Factors associated with pre-marital sexual debut among unmarried high school female students in bahir Dar town, Ethiopia: cross- sectional study

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

Background Pre-marital sexual debut increase the risk of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) including HIV/AIDS and unwanted pregnancy. It may also affect their school performance and completion rate. In spite of this fact, number of unmarried female students who started sexual debut is increasing from time to time. However, information on the extent of pre-marital sexual debut and associated factors were not well studied and documented in the study area where pre-marital sexual debut is largely condemned. Therefore this study was conducted to assess the magnitude and associated factors of pre-marital sexual debut. Methods School based cross-sectional survey was conducted from May 10-13/2012. A total of 1123 unmarried high school female students were selected by multi- stage sampling technique. Data were collected using structured, self administered questionnaire. Descriptive statistics, binary and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to identify factors associated with pre-marital sexual debut. Results Among unmarried high school female students 30.8% reported pre-marital sexual debut. The major associated factors were frequent watching of pornographic video [AOR = 10.15, 95% CI: (6.63, 15.53)], peer pressure [AOR = 2.98, 95% CI: (1.57, 5.67)] and chewing khat [AOR = 8.99, 95% CI: (3.84, 21.06)]. Conclusion Significant proportion of unmarried high school female students have started pre-marital sexual debut. The finding suggests the need for communicating and supporting school students to help them make informed and safer decisions on their sexual behavior. Therefore, Bahir dar city administration health and education bureau should design persistent and effective health education to decrease pre-marital sexual debut in unmarried female students. PMID:24885739

Pre-clinical medical student experience in a pediatric pulmonary clinic

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Thomas G. Saba

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Objective: Our objective was to evaluate the educational value of introducing pre-clinical medical students to pediatric patients and their families in a subspecialty clinic setting. Methods: First- and second-year medical students at the University of Michigan seeking clinical experience outside of the classroom attended an outpatient pediatric pulmonary clinic. Evaluation of the experience consisted of pre- and post-clinic student surveys and post-clinic parent surveys with statements employing a four-point Likert scale as well as open-ended questions. Results: Twenty-eight first-year students, 6 second-year students, and 33 parents participated in the study. Post-clinic statement scores significantly increased for statements addressing empathic attitudes, confidence communicating with children and families, comfort in the clinical environment, and social awareness. Scores did not change for statements addressing motivation, a sense of team membership, or confidence with career goals. Students achieved their goals of gaining experience interacting with patients, learning about pulmonary diseases, and observing clinic workflow. Parents felt that they contributed to student education and were not inconvenienced. Conclusions: Students identified several educational benefits of exposure to a single pediatric pulmonary clinic. Patients and families were not inconvenienced by the participation of a student. Additional studies are warranted to further investigate the value of this model of pre-clinical medical student exposure to subspecialty pediatrics.

Sleep disorders in high school and pre-university students

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Célia R.S. Rocha; Sueli Rossini; Rubens Reimão

2010-01-01

Adolescence is a period in which youngsters have to make choices such as applying for university. The selection process is competitive, and it brings distress and anxiety, risk factors for the appearance of sleep disorders. Objective: To verify the occurrence of sleep disorders in third-year high school and pre-university students. Method: This cross-sectional descriptive study comprised a sample of 529 students (M=241, F=288) from three public schools, four private schools and two pre-univer...

Language Learning Motivation among Malaysian Pre-University Students

Science.gov (United States)

Muftah, Muneera; Rafik-Galea, Shameem

2013-01-01

The study describes and examines Malaysian pre-university students' integrative and instrumental motivation toward learning English language. In this study, 182 non-English major students in one of the Malaysian public universities are selected to fill out a questionnaire reflecting their attitudes and motivation towards learning English. The…

The impact of taking a college pre-calculus course on students' college calculus performance

Science.gov (United States)

Sonnert, Gerhard; Sadler, Philip M.

2014-11-01

Poor performance on placement exams keeps many US students who pursue a STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) career from enrolling directly in college calculus. Instead, they must take a pre-calculus course that aims to better prepare them for later calculus coursework. In the USA, enrollment in pre-calculus courses in two- and four-year colleges continues to grow, and these courses are well-populated with students who already took pre-calculus in high school. We examine student performance in college calculus, using regression discontinuity to estimate the effects of taking college pre-calculus or not, in a national US sample of 5507 students at 132 institutions. We find that students who take college pre-calculus do not earn higher calculus grades.

Learning style preferences among pre-clinical medical students

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Aye Aye Mon

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Generally, different students employ different learning styles dur-ing their studies and medical students are exposed to diverse methods of teaching. Therefore, understanding students’ learning style preference is an important consideration for a high quality and effective teaching and learning process.The aim of the study was to study the variation of learning styles among pre-clinical medical students of SEGi University, Malaysia. A cross-sectional study was performed by using VARK (Visual, Audio, Reading and Kinaesthetic questionnaire version 7.2 to assess the learning style preference of 98 (n=98 pre-clinical medical students in SEGi University. The questionnaire consists of 16 items which identify four different learning styles: visual, aural, reading/writing and kin-esthetic. Descriptive statistics were used to identify the learning styles of students. 61 students preferred multimodal as their learning style, out of which 43 (70% of them were female stu-dents and 18 (30% were male students. 37 students preferred unimodal as their learning style out of which 22 (59% of them were female students and 15 (41% were male students. In addi-tion, female students had more diverse preferences than male students by having 10 out of the other 11 possible combinations in multimodal learning style of preference, whereas the male stu-dents only had 5 out of the 11 combinations. In this study, there was no significant gender difference in the percentages of males and female students who preferred unimodal and multimodal styles of information presentation (P= 0.263; α=0.05. To con-clude, the majority of students of both genders had chosen quad-modal as their learning style preference. The results of this study can provide useful information for improving the quality of the teaching and learning experiences of students.

Student Learning in Competence-Based Pre-Vocational Secondary Education.

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Dr P.J. Teune; P. den Brok; prof dr Douwe Beijaard; Dr. M. Koopman

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate relations between goal orientations, information processing strategies and development of conceptual knowledge of pre-vocational secondary education students (n=719; 14 schools). Student preferences for certain types of goals and information processing

Structure of a Complete Mediator-RNA Polymerase II Pre-Initiation Complex.

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Robinson, Philip J; Trnka, Michael J; Bushnell, David A; Davis, Ralph E; Mattei, Pierre-Jean; Burlingame, Alma L; Kornberg, Roger D

2016-09-08

A complete, 52-protein, 2.5 million dalton, Mediator-RNA polymerase II pre-initiation complex (Med-PIC) was assembled and analyzed by cryo-electron microscopy and by chemical cross-linking and mass spectrometry. The resulting complete Med-PIC structure reveals two components of functional significance, absent from previous structures, a protein kinase complex and the Mediator-activator interaction region. It thereby shows how the kinase and its target, the C-terminal domain of the polymerase, control Med-PIC interaction and transcription. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Student Engagement and Completion in Precalculus Precalculus Mega Section: Efficiently Assisting Student Engagement and Completion with Communications and Information Technology

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Brusi, Rima; Portnoy, Arturo; Toro, Nilsa

2013-01-01

The Precalculus Mega Section project was developed with the main purpose of improving the overall performance of the student body in Precalculus, an important gatekeeper course that affects student engagement and completion, with typical drop/failure rates of over 50 percent. Strategies such as integration of technology and additional practice…

Psychosocial impact, perceived stress and learning effect in undergraduate dental students during transition from pre-clinical to clinical education.

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Frese, C; Wolff, D; Saure, D; Staehle, H J; Schulte, A

2018-04-10

This study aimed to develop a suitable instrument for a comprehensive quantitative and qualitative assessment of perceived psychosocial impact, levels of stress and learning effect in undergraduate dental students during the transition from pre-clinical to clinical education. These findings might improve curricular structures and didactic organisation during this period. At the beginning of their first clinical year, undergraduate dental students were asked to complete an anonymous forty-item questionnaire. Two hundred and seventy-six undergraduate dental students were willing to participate and completed the questionnaire and participated during the years 2011-2016. The response rate was between 45% and 96%. Correlational analysis (Spearman-Rho) in the field of psychosocial impact showed the dental teacher to be the most important multiplier of students' feelings. If the students feel that their teacher acts cooperatively, positive items increase and negative items decrease significantly (P < .0001). Also, students who report high levels of stress are affected significantly in their psychosocial interaction (P < .0001). Wilcoxon test yielded highest levels of stress in endodontology during the first weeks (P < .0001). During the same period, the greatest learning increment was seen for diagnostics and caries excavation. In conclusion, teaching of undergraduate dental students during the transition period from pre-clinical to clinical education can be positively influenced by a supportive learning environment and by specific chronological modifications in the curriculum. Students should start their clinical training with diagnostics, preventive dentistry and initial periodontal treatment. Due to high levels of perceived stress, endodontology should be introduced later in the clinical curriculum. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Relationship of academic success of medical students with motivation and pre-admission grades.

Science.gov (United States)

Luqman, Muhammad

2013-01-01

To determine predictive validity of pre-admission scores of medical students, evaluate correlation between level of motivation and later on academic success in a medical college. Analytical study. Foundation University Medical College, Islamabad, from June to August 2011. A non-probability convenience sampling of students of 1st to final year MBBS classes was done after obtaining informed consent. These students filled out 'Strength of Motivation for Medical School' (SMMS) questionnaire. The data of pre-admission grades of these students along with academic success in college according to examination results in different years were collected. The correlation between the pre-admission grades and score of SMMS questionnaire with their academic success in medical college was found by applying Pearson co-efficient of correlation in order to determine the predictive validity. Only 46% students revealed strong motivation. A significant, moderate correlation was found between preadmission scores and academic success in 1st year modular examination (0.52) which became weaker in various professional examinations in higher classes. However, no significant correlation was observed between motivation and academic success of medical students in college. Selecting medical students by pre-admission scores or motivation level alone may not be desirable. A combination of measures of cognitive ability criteria (FSc/pre-admission test scores) and non-cognitive skills (personality traits) is recommended to be employed with the use of right tools for selection of students in medical schools.

Students' and lecturers' perceptions of support in a UK pre-registration midwifery programme.

Science.gov (United States)

McIntosh, Annette Elizabeth; Gidman, Janice; McLaughlin, Andrea

2013-11-01

This paper reports on a study that explored the perceptions of students and lecturers regarding support within a pre-registration midwifery programme in one Higher Education Institution in England. A mixed method design was used: questionnaires were completed by first year and third year students and lecturers, complemented by focus groups with each of the three sets of participants. The findings showed that there are multi-focal challenges for student midwives in undertaking their programme of study. The main theme that emerged was of the difficulties involved in maintaining an appropriate work-life balance, especially within what was seen as a relatively inflexible programme structure. The value of peer support was also highlighted as a key factor in helping the students succeed in their studies. There were a number of implications for midwifery educators to consider in optimising support for students. These include ensuring that students have realistic expectations at the outset of their studies, formalising peer support mechanisms and reviewing programmes to provide more flexibility to better underpin the maintenance of an appropriate work-life balance. Further study is warranted to explore perceptions of support in practice and to identify the factors that help students to persevere in their studies. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

International express student's book : pre-intermediate

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Taylor, Liz

1996-01-01

The New Edition of International Express Pre-Intermediate retains all the keys features of this popular and successel four-level course. It combines engaging, up-to-date topics with a time-efficient and student-centred approach to language work, and clearly focused activities that reflect learner's real communicative needs - the ideal course for professional adults who use English for work, travel, and socializing.

Health risks encountered by Dutch medical students during an elective in the tropics and the quality and comprehensiveness of pre-and post-travel care

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Vandenbroucke Jan P

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Clinical and research electives abroad offer medical students many unique experiences. However, participating in an unfamiliar health-care setting combined with limited medical experience may place students at risk of illness. To improve pre-and post-travel care, we assessed the health risks and the quality and comprehensiveness of pre-and post-travel care in a cohort of Dutch medical students returning form an elective abroad. Methods All medical students who had performed an elective in the tropics between July 2006 and December 2008 were sent an informative email asking them to complete a web-based questionnaire. Results 180 of 242 (74% students completed the questionnaire. Regarding the risk of bloodborne viral infection: 67% of all students and 32% of junior students engaged in procedures that constitute a risk of exposure to bloodborne viral infection, often in countries with high HIV prevalence rates. None of nine students who experienced possible or certain mucosal or percutaneous exposure to potentially infectious body fluids reported the exposure at the time it occurred and none used PEP. Regarding other health risks: 8 of 40 (20% students stopped using mefloquine due to adverse effects. This left a sizeable proportion unprotected in countries that are hyperendemic for malaria. Post-travel screening for schistosomiasis, tuberculosis (tuberculin skin test and carriage of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA encompassed approximately half of all students who should have been screened. Conclusions Based on the results of this study we have adopted an integral set of measures to reduce the health risks associated with an elective abroad. The pre and post-travel consult has been centralized and standardized as well as the distribution of PEP. In addition we have developed a mandatory module on Global Health for all medical students planning an elective abroad.

Health risks encountered by Dutch medical students during an elective in the tropics and the quality and comprehensiveness of pre-and post-travel care.

Science.gov (United States)

Sharafeldin, Elhadi; Soonawala, Darius; Vandenbroucke, Jan P; Hack, Evelien; Visser, Leo G

2010-12-02

Clinical and research electives abroad offer medical students many unique experiences. However, participating in an unfamiliar health-care setting combined with limited medical experience may place students at risk of illness. To improve pre-and post-travel care, we assessed the health risks and the quality and comprehensiveness of pre-and post-travel care in a cohort of Dutch medical students returning form an elective abroad. All medical students who had performed an elective in the tropics between July 2006 and December 2008 were sent an informative email asking them to complete a web-based questionnaire. 180 of 242 (74%) students completed the questionnaire. Regarding the risk of bloodborne viral infection: 67% of all students and 32% of junior students engaged in procedures that constitute a risk of exposure to bloodborne viral infection, often in countries with high HIV prevalence rates. None of nine students who experienced possible or certain mucosal or percutaneous exposure to potentially infectious body fluids reported the exposure at the time it occurred and none used PEP. Regarding other health risks: 8 of 40 (20%) students stopped using mefloquine due to adverse effects. This left a sizeable proportion unprotected in countries that are hyperendemic for malaria. Post-travel screening for schistosomiasis, tuberculosis (tuberculin skin test) and carriage of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) encompassed approximately half of all students who should have been screened. Based on the results of this study we have adopted an integral set of measures to reduce the health risks associated with an elective abroad. The pre and post-travel consult has been centralized and standardized as well as the distribution of PEP. In addition we have developed a mandatory module on Global Health for all medical students planning an elective abroad.

Pre-University Chemistry Students in a Mimicked Scholarly Peer Review

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van Rens, Lisette; Hermarij, Philip; Pilot, Albert; Beishuizen, Jos; Hofman, Herman; Wal, Marjolein

2014-01-01

Peer review is a significant component in scientific research. Introducing peer review into inquiry processes may be regarded as an aim to develop student understanding regarding quality in inquiries. This study examines student understanding in inquiry peer reviews among pre-university chemistry students, aged 16-17, when they enact a design of a…

Use of a patient completed iPad questionnaire to improve pre-operative assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Howell, M; Hood, A J; Jayne, D G

2017-02-01

Developments in healthcare technology could improve patient care and reduce healthcare costs. There is a need to facilitate communication and increase efficiency in surgical pre-assessment clinics. This study aimed to develop an iPad application to deliver an electronic patient questionnaire, and to evaluate its use in the pre-assessment environment. Software was developed, MyOp, for a standard iPad that mirrored the paper-based pre-assessment system, with features designed for ease of patient use and remote data transfer. A case-control study was conducted, comparing use of MyOp with paper-based practice, to evaluate feasibility and patient preference. Patients were offered the use of MyOp or paper-based system. Outcomes measured included time to complete iPad questionnaire, consultation duration, and a patient preference questionnaire. MyOp cost £3500 to develop. 104 individuals participated in the study, 53 MyOp and 51 controls. MyOp reduced the median consultation duration by 5.00 min. A reduction was seen in all subgroups except those aged over 70 or urology patients. Patients preferred to complete the form independently, using a touchpad or computer but expressed concerns about data security. Use of an electronic patient questionnaire reduces consultation time delivering greater efficiency of pre-assessment nurse time. Preconceived ideas about the use of technology in older age groups are likely inaccurate and less of a barrier than previously thought. Electronic pre-assessments could be used routinely to reduce demands on healthcare facilities, improve patient care, and triage patients prior to clinic attendance.

