Abstract: Physical activity is linked to increased motivation and academic performance, yet the majority of research has focused on elementary and high school children. The current investigation evaluated this dynamic in college students (N = 209) by introducing a physical activity break at the mid-point of a videoed lecture and were divided into four conditions: control (no exercise), yoga, mild exercise, and moderate exercise. Students completed a motivation survey measure before the break and at the end of the lecture, followed by a quiz. Results showed that an intervention of moderate exercise and yoga were useful in increasing motivation and energy in college students. Interestingly, however, physical activity did not result in an increased retention of material. Future research is needed in a functioning classroom to evaluate the impact of exercise on academic motivation.

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Abstract: Despite widespread use of the Student Course Engagement Questionnaire (SCEQ; Handelsman, Briggs, Sullivan, & Towler, 2005) for the purposes of measuring college student engagement in scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) contexts, few studies have been published regarding its psychometric validity. The current study examined the structural and criterion validity of models proposed in the original study and in a subsequent validation study. The results indicated that neither model provided adequate fit to the current data. Concerns regarding structural, criterion, and content validity are discussed, and recommendations regarding the use of the SCEQ are provided in the context of current psychometric evidence and relevant theories of student engagement.

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Abstract: Research indicates higher feelings of self-determination promote increased student achievement. As a result, self-determination theory (SDT) may provide a unique lens to view first-year college student motivation and achievement outcomes. Results included strong positive correlations between perceived self-determination and satisfaction with life in college (N = 297; 61% variance explained) and first-year achievement (i.e., first-term GPA; 33% variance explained). ANOVAS indicated students with higher levels of self-determination had significantly higher first-term GPAs (Low SD 2.69; High SD 3.00). As a second purpose, specific curricular and professional development strategies are described to increase students’ feelings of autonomy and perceived self-determination.

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Abstract: There is increased demand for social work educators to utilize diverse pedagogical strategies to meet the needs of students of varying learning preferences and ensure student mastery of social work competencies. While many social work educators have found traditional instruction to be effective, I have found that using innovative, nuanced approaches and tools to be equally, if not more effective in bridging theory to practice and enhancing practice skills among students. Podcasting is one such tool. Moving away from the traditional paper-based assignments to a broad and deep multimedium, I outline in this article the use of podcast technology in a redesigned social work course assignment. By having students produce podcasts to integrate and convey the life experiences of “clients”, as opposed to the traditional model of case summary/psycho-social reporting, the results of a nonexperimental survey completed at the end of a 15-week course revealed enhanced listening and social work interview skills, critical and connective thinking, and a richer understanding of conceptual frameworks and theoretical models presented in the course through the use of podcast production. Feedback obtained from a survey from 19 students enrolled in the course revealed positive outcomes of the use of this new technology in the classroom.

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Abstract: To further the understanding of how individual differences among international students influence transitioning to a U.S. university, this quantitative study investigated whether cultural intelligence and social support directly influenced international students’ adjustment to higher education, and whether social support moderated the relationship between cultural intelligence and adjustment. Participants included 306 international students at a Southwestern university with an average age of 25.82. Data were collected though an online survey and included a demographic questionnaire, the International Student Adjustment to College Scale, the cultural intelligence questionnaire, and the social support scale. The results of hierarchical multiple regression analyses showed cultural intelligence and institutional social support were significant predictors of international students’ adjustment. With a higher level of cultural intelligence or social support from the university, participants were more likely to have a better adjustment to the university. There was no interaction effect between cultural intelligence and social support from family, non-family, and institution on international students’ adjustment.

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Abstract: Students’ learning experiences shape their perceptions of effective learning practices, and these perceptions affect the effort and approaches students engage in when in a learning environment. The type of learning environment students engage with may vary across disciplines, therefore students’ perceptions may be domain-specific. Data for this study were students’ discipline-specific perceptions of effective course structures and activities for chemistry and humanities and their general epistemic beliefs. The responses (N = 532) across three courses were grouped as either constructivist or instructivist learning approaches and then reported as a ratio. A step-wise regression was used to determine domain-specific differences in the students’ responses, and the association to epistemic beliefs and perceptions of learning. Results revealed disciplinary differences in students’ perceptions of learning. Understanding students’ perceptions of learning have implications for students’ future enrollment, effort towards learning, and approaches to learning within different courses.

