Purpose: This mixed-methods study assesses an innovative course design model that integrates community site visits and service-learning at the introductory level for Undergraduate Rehabilitation Education (URE) students (n = 44). Method: The authors used a survey design to analyze service-learning outcomes and civic attitudes to evaluate the…

This research examines whether explicit course-level learning objectives (LOs) affect students' perceptions of courses and ability to recall factual knowledge and analyze political problems. The study compares four sections of the author's introductory world politics course -- two that were provided with the explicit learning objectives and two…

The science laboratory learning environment has been a distinctive area in science education since the 19th century. Unfortunately, students are generally not aware of what science instructors expect from laboratory experiences, and far too often, the undergraduate science laboratory curriculum lacks explicit, well-defined goals. Science…

Literature on simulation games stresses both the need for objective assessment of pedagogical effectiveness and the concern that such assessment may not be happening because it is too difficult. This article speaks to both points by presenting an approach to objectively assess the effectiveness of a simulation called the Human Rights Foreign…

We present an investigation into the interdisciplinary role of physics in a physics-for-nonphysicists course at Pomona College. This work is guided by prior research into introductory physics for life science (IPLS) courses, but attends to significant differences in the scope and context of this course. We interviewed enrolled students, physics…

An increasing number of introductory physics courses are seeking to incorporate "authentic practices," and a large area of focus in this trend is the incorporation of computational problems into the curriculum. These problems offer students an opportunity to engage with the programming practices and numerical problem-solving methods used…

Because students and professors place different values on syllabi components, perceptions of course objectives vary. Previous studies investigated the relationship between students' and instructors' expectations and syllabi content, but do not address the role of explicitly stated course objectives in syllabi. Our study used qualitative methods to…

Team projects and in-class interactions are the hallmark of a freshmen introductory course in biomedical engineering (BME). Our challenge was to continue team activities, mentoring, and the semester-long design project in a virtual environment after in-person classes ended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper highlights some of the adaptations…

I analyzed student submissions from a photography-based assignment in introductory sociology. In this exploratory study, I discuss the patterns found in student submissions to uncover what sociological concepts students observed in their everyday lives. My primary research question, therefore, was what do introductory sociology students see when…

This paper compares an innovative approach to teaching a required introductory C programming course to a traditional C programming course for electrical engineering (EE) students. The novel course utilizes hardware-based projects to motivate students to master language syntax and implement key programming concepts and best practices. In a mixed…

Background: We report the results of an undergraduate course in astrophotography designed to engage non-STEM majors in the natural sciences to train future amateur astronomers and citizen scientists. Over 200,000 students enroll in introductory astronomy elective classes every year in the US alone, which will possibly be their only encounter with…

This study evaluated syllabi (N = 87) from introductory advertising and public relations courses to examine to what extent and how stated course goals and assignments signal the overall learning orientation of a course and which type of learning orientation--mastery or performance--was most common. Mastery orientations emphasize intrinsic rewards,…

Introducing students to sensitive social issues like intimate violence in lower level courses can spark their sociological imaginations motivating them to do further research in order to gain reflective knowledge about such topics. In order to promote two course objectives: (1) recognizing and applying sociological concepts and theories, and (2)…

Discusses the relationships between instructor and student goals, course design, and student strategies for learning physics in a traditional introductory undergraduate physics course for nonmajors. Results indicate that diverse goals and the structure of the course inhibited the understanding of physics and were conducive to students engaging in…

The University of Calgary (Alberta, Canada) has two half-courses which can be categorized as early exploratory field experiences and which have existed over 5 years. One half-course is mainly theoretical in its focus and consists primarily of an analysis and description of education in contemporary society. In contrast, the other half-course…