Completion of an Online Library Module Improves Engineering Student Performance on Information Literacy Skills Tests

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Rachel E. Scott

2016-12-01

Full Text Available A Review of: Zhang, Q., Goodman, M., & Xie, S. (2015. Integrating library instruction into the Course Management System for a first-year engineering class: An evidence-based study measuring the effectiveness of blended learning on students’ information literacy levels. College & Research Libraries, 76(7, 934-958. http://dx.doi.org/10.5860/crl.76.7.934 Objective – To assess the efficacy of an online library module and of blended learning methods on students’ information literacy skills. Design – Multi-modal, pre- and posttests, survey questionnaire, and focus groups. Setting – Public research university in London, Ontario, Canada. Subjects – First-year engineering students. Methods – Of 413 students enrolled in Engineering Science (ES 1050, 252 volunteered to participate in the study. Participants were asked to complete the online module, a pretest, a posttest, an online follow-up survey, and to take part in a focus group. Researchers generated a pretest and a posttest, each comprised of 15 questions:; multiple choice, true or false, and matching questions which tested students’ general and engineering-specific information literacy skills. The pretest and posttest had different, but similarly challenging, questions to ensure that students involved in the study would not have an advantage over those who had opted out. While all components of the study were voluntary, the posttest was a graded course assignment. In-person tutorials were offered on 4 occasions, with only 15 students participating. Both tutorial and module content were designed to cover all questions and competencies tested in the pretest and the posttest, including Boolean operators, peer review, identifying plagiarism, engineering standards, engineering handbooks, search strategies, patents, article citations, identifying reliable sources, and how to read journal articles. The posttest survey was delivered in the CMS immediately after the posttest was completed. It

Pre-university Chemistry Students in a Mimicked Scholarly Peer Review

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Rens, L.; Hermarij, P.; Pilot, A.; Beishuizen, J.J.; Hofman, H.; van der Wal, M.

2014-01-01

Peer review is a significant component in scientific research. Introducing peer review into inquiry processes may be regarded as an aim to develop student understanding regarding quality in inquiries. This study examines student understanding in inquiry peer reviews among pre-university chemistry

Enhancing self-directed learning among Italian nursing students: A pre- and post-intervention study.

Science.gov (United States)

Cadorin, L; Rei, A; Dante, A; Bulfone, T; Viera, G; Palese, A

2015-06-01

In accordance with Knowles's theory, self-directed learning (SDL) may be improved with tutorial strategies focused on guided reflection and critical analysis of the learning process. No evidence on effects on SDL abilities of different tutorial strategies offered to nursing students during the 1st clinical experience is available. To evaluate the effect of different tutorial strategies offered to nursing students on their SDL abilities. A pre-post intervention non-equivalent control group design was adopted in 2013. For the treatment group, structured and intensive tutorial interventions including different strategies such as briefing, debriefing, peer support, Socratic questioning, performed by university tutors were offered during the 1st clinical experience; for the control group, unstructured and non-intensive tutorial strategies were instead offered. Two Bachelor of Nursing Degree. Students awaiting their clinical experience (n=238) were the target sample. Those students who have completed the pre- and the post-intervention evaluation (201; 84.4%) were included in the analysis. SDL abilities were measured with the SRSSDL_ITA (Self Rating Scale of Self Directed Learning-Italian Version). A multiple linear regression analysis was developed to explore the predictive effect of individual, contextual and intervention variables. Three main factors explained the 36.8% of the adjusted variance in SDL scores have emerged: a) having received a lower clinical nurse-to-student supervision (B 9.086, β 2.874), b) having received higher level and structured tutorial intervention by university tutors (B 8.011, β 2.741), and c) having reported higher SDL scores at the baseline (B .550, β .556). A lower clinical nurse-to-student ratio (1:4), accompanied by unstructured and non-intensive tutorial intervention adopted by university tutors, seemed to be equivalent to an intensive clinical supervision (1:1) accompanied by higher level and structured tutorial strategies activated

Mastery learning improves students skills in inserting intravenous access: a pre-post-study.

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Friederichs, Hendrik; Brouwer, Britta; Marschall, Bernhard; Weissenstein, Anne

2016-01-01

Inserting peripheral venous catheters (PVCs) has been identified as a core competency for medical students. Because the performance - even of hygienic standards - of both students and novice physicians is frequently inadequate, medical faculties must focus on competence-based learning objectives and deliberate practice, features that are combined in mastery learning. Our aim was to determine the competency of students in inserting PVCs before and after an educational intervention. This study comprised a skills assessment with pre- and post-tests of a group of third-year students who received a simulation-based intervention. A newly established curriculum involved one hour of practice at inserting PVCs on simulators. Students were required to pass a test (total 21 points, pass mark 20 points) developed on the concept of mastery learning. An unannounced follow-up test was performed one week (8 days) after the intervention. The simulation center of the medical faculty in Muenster. Third-year students who received the intervention. One hundred and nine complete data sets were obtained from 133 students (82.5%). Most students (97.2%) passed the test after the intervention (mean score increase from 15.56 to 20.50, Pstudents' performance after one week (8 days): only 74.5% of participants passed this retest (mean score reduction from 20.50 to 20.06, Plearning is an effective form of teaching practical skills to medical students, allowing a thorough preparation for the challenges of daily clinical practice.

Using Pre-Assessment and In-Class Questions to Change Student Understanding of Molecular Movements

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Jia Shi

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Understanding how different types of molecules move through cell membranes is a fundamental part of cell biology. To identify and address student misconceptions surrounding molecular movement through cell membranes, we surveyed student understanding on this topic using pre-class questions, in-class clicker questions, and subsequent exam questions in a large introductory biology course. Common misconceptions identified in student responses to the pre-class assessment questions were used to generate distractors for clicker questions. Two-tier diagnostic clicker questions were used to probe incoming common student misconceptions (first tier and their reasoning (second tier. Two subsequent lectures with assessment clicker questions were used to help students construct a new framework to understand molecular movement through cell membranes. Comparison of pre-assessment and post-assessment (exam performance showed dramatic improvement in students’ understanding of molecular movement: student answers to exam questions were 74.6% correct with correct reasoning while only 1.3% of the student answers were correct with correct reasoning on the pre-class assessment. Our results show that students’ conceptual understanding of molecular movement through cell membranes progressively increases through discussions of a series of clicker questions and suggest that this clicker-based teaching strategy was highly effective in correcting common student misconceptions on this topic.

The Effectiveness of a Cohort Model as a Predictor of Grade Point Average and Graduation Status of Pre-Health Sciences Students in a Public Community College

Science.gov (United States)

Brandon, Elvis Nash

2017-01-01

There is a college completion crisis in the United States. In today's competitive job market, health sciences students cannot afford to fail in their educational attainment. The purpose of this study was to determine if participation in the cohort model is a predictor of the success of public community college pre-health sciences students.…

Interprofessional simulation of birth in a non-maternity setting for pre-professional students.

Science.gov (United States)

McLelland, Gayle; Perera, Chantal; Morphet, Julia; McKenna, Lisa; Hall, Helen; Williams, Brett; Cant, Robyn; Stow, Jill

2017-11-01

Simulation-based learning is an approach recommended for teaching undergraduate health professionals. There is a scarcity of research around interprofessional simulation training for pre-professional students in obstetric emergencies that occur prior to arrival at the maternity ward. The primary aims of the study were to examine whether an interprofessional team-based simulated birth scenario would improve undergraduate paramedic, nursing, and midwifery students' self-efficacy scores and clinical knowledge when managing birth in an unplanned location. The secondary aim was to assess students' satisfaction with the newly developed interprofessional simulation. Quasi-experimental descriptive study with repeated measures. Simulated hospital emergency department. Final year undergraduate paramedic, nursing, and midwifery students. Interprofessional teams of five students managed a simulated unplanned vaginal birth, followed by debriefing. Students completed a satisfaction with simulation survey. Serial surveys of clinical knowledge and self-efficacy were conducted at three time points. Twenty-four students participated in one of five simulation scenarios. Overall, students' self-efficacy and confidence in ability to achieve a successful birth outcome was significantly improved at one month (psimulation experience was high (M=4.65/5). Results from this study indicate that an interprofessional simulation of a birth in an unplanned setting can improve undergraduate paramedic, nursing and midwifery students' confidence working in an interprofessional team. There was a significant improvement in clinical knowledge of the nursing students (who had least content about managing birth in their program). All students were highly satisfied with the interprofessional simulation experience simulation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Student pharmacists' perceptions of immunizations.

Science.gov (United States)

Kubli, Kara; McBane, Sarah; Hirsch, Jan D; Lorentz, Sarah

2017-05-01

The primary aim of this study was to explore changes in knowledge level, perceived importance and apprehension of immunizations by first year pharmacy students pre- vs. post-immunization education and training. First year pharmacy students at the University of California San Diego Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (UC San Diego SSPPS) completed a pre- and post-immunization training course questionnaire. Knowledge base and perceived importance level of immunizations including hepatitis B, influenza, measles, mumps, rubella (MMR), varicella, tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis (Tdap), meningococcal and human papilloma virus (HPV) were assessed. In addition, apprehension of needle administration and fears regarding safety and efficacy were evaluated. Of 120 students, 85 (71%) completed pre- and post-course questionnaires for this study. Mean knowledge test scores increased from 56% pre-course to 83% post-course. Pre-course, 73% of participants considered immunizations as very important in preventing future disease outbreaks. Post-course, this percentage climbed to 94%. Prior to taking the course, 52% of students were apprehensive about administering injections; however, after completing the course this percentage declined to 33%. The majority of students who had been fearful prior to the course retained their fears of receiving needle injections. The proportion of students believing immunizations should be a personal choice, not mandatory, did not significantly change from pre-course (49%) to post-course (44%). The UC San Diego SSPPS immunization course increased student knowledge of immunization facts and the perceived importance of immunizations. However, a substantial portion of students retained apprehension about administering and receiving needle injections and the proportion believing immunizations should be a personal choice, almost half, did not change appreciably. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Predicting Pre-Service Teachers' Intention of Implementing Peer Assessment for Low-Achieving Students

Science.gov (United States)

Yim, Su Yon; Cho, Young Hoan

2016-01-01

Despite the benefits of peer assessment, many teachers are not willing to implement it, particularly for low-achieving students. This study used the theory of planned behaviour to predict pre-service teachers' intention to use peer assessment for low-achieving students. A total of 229 pre-service teachers in Singapore participated in the survey…

Supporting Students' Preparation for the Viva: Their Pre-Conceptions and Implications for Practice

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Wellington, Jerry

2010-01-01

There has been relatively little research on the pre-conceptions of doctoral students about the final examination, the viva voce and hence there is a shortage of evidence to underpin activities designed to prepare them for this experience. The present paper, which is based upon data from a wide range of focus groups of pre-viva students, seeks to…

A Study into the Design of a Pre-Laboratory Software Resource in Effectively Assisting in the Chemistry Proficiency of Students of Chinese Origin Undertaking Post 16 Chemistry in the UK

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O'Sullivan, Saskia Katarina Emily; Harrison, Timothy Guy

2016-01-01

This qualitative study indicates that Chinese origin students completing their pre-university education in a British school have particular difficulties related to sociocultural change, pedagogical differences, affective aspects, cognitive demand and language learning. These are discussed. The use of a pre-laboratory software resource to support…

Using In-class Group Exercises to Enhance Lectures and Provide Introductory Physics Students an Opportunity to Perfect Problem Solving Skills through Interactions with Fellow Students

Science.gov (United States)

Trout, Joseph; Bland, Jared

2013-03-01

In this pilot project, one hour of lecture time was replaced with one hour of in-class assignments, which groups of students collaborated on. These in-class assignments consisted of problems or projects selected for the calculus-based introductory physics students The first problem was at a level of difficulty that the majority of the students could complete with a small to moderate amount of difficulty. Each successive problem was increasingly more difficult, the last problem being having a level of difficulty that was beyond the capabilities of the majority of the students and required some instructor intervention. The students were free to choose their own groups. Students were encouraged to interact and help each other understand. The success of the in-class exercises were measured using pre-tests and post-tests. The pre-test and post-test were completed by each student independently. Statistics were also compiled on each student's attendance record and the amount of time spent reading and studying, as reported by the student. Statistics were also completed on the student responses when asked if they had sufficient time to complete the pre-test and post-test and if they would have completed the test with the correct answers if they had more time. The pre-tests and post-tests were not used in the computation of the grades of the students.

Low (linear) teacher effect on student achievement in pre-academic physics education

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cottaar - Haverkorn van Rijsewijk, A.

2012-01-01

This study investigates the effect of physics education on students' achievement in a large-scale quantitative study of pre-academic high school students throughout the Netherlands. Two aspects of teacher characteristics as perceived by their students are included: their pleasantness principally

The effectiveness of virtual simulation in improving student nurses' knowledge and performance during patient deterioration: A pre and post test design.

Science.gov (United States)

Borg Sapiano, Alexis; Sammut, Roberta; Trapani, Josef

2018-03-01

Preparing nursing students to perform competently in complex emergency situations, such as during rapid patient deterioration, is challenging. Students' active engagement in such scenarios cannot be ensured, due to the unexpected nature of such infrequent events. Many students may consequently not experience and integrate the management of patient deterioration into their knowledge and practical competency by the end of their studies, making them unprepared to manage such situations as practicing nurses. This study investigated the effectiveness of virtual simulation in improving performance during rapid patient deterioration. To investigate the effectiveness of virtual simulation in improving student nurses' knowledge and performance during rapid patient deterioration. A pre- and post-test design was used. Nursing students at a university in Malta were invited to participate in a virtual simulation program named FIRST 2 ACTWeb™, using their own computer devices. A total of 166 (response rate=50%) second and third year diploma and degree nursing students participated in the study. The simulation included three scenarios (Cardiac-Shock-Respiratory) portraying deteriorating patients. Performance feedback was provided at the end of each scenario. Students completed pre- and post-scenario knowledge tests and performance during each scenario was recorded automatically on a database. Findings showed a significant improvement in the students' post-scenario knowledge (z=-6.506, psimulation as an effective learning tool for pre-registration nursing students in different programs. Simulation improves both knowledge about and performance during patient deterioration. Virtual simulation of rare events should be a key component of undergraduate nurse education, to prepare students to manage complex situations as practicing nurses. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Promoting Diversity in STEM through Active Recruiting and Mentoring: The Pre-Major in Astronomy Program (Pre-MAP) at the University of Washington

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Schwieterman, Edward; Binder, Breanna; Tremmel, Michael; Garofali, Kristen; Agol, Eric; Meadows, Victoria

2015-11-01

The Pre-Major in Astronomy Program (Pre-MAP) is a research and mentoring program for underclassmen and transfer students offered by the University of Washington Astronomy Department since 2005. The primary goal of Pre-MAP is to recruit and retain students from groups traditionally underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) through early exposure to research. The Pre-MAP seminar is the core component of the program and offers instruction in computing skills, data manipulation, science writing, statistical analysis, and scientific speaking and presentation skills. Students choose research projects proposed by faculty, post-docs and graduate students in areas related to astrophysics, planetary science, and astrobiology. Pre-MAP has been successful in retaining underrepresented students in STEM fields relative to the broader UW population, and we've found these students are more likely to graduate and excel academically than their peers. As of spring 2015, more than one hundred students have taken the Pre-MAP seminar, and both internal and external evaluations have shown that all groups of participating students report an increased interest in astronomy and science careers at the end of the seminar. Several former Pre-MAP students have obtained or are pursuing doctoral and master’s degrees in STEM fields; many more work at NASA centers, teaching colleges, or as engineers or data analysts. Pre- MAP student research has produced dozens of publications in peer-reviewed research journals. This talk will provide an overview of the program: the structure of the seminar, examples of projects completed by students, cohort-building activities outside the seminar, funding sources, recruitment strategies, and the aggregate demographic and achievement data of our students. It is our hope that similar programs may be adopted successfully at other institutions.

