Abstract: With much attention being placed on the use of Twitter and other social media in the classroom, educators are grappling with the question, “Is Twitter a valid tool to increase classroom effectiveness?” Yet, many responses to this question come from anecdotal and case-study-based information. The present study offers a preliminary quantitative analysis of Twitter in the classroom. A survey-based experiment (n = 144) was conducted to measure student perceptions of teacher credibility, immediacy, and content relevance alongside instructor Twitter-use. Results indicate significant, positive correlations between student Twitter-use and positive perceptions of teacher behaviors. These results indicate that Twitter may serve as a valuable tool to supplement more traditional forms of course instruction.

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Abstract: Educators in a variety of disciplines have used clicker technology to engage college students in the learning process. This study investigated the influence of clicker technology on student recall and student involvement in higher education. Student Involvement Theory was used to inform and guide this research. Student recall was evaluated using three experimental conditions (1) verbal review (review without PowerPoint slide or clicker technology), (2) slide review (review with a PowerPoint slide and verbal review), and (3) clicker review (review with a PowerPoint slide, verbal review, and clicker technology). Also, student surveys were used to identify perceptions of involvement. Some evidence of improvement in student recall was identified with clicker technology review when compared to PowerPoint slides combined with verbal review. Student surveys indicated that students preferred clicker technology over the other conditions. Students also perceived benefits of clicker technology at a classroom level and on an individual engagement level.

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Abstract: This study was motivated by a recognized tension experienced by teachers and students resulting from an increasingly internationalized university classroom. We propose that this tension is exacerbated in business classrooms because of the participatory nature of many of the pedagogical tools used in these classrooms, tools which have been designed for Western students rather than those from Eastern cultures. These pedagogical tools include in-class discussions, student presentations, case analyses, and group work. This study examines the attitudes and opinions of Chinese students enrolled in Western business courses toward these specific pedagogical tools. We believe that this is the first study to look at these issues using a student lens. Three major themes emerge from the study: (1) Chinese students have a strong desire to be prepared for their classes; (2) Chinese students are not averse to participating in class; and (3) Chinese students want help, both academic and social. Our findings add depth to existing research by expanding on what is known about the Chinese learner and create awareness amongst business instructors and support staff to enhance classroom learning and teaching for all students.

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Abstract: A multi-method approach was used in a pilot assessment of student learning outcomes for 38 students enrolled in an undergraduate psychology practicum/internship program. The results from a pretest-posttest survey revealed that students improved their multicultural skills from the beginning to the end of the program. The results also indicate that experiential learning enhances student personal, civic, and professional development. The consistency of responses from students, field supervisors, and faculty suggest that the practicum/internship program is beneficial for all involved and serves as a method for strengthening university-community partnerships.

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Abstract: Grounded in the construct of community of practice, the authors discuss the Teacher-Learner Community (TLC), where the goal is to support the development of pre-service teachers’ understanding of culture, community, and background in learning. Insights and perceptions of preservice teachers were gathered after implementing a TLC designed to prepare them to work with English language learners (ELLs). Sharing these insights and perceptions, the authors discuss TLC’s potential role in influencing pre-service teachers’ beliefs and understanding of ELLs.

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Abstract: This exploratory study presents the outcomes of using self-explanation to improve learners’ performance in solving basic chemistry problems. The results of the randomized experiment show the existence of a moderation effect between prior knowledge and the level of support selfexplanation provides to learners, suggestive of a synergistic effect for learning. The results also suggest the existence of a threshold level of prior knowledge necessary for self-explanation-based cognitive strategies to become effective. As validation, this study also confirms prior findings that show that, given the right settings, learners can benefit significantly from using self-explanation while solving problems.

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Abstract: Google Docs, an online word processing application, is a promising tool for collaborative learning. However, many college instructors and students lack knowledge to effectively use Google Docs to enhance teaching and learning. Goals of this study include (1) assessing the effectiveness of using Google Docs in an out-of-class collaborative writing activity through measuring the assignment’s influence on students’ learning experiences, (2) teaching students to work collaboratively, and (3) teaching students to successfully communicate their understanding and application of concepts through writing. Undergraduate students (N = 35) were randomly assigned to small groups to complete two out-of-class assignments. We compared students’ collaborative performance and learning across two assignments, one with Google Docs and one without. We found (1) most students were unfamiliar with Google Docs prior to the study, (2) Google Docs changed the means of communication used in collaborative writing, (3) 93% of students considered Google Docs a useful tool for group work, (4) using Google Docs had no effect on students’ paper grades, and (5) half of the students reported they would like to use Google Docs in the future. Our results suggest that Google Docs was a useful tool for collaborative writing and influenced student learning.