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Abstract: Research has primarily focused on the engagement of the student in the classroom (Austin, 1993; Schunk & Mullen, 2012; Tinto, 1993), often without consideration of the engagement of the teacher (Frenzel, Goetz, Lüdtke, Pekrun, & Sutton, 2009). However, we predict that teachers’ subjective experiences “trickle down” and ultimately impact the subjective experiences and performance of their students. Consistent with our Trickle-Down Engagement Model Hypothesis, we found undergraduate students’ perceptions of their instructor’s engagement were associated with their own engagement in the classroom (Studies 1 & 2; Ns = 195 and 210, respectively), and students’ increased classroom engagement was associated with more engagement while studying (which, in turn, predicted higher quiz scores; Study 1) as well as with higher final grades (Study 2). Our results suggest there are relatively simple changes teachers can make to their own pedagogy that may improve their own subjective experiences within the classroom and, consequently, trickle down to and improve their students’ subjective experiences and performance.

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Abstract: This study evaluates an innovative three-sided approach to classroom debate aimed at fostering critical thinking beyond adversarial argumentation. In an undergraduate Food Justice course, two teams presented arguments “for” and “against” pre-defined resolutions, while a third team explored areas of convergence and divergence at the “complex middle”. Class members subsequently engaged in verbal and written reflections. Drawing on field notes, students’ written reflections, and an evaluative student survey, the authors investigated the impacts of this approach. Most students found the three-team structure (80%) and post-debate verbal sharing sessions (72%) useful; almost twothirds (64%) called for inclusion of a structured question/answer period. Many students actively embraced the complex middle as an interdisciplinary site for exploring real-world problems, noting flaws in their prior thinking, and becoming more alert to their socio-cultural positionalities. Additional research on similar pedagogies appears warranted.

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Abstract: The educational value of portfolios as assessments has been widely acknowledged across the higher education sector and literature as providing a platform to promote student-centred and reflective learning (Brown, 1997; Snadden & Thomas, 1998; Karlowicz, 2000). While there is plentiful research investigating the benefits of providing portfolios at undergraduate level, little has focused on the role of assessment from a students’ perspective. This study sought to examine how students from an Academic English course at a UK university perceive assessments in comparison to the intention of the assessment, as designed for the course. A correlation can be seen between the questionnaire results measuring students’ perceptions and scores on the assessments. Students who, as intended by the course creator, “related the portfolio tasks to the essay” and “consciously thought about the link between the two assessments” received a higher grade in both assessments; whereas, those who disagreed with these statements, unaligned to the course aims, generally received lower grades in both their portfolio and essay. These results suggest that the intentions of an assessment should be made explicitly clear to the cohort, developing their understanding and thus potentially the importance they assign to the task and the benefits and skills they gain.

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Abstract: This mixed-methods study examined the beliefs, and their origins, of trainee teachers regarding a number of myths and misconceptions about teaching and learning. Using a cross-sectional experimental design, survey data were collected from 65 pre-service teachers enrolled in a highprofile Bachelor of Education program. 18 participants then took part in semi-structured interviews. The results indicate that trainee teachers’ beliefs in educational myths and misconceptions may not change over the course of a five-year evidence based teacher preparation program. Further, the qualitative results suggest that beliefs in learning myths might become further entrenched over the course of study as a result of being actively promoted by faculty throughout the program.