Impact of Pre-Pharmacy Work Experience on Development of Professional Identity in Student Pharmacists.

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Bloom, Timothy J; Smith, Jennifer D; Rich, Wesley

2017-12-01

Objective. To determine the benefit of pharmacy work experience on the development of student pharmacists' professional identity. Methods. Students in all four professional years were surveyed using a validated Professional Self-identity Questionnaire (PSIQ). They were also asked about pharmacy experience prior to matriculation and their performance on Drug Information tests given midway through the P1 year and at the beginning of the P3 year. PSIQ responses and test results were compared based on pharmacy experience. Results. The PSIQ was completed by 293 student pharmacists, for a 67% response rate, with 76% of respondents reporting pharmacy experience prior to matriculation. Statistically higher scores on responses to 6 of the 9 PSIQ Likert-type items were observed from students in the first professional year for those with pharmacy experience; however, only one item in the second year showed differences with none in the third and fourth years. No impact of experience was observed on Top 100 or Top 300 grades. Conclusion. Pre-matriculation pharmacy experience may increase development of professional identity early in the student experience but may have little impact on academic readiness. Schools and colleges of pharmacy hoping to recruit students with an early sense of professional identity should consider adding such experience to their admissions requirements.

Exploring Content Validity of Shore Handwriting Screening and Newly Developed Score Sheet With Pre-Kindergarten Students

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Denise K. Donica

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Background: Limited tools exist to measure handwriting readiness skills of pre-kindergarten students. This study was a preliminary exploration of content validity of the Shore Handwriting Screening (SHS and the newly developed Score Sheet with the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency, Second Edition (BOT-2 in 4- and 5-year-old pre-kindergarten students. Because socioeconomic status (SES is known to impact handwriting skills, data from two different socioeconomic groups were collected. Method: Students from a Lower SES group (n = 36 and a Higher SES group (n = 14 completed the SHS and fine motor composite of the BOT-2. Pearson’s correlation was used to compare scores on the two assessments within the two groups. Results: SHS overall percentage scores were compared to standard scores and composite scores of the BOT-2. SHS scores displayed moderate to high correlation with fine manual control portions of the BOT-2 for the Lower SES group and low to moderate correlation for the same portion in the Higher SES group. Conclusion: SHS and the Score Sheet correlate to fine and visual-motor skill subtests on the fine manual control portions of the BOT-2, which supports the need for further research on the reliability and validity of the Score Sheet for use in practice.

Assessment of the knowledge and attitudes regarding HIV/AIDS among pre-clinical medical students in Israel

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2014-01-01

Background Today’s medical students are the future physicians of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). It is therefore essential that medical students possess the appropriate knowledge and attitudes regarding PLWHA. This study aims to evaluate knowledge and attitudes of pre-clinical Israeli medical students and to assess whether their knowledge and attitudes change throughout their pre-clinical studies. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among all pre-clinical medical students from the four medical schools in Israel during the academic year of 2010/2011 (a total of 1,470 students). A self-administered questionnaire was distributed. The questionnaire sought student responses pertaining to knowledge of HIV transmission and non-transmission routes, basic knowledge of HIV/AIDS treatment and attitudes towards HIV/AIDS. Results The study’s response rate was 62.24 percent. Knowledge among pre-clinical medical students was generally high and showed a statistically significant improvement as students progressed through their pre-clinical studies. However, there were some misconceptions, mostly regarding HIV transmission via breastfeeding and knowledge of HIV prevention after exposure to the virus. Students’ attitudes were found to include stigmatizing notions. Furthermore, the majority of medical students correlated HIV with shame and fear. In addition, students’ attitudes toward HIV testing and providing confidential medical information were contradictory to health laws, protocols and guidelines. Overall, no positive changes in students’ attitudes were observed during the pre-clinical years of medical school. Conclusion The knowledge of pre-clinical medical students in Israel is generally high, although there are some knowledge inadequacies that require more emphasis in the curricula of the medical schools. Contrary to HIV-related knowledge, medical students’ attitudes are unaffected by their progression through medical school. Therefore, medical

Mastery learning improves students skills in inserting intravenous access: a pre-post-study

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Friederichs, Hendrik

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Objective: Inserting peripheral venous catheters (PVCs has been identified as a core competency for medical students. Because the performance – even of hygienic standards – of both students and novice physicians is frequently inadequate, medical faculties must focus on competence-based learning objectives and deliberate practice, features that are combined in mastery learning. Our aim was to determine the competency of students in inserting PVCs before and after an educational intervention. Design: This study comprised a skills assessment with pre- and post-tests of a group of third-year students who received a simulation-based intervention. A newly established curriculum involved one hour of practice at inserting PVCs on simulators. Students were required to pass a test (total 21 points, pass mark 20 points developed on the concept of mastery learning. An unannounced follow-up test was performed one week (8 days after the intervention.Setting: The simulation center of the medical faculty in Muenster.Participants: Third-year students who received the intervention.Results: One hundred and nine complete data sets were obtained from 133 students (82.5%. Most students (97.2% passed the test after the intervention (mean score increase from 15.56 to 20.50, <0.001. There was a significant decrease in students’ performance after one week (8 days: only 74.5% of participants passed this retest (mean score reduction from 20.50 to 20.06, <0.001. Conclusion: Mastery learning is an effective form of teaching practical skills to medical students, allowing a thorough preparation for the challenges of daily clinical practice.

Pre-evacuation hCG glycoforms in uneventful complete hydatidiform mole and persistent trophoblastic disease.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Thomas, C.M.G.; Kerkmeijer, L.G.W.; Ariaens, H.J.; Steen, R. van der; Massuger, L.F.A.G.; Sweep, F.C.

2010-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether the glycoform distribution patterns of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) obtained by chromatofocusing in pre-evacuation serum are different for patients who will eventually develop into persistent trophoblastic disease in case of complete hydatidiform mole

Learning processes of students in competence based pre-vocational secondary education

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Koopman, M.; Teune, P.J.; Beijaard, D.; Brok, den P.J.

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to validate a causal and hierarchical model to elaborate on the relation between goal orientations, information processing strategies and development of conceptual knowledge of pre-vocational secondary education-students. This model can be used to describe students'

Learning processes of students in competence-based pre-vocational secondary education

NARCIS (Netherlands)

prof dr Douwe Beijaard; Dr. M. Koopman; P. den Brok; Dr P.J. Teune

2008-01-01

The purpose of this study was to validate a causal and hierarchical model that describes the relations between goal orientations, information processing strategies and development of conceptual knowledge of pre-vocational secondary education-students (n=719; 14 schools). Preferences of students for

Exploring pre-service science teachers' pedagogical capacity for formative assessment through analyses of student answers

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Aydeniz, Mehmet; Dogan, Alev

2016-05-01

Background: There has been an increasing emphasis on empowering pre-service and in-service science teachers to attend student reasoning and use formative assessments to guide student learning in recent years. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore pre-service science teachers' pedagogical capacity for formative assessment. Sample: This study took place in Turkey. The participants include 53 pre-service science teachers in their final year of schooling. All but two of the participants are female. Design and methods: We used a mixed-methods methodology in pursing this inquiry. Participants analyzed 28 responses to seven two-tiered questions given by four students of different ability levels. We explored their ability to identify the strengths and weaknesses in students' answers. We paid particular attention to the things that the pre-service science teachers noticed in students' explanations, the types of inferences they made about students' conceptual understanding, and the affordances of pedagogical decisions they made. Results: The results show that the majority of participants made an evaluative judgment (i.e. the answer is correct or incorrect) in their analyses of students' answers. Similarly, the majority of the participants recognized the type of mistake that the students made. However, they failed to successfully elaborate on fallacies, limitations, or strengths in student reasoning. We also asked the participants to make pedagogical decisions related to what needs to be done next in order to help the students to achieve academic objectives. Results show that 8% of the recommended instructional strategies were of no affordance, 64% of low-affordance, and 28% were of high affordance in terms of helping students achieve the academic objectives. Conclusion: If our goal is to improve pre-service science teachers' noticing skills, and the affordance of feedback that they provide, engaging them in activities that asks them to attend to students' ideas

Examining the Effectiveness of Pre-Reading Strategies on Saudi EFL College Students' Reading Comprehension

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Al Rasheed, Hana S. S.

2014-01-01

Reading comprehension is a key issue in learning English as a foreign language, and it is critical that teachers utilize pre-reading strategies in reading classes in order to help students enhance their comprehension. The present study investigates the effectiveness of two pre-reading strategies on EFL students' performance in reading…

The Effects of Pre-Lecture Quizzes on Test Anxiety and Performance in a Statistics Course

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Brown, Michael J.; Tallon, Jennifer

2015-01-01

The purpose of our study was to examine the effects of pre-lecture quizzes in a statistics course. Students (N = 70) from 2 sections of an introductory statistics course served as participants in this study. One section completed pre-lecture quizzes whereas the other section did not. Completing pre-lecture quizzes was associated with improved exam…

Self-Perceptions of Pre-Service Mathematics Teachers Completing a Graduate Diploma of Secondary Education

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Hine, Gregory S. C.

2015-01-01

This qualitative research project explored the self-perceptions of pre-service secondary mathematics teachers completing a Graduate Diploma of Secondary Education. Specifically, the researcher investigated the extent to which teachers perceived their readiness to commence a secondary mathematics teaching position. The project relied principally on…

An Online Tutorial vs. Pre-Recorded Lecture for Reducing Incidents of Plagiarism

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Henslee, Amber M.; Goldsmith, Jacob; Stone, Nancy J.; Krueger, Merilee

2015-01-01

The current study compared an online academic integrity tutorial modified from Belter & du Pre (2009) to a pre-recorded online academic integrity lecture in reducing incidents of plagiarism among undergraduate students at a science and technology university. Participants were randomized to complete either the tutorial or the pre-recorded…

Attitudes of Pre-Clinical and Clinical Medical Students to Psychiatry ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Attitudes of Pre-Clinical and Clinical Medical Students to Psychiatry. ... Nigerian Hospital Practice ... Abstract. Medical training provides an environment in which proper and professional attitudes towards psychiatric patients can be acquired.

Pre-Service Science Teachers' PCK: Inconsistency of Pre-Service Teachers' Predictions and Student Learning Difficulties in Newton's Third Law

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Zhou, Shaona; Wang, Yanlin; Zhang, Chunbin

2016-01-01

There is widespread agreement that science learning always builds upon students' existing ideas and that science teachers should possess knowledge of learners. This study aims at investigating pre-service science teachers' knowledge of student misconceptions and difficulties, a crucial component of PCK, on Newton's Third Law. A questionnaire was…

VARK learning preferences and mobile anatomy software application use in pre-clinical chiropractic students.

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Meyer, Amanda J; Stomski, Norman J; Innes, Stanley I; Armson, Anthony J

2016-05-06

Ubiquitous smartphone ownership and reduced face-to-face teaching time may lead to students making greater use of mobile technologies in their learning. This is the first study to report on the prevalence of mobile gross anatomy software applications (apps) usage in pre-clinical chiropractic students and to ascertain if a relationship exists between preferred learning styles as determined by the validated VARK(©) questionnaire and use of mobile anatomy apps. The majority of the students who completed the VARK questionnaire were multimodal learners with kinesthetic and visual preferences. Sixty-seven percent (73/109) of students owned one or more mobile anatomy apps which were used by 57 students. Most of these students owned one to five apps and spent less than 30 minutes per week using them. Six of the top eight mobile anatomy apps owned and recommended by the students were developed by 3D4Medical. Visual learning preferences were not associated with time spent using mobile anatomy apps (OR = 0.40, 95% CI 0.12-1.40). Similarly, kinesthetic learning preferences (OR = 1.88, 95% CI 0.18-20.2), quadmodal preferences (OR = 0.71, 95% CI 0.06-9.25), or gender (OR = 1.51, 95% CI 0.48-4.81) did not affect the time students' spent using mobile anatomy apps. Learning preferences do not appear to influence students' time spent using mobile anatomy apps. Anat Sci Educ 9: 247-254. © 2015 American Association of Anatomists. © 2015 American Association of Anatomists.

Comparing the Attitudes of Pre-Health Professional and Engineering Students in Introductory Physics Courses

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McKinney, Meghan

2015-04-01

This talk will discuss using the Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey (CLASS) to compare student attitudes towards the study of physics of two different groups. Northern Illinois University has two levels of introductory mechanics courses, one geared towards biology majors and pre-health professionals, and one for engineering and physics majors. The course for pre-health professionals is an algebra based course, while the course for engineering and physics majors is a calculus based course. We've adapted the CLASS into a twenty question survey that measures student attitudes towards the practice of and conceptions about physics. The survey is administered as a pre and post assessment to look at student attitudes before and after their first course in physics.

At the precipice: a prospective exploration of medical students' expectations of the pre-clerkship to clerkship transition.

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Soo, Jason; Brett-MacLean, Pamela; Cave, Marie-Therese; Oswald, Anna

2016-03-01

Medical learners face many challenging transitions. We prospectively explored students' perceptions of their upcoming transition to clerkship and their future professional selves. In 2013, 160/165 end-of-second-year medical students wrote narrative reflections and 79/165 completed a questionnaire on their perceptions of their upcoming transition to clerkship. Narratives were separately analyzed by four authors and then discussed to identify a final thematic framework using parsimonious category construction. We identified two overarching themes: (1) "Looking back": experiences which had helped students feel prepared for clerkship with subthemes focused on of patient care, shadowing, classroom teaching and the pre-clerkship years as foundational knowledge, (2) "Looking forward": anticipating the clerkship experience and the journey of becoming a physician with subthemes focused on death and dying, hierarchy, work-life balance, interactions with patients, concerns about competency and career choice. Questionnaire data revealed incongruities around expectations of minimal exposure to death and dying, little need for independent study and limited direct patient responsibility. We confirmed that internal transformations are happening in contemplative time even before clerkship. By prospectively exploring pre-clerkship students' perceptions of the transition to clerkship training we identified expectations and misconceptions that could be addressed with future curricular interventions. While students are aware of and anticipating their learning needs it is not as clear that they realise how much their future learning will depend on their own inner resources. We suggest that more attention be paid to professional identity formation and the development of the physician as a person during these critical transitions.

Cyclic efforts to improve completion rates of masters’ degree students in nursing

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Lizeth Roets

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Supervisors at Higher Education Institutions are challenged to shorten throughput of Master’s degree students in nursing as researchers are needed to improve the art and science of the nursing profession. Globally the completion time for a postgraduate degree in the health sciences varies between 4.7 and 5.5 years. The purpose of the study was to describe strategies that were implemented to shorten completion time and attrition rate of postgraduate students. A cyclic technical, scientific collaborative mode within an action research methodology was used to identify factors impeding completion time in this study. Contrary to other studies, supervision was not an inhibiting factor in this study. Physical, technical, academic and financial aspects were identified by postgraduate students through questionnaires and informal discussion groups with supervisors as well as progress reports. Strategies were implemented to address these. Following implementation of all strategies, 42% of the postgraduate students in the School of Nursing completed their Master’s degree within two years. This implies a 34% improvement. Although the completion rate improved it was still unsatisfactory and new challenges were identified during the second cycle, for example, the number of inexperienced supervisors increased and they needed mentoring. Speed mentoring is a possible solution to the problem.

CROSSECTIONAL STUDY OF PREVALENCE OF DYSMENORRHEA AND PRE MENSTRUAL SYNDROME IN COLLEGE STUDENTS

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Joylene Diana

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Dysmenorrhea or pain during menstruation is the most common gynaecological complaint among adolescents and college students. A good majority of patients with dysmenorrhea also experience pre - menstrual symptoms ( PMS . The objective of this cross s ectional study was to assess prevalence of dysmennorhea , PMS , college absenteeism and knowledge attitudes and practices relating to the same among college going students between the age of 18 to 26 years. METHODS: A cross s ectional analysis of a total of 420 students using questionnaires related to dysmenorrhea was done . The questionnaire dealt with the regularity of menstrual cycles , occurrence of dysmenorrhea , college absenteeism , premenstrual symptoms and lifestyle attributes of the students. RESULTS: The prevalence of dysmenorrhea of varying degrees was found to be as high as 97 percent . Dysmennorhea was seen in 45.8 percent of students with regular cycles and 97.7 percent of students with irregular cycles. 47.5 percentage of students missed their college working days due to menstruation related complaints. Among the students who had pre - menstrual syndrome , majority of them revealed life style attributes like eating fast food and also consuming over the counter pain medicines. Also psychological and emotional changes were commonly seen during the premenstrual phase. CONCLUSION: This study showed that though dysmennorhea of varying degrees is widely prevalent among college going students , the prevalence of pre - menstrual syndrome was higher. The study suggests that adequate counseling and education about menstrual symptoms and abuse of OTC analgesics if made a part of college curriculum as well as lifestyle modifications could come a long way in helping to alleviate the problems college students face due to dysmennorhea and PMS.

