaborative learning being the least structured and cooperative learning the most structured.
Collaborative Learning; Cooperative Learning
Copyright (c) 2024 Journal on Excellence in College Teaching
Two Cheers for Peer Review: Problems of Definition, Interpretation, and Appropriate Function
The term peer review masks various expectations when used uncritically. Some beliefs are mutually exclusive; not all are benign. This analysis focuses on summative evaluation, exposing the conflicting interests and mixed metaphors of faculty evaluation that obscure the process and the principles at stake. Seven desirable characteristics of peer review (Chubin, 1994) are adapted as fundamental distinctions for clarifying discussion about five different kinds of faculty evaluation: judging, critiquing, assessing, appraising, and rating (Riegle & Rhodes, 1986). Peers can contribute uniquely to faculty evaluation of teaching, and therefore most effectively, in two ways: interpreting colleagues’ teaching portfolios and interpreting students’ testimony about colleagues.
Learning Logs: A Tool for Coaching Students to Assess and Regulate Their Own Learning
This article describes the implementation and evaluation of a novel assessment tool, called a Learning Log (LL), in a pharmacy curriculum. LLs were designed to provide the framework and guidance necessary for students to gain skills in self-regulated learning (SRL). The weekly LLs included student self-assessment of progress toward learning outcomes, reflection, planning with task-selection guidance, and targeted practice. Both perception and usage data confirm that LLs effectively train students to assess and regulate their own learning. Reflection comments show that SRL habits cultivated by LLs were useful in other coursework, improved student performance, and promoted time management skills.
The Cultural Climate of Effective Groups in Online Courses
This study examines the cultural climate of successful groups in online undergraduate sociology courses that developed social contracts aimed at fostering positive group work experiences and academic achievement. An analysis of participants’ group assessment papers investigated the most important attributes of group cultures with congenial work environments. Qualitative findings revealed that the hallmarks of effective groups included strong leadership, a commitment to ongoing contact, a sharing of the workload, a strong work ethic, respect among members, and increased knowledge of course content.
Perceptions of Student Learning Effectiveness: Exploring Active Versus Passive Learning
Inspired by Deslauriers et al. (2019), this study investigates the link between perceived and actual learning outcomes in college psychology courses. The authors evaluated active vs. passive learning methods’ effectiveness in developmental and introductory psychology classes over two semesters. Participants experienced either group discussions and lectures (active) or lectures only (passive). A repeated measures ANOVA showed significant exam performance improvements for the active group but not the passive group. Despite performance improvement, the active group felt they learned less, echoing Deslauriers et al. (2019). These findings suggest, despite student perceptions, that active learning improves outcomes if implemented thoughtfully.
Active learning; pedagogical research; student perceptions
STEM for Social Justice: Helping Students Read and Write Their World
This study details the development and implementation of a critical STEM for Social Justice (STEMSJ) framework as applied to a senior year capstone project. This study spanned three years and was conducted at a private midwestern U.S. university. Teacher candidates were required to create a content unit that used a socioscientific issue to facilitate relationships between scientific, mathematical, and engineering content, and their world. This critical STEMSJ framework helped candidates develop critical consciousness by focusing on how the words associated with the STEM disciplines influence the way they read and write their world.
P-CURE: A Progressive, Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience
Health Science fields have unique needs, resources, priorities, and barriers when considering how to integrate research into the undergraduate experience. Many undergraduate research experiences (UREs) in science disciplines are course-based undergraduate research experiences (CURE) or apprenticeship experiences, but these may not be suitable for health science fields. This article presents the progressive, course-based undergraduate research experience (P-CURE), an innovative model for UREs in health sciences guided by the principles of inclusion, support, and efficiency. The authors discuss implementation of the model in a health sciences program at Oakland University as well as future directions and the potential for application in other departments.
Student Engagement in a Collegiate Science and Technology Program for Underrepresented STEM Students
Supporting underrepresented students in STEM majors is critical for student retention. The Collegiate Science and Technology Program (CSTEP) grant has the purpose to build community among participants, help them feel connected, provide supportive programming, and retain them both in college and within STEM majors. This study used a mixed-methods approach with quantitative and qualitative data collection to determine student perceptions of the efficacy of the program. Results indicated that students expressed high levels of satisfaction with the programming. Implications are that targeted programming has the potential to build community and provide students with positive experiences outside of the classroom.
STEM education; STEM careers; programming support
Implementing Anti-Racist Pedagogy: A Workshop About Integrating Theory Across the Curriculum
Doing anti-racist pedagogy presents many challenges. This is especially the case for faculty at small liberal arts colleges (SLACs). The authors argue that through teaching theory related to anti-racism and social justice in the classroom, faculty across disciplines can come together to access other worldviews and ways of being in their teaching. This article describes a successful model to aid in the implementation of anti-racist pedagogy in a format applicable across disciplines.
Teaching for Intellectual Humility: A Grounded Theory Analysis of Tenured Faculty Pedagogy
Intellectual humility, an awareness and ownership of one’s intellectual limitations, is argued as a fundamental component of undergraduate education that influences how individuals process new information, remain open to new experiences, and admit the fallibility of their thinking. This study presents a grounded theory analysis of intellectual humility as described by tenured faculty in the liberal arts and sciences. The author analyzed 33 interviews from arts and humanities, sciences, and business professors to empirically investigate how faculty teach for intellectual humility. A process for the facilitation of intellectual growth in undergraduates emerged consisting of: (a) an ownership of intellectual limitations, (b) an acceptance of discomfort, and (c) a love of learning. An empirically based model of growth via intellectual humility is presented and its implications for pedagogy discussed.
College Students’ Views of Teaching Practices for Early Morning and Evening Classes: An Analysis of Ratemyprofessors.com
This study explored the ratemyprofessors.com (RMP) site for student comments about what is valued and not valued about teaching practices unique to early morning and evening classes. A total of 412 student comments regarding 153 instructors from a variety of academic disciplines were systematically retrieved from RMP and analyzed using thematic analysis. Five positive themes emerged from the data: (1) Interesting, (2) Humorous, (3) Easygoing, (4) Enthusiastic, and (5) Interactive. There were also two negative themes: (1) Boring, and (2) Attendance-oriented. The findings reflect previous studies and have several practical implications for instructors who teach classes early in the morning and in the evening.
Pedagogy and Stress: How Undergraduates Respond to Different Teaching Methods
Undergraduates reported the impact of pedagogical practices on their perceived stress. Overall, clustered deadlines, unclear instructions, pop quizzes, high-stakes assignments, and cold calling created the most stress. Policies that allow grade recovery, clear instructions, feeling known by the professor, and flexible deadlines alleviated the most stress. Female and underrepresented ethnic minority (URM) students reacted either more positively or more negatively to many pedagogical practices when compared to male and non-URM students. Merit scholars reported greater stress reduction from clear instructions, low-stakes assignments, and flexible deadlines than non-merit-scholars. The authors discuss the implications of these findings for equitable and effective education.
stress; pedagogical practices; undergraduate students; group differences
Pedagogical Practices and Students' Sense of Belonging: An Examination of Contributing Factors and Outcomes
Sense of belonging is a social construct encompassing feelings of being integral to a system. A positive sense of belonging is associated with better social and academic engagement and retention. Traditionally, belongingness has been examined in terms of helping students integrate into existing systems; however, this study instead examines the impact of instructional practices and processes on belongingness. Quantitative and qualitative data indicate that intentional pedagogical efforts aimed at community building and student agency lead to improved perceptions of sense of belonging, but they also highlight an ongoing need to address systemic barriers to resources needed for holistic student support.