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Abstract: Faculty at postsecondary institutions are working with students with disabilities at a higher rate in the last two decades than ever before due to an increase in students with disabilities pursuing and entering higher education. The American with Disabilities Act Title II requires faculty and universities to provide accommodations to students with disabilities, so they have equal access to higher education. This study assessed faculty self-efficacy in working with students with disabilities and what effect their self-efficacy had on their perceptions of and willingness to accommodate students with disabilities. Engaging in professional development related to creating inclusive environments was found to affect teacher self-efficacy, and higher teacher self-efficacy was found to be related to more positive perceptions of and willingness to accommodate students with disabilities. These findings provide researchers with information relevant for future studies on differences in willingness to accommodate specific disabilities of college students, as well as set the stage for recognizing the importance of professional development for understanding and accommodating students with disabilities in higher education.

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Abstract: The purpose of this article is to explore why work-experienced students with up to 20 years of experience may not change their perception of professional practice when subsequently participating in practice-based learning programmes in higher education. We investigated the role of the degree of codification as operationalisation in how students choose theories to solve a practical management problem. When selecting a theory, work-experienced students may overlook the degree of codification in the theory that enables its use as an analytical tool. Previous research on novices or work-experienced students has not investigated their learning outcomes considering the features of theories students need to apply. Research findings indicate that students’ understanding of theories affects their selection of theories and their problem-solving practice. This study extends previous research on work-experienced students’ learning and contributes to the international discussion on why work-experienced students encounter difficulties in professional and practice-based learning in higher education.

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Abstract: This SoTL-driven study used Read Aloud Protocols (RAPs) to explore the question, how do students read assignments? Reading theory suggests that students will draw on schema in order to make sense of what they are reading. This study explored the strategies that students used to read and interpret an assignment and examined the ways that schema contributed to their understanding of the prompt. Participants in a second-year college class focused on interdisciplinary liberal arts read an assignment aloud and articulated their thought processes as they recorded themselves. Results suggest that students limit themselves to the most easily accessible schema rather than reaching for more depth from less immediate schema. This finding has bearing for faculty in how they construct their assignments and the assumptions they make about what students bring to an assignment.

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Abstract: Competent clinical reasoning skills are necessary for providing safe and effective health care. Professional level health science education programs are keenly interested in fostering effective clinical reasoning skills. As such, many programs expect students to engage in complex clinical reasoning tasks early in their education. However, early novice students may not be entering programs with the requisite skills to meet those expectations. Pre-professional undergraduate anatomy curricula are prerequisites for professional education programs across the health sciences and could be an appropriate context for developing initial clinical reasoning skills, providing a “cognitive head start” for students matriculating into professional health science education programs. This article describes an evidence-based pedagogical approach for teaching initial clinical reasoning skills within an undergraduate anatomy curriculum. While an undergraduate anatomy curriculum is the context in this case, this approach is based on high-level pedagogical concepts and could be modified and adopted across the spectrum of disciplines that prepare students for professional level health science education programs.

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Abstract: Internal and external drivers have seen institutions of higher education place increasing emphasis on the links between teaching and research in their curricula. Despite the apparent positive trend towards research-oriented undergraduate programs, there are a number of documented challenges or “risks” to incorporating research into teaching and learning. This paper presents an adapted fourquadrant framework that maps student progression throughout a program of study from researchbriefed learning to carrying out independent research themselves. The model is illustrated by two case studies of its implementation throughout entire degree programs (Natural Sciences at the University of Leicester and Integrated Science at McMaster University).

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Abstract: In an increasingly diverse world that is characterized by significant social and educational inequities, the development of educators and leaders who embody cultural humility and culturally responsive practices is necessary and transformational. Moving beyond individual and deficit-centered models of student support systems towards ecological and relational paradigms of education are critical to the goals of equity and justice. In order to make progress on these goals, training programs must prioritize and embed the values of cultural humility and culturally responsive practice as foundational constructs for future educators. This multi-authored reflective paper describes the use of Restorative Pedagogy, an approach grounded in Restorative Justice and Practices, as a vehicle to facilitate the development of these important qualities. Key concepts and activities used within a graduate level course designed for students studying to be school counselors, school psychologists, and school leaders are described throughout. Limitations and implications for this pedagogical approach are also included.

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