Increasing Completion Rate of an M4 Emergency Medicine Student End-of-Shift Evaluation Using a Mobile Electronic Platform and Real-Time Completion

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Matthew C. Tews

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Medical students on an emergency medicine rotation are traditionally evaluated at the end of each shift with paper-based forms, and data are often missing due to forms not being turned in or completed. Because students’ grades depend on these evaluations, change was needed to increase form rate of return. We analyzed a new electronic evaluation form and modified completion process to determine if it would increase the completion rate without altering how faculty scored student performance. Methods: During fall 2013, 29 faculty completed paper N=339 evaluations consisting of seven competencies for 33 students. In fall 2014, an electronic evaluation form with the same competencies was designed using an electronic platform and completed N=319 times by 27 faculty using 25 students’ electronic devices. Feedback checkboxes were added to facilitate collection of common comments. Data was analyzed with IBM® SPSS® 21.0 using multi-factor analysis of variance with the students’ global rating (GR as an outcome. Inter-item reliability was determined with Cronbach alpha. Results: There was a significantly higher completion rate (p=0.001 of 98% electronic vs. 69% paper forms, lower (p=0.001 missed GR rate (1% electronic. vs 12% paper, and higher mean scores (p=0.001 for the GR with the electronic (7.0±1.1 vs. paper (6.8±1.2 form. Feedback checkboxes were completed on every form. The inter-item reliability for electronic and paper forms was each alpha=0.95. Conclusion: The use of a new electronic form and modified completion process for evaluating students at the end of shift demonstrated a higher faculty completion rate, a lower missed data rate, a higher global rating and consistent collection of common feedback. The use of the electronic form and the process for obtaining the information made our end-of-shift evaluation process for students more reliable and provided more accurate, up-to-date information for student feedback and when

Sleep disorders in high school and pre-university students.

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Rocha, Célia R S; Rossini, Sueli; Reimão, Rubens

2010-12-01

Adolescence is a period in which youngsters have to make choices such as applying for university. The selection process is competitive, and it brings distress and anxiety, risk factors for the appearance of sleep disorders. To verify the occurrence of sleep disorders in third-year high school and pre-university students. This cross-sectional descriptive study comprised a sample of 529 students (M=241, F=288) from three public schools, four private schools and two pre-university courses - a middle-class neighborhood in the city of São Paulo - aged between 16 and 19 years old. We used the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) - a standardized questionnaire. The participants (52.9%) took about 30 minutes to fall asleep, with an average of 306.4 minutes asleep, moderate daytime sleepiness (n=243, 45.9%) and indisposition (n=402, 75.9%) to develop the activities. The scores (M and F) were similar regarding problems that affect sleep. The investigated population showed sleep disorders and poor sleep quality.

Using Student Video Cases to Assess Pre-service Elementary Teachers' Engineering Teaching Responsiveness

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Dalvi, Tejaswini; Wendell, Kristen

2017-10-01

Our study addresses the need for new approaches to prepare novice elementary teachers to teach both science and engineering, and for new tools to measure how well those approaches are working. This in particular would inform the teacher educators of the extent to which novice teachers are developing expertise in facilitating their students' engineering design work. One important dimension to measure is novice teachers' abilities to notice the substance of student thinking and to respond in productive ways. This teacher noticing is particularly important in science and engineering education, where students' initial, idiosyncratic ideas and practices influence the likelihood that particular instructional strategies will help them learn. This paper describes evidence of validity and reliability for the Video Case Diagnosis (VCD) task, a new instrument for measuring pre-service elementary teachers' engineering teaching responsiveness. To complete the VCD, participants view a 6-min video episode of children solving an engineering design problem, describe in writing what they notice about the students' science ideas and engineering practices, and propose how a teacher could productively respond to the students. The rubric for scoring VCD responses allowed two independent scorers to achieve inter-rater reliability. Content analysis of the video episode, systematic review of literature on science and engineering practices, and solicitation of external expert educator responses establish content validity for VCD. Field test results with three different participant groups who have different levels of engineering education experience offer evidence of construct validity.

Predictive validity of pre-admission assessments on medical student performance.

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Dabaliz, Al-Awwab; Kaadan, Samy; Dabbagh, M Marwan; Barakat, Abdulaziz; Shareef, Mohammad Abrar; Al-Tannir, Mohamad; Obeidat, Akef; Mohamed, Ayman

2017-11-24

To examine the predictive validity of pre-admission variables on students' performance in a medical school in Saudi Arabia. In this retrospective study, we collected admission and college performance data for 737 students in preclinical and clinical years. Data included high school scores and other standardized test scores, such as those of the National Achievement Test and the General Aptitude Test. Additionally, we included the scores of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) exams. Those datasets were then compared with college performance indicators, namely the cumulative Grade Point Average (cGPA) and progress test, using multivariate linear regression analysis. In preclinical years, both the National Achievement Test (p=0.04, B=0.08) and TOEFL (p=0.017, B=0.01) scores were positive predictors of cGPA, whereas the General Aptitude Test (p=0.048, B=-0.05) negatively predicted cGPA. Moreover, none of the pre-admission variables were predictive of progress test performance in the same group. On the other hand, none of the pre-admission variables were predictive of cGPA in clinical years. Overall, cGPA strongly predict-ed students' progress test performance (p<0.001 and B=19.02). Only the National Achievement Test and TOEFL significantly predicted performance in preclinical years. However, these variables do not predict progress test performance, meaning that they do not predict the functional knowledge reflected in the progress test. We report various strengths and deficiencies in the current medical college admission criteria, and call for employing more sensitive and valid ones that predict student performance and functional knowledge, especially in the clinical years.

A course for developing interprofessional skills in pre-professional honor students using humanities and media.

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Poirier, Therese I; Stamper-Carr, Connie; Newman, Kate

2017-09-01

To design and implement an undergraduate honors course for pre-health professional students that develops interpersonal skills through use of a variety of humanities. A three credit hour course in an honors seminar sequence was developed by pharmacy practice faculty and with input from faculty in mass communications, philosophy, applied communication studies and history. The course utilized a variety of media such as literature, film, and podcasts to foster student discussion about a variety of health-related topics. Topics included public health, stigmatization, portrayals of health care providers, patient experiences, health care ethics, aging, and death and dying. Students were assessed using pre-class assignments and reflective writings as well as a formal written and oral presentation on a selected health-related book. A quasi-experimental design was used to assess the impact of the course on desired course outcomes. The first course offering was to 22 undergraduate pre-health professional honors students. Pre- and post-course surveys on students' perceptions and students' reflective writings revealed achievement of desired course outcomes. Post-course evaluations also revealed positive perceptions about the course. The design of this course provided an outlet for students to read and enjoy various forms of media, while also meeting its goal of exposing students to a variety of humanities. The course allowed students to think critically about various health care issues, and to begin to develop interpersonal skills. The course could be adapted for pharmacy by developing affective domains of the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) Standards. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

An intercept study to measure the extent to which New Zealand university students pre-game.

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Riordan, Benjamin C; Conner, Tamlin S; Flett, Jayde A M; Droste, Nic; Cody, Louise; Brookie, Kate L; Riordan, Jessica K; Scarf, Damian

2018-02-01

We aimed to quantify the degree to which students pre-gamed in New Zealand, using self-report and breathalysers. A total of 569 New Zealand undergraduate students were interviewed (men = 45.2%; first year = 81.4%) entering three university-run concerts. We asked participants to report how many drinks they had consumed, their self-reported intoxication and the duration of their pre-gaming session. We then recorded participants' Breath Alcohol Concentration (BrAC; µg/L) and the time they arrived at the event. The number of participants who reported consuming alcohol before the event was 504 (88.6%) and the number of standard drinks consumed was high (M=6.9; median=6.0). A total of 237 (41.7%) participants could not have their BrAC recorded due to having consumed alcohol ≤10 minutes before the interview. The remaining 332 participants (57.3%) recorded a mean BrAC of 288.8µg/L (median=280.0 µg/L). Gender, off-campus accommodation, length of pre-gaming drinking session, and time of arrival at the event were all associated with increased pre-gaming. Conclusion and implications for public health: Pre-gaming was the norm for students. Universities must take pre-gaming into account; policy implications include earlier start times of events and limiting students' access to alcohol prior to events. © 2017 The Authors.

The Use of Pre-Recorded Lectures on Student Performance in Physiology

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Hadgu, Rim Mekonnen; Huynh, Sophia Hoang-Vy; Gopalan, Chaya

2016-01-01

There has been an increase in reliance on pre-recorded lectures (PRL) as a source of learning in place of live-lectures (LL) in higher education today but whether PRL can effectively replace LL remains unknown. We tested how students performed in the exam questions when PRL replaced LL. While PRL+ group included those students who watched the…

Effects of Students' Pre- and Post-Laboratory Concept Maps on Students' Attitudes toward Chemistry Laboratory in University General Chemistry

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Kilic, Ziya; Kaya, Osman Nafiz; Dogan, Alev

2004-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of scientific discussions based on student-constructed pre- and post-laboratory concept maps on students' attitudes toward chemistry laboratory in the university general chemistry. As part of instruction, during the first four laboratory sessions, students were taught how to construct and…

The effect of simulation courseware on critical thinking in undergraduate nursing students: multi-site pre-post study.

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Shin, Hyunsook; Ma, Hyunhee; Park, Jiyoung; Ji, Eun Sun; Kim, Dong Hee

2015-04-01

The use of simulations has been considered as opportunities for students to enhance their critical thinking (CT), but previous studies were limited because they did not provide in-depth information on the working dynamics of simulation or on the effects of the number of simulation exposures on CT. This study examined the effect of an integrated pediatric nursing simulation used in a nursing practicum on students' CT abilities and identified the effects of differing numbers of simulation exposures on CT in a multi-site environment. The study used a multi-site, pre-test, post-test design. A total of 237 nursing students at three universities enrolled in a pediatric practicum participated in this study from February to December 2013. All three schools used the same simulation courseware, including the same simulation scenarios, evaluation tools, and simulation equipment. The courseware incorporated high-fidelity simulators and standardized patients. Students at school A completed one simulation session, whereas students at schools B and C completed two and three simulation sessions, respectively. Yoon's Critical Thinking Disposition tool (2008) was used to measure students' CT abilities. The gains in students' CT scores varied according to their numbers of exposures to the simulation courseware. With a single exposure, there were no statistically significant gains in CT, whereas three exposures to the courseware produced significant gains in CT. In seven subcategories of critical thinking, three exposures to the simulation courseware produced CT gains in the prudence and intellectual eagerness subcategories, and the overall simulation experience produced CT gains in the prudence, systematicity, healthy skepticism, and intellectual eagerness subcategories. Simulation courseware may produce positive learning outcomes for prudence in nursing education. In addition, the findings from the multi-site comparative study may contribute to greater understanding of how patient

The moral courage of nursing students who complete advance directives with homeless persons.

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Nash, Woods; Mixer, Sandra J; McArthur, Polly M; Mendola, Annette

2016-11-01

Homeless persons in the United States have disproportionately high rates of illness, injury, and mortality and tend to believe that the quality of their end-of-life care will be poor. No studies were found as to whether nurses or nursing students require moral courage to help homeless persons or members of any other demographic complete advance directives. We hypothesized that baccalaureate nursing students require moral courage to help homeless persons complete advance directives. Moral courage was defined as a trait of a person or an action that overcomes fears or other challenges to achieve something of great moral worth. The hypothesis was investigated through a qualitative descriptive study. Aside from the pre-selection of a single variable to study (i.e. moral courage), our investigation was a naturalistic inquiry with narrative hues insofar as it attended to specific words and phrases in the data that were associated with that variable. A total of 15 baccalaureate nursing students at a public university in the United States responded to questionnaires that sought to elicit fears and other challenges that they both expected to experience and actually experienced while helping homeless persons complete advance directives at a local, non-profit service agency. The study was approved by the Internal Review Board of the authors' university, and each participant signed an informed consent form, which stated that the study involved no reasonably foreseeable risks and that participation was voluntary. Before meeting with homeless persons, participants reported that they expected to experience two fears and a challenge: fear of behaving in ways that a homeless person would deem inappropriate, fear of discussing a homeless person's dying and death, and the challenge of adequately conveying the advance directive's meaning and accurately recording a homeless person's end-of-life wishes. In contrast, after their meetings with homeless persons, relatively few participants

Pre-Professional Ideologies and Career Trajectories of the Allied Professional Undergraduate Student

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Hosein, Anesa; Rao, Namrata

2017-01-01

Undergraduate students sometimes pursue degrees that are aimed at allied jobs. This research examines how students in one allied professional degree, education studies, conceptualise their pre-professional ideology and how these ideologies relate to their intended career trajectory. The research draws upon a year-long qualitative survey of over 70…

Measuring the Impact of Cultural Competence Training for Dental Hygiene Students.

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Daugherty, Heather N; Kearney, Rachel C

2017-10-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to measure the change in levels of knowledge of providing culturally competent care and self-assessed cultural competence of senior level dental hygiene students after the implementation of an online cultural competence training module. Methods: Twenty-eight members of the senior class of 31 dental hygiene students (N=28) volunteered to participate in this IRB approved study at the Ohio State University School of Dentistry. The students took the online Inventory for Assessing the Process of Cultural Competence- Student Version (IAPCC-SV), to assess their self-perceived cultural competence. Upon completion of the pre-test, students then completed the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Minority Health (OMH) Cultural Competency Program for Oral Health Professionals; a three-module online training program designed to measure increased knowledge of cultural competence. Three weeks following the initial pre-test and upon completion of the Cultural Competency Program for Oral Health Professionals online learning modules, students re-took the IAPCC-SV. Results: Twenty-eight senior dental hygiene students completed the IAPCC-SV pre-test, the OMH e-learning modules and the IAPCC-SV post-test. The average score on the pre-test was 55.14±7.54 and the average score on the post-test was 61.33±7.86. There was a significant difference in pre-test and post-test scores (pdental hygiene students' levels of knowledge of cultural competence. Copyright © 2017 The American Dental Hygienists’ Association.

Sleep disorders in high school and pre-university students

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Célia R.S. Rocha

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Adolescence is a period in which youngsters have to make choices such as applying for university. The selection process is competitive, and it brings distress and anxiety, risk factors for the appearance of sleep disorders. OBJECTIVE: To verify the occurrence of sleep disorders in third-year high school and pre-university students. METHOD: This cross-sectional descriptive study comprised a sample of 529 students (M=241, F=288 from three public schools, four private schools and two pre-university courses - a middle-class neighborhood in the city of São Paulo - aged between 16 and 19 years old. We used the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI - a standardized questionnaire. RESULTS: The participants (52.9% took about 30 minutes to fall asleep, with an average of 306.4 minutes asleep, moderate daytime sleepiness (n=243, 45.9% and indisposition (n=402, 75.9% to develop the activities. The scores (M and F were similar regarding problems that affect sleep. CONCLUSION: The investigated population showed sleep disorders and poor sleep quality.

Pre-training evaluation and feedback improved skills retention of basic life support in medical students.

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Li, Qi; Zhou, Rong-hua; Liu, Jin; Lin, Jing; Ma, Er-Li; Liang, Peng; Shi, Ting-wei; Fang, Li-qun; Xiao, Hong

2013-09-01

Pre-training evaluation and feedback have been shown to improve medical students' skills acquisition of basic life support (BLS) immediately following training. The impact of such training on BLS skills retention is unknown. This study was conducted to investigate effects of pre-training evaluation and feedback on BLS skills retention in medical students. Three hundred and thirty 3rd year medical students were randomized to two groups, the control group (C group) and pre-training evaluation and feedback group (EF group). Each group was subdivided into four subgroups according to the time of retention-test (at 1-, 3-, 6-, 12-month following the initial training). After a 45-min BLS lecture, BLS skills were assessed (pre-training evaluation) in both groups before training. Following this, the C group received 45 min training. 15 min of group feedback corresponding to students' performance in pre-training evaluation was given only in the EF group that was followed by 30 min of BLS training. BLS skills were assessed immediately after training (post-test) and at follow up (retention-test). No skills difference was observed between the two groups in pre-training evaluation. Better skills acquisition was observed in the EF group (85.3 ± 7.3 vs. 68.1 ± 12.2 in C group) at post-test (p<0.001). In all retention-test, better skills retention was observed in each EF subgroup, compared with its paired C subgroup. Pre-training evaluation and feedback improved skills retention in the EF group for 12 months after the initial training, compared with the control group. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Evaluating a Pre-session Exercise in a Standalone Information Literacy Class

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Joseph E. Goetz

2015-12-01

Full Text Available In this study, researchers evaluate a homework exercise assigned before a standalone information literacy session. Students in a Master of Education program completed a worksheet using the ERIC database thesaurus. The researchers conducted pre- and posttests within a single library session to assess student learning, using a control group for comparison. The treatment group did not demonstrate better thesaurus skills than students who had regular library instruction alone, but results pointed the way to targeted improvements of pre-session learning materials. This approach could inform other information literacy homework applications such as flipping the classroom.

A pre-admission program for underrepresented minority and disadvantaged students: application, acceptance, graduation rates and timeliness of graduating from medical school.

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Strayhorn, G

2000-04-01

To determine whether students' performances in a pre-admission program predicted whether participants would (1) apply to medical school, (2) get accepted, and (3) graduate. Using prospectively collected data from participants in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's Medical Education Development Program (MEDP) and data from the Association of American Colleges Student and Applicant Information Management System, the author identified 371 underrepresented minority (URM) students who were full-time participants and completed the program between 1984 and 1989, prior to their acceptance into medical school. Logistic regression analysis was used to determine whether MEDP performance significantly predicted (after statistically controlling for traditional predictors of these outcomes) the proportions of URM participants who applied to medical school and were accepted, the timeliness of graduating, and the proportion graduating. Odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals were calculated to determine the associations between the independent and outcome variables. In separate logistic regression models, MEDP performance predicted the study's outcomes after statistically controlling for traditional predictors with 95% confidence intervals. Pre-admission programs with similar outcomes can improve the diversity of the physician workforce and the access to health care for underrepresented minority and economically disadvantaged populations.

Pre-University Students' Errors in Integration of Rational Functions and Implications for Classroom Teaching

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Yee, Ng Kin; Lam, Toh Tin

2008-01-01

This paper reports on students' errors in performing integration of rational functions, a topic of calculus in the pre-university mathematics classrooms. Generally the errors could be classified as those due to the students' weak algebraic concepts and their lack of understanding of the concept of integration. With the students' inability to link…

Benefits of completing homework for students with different aptitudes in an introductory electricity and magnetism course

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F. J. Kontur

2015-02-01

Full Text Available We examine how student aptitudes impact how much students learn from doing graded online and written homework in an introductory electricity and magnetism course. Our analysis examines the correlation between successful homework completion rates and exam performance as well as how changes in homework completion correlate with changes in exam scores for students with different physics aptitudes. On average, successfully completing many homework problems correlated to better exam scores only for students with high physics aptitude. On the other hand, all other students showed zero or even a negative correlation between successful homework completion and exam performance. Low- and medium-aptitude students who did more homework did no better and sometimes scored lower on exams than their low- and medium-aptitude peers who did less homework. Our work also shows that long-term changes in homework completion correlated to long-term changes in exam scores only for students with high physics aptitude, but not for students with medium or low aptitude. We offer several explanations for the disparity in homework learning gains, including cognitive load theory, ineffective homework strategies, and various mismatches between homework and exams. Several solutions are proposed to address these possible deficiencies in graded online and written homework.

Benefits of completing homework for students with different aptitudes in an introductory electricity and magnetism course

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Kontur, F. J.; de La Harpe, K.; Terry, N. B.

2015-06-01

We examine how student aptitudes impact how much students learn from doing graded online and written homework in an introductory electricity and magnetism course. Our analysis examines the correlation between successful homework completion rates and exam performance as well as how changes in homework completion correlate with changes in exam scores for students with different physics aptitudes. On average, successfully completing many homework problems correlated to better exam scores only for students with high physics aptitude. On the other hand, all other students showed zero or even a negative correlation between successful homework completion and exam performance. Low- and medium-aptitude students who did more homework did no better and sometimes scored lower on exams than their low- and medium-aptitude peers who did less homework. Our work also shows that long-term changes in homework completion correlated to long-term changes in exam scores only for students with high physics aptitude, but not for students with medium or low aptitude. We offer several explanations for the disparity in homework learning gains, including cognitive load theory, ineffective homework strategies, and various mismatches between homework and exams. Several solutions are proposed to address these possible deficiencies in graded online and written homework.

Preventing Unplanned Pregnancy and Completing College: An Evaluation of Online Lessons. 2nd Edition

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Antonishak, Jill; Connolly, Chelsey

2014-01-01

The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy published free online lessons that help students take action to prevent unplanned pregnancy and complete their education. From the fall of 2012 to the spring of 2014, approximately 2,800 students took the online lessons and participated in pre- and post-lesson evaluation surveys at four…

A Discussion of Assessment Needs in Manual Communication for Pre-College Students.

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Cokely, Dennis R.

The paper reviews issues in evaluating the manual communications skills of pre-college hearing impaired students, including testing of visual discrimination and visual memory, simultaneous communication, and attention span. (CL)

Benefits of completing homework for students with different aptitudes in an introductory electricity and magnetism course

OpenAIRE

F. J. Kontur; K. de La Harpe; N. B. Terry

2015-01-01

We examine how student aptitudes impact how much students learn from doing graded online and written homework in an introductory electricity and magnetism course. Our analysis examines the correlation between successful homework completion rates and exam performance as well as how changes in homework completion correlate with changes in exam scores for students with different physics aptitudes. On average, successfully completing many homework problems correlated to better exam scores only fo...

Asking the Next Generation: The Implementation of Pre-University Students' Ideas about Physics Laboratory Preparation Exercises

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Dunnett, K.; Bartlett, P. A.

2018-01-01

It was planned to introduce online pre-laboratory session activities to a first-year undergraduate physics laboratory course to encourage a minimum level of student preparation for experiments outside the laboratory environment. A group of 16 and 17 year old laboratory work-experience students were tasked to define and design a pre-laboratory…

Perceptions of Pre-Service Teachers on Student Burnout, Occupational Anxiety and Faculty Life Quality

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Türkoglu, Muhammet Emin; Cansoy, Ramazan

2017-01-01

Perceptions of pre-service teachers on burnout, occupational anxiety and faculty life quality were investigated in this research. The research group consisted of 461 pre-service teachers in total studying at Afyon Kocatepe University faculty of education. "Maslach Burnout Inventory-Student Form," "Faculty Life Quality Scale"…

How pre-service teachers' personality traits, self-efficacy, and discipline strategies contribute to the teacher-student relationship.

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de Jong, Romi; Mainhard, Tim; van Tartwijk, Jan; Veldman, Ietje; Verloop, Nico; Wubbels, Theo

2014-06-01

Although the teacher-student relationship is a well-documented phenomenon, few attempts have been made to identify its predictors. Research has mainly focused on in-service teachers, less is known about characteristics of pre-service teachers in relation to the teacher-student relationship. The purpose of this study was to identify the predictors of pre-service secondary teachers' relationships with their students. It was hypothesized that friendliness and extraversion, self-efficacy in classroom management and in student engagement, and various discipline strategies would contribute to the teacher-student relationship in terms of influence and affiliation. A total of 120 pre-service teachers in teacher education programmes participated. Data on pre-service teachers' background (e.g., gender and age), personality traits, and self-efficacy were gathered with teacher questionnaires; data on teachers' discipline strategies and the teacher-student relationship with student questionnaires. The two personality traits and self-efficacy appeared not to be related to the teacher-student relationship in terms of affiliation or influence. However, significant relationships were found between the different discipline strategies and the teacher-student relationship in terms of influence and affiliation. There were differential effects for gender on the relationship between discipline strategies on the one hand and influence and affiliation on the other. This study provides relevant new insights into the research fields of classroom management and interpersonal relationships in education. It contributes to our understanding of discipline strategies by fine tuning an existing instrument and revealing interesting connections with the teacher-student relationship. Specific gender effects on this connection are discussed, as are implications for practice. © 2013 The British Psychological Society.

Evaluating a Pre-Session Homework Exercise in a Standalone Information Literacy Class

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Goetz, Joseph E.; Barber, Catherine R.

2015-01-01

In this study, researchers evaluate a homework exercise assigned before a standalone information literacy session. Students in a Master of Education program completed a worksheet using the ERIC database thesaurus. The researchers conducted pre- and posttests within a single library session to assess student learning, using a control group for…

The Aftermath of Remedial Math: Investigating the Low Rate of Certificate Completion among Remedial Math Students

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Bahr, Peter Riley

2013-01-01

Nationally, a majority of community college students require remedial assistance with mathematics, but comparatively few students who begin the remedial math sequence ultimately complete it and achieve college-level math competency. The academic outcomes of students who begin the sequence but do not complete it are disproportionately unfavorable:…

?I know exactly what I'm going into?: recommendations for pre?nursing experience from an evaluation of a pre?nursing scholarship in rural Scotland

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Smith, Annetta; Beattie, Michelle; Kyle, Richard G.

2015-01-01

Abstract Aim To develop a model of pre?nursing experience from evaluation of a pre?nursing scholarship for school pupils in Scotland. Design Action research study. Methods School pupils (n?=?42) completed questionnaire surveys and participated in anecdote circles. Student nurses acting as pupil ?buddies? (n?=?33) participated in focus groups. Descriptive quantitative data and thematic analyses of qualitative data were integrated across cohorts and campuses. Results Ten recommended components ...

Predicting Successful Completion Using Student Delay Indicators in Undergraduate Self-Paced Online Courses

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Lim, Janine M.

2016-01-01

Self-paced online courses meet flexibility and learning needs of many students, but skepticism persists regarding the quality and the tendency for students to procrastinate in self-paced courses. Research is needed to understand procrastination and delay patterns of students in online self-paced courses to predict successful completion and…

Developing Intercultural Understanding for Study Abroad: Students' and Teachers' Perspectives on Pre-Departure Intercultural Learning

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Holmes, P.; Bavieri, L.; Ganassin, S.

2015-01-01

This study reports on students' and teachers' perspectives on a programme designed to develop Erasmus students' intercultural understanding prior to going abroad. We aimed to understand how students and their teachers perceived pre-departure materials in promoting their awareness of key concepts related to interculturality (e.g., essentialism,…

Pre-treatment attachment anxiety predicts change in depressive symptoms in women who complete day hospital treatment for anorexia and bulimia nervosa.

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Keating, Leah; Tasca, Giorgio A; Bissada, Hany

2015-03-01

Individuals with eating disorders are prone to depressive symptoms. This study examines whether depressive symptoms can change in women who complete intensive day treatment for anorexia and bulimia nervosa (BN), and whether these changes are associated with pre-treatment attachment insecurity. Participants were 141 women with anorexia nervosa restricting type (n = 24), anorexia nervosa binge purge type (n = 30), and BN (n = 87) who completed a day hospital treatment programme for eating disorders. They completed a pre-treatment self-report measure of attachment, and a pre-treatment and post-treatment self-report measure of depressive symptoms. Participants experienced significant reductions in depressive symptoms at post-treatment. Eating disorder diagnosis was not related to these improvements. However, participants lower in attachment anxiety experienced significantly greater improvement in depressive symptoms than those who were higher in attachment anxiety. These results suggest that clinicians may tailor eating disorders treatments to patients' attachment patterns and focus on their pre-occupation with relationships and affect regulation to improve depressive symptoms. That depressive symptoms can decrease in women who complete day hospital treatment for anorexia and BN. That improvements in depressive symptoms do not vary according to eating disorder diagnosis in these women. That patients who complete treatment and who have higher attachment anxiety experience less improvements in depressive symptoms compared to those lower in attachment anxiety. That clinicians may attend to aspects of attachment anxiety, such as need for approval and up-regulation of emotions, to improve depressive symptoms in female patients with eating disorders. © 2014 The British Psychological Society.

Science Teaching Attitudes and Scientific Attitudes of Pre-Service Teachers of Gifted Students

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Erdogan, Sezen Camci

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study is to determine science teaching attitudes and scientific attitudes of pre-service teachers of gifted students due to gender and grade level and also correlation among these variables. It is a survey study that the group is 82 students attending Gifted Education undergraduate level. Data is gathered by Scientific Attitude…

Implementing reflection: insights from pre-registration mental health students.

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Donovan, Moira O

2007-08-01

Reflection and reflective practice continues to be contentious issues in nursing. The focus of this article is the use of reflection by pre-registration mental health students. The broad aim of this preliminary study was to discover student mental health nurses' perceptions of reflection as a learning strategy during clinical placement. Using a constructivist grounded theory methodology [Charmaz, K., 2000. Grounded theory: Objectivist and Constructivist Methods. In: Denzin, N., Lincoln, Y. (Eds.), Handbook of Qualitative Research, second ed. Sage, Thousand Oaks, California], five students were interviewed individually in their clinical placements. Data analysis revealed three major categories: understanding the process of reflection, using reflection in clinical practice, and needing support and guidance. Findings indicated that students were primarily using reflection-on-action, but to varying extents. Overall, students felt that reflection facilitated their learning. Factors were discovered that both helped and hindered students' use of reflection. These included level of preparation to reflect, a limited culture of reflection and the level of support from preceptors, clinical staff, clinical placement co-ordinators, and lecturers. In conclusion, it appears that a collaborative approach between students, Health Service Providers and institutes of nursing is vital for the successful development and implementation of reflective learning strategies in clinical placement. Suggestions are made as to how a collaborative approach may be developed to enhance this process.

Plagiarism Awareness among Students: Assessing Integration of Ethics Theory into Library Instruction

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Strittmatter, Connie; Bratton, Virginia K.

2014-01-01

The library literature on plagiarism instruction focuses on students' understanding of what plagiarism is and is not. This study evaluates the effect of library instruction from a broader perspective by examining the pre- and posttest (instruction) levels of students' perceptions toward plagiarism ethics. Eighty-six students completed a pre- and…

Geriatric and Student Perceptions following Student-led Educational Sessions

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Kristin Janzen

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Objective: The objective of this study was to measure the effect of student-led educational events on geriatric patient and student participant perceptions in a community setting. Methods: Students led three events at a senior community center, focusing on learning and memory, sleep hygiene, and arthritis pain. The participants were geriatric patients who themselves were providers of support to homebound peers (“clients” through an independently organized program. Geriatric participants completed pre- and post-event surveys to measure changes in familiarity with the topics. Student participants also completed pre- and post-event surveys that tracked changes in their comfort in working with the geriatric population. Results: Each event demonstrated at least one positive finding for geriatric patients and/or their clients. Students reported increased comfort in working with and teaching the geriatric population following the first and third events, but not the second. Conclusion: Student-led educational sessions can improve perceived health-related knowledge of geriatric participants while simultaneously exposing students to the geriatric patient population. Overall, both students and geriatric participants benefited from these events. Practice Implications: Incorporation of single, student-led educational events could be mutually beneficial to students and the elderly population in the community and easily incorporated into any healthcare curriculum. Funding:This work was supported by a Butler University Innovation Fund Grant. Treatment of Human Subjects: IRB review/approval required and obtained   Type: Original Research

Prevalence of psychological and physical symptoms of pre-menstrual syndrome in female students

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Awanish Kumar Pandey

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Pre-menstrual syndrome is a group of physical and psychological symptoms that appears before the menstrual bleeding. The study was designed to evaluate the prevalence of physical and psychological symptoms of pre-menstrual syndrome among female students of technical institution in Gorakhpur. Two hundred students aged between 15 to 30 years participated in the study and revealed that all the participants of study experienced at least 1 symptom of PMS. The most common physical symptom was joint\\muscle pain (77.5%. Lethargy (83% was reported as most common psychological symptom in the study. The study concluded that prevalence of PMS is 100%, and most of the participants (42.5% have more than 5 symptoms of PMS.

Academic Motivations of Pre-Service English Language Teachers

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Ariogul, Sibel

2009-01-01

This study examines the academic motivation, in a Turkish context, of Turkish pre-service English teachers to contribute field research. Students (n=287) completed the Academic Motivation Scale (AMS) and a demographic questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, a one-way ANOVA, independent sample t-test, and Pearson product…

Medical students help bridge the gap in sexual health education among middle school youth.

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Adjei, Naomi; Yacovelli, Michael; Liu, Dorothy; Sindhu, Kunal; Roberts, Mary; Magee, Susanna

2017-01-06

School-based programs are important in addressing risky teenage sexual behavior. We implemented a sex education program using trained medical student volunteers. Medical students (n=30) implemented a seven-session curriculum, designed by medical students and faculty, to 7th and 8th grade students (n=310) at a local school. Middle school students completed pre- and post-assessments. Teachers and medical students completed questionnaires relating their perceptions of students' attitudes and understanding of sexual health. Students completing the curriculum scored 5% higher on post- versus pre-assessment (84% vs 78.7%, psexual decision making. Sixty percent of middle school teachers compared to only 16.7% of medical student volunteers reported discomfort teaching sexual health. Sexual education delivered by trained medical student volunteers may improve middle schoolers' understanding of sexual health. [Full article available at http://rimed.org/rimedicaljournal-2017-01.asp].

Student and high-school characteristics related to completing a science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) major in college

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LeBeau, Brandon; Harwell, Michael; Monson, Debra; Dupuis, Danielle; Medhanie, Amanuel; Post, Thomas R.

2012-04-01

Background: The importance of increasing the number of US college students completing degrees in science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) has prompted calls for research to provide a better understanding of factors related to student participation in these majors, including the impact of a student's high-school mathematics curriculum. Purpose: This study examines the relationship between various student and high-school characteristics and completion of a STEM major in college. Of specific interest is the influence of a student's high-school mathematics curriculum on the completion of a STEM major in college. Sample: The sample consisted of approximately 3500 students from 229 high schools. Students were predominantly Caucasian (80%), with slightly more males than females (52% vs 48%). Design and method: A quasi-experimental design with archival data was used for students who enrolled in, and graduated from, a post-secondary institution in the upper Midwest. To be included in the sample, students needed to have completed at least three years of high-school mathematics. A generalized linear mixed model was used with students nested within high schools. The data were cross-sectional. Results: High-school predictors were not found to have a significant impact on the completion of a STEM major. Significant student-level predictors included ACT mathematics score, gender and high-school mathematics GPA. Conclusions: The results provide evidence that on average students are equally prepared for the rigorous mathematics coursework regardless of the high-school mathematics curriculum they completed.

Promoting interprofessional learning and enhancing the pre-registration student experience through reciprocal cross professional peer tutoring.

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McLeod, Fiona; Jamison, Caroline; Treasure, Karen

2018-05-01

To improve collaboration and the quality of care, healthcare programmes are increasingly promoting interprofessional education thereby enabling students to learn with, from and about each other. A reciprocal peer learning model has developed among pre-registration physiotherapy and adult nursing students at Plymouth University, England. Embedded within the curriculum, it provides voluntary opportunities for year two students to become cross professional peer tutors to year one students while enhancing interprofessional understanding and skills acquisition. To explore participant experiences of two cross professional peer tutored clinical skills workshops delivered to a cohort of nursing (n = 67) and physiotherapy (n = 53) students in 2015. A mixed methods approach generated qualitative and quantitative data. Qualitative data was gathered via focus groups and individual interviews of peer tutors and learners (n = 27). These were recorded, transcribed and thematically analysed. The Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale questionnaire (n = 84) was completed before and after the workshops to consider any influence on students' attitudes towards interprofessional learning. Four themes evolved from thematic analysis; benefits of cross professional peer tutoring, interprofessional teamwork, quality of care and factors influencing the delivery of the workshops. Data showed students felt they developed greater understanding of interprofessional roles and acquired new skills. Peer tutors developed confidence in representing their profession while appearing to inspire early stage students. The Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale questionnaire data identified very positive attitudes towards interprofessional learning among the majority of students in both cohorts before and after the workshop. This study endorses the utility of enhancing the Higher Education experience by offering voluntary peer tutoring opportunities. Participating students

Pre-service Teachers’ Perceptions of Technology and Multiliteracy Within the Inclusive Classroom

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Julie K. Corkett

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The increased use of technology in today’s schools has created new possibilities for pre-service teachers and their students. Rather than limiting the use of technology based on student ability, it is now possible for pre-service teachers to develop integrated multiliteracy lessons that integrate technology and enhance student learning. Technology in the form of apps for iPads, iPods, and desktop computers enable teachers to achieve this goal; however, pre-service teacher’s perceptions of technology and teacher self-efficacy in relation to technology may influence whether technology is integrated into their lessons. This paper examines 144 primary/junior pre-service teacher’s self-efficacy and perceptions of technology before and after developing an app based m ultiliteracy lesson plan. Findings suggest that new teachers were more comfortable with the idea of integrating technology into their lessons after researching and completing a lesson plan focusing on the use of apps within an inclusive classroom.

A Pre-Service Teacher Training Model with Instructional Technology Graduate Students as Peer Coaches to Elementary Pre-Service Teachers

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Slagter van Tryon, Patricia J.; Schwartz, Catherine Stein

2012-01-01

This paper describes a peer coaching collaboration between graduate students in a Master's program in Instructional Technology and undergraduate pre-service teachers enrolled in an elementary mathematics methods course. Integrated as a major project in a graduate level K-12 technology integration course, the Instructional Technology students…

Completing College: A National View of Student Attainment Rates--Fall 2010 Cohort (Signature Report No. 12)

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Shapiro, Doug; Dundar, Afet; Wakhungu, Phoebe Khasiala; Yuan, Xin; Nathan, Angel; Hwang, Youngsik

2016-01-01

This fifth annual report on national college completion rates offers a look at the six-year outcomes for students who began postsecondary education in fall 2010, toward the end of the Great Recession. It looks at the various pathways students took toward degree completion, as well as the completion rates through May 2016 for the different student…

Pediatric dentistry clinical education venues evaluation by pre and post-doctoral students.

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Bimstein, E; Mayes, A; Mittal, Hc

2014-01-01

To evaluate dental students' perspectives about pre- and post-doctoral pediatric dentistry education venues. Surveys with visual analog scales (from 0 to 100) measuring the educational contribution of pediatric dentistry venues were conducted. The pre-doctoral venues included a 3rd year university twilight clinic (UTC), a 3rd year urban community based clinic (CBC) and 4th year mobile clinics (MCs). The post-doctoral venues included treatment of children under general anesthesia, oral sedations, a regular clinic (no sedations), seminars, journal club, case conferences and studding for the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry. Analyses of variance between the scores indicated that the 3rd year CBC score (68.2 ± 4.5) was statistically significant higher (p= .007) than the one for the 3rd year UTC score (44.9 ± 6.1). The 4th year students' MCs score (61.4 ± 4.0) was statistically significant higher than their retrospective scores for the 3rd year CBC (56.4 ± 4.4) or UTC (42.2 ± 4.9) scores (p= .03 and .004 respectively). Among the didactic or clinical post-doctoral venues, the regular clinic and the seminars received the highest scores (84.3 ± 1.7 and 71.6 ± 2.8 respectively). pre-doctoral community-based clinical education and post-doctoral regular university based clinic are considered by students to provide the main contribution to pediatric dental education.

Self-Reported Student Confidence in Troubleshooting Ability Increases after Completion of an Inquiry-Based PCR Practical

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Cook, Anthony L.; Snow, Elizabeth T.; Binns, Henrica; Cook, Peta S.

2015-01-01

Inquiry-based learning (IBL) activities are complementary to the processes of laboratory discovery, as both are focused on producing new findings through research and inquiry. Here, we describe the results of student surveys taken pre- and postpractical to an IBL undergraduate practical on PCR. Our analysis focuses primarily student perceptions of…

Assessment of clinical reasoning: A Script Concordance test designed for pre-clinical medical students.

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Humbert, Aloysius J; Johnson, Mary T; Miech, Edward; Friedberg, Fred; Grackin, Janice A; Seidman, Peggy A

2011-01-01

The Script Concordance test (SCT) measures clinical reasoning in the context of uncertainty by comparing the responses of examinees and expert clinicians. It uses the level of agreement with a panel of experts to assign credit for the examinee's answers. This study describes the development and validation of a SCT for pre-clinical medical students. Faculty from two US medical schools developed SCT items in the domains of anatomy, biochemistry, physiology, and histology. Scoring procedures utilized data from a panel of 30 expert physicians. Validation focused on internal reliability and the ability of the SCT to distinguish between different cohorts. The SCT was administered to an aggregate of 411 second-year and 70 fourth-year students from both schools. Internal consistency for the 75 test items was satisfactory (Cronbach's alpha = 0.73). The SCT successfully differentiated second- from fourth-year students and both student groups from the expert panel in a one-way analysis of variance (F(2,508) = 120.4; p students from the two schools were not significantly different (p = 0.20). This SCT successfully differentiated pre-clinical medical students from fourth-year medical students and both cohorts of medical students from expert clinicians across different institutions and geographic areas. The SCT shows promise as an easy-to-administer measure of "problem-solving" performance in competency evaluation even in the beginning years of medical education.

Interprofessional Peer Teaching of Pharmacy and Physical Therapy Students.

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Sadowski, Cheryl A; Li, Johnson Ching-hong; Pasay, Darren; Jones, C Allyson

2015-12-25

To evaluate an interprofessional peer-teaching activity during which physical therapy students instructed undergraduate pharmacy students on 3 ambulatory devices (canes, crutches, walkers). The pre/post evaluation of 2 pharmacy undergraduate classes included 220 students, 110 per year. After pharmacy students completed a 10-point, knowledge-based pretest, they participated in a hands-on activity with physical therapy students teaching them about sizing, use, and safety of canes, crutches, and walkers. A 10-point posttest was completed immediately afterward. The mean difference of pre/post scores was 3.5 (SD 1.9) for the peer-led teaching, and 3.8 (SD 2.2) for the peer learning group. Students had positive responses regarding the learning exercise and recommended further peer teaching. The peer-learning activity involving physical therapy students teaching pharmacy students was an effective method of improving knowledge and skills regarding basic ambulatory devices.

Promoting Pre-Service Elementary Students' Understanding of Chemical Equilibrium through Discussions in Small Groups

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Bilgin, Ibrahim

2006-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of small group discussion on students' conceptual understanding of chemical equilibrium. Students' understanding of chemical equilibrium concepts was measured using the Misconception Identification Test. The test consisted of 30 items and administered as pre-posttests to a total of 81…

Data pre-processing: a case study in predicting student's retention in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

dataset with features that are ready for data mining task. The study also proposed a process model and suggestions, which can be applied to support more comprehensible tools for educational domain who is the end user. Subsequently, the data pre-processing become more efficient for predicting student's retention in ...

Pre-registration nursing student's quality of practice learning: Clinical learning environment inventory (actual) questionnaire.

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Shivers, Eleanor; Hasson, Felicity; Slater, Paul

2017-08-01

Clinical learning is a vital component of nurse education and assessing student's experiences can provide useful insights for development. Whilst most research in this area has focused on the acute setting little attention has been given to all pre-registration nurses' experience across the clinical placements arenas. To examine of pre-registration nursing students (first, second and third year) assessment of their actual experiences of their most recent clinical learning clinical learning experience. A cross sectional survey involving a descriptive online anonymous questionnaire based on the clinical learning environment inventory tool. One higher education institution in the United Kingdom. Nursing students (n=147) enrolled in an undergraduate nursing degree. This questionnaire included demographic questions and the Clinical Learning Environment Inventory (CLEI) a 42 item tool measuring student's satisfaction with clinical placement. SPPS version 22 was employed to analyse data with descriptive and inferential statistics. Overall students were satisfied with their clinical learning experience across all placement areas. This was linked to the 6 constructs of the clinical learning environment inventory; personalization, innovation, individualization, task orientation, involvement, satisfaction. Significant differences in student experience were noted between age groups and student year but there was no difference noted between placement type, age and gender. Nursing students had a positive perception of their clinical learning experience, although there remains room for improvement. Enabling a greater understanding of students' perspective on the quality of clinical education is important for nursing education and future research. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

VARK Learning Preferences and Mobile Anatomy Software Application Use in Pre-Clinical Chiropractic Students

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Meyer, Amanda J.; Stomski, Norman J.; Innes, Stanley I.; Armson, Anthony J.

2016-01-01

Ubiquitous smartphone ownership and reduced face-to-face teaching time may lead to students making greater use of mobile technologies in their learning. This is the first study to report on the prevalence of mobile gross anatomy software applications (apps) usage in pre-clinical chiropractic students and to ascertain if a relationship exists…

Group Supervision and Japanese Students' Successful Completion of Undergraduate Theses

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Yamada, Kiyomi

2013-01-01

This paper explores, from a sociocultural perspective, the nature and functions of "zemi" or seminars in which Japanese undergraduate students received group supervision for research and thesis writing. The study also investigates how the "zemi" contributed to completion of their theses. It was found that the "zemi"…

Unexpected Benefits of Pre-University Skills Training for A-Level Students

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Jones, H. L.; Gaskell, E. H.; Prendergast, J. R.; Bavage, A. D.

2017-01-01

First-year undergraduates can find the transition from the prescriptive learning environment at school to one of self-directed learning at university, a considerable challenge. A Pre-university Skills Course (PSC) was developed to address this issue by preparing sixth formers for the university learning style. It was piloted with students in the…

Pre-Service Teachers' Use of Library Databases: Some Insights

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Lamb, Janeen; Howard, Sarah; Easey, Michael

2014-01-01

The aim of this study is to investigate if providing mathematics education pre-service teachers with animated library tutorials on library and database searches changes their searching practices. This study involved the completion of a survey by 138 students and seven individual interviews before and after library search demonstration videos were…

Evaluating effectiveness of small group information literacy instruction for Undergraduate Medical Education students using a pre- and post-survey study design.

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McClurg, Caitlin; Powelson, Susan; Lang, Eddy; Aghajafari, Fariba; Edworthy, Steven

2015-06-01

The Undergraduate Medical Education (UME) programme at the University of Calgary is a three-year programme with a strong emphasis on small group learning. The purpose of our study was to determine whether librarian led small group information literacy instruction, closely integrated with course content and faculty participation, but without a hands on component, was an effective means to convey EBM literacy skills. Five 15-minute EBM information literacy sessions were delivered by three librarians to 12 practicing physician led small groups of 15 students. Students were asked to complete an online survey before and after the sessions. Data analysis was performed through simple descriptive statistics. A total of 144 of 160 students responded to the pre-survey, and 112 students answered the post-survey. Instruction in a small group environment without a mandatory hands on component had a positive impact on student's evidence-based information literacy skills. Students were more likely to consult a librarian and had increased confidence in their abilities to search and find relevant information. Our study demonstrates that student engagement and faculty involvement are effective tools for delivering information literacy skills when working with students in a small group setting outside of a computer classroom. © 2015 Health Libraries Group.

The Impact of Taking a College Pre-Calculus Course on Students' College Calculus Performance

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Sonnert, Gerhard; Sadler, Philip M.

2014-01-01

Poor performance on placement exams keeps many US students who pursue a STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) career from enrolling directly in college calculus. Instead, they must take a pre-calculus course that aims to better prepare them for later calculus coursework. In the USA, enrollment in pre-calculus courses in two- and…

Knowledge, perception and attitude towards human papillomavirus among pre-university students in Malaysia.