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Abstract: Many graduate students are poor writers because graduate school demands higher quality and more variety of writing skills than undergraduate school, most students write without revision under heavy time pressures, and instructors often lack the time to guide them toward good writing. Helping students improve could happen in different ways. A structured modeling process might help, but it would be time intensive for faculty and students. Peer review writing groups might help students improve their writing, but they would require extensive student time as well as giving and receiving feedback, a process with which they may be uncomfortable. A process that might balance time and effort for all involved is a checklist for mechanical errors. Some existing checklists are brief but limited in scope; others are comprehensive but time consuming. The present manuscript presents an intermediate length checklist for mechanical errors. It has the advantages of encouraging interaction between faculty and student, having flexibility to be adapted to particular needs, and focusing on mechanical errors thus freeing up faculty to focus on substantive issues such as content and organization.

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Abstract: Increasing student critical thinking and active engagement with course content is an ongoing challenge in tertiary education. The present article explores the use of photography in two health sciences courses as a catalyst for the encouragement of critical thinking, creativity, engagement, and problem solving. The authors adapted photography assignments based on Photovoice and photo elicitation which are described in detail along with the benefits and challenges of utilizing nontraditional assignment formats. The immediate impact of these assignments appears to have challenged students’ thinking about the health culture in their lived environments and has allowed them to critically investigate and interpret their photos and the photos of their classmates.

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Abstract: This article describes an assignment, titled “Learning in the Real World,” designed for graduate students in a learning theory course. Students work in small groups to create high quality audiovisual films that present “real learning” through interviews and/or observations of learners. Students select topics relevant to theories we are discussing in class, such as interviewing expert and novice musicians to illustrate the development of procedural knowledge, interviewing a sister and brother regarding salient autobiographical events from their childhood, and filming students talking about strategies they use to comprehend and remember text information. In this article we discuss feedback on the assignment and how useful it can be for not only engaging students with learning theories and research, but also fostering the process of connecting theory to practice. Importantly, the assignment is relevant and adaptable for any classes, graduate or undergraduate, where theories play a large role and successfully helps all students see learning theory and research come alive through film.

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Abstract: This article describes the manner in which an authentic and culturally engaging service-learning model was infused into a multicultural education course for pre-service teachers. Service-learning programs integrated into education courses are often approached from a deficit perspective with preservice teachers perceiving themselves as the privileged providing a service to diverse communities in need. Models of this nature tend to reinforce personal bias and stereotypes. The service-learning framework presented in this article is comprised of the following seven elements: (a) investment in community needs, (b) preparation and planning, (c) community engagement and empowerment, (d) curricula infusion of multicultural education, (e) bridging theory and practice, (f) recognition and celebration, and (g) reflection and evaluation. Infusing this model into a teacher education course engages pre-service teachers toward recognizing, appreciating, and understanding students who are racially and culturally different from themselves.

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Abstract: Popular movies were used in a doctoral-level qualitative research methods course as a way to help students learn about how to collect and analyze qualitative observational data in order to develop a grounded theory. The course was designed in such a way that collaboration was central to the generation of knowledge. Using media depictions had the practical advantage of enabling the group to create fieldnotes from a common set of data collected simultaneously in a short period of time. Fictional representations in popular media can provide the basis to learn about both the methods and foundational assumptions for conducting qualitative research, including the challenges of bracketing prior assumptions.

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Abstract: The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint: Pitching Out Corrupts Within by Edward Tufte (2006) condemns the software for failing to help users achieve many of the goals of an effective presentation and instead offers a low resolution platform with a deeply hierarchical single-path structure capable of convening a trivial amount of information even over extended periods of time. A summary of his main objections, paired with a Whorfian perspective of how linguistic structure can influence thought, highlights how this ubiquitous yet largely unexamined technology, deeply intertwined with our educational system especially at the collegiate level, must be empirically evaluated relative to potential alternatives and supplements.

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