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Kwang, Ng Beng; Yee, Choy Mun; Shan, Lim Pei; Teik, Chew Kah; Chandralega, Kampan Nirmala; Abdul Kadir, Abdul Karim

2014-01-01

To evaluate the knowledge, perception and attitudes towards human papilloma virus (HPV) among pre-university students in Malaysia. In this cross sectional study, between November 2013 to March 2014, in a public university, a convenient sampling method was used. A total of 716 respondents were recruited and interviewed with a set of standard questionnaires for assessment of knowledge, perception and attitudes towards HPV and predictor variables associated with level of knowledge. Almost half (48.9%) of the respondents scored less than 5 and were categorised as having poor knowledge. Three hundred and twelve (43.6%) respondents had moderate knowledge and only 54 (7.5%) respondents exhibited good knowledge with the score of 11 and above. Only 142 (20%) students perceived themselves to be vulnerable to HPV infection though 560 (78.2%) students thought that HPV infection is a serious disease. Perceived benefits and desire to be vaccinated were significantly associated with gender (p=0.000) and knowledge of HPV vaccine and cervical cancer (p=0.000). The level of knowledge regarding HPV among the pre-university students was low. However, student intention for vaccination increased with increasing level of knowledge. Thus, efforts to improve knowledge and awareness should be prioritised to increase uptake of the HPV vaccination programme and hence reduce morbidity and mortality from consequences of HPV infection, including cervical carcinoma.

The Influence of Pre-University Students' Mathematics Test Anxiety and Numerical Anxiety on Mathematics Achievement

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Seng, Ernest Lim Kok

2015-01-01

This study examines the relationship between mathematics test anxiety and numerical anxiety on students' mathematics achievement. 140 pre-university students who studied at one of the institutes of higher learning were being investigated. Gender issue pertaining to mathematics anxieties was being addressed besides investigating the magnitude of…

Benefits of Completing Homework for Students with Different Aptitudes in an Introductory Electricity and Magnetism Course

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Kontur, F.?J.; de La Harpe, K.; Terry, N.?B.

2015-01-01

We examine how student aptitudes impact how much students learn from doing graded online and written homework in an introductory electricity and magnetism course. Our analysis examines the correlation between successful homework completion rates and exam performance as well as how changes in homework completion correlate with changes in exam…

The effect of an enrolled nursing registration pathway program on undergraduate nursing students' confidence level: A pre- and post-test study.

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Crevacore, Carol; Jonas-Dwyer, Diana; Nicol, Pam

2016-04-01

In the latter half of the 20th century, registered nurse education moved to university degree level. As a result, there has been a reduction in access for students to clinical experience. In numerous studies, nursing graduates have reported that they do not feel prepared for practice. The importance of maximising every learning opportunity during nursing school is paramount. At Edith Cowan University, a program was initiated that allows students to become enrolled nurses at the midway point of their degree to enable them to work and therefore gain experience in the clinical practice setting during their education. This study investigated the effect of the program on the nursing students' perception of their clinical abilities and explored their ability to link theory to practice. The research design for this study was a quasi-experimental, prospective observational cohort study. The study included 39 second-year nursing students not enrolled in the program (Group 1), 45 second-year nursing students enrolled in the program (Group 2), and 28 third-year nursing students who completed the program and are working as enrolled nurses (Group 3). Participants were asked to complete a Five Dimension of Nursing Scale questionnaire. The quantitative analyses showed that students in Group 1 had statistically significant higher pre-questionnaire perceived abilities across all domains, except in two dimensions when compared to Group 2. The post-questionnaire analysis showed that Group 1 had statistically significant lower perceived abilities in four of the five dimensions compared to Group 2. Group 1 also had significantly lower abilities in all dimensions compared to Group 3. Group 3 had a significantly higher perception of their clinical abilities compared to Group 2. This study highlights the value of meaningful employment for undergraduate nursing students by providing opportunities to increase confidence in clinical abilities. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights

Students' goal orientations, information processing strategies and knowledge development in competence-based pre-vocational secondary education

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Koopman, M.

2010-01-01

In this study, learning processes of students in competence-based Pre-Vocational Secondary Education (PVSE; in Dutch vmbo) were investigated. The study aimed at describing the relation between goal orientations, information processing strategies and the development of knowledge of these students.

Identifying motivators and barriers to student completion of instructor evaluations: A multi-faceted, collaborative approach from four colleges of pharmacy.

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McAuley, James W; Backo, Jennifer Lynn; Sobota, Kristen Finley; Metzger, Anne H; Ulbrich, Timothy

To identify motivators and barriers to pharmacy student completion of instructor evaluations, and to develop potential strategies to improve the evaluation process. Completed at four Ohio Colleges of Pharmacy, Phase I consisted of a student/faculty survey and Phase II consisted of joint student/faculty focus groups to discuss Phase I data and to problem solve. In Phase I, the top three student-identified and faculty-perceived motivators to completion of evaluations were to (1) make the course better, (2) earn bonus points, and (3) improve the instructor's teaching. The top three student-identified barriers to completion of evaluations were having to (1) evaluate multiple instructors, (2) complete several evaluations around the same time, and (3) complete lengthy evaluations. Phase II focus groups identified a number of potential ways to enhance the motivators and reduce barriers, including but not limited to making sure faculty convey to students that the feedback they provide is useful and to provide examples of how student feedback has been used to improve their teaching/the course. Students and faculty identified motivators and barriers to completing instructor evaluations and were willing to work together to improve the process. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The association between backpack use and low back pain among pre-university students: A pilot study

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Azhar Amyra Natasha

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Background: Individuals aged 30–60 years have a high possibility of experiencing low back pain. However, children and adolescents are not exempted from this problem. This study aimed to determine the relationship between backpack usage and the frequency of low back pain in pre-university students. Methods: A total of 101 currently enrolled pre-university students were recruited for this cross-sectional study. They answered a questionnaire about their demographic details and their frequency of backpack usage. Their backpacks were weighed for four consecutive school days. The Roland–Morris Disability Questionnaire and Body Discomfort Chart were used to rate discomfort levels. Results: The use and weight of a backpack were not significantly associated with low back pain, as indicated by the Roland–Morris Disability Questionnaire and Body Discomfort Chart (p > 0.05. Conclusion: This study did not find an association between the use of a backpack and low back pain in Malaysian pre-university students. Keywords: Bone, Mechanical loading, Pain, Teenager, Vertebrae

Monitoring Student Interaction during Collaborative Learning: Design and Evaluation of a Training Program for Pre-Service Teachers

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Kaendler, Celia; Wiedmann, Michael; Leuders, Timo; Rummel, Nikol; Spada, Hans

2016-01-01

The monitoring by teachers of collaborative, cognitive, and meta-cognitive student activities in collaborative learning is crucial for fostering beneficial student interaction. In a quasi-experimental study, we trained pre-service teachers (N = 74) to notice behavioral indicators for these three dimensions of student activities. Video clips of…

Assessment of Written Expression Skills of University Students in Terms of Text Completion Technique

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Abdulkadir KIRBAŞ

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Writing is to transfer the visualised ideas on the paper. Writing, one of the language skills, is a significant tool of communication which provides the permanency of information conveying emotions and thoughts. Since writing has both cognitive and physical aspects, it makes writing the hardest and the latest language skill to improve. The studies show that writing activity is the most difficult skill students have difficulty. In higher education, in order to improve writing skills of students and give basic information and skills about writing skills written expression, composition and writing education lessons are taught both in the department of Turkish Language and Literature and in the departments of Turkish Language in the Faculties of Education. One of the aims of these lessons is to teach students written expression techniques together with the purposes and practices. One of the written expression techniques is text completion skill that improves student’s creativity and enhances her/his imaginary world. The purpose of this study is to assess students’ skills of using text completion technique with reference to the writing studies of students in higher education. the sample of the study consists of 85 college students studying in the department of Turkish Language and Literature in Gümüşhane University in 2016-2017 academic year. The data of the study were obtained from the written expression studies of the students. The introduction part of the article ‘On Reading’ by F. Bacon was given to the students and they were required to complete the text. ‘Text Completion Rating Scale in Writing Expression’ was developed to assess the data of the study by taking opinions of lecturers and Turkish education experts. The data of the study were presented with percentage and frequency rates. At the end of the study, it was concluded that students had weakness in some skills such as writing an effective body part about the topic given

Study time within pre-registration nurse education: A critical review of the literature.

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Barker, Caroline; King, Nigel; Snowden, Michael; Ousey, Karen

2016-06-01

Pre-registration nursing students throughout the United Kingdom (UK) are required to complete a minimum number of theory hours within the course. Anecdotal evidence suggests that students are required to attend campus for approximately fifty percent of the theory hours. The remaining theory hours are often labelled as 'study time' in which students are not required to attend campus. There is a general assumption amongst many academics that all students are prepared and motivated to direct their learning and therefore use this time to study. However some students chose to work during this time and many have dependents. Considering the increasing cost of nurse education combined with the government cuts to student bursaries in England it is timely to review the literature to determine how study time is used within pre-registration nurse education. To present a critical review of the literature pertaining to study time in pre-registration nurse education. An integrative review of the literature. A search of electronic databases: Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health (CINAHL); Cochrane; Medline; Science Direct; Blackwell Synergy; Electronic Journals Service (EJS); Scopus; Taylor & Francis, Eric and Routledge Wiley was undertaken. The inclusion criteria consisted of peer reviewed primary research, discussion papers, unpublished doctoral theses' and editorial papers directly related to the key words and nurse education published in English. Twelve papers were included in the review. Analysis of the papers led to the development of two themes: orientation to self-directed learning (SDL) and preparation for SDL. The literature demonstrates that pre-registration nursing students lack the necessary skills for SDL. There is a lack of research on how study time is used within pre-registration nurse education. This calls for empirical research to fully explore how nursing students and lecturers perceive study time within pre-registration nursing curricula. Crown

Travel risk behaviours and uptake of pre-travel health preventions by university students in Australia.

Science.gov (United States)

Heywood, Anita E; Zhang, Meng; MacIntyre, C Raina; Seale, Holly

2012-02-17

Forward planning and preventative measures before travelling can significantly reduce the risk of many vaccine preventable travel-related infectious diseases. Higher education students may be at an increased risk of importing infectious disease as many undertake multiple visits to regions with higher infectious disease endemicity. Little is known about the health behaviours of domestic or international university students, particularly students from low resource countries who travel to high-resource countries for education. This study aimed to assess travel-associated health risks and preventative behaviours in a sample of both domestic and international university students in Australia. In 2010, a 28 item self-administered online survey was distributed to students enrolled at the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. Multiple methods of distributing links to the online survey were utilised. The survey examined the international travel history, travel intentions, infection control behaviours and self-reported vaccination history. A total of 1663 respondents completed the online survey, 22.1% were international students and 83.9% were enrolled at an undergraduate level. Half had travelled internationally in the previous 12 months, with 69% of those travelling only once during that time with no difference in travel from Australia between domestic and international students (p = 0.8). Uptake of pre-travel health advice was low overall with 68% of respondents reporting they had not sought any advice from a health professional prior to their last international trip. Domestic students were more likely to report uptake of a range of preventative travel health measures compared to international students, including diarrhoeal medication, insect repellent, food avoidance and condoms (P students reported low risk perception of travel threats and a low corresponding concern for these threats. Our study highlights the need to educate students about the risk

Will Public Pre-K Really Close Achievement Gaps? Gaps in Prekindergarten Quality between Students and across States

Science.gov (United States)

Valentino, Rachel

2018-01-01

Publicly funded pre-K is often touted as a means to narrow achievement gaps, but this goal is less likely to be achieved if poor and/or minority children do not, at a minimum, attend equal quality pre-K as their non-poor, non-minority peers. In this paper, I find large "quality gaps" in public pre-K between poor, minority students and…

Why Do Students Choose Not to Follow All Instructions When Completing Assessment Tasks?

Science.gov (United States)

Fleet, Wendy

2013-01-01

As academics we often assume that allocating marks to a task will influence student decision-making when it comes to completing that task. Marks are used by lecturers to indicate the relative importance of each of the criteria used for marking the assessment task and we expect the student to respond to the marks' allocation. This Postcard suggests…

Pre-Service Teachers' Attitude towards Inclusive Education for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Malaysia

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Low, Hui Min; Lee, Lay Wah; Che Ahmad, Aznan

2018-01-01

In this study, the pre-service teachers' attitudes towards the educational inclusion for students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) were investigated to identify their attitudinal patterns and predictors. An attitudinal survey was conducted with 264 pre-service teachers in a teacher training programme in Malaysia. The study involved 151 special…

Value Education Through Distance Learning: Opinions of Students who already Completed Value Education

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Handan DEVECI

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Individuals in a society should be systematically trained on value education so that they can appreciate values such as love, respect, tolerance, and honesty. Employment of value training approaches within Anadolu University Open and Distance Learning System will make it possible to educate many people on values. The purpose of this research is to determine the opinions of university students about providing value education through distance learning system. This study has been completed via use of semi-structured interview technique based on qualitative research approach. The participants are registered students studying at Social Studies Teacher Training Program, Faculty of Education, Anadolu University during the fall term of 2013-2014 academic years. Based on the selection criteria, 15 students who had already completed value education course and who were familiar with Anadolu University’s open and distance learning system partook in the study. Research data was analyzed through content analysis. Participating students believe that value education is a necessary component of social life and that students within distance learning system should be provided with value education. Furthermore, participants stated that value education could be integrated into distance learning. Based on the findings, it is possible to conclude that offering value education to students through distance learning system may significantly contribute to social life as it facilitates maintaining social order and raising effective citizens.

Free Fall Misconceptions: Results of a Graph Based Pre-Test of Sophomore Civil Engineering Students

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Montecinos, Alicia M.

2014-01-01

A partially unusual behaviour was found among 14 sophomore students of civil engineering who took a pre test for a free fall laboratory session, in the context of a general mechanics course. An analysis contemplating mathematics models and physics models consistency was made. In all cases, the students presented evidence favoring a correct free…

Pre-entry Characteristics, Perceived Social Support, Adjustment and Academic Achievement in First-Year Spanish University Students: A Path Model.

Science.gov (United States)

Rodríguez, María Soledad; Tinajero, Carolina; Páramo, María Fernanda

2017-11-17

Transition to university is a multifactorial process to which scarce consideration has been given in Spain, despite this being one of the countries with the highest rates of academic failure and attrition within the European Union. The present study proposes an empirical model for predicting Spanish students' academic achievement at university by considering pre-entry characteristics, perceived social support and adaptation to university, in a sample of 300 traditional first-year university students. The findings of the path analysis showed that pre-university achievement and academic and personal-emotional adjustment were direct predictors of academic achievement. Furthermore, gender, parents' education and family support were indirect predictors of academic achievement, mediated by pre-university grades and adjustment to university. The current findings supporting evidence that academic achievement in first-year Spanish students is the cumulative effect of pre-entry characteristics and process variables, key factors that should be taken into account in designing intervention strategies involving families and that establish stronger links between research findings and university policies.

Effects of Pre-Service Teacher Learning and Student Teaching on Teacher Education

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AlAjmi, Maadi M.; Al-Dhafiri, Mohammed D.; Al-Shammari, Zaid N.

2016-01-01

The purposes of this research were to investigate and examine the effects of pre-service teacher learning and student teaching on teacher education.Three hundred and ten out of 349 intentionally selected participants responded to a two-dimensional survey. The gender, nationality, marital status, age, and academic year had no significant effects,…

Correlation of Managers' Value Systems and Students' Moral Development in High Schools and Pre-University Centers

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Alavi, Hamid Reza; Rahimipoor, Tahereh

2010-01-01

The goal of this research was to understand the managers' value system, the students' moral development, and their relationship in the high schools and pre-universities of District One in Kerman City. The research method used was descriptive-correlational. The statistical population was composed of high school and pre-university managers and…

Online Learning for Students from Diverse Backgrounds: Learning Disability Students, Excellent Students and Average Students

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Miri Shonfeld

2015-09-01

Full Text Available The perceived contribution of science education online course to pre-service students (N=121 from diverse backgrounds - students with learning disabilities (25 LD students, 28 excellent students and 68 average students is presented in this five years research. During the online course students were asked to choose a scientific subject; to map it and to plan teaching activities; to carry out the proposed activities with students in a classroom experience; and to reflect the process. The assumption was that adapting the online course by using information and communication technology following formative assessment will improve students' self-learning ability as well as broaden their science knowledge, their lab performance and teaching skills. Data were collected using quantitative and qualitative tools including: pre and post questionnaires and nine (three students from each group depth interviews upon completion of the course. Findings, based on students` perceived evaluation, pinpointed on the advantages of the online course for students of the three groups. LD students’ achievements were not inferior to those of their peers, excellent students and average students. Yet, it carefully reports on a slight but explicitly marginal perceived evaluation of the LD students in comparison to excellent students and average students regarding: forum participation, authentic task and water lab performance. The article discusses the affordance of the online course via additional features that can be grouped into two categories: knowledge construction and flexibility in time, interaction and knowledge. Further research is suggested to extend the current study by examine the effect of other courses and different contents and by considering various evaluation methods of online courses, such as: observation, the think aloud, text and tasks analysis, and reflection.

Travel risk behaviours and uptake of pre-travel health preventions by university students in Australia

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Heywood Anita E

2012-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Forward planning and preventative measures before travelling can significantly reduce the risk of many vaccine preventable travel-related infectious diseases. Higher education students may be at an increased risk of importing infectious disease as many undertake multiple visits to regions with higher infectious disease endemicity. Little is known about the health behaviours of domestic or international university students, particularly students from low resource countries who travel to high-resource countries for education. This study aimed to assess travel-associated health risks and preventative behaviours in a sample of both domestic and international university students in Australia. Methods In 2010, a 28 item self-administered online survey was distributed to students enrolled at the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. Multiple methods of distributing links to the online survey were utilised. The survey examined the international travel history, travel intentions, infection control behaviours and self-reported vaccination history. Results A total of 1663 respondents completed the online survey, 22.1% were international students and 83.9% were enrolled at an undergraduate level. Half had travelled internationally in the previous 12 months, with 69% of those travelling only once during that time with no difference in travel from Australia between domestic and international students (p = 0.8. Uptake of pre-travel health advice was low overall with 68% of respondents reporting they had not sought any advice from a health professional prior to their last international trip. Domestic students were more likely to report uptake of a range of preventative travel health measures compared to international students, including diarrhoeal medication, insect repellent, food avoidance and condoms (P Conclusions Our study highlights the need to educate students about the risk associated with travel and improve preventative

Technical skills acquisition in surgery-bound senior medical students: an evaluation of student assertiveness.

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Talbott, Vanessa A; Marks, Joshua A; Bodzin, Adam S; Comeau, Jason A; Maxwell, Pinckney J; Isenberg, Gerald A; Martin, Niels D

2012-01-01

To prepare students pursuing surgical careers, we devised a senior subinternship curriculum supplement that focused on the acquisition of technical skills required of surgical residents. We hypothesized that more assertive students, those that accomplished more of the curriculum, would perform better on a technical skills Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE). Senior medical students rotating on their first general surgery subinternship were administered a 6-station OSCE on the first day of their subinternship and again during the final week of the month-long rotation. A self-directed, 38-task "scavenger hunt" representing common intern level clinical skills, procedures, and patient care activities was provided to each student. The study was performed at Jefferson Medical College, a large, private medical school in Philadelphia, PA. Forty-nine senior students completed surgical subinternships between July 2009 and September 2010, and participated both in the pre-/post-OSCEs and the scavenger hunt. Students performed significantly better on the post-rotation OSCE than on the pre-rotation OSCE; 70.2% ± 8.1% vs. 60.4% ± 12.0%, p Assertiveness scores from the "scavenger hunt" did not correlate with final OSCE scores (r = -0.328, p = 0.25), and were negatively correlated with the change between pre- and post-OSCE scores (r = -0.573, p assertiveness scores were determined by the number of tasks completed over the course of the rotation. As surgical education becomes more streamlined with evolving work hour restrictions, medical school education is playing an increasingly pivotal role in preparing students for internship. In our study, individual assertiveness in completing structured self-directed learning tasks did not directly predict the acquisition of proficiency in technical skills. We feel assertiveness is overshadowed by other factors that may carry more weight in terms of technical skills acquisition. Further studies are required to delineate these

Pre-Service Students' Perceptions and Experiences of Digital Storytelling in Diverse Classrooms

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Condy, Janet; Chigona, Agnes; Gachago, Daniela; Ivala, Eunice; Chigona, Agnes

2012-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to analyse an innovative teaching and learning practice in which pre-service student teachers at the CPUT used digital stories to reflect on their experiences of diversity in their classroom. Managing diverse classrooms is one of the main challenges for all teachers. Digital storytelling can help manage such…

Effectiveness of a formal post-baccalaureate pre-medicine program for underrepresented minority students.

Science.gov (United States)

Giordani, B; Edwards, A S; Segal, S S; Gillum, L H; Lindsay, A; Johnson, N

2001-08-01

To address the effectiveness of a formal postbaccalaureate (PB) experience for underrepresented minority (URM) students before medical school. The program provided an intense year-long experience of course work, research, and personal development. There were 516 participants from one medical school: 15 URM medical students had completed the formal PB program, 58 students had done independent PB work before matriculation, and 443 students were traditional matriculants. Cognitive and academic indicators [college science and non-science grade-point averages (GPAs); biology, physics, and verbal MCAT scores; and percentage scores from first-year medical school courses] were compared for the three groups. Both groups of students with PB experience demonstrated competency in the first year of medical school consistent with traditional students even though the students who had completed the formal PB program had lower MCAT scores and lower college GPAs than did the traditional students. Traditional predictors of academic performance during the first year of medical school did not significantly contribute to actual academic performances of students from the formal PB program. The results support the use of a formal PB program to provide academic readiness and support for URM students prior to medical school. Such a program may also improve retention. Noncognitive variables, however, may be important to understanding the success of such students in medical school.

Factors Affecting Differential Equation Problem Solving Ability of Students at Pre-University Level: A Conceptual Model

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Aisha, Bibi; Zamri, Sharifa NorulAkmar Syed; Abdallah, Nabeel; Abedalaziz, Mohammad; Ahmad, Mushtaq; Satti, Umbreen

2017-01-01

In this study, different factors affecting students' differential equations (DEs) solving abilities were explored at pre university level. To explore main factors affecting students' differential equations problem solving ability, articles for a 19-year period, from 1996 to 2015, were critically reviewed and analyzed. It was revealed that…

Islamic Pre-School Management and Its Implications towards Students’ Learning Quality Improvement

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Rosniati Hakim

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Islamic education in schools had not completely assessed the development of students’ character and personality. Therefore, additional religious education through non-formal education and religious practices were needed in Islamic Pre-Schools. It provided a forum to foster, develop, cultivate, and transform the religious value of the students to improve their personality. The purpose of this research was to examine social phenomenon that occur naturally through the facts related to management activities of students. Qualitative research was used in this study where the data taken from head of Islamic pre-school and the school deputy, teacher, staffs, mosque administrators of Baitul Haadi, administrator of the school, staffs of Ministry of Religious Affairs as well as Islamic pre-school inspectors, parents, community leaders, and administrators of professional organizations. The finding showed that students’ management applied in Islamic pre-school through the management functions is able to provide the successful of student’s education and learning implementation. It was also found that student management applied in Islamic pre-school is planning activities of students’ admission process through the administration regularly with various regulations related to the success of education. Thus, it is expected that the government will provide the guidance and implement constant supervision in accordance with applicable regulations.

Effectiveness of structured teaching programme regarding sleep hygiene and sleep disorders on knowledge of students in a selected pre-university college at Bengaluru

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Mohammad Isaque Manik

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Background: Sleep plays an important role in maintaining good physical and mental health throughout the life. Timely and adequate sleep will improve quality of life, protect mental and physical health. The present study was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of structured teaching programme regarding sleep hygiene and sleep disorders on knowledge of pre-university students in a selected college at Bengaluru. Methodology: A pre-experimental research was conducted with 60 pre-university students; samples were selected using simple random sampling technique, and the data was collected using structured socio-demographic proforma and knowledge questionnaire on sleep hygiene and sleep disorders. Structured teaching programme on sleep hygiene and sleep disorders was given on the same day. Posttest was conducted after seven days. Results: There was a statistically significant difference in pre- and post-test knowledge scores (t=26.71, p<0.001 of pre-university students with respect to sleep hygiene and sleep disorders. Association between socio-demographic variables and pre-test knowledge scores showed that there was significant association between religion and pre-test knowledge scores. Conclusion: Findings conclude that structured teaching programme regarding sleep hygiene and sleep disorders was effective in increasing knowledge score among pre-university students.

Pre-university Chemistry Students in a Mimicked Scholarly Peer Review

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van Rens, Lisette; Hermarij, Philip; Pilot, Albert; Beishuizen, Jos; Hofman, Herman; Wal, Marjolein

2014-10-01

Peer review is a significant component in scientific research. Introducing peer review into inquiry processes may be regarded as an aim to develop student understanding regarding quality in inquiries. This study examines student understanding in inquiry peer reviews among pre-university chemistry students, aged 16-17, when they enact a design of a mimicked scholarly peer review. This design is based on a model of a human activity system. Twenty-five different schools in Brazil, Germany, Poland and The Netherlands participated. The students (n = 880) conducted in small groups (n = 428) open inquiries on fermentation. All groups prepared an inquiry report for peer review. These reports were published on a website. Groups were randomly paired in an internet symposium, where they posted review comments to their peers. These responses were qualitatively analyzed on small groups' level of understanding regarding seven categories: inquiry question, hypothesis, management of control variables, accurate measurement, presenting results, reliability of results, discussion and conclusion. The mimicked scholarly review prompted a collective practice. Student understanding was significantly well on presenting results, discussion and conclusion, and significantly less on inquiry question and reliability of results. An enacted design, based on a model of a human activity system, created student understanding of quality in inquiries as well as an insight in a peer-reviewing practice. To what extent this model can be applied in a broader context of design research in science education needs further study.

First-Generation Female College Students' Financial Literacy: Real and Perceived Barriers to Degree Completion

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Eitel, Susan J.; Martin, Jennifer

2009-01-01

First-generation female college students (FGFCS) make up a large portion of the diversity in higher education. Unfortunately "access" to education does not translate to success. Persistence and degree completion for these students is often undermined by seemingly insurmountable obstacles. The purposes of this study were to identify the financial…

Influence of Ethics Education on Moral Reasoning among Pre-Service Teacher Preparation and Social Work Students

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Salopek, Michelle M.

2013-01-01

This comparative case study examines the influence of ethics education on moral reasoning among pre-service teacher preparation and social work students. This study specifically investigates the ethical values of students enrolled in a teacher preparation and social work education program by their fourth year of study; the degree of ethical…

The Effect of Graphing Calculators on Student Achievement in College Algebra and Pre-Calculus Mathematics Courses

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Hatem, Neil

2010-01-01

This study investigates the relationship between the use of graphing calculators employed as Type II technology and student achievement, as determined by assessing students' problem solving skills associated with the concept of function, at the college algebra and pre-calculus level. In addition, this study explores the integration of graphing…

Student-Athlete Perceptions of a Summer Pre-Enrollment Experience at an NCAA Division I-AAA Institution

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Dalgety, Michael Franklin

2012-01-01

The purpose of this exploratory qualitative study was to examine student-athlete perceptions of the role of summer pre-enrollment in their adjustment and transition to college. The study focused on student-athletes who received athletically-related financial aid at a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I-AAA institution. The…

A Project-Based Learning Approach to Teaching Physics for Pre-Service Elementary School Teacher Education Students

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Goldstein, Olzan

2016-01-01

This paper describes the impact of the project-based learning (PBL) approach on learning and teaching physics from the perspective of pre-service elementary school teacher education students and an instructor. This approach promoted meaningful learning (mainly in the scope of projects), higher motivation, and active involvement of students in…

An Investigation of the Impact of Instructional Fading Using Completion Problems on Student Performance in Principles of Accounting Instruction

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Kingry, Mary Ann

2012-01-01

The effects of instructional fading using completion problems on student performance were investigated in this study. Instructional fading is the gradual withdrawal of the amount of assistance provided to the student and was accomplished in this study using completion problems. They were used to gradually transition the student from completely…

Preparing students to be doctors: introduction of a sub-internship program.

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Robb, W B

2011-04-05

Preparing graduates for the transformation from medical student to doctor provides medical schools with a real challenge. Medical educators advocate a process of graduated delegation of responsibility in the clinical years of medical school. This is best exemplified in the North American system of sub-internship programmes; an educational approach which European medical schools have been slow to adopt. This study reports on the introduction of an intensive two-week surgical sub-internship for final medical year students. "Sub-interns" were asked to complete pre and post sub-internship online questionnaires assessing their readiness to perform clinical and practical skills, attitudes towards the program, and how well it prepared students for internship. Forty-nine students completed a questionnaire pre sub-internship and 47 completed the post-questionnaire. Student confidence towards practical and clinical skills and their first day at work increased over the two weeks. Mean Iikert scores for all 6 practical and clinical skills improved post sub-internship. The introduction of a surgical sub-internship is timely and welcomed by medical students. Its development helps bridge the gap in responsibilities between medical student and doctor.

How pre-service teachers' personality traits, self-efficacy, and discipline strategies contribute to the teacher-student relationship

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De Jong, Romi; Mainhard, Tim|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/30483517X; van Tartwijk, Jan|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/112629385; Veldman, Ietje; Verloop, Nico; Wubbels, Theo|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/070651361

2014-01-01

Background: Although the teacher-student relationship is a well-documented phenomenon, few attempts have been made to identify its predictors. Research has mainly focused on in-service teachers, less is known about characteristics of pre-service teachers in relation to the teacher-student

Learning style preferences: A study of pre-clinical medical students in Barbados.

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Ojeh, Nkemcho; Sobers-Grannum, Natasha; Gaur, Uma; Udupa, Alaya; Majumder, Md Anwarul Azim

2017-10-01

Educators need to be aware of different learning styles to effectively tailor instructional strategies and methods to cater to the students' learning needs and support a conductive learning environment. The VARK [an acronym for visual (V), aural (A), read/write (R) and kinesthetic (K)] instrument is a useful model to assess learning styles. The aim of this study was to use the VARK questionnaire to determine the learning styles of pre-clinical medical students in order to compare the perceived and assessed learning style preferences, assess gender differences in learning style preferences, and determine whether any relationships exists between awareness of learning styles and academic grades, age, gender and learning modality. The VARK questionnaire was administered to pre-clinical students taking a variety of courses in the first three years of the undergraduate MB BS degree programme at the Faculty of Medical Sciences, The University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados in 2014. The majority of the students were multimodal learners with no differences observed between males (59.5%) and females (60.0%), with tetramodal being the most common. Read/write (33.8%) followed by kinesthetic (32.5%) were the most common learning style preferences. The sensory modality preference for females was read/write (34.2%) and for males it was kinesthetic (40.5%). Significant differences were observed between the perceived and assessed learning style preferences with a majority of visual and read/write learners correctly matching their perceived to their actual learning styles. Awareness of learning styles was associated with learning modality but not with academic performance, age or gender. Overall, 60.7% of high achievers used multimodal learning compared to 56.9% low achievers. The findings from this study indicated that the VARK tool was useful in gathering information about different learning styles, and might assist educators in designing blended teaching

Influence of Incentives on Performance in a Pre-College Biology MOOC

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Suhang Jiang

2014-11-01

Full Text Available There is concern that online education may widen the achievement gap between students from different socioeconomic classes. The recent discussion of integrating massive open online courses (MOOCs into formal higher education has added fuel to this debate. In this study, factors influencing enrollment and completion in a pre-college preparatory MOOC were explored. University of California at Irvine (UCI students of all preparation levels, defined by math Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT score, were invited to take a Bio Prep MOOC to help them prepare for introductory biology. Students with math SAT below 550 were offered the explicit incentive of an early change to the biology major upon successful completion of the MOOC and two additional onsite courses. Our results demonstrate that, among course registrants, a higher percentage of UCI students (>60% completed the course than non-UCI registrants from the general population (<9%. Female UCI students had a greater likelihood of enrolling in the MOOC, but were not different from male students in terms of performance. University students entering with low preparation outperformed students entering who already had the credentials to become biology majors. These findings suggest that MOOCs can reach students, even those entering college with less preparation, before they enter university and have the potential to prepare them for challenging science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM courses.

An Analysis of Pre-School Teachers' and Student Teachers' Attitudes to Inclusion and Their Self-Efficacy

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Sari, Hakan; Celikoz, Nadir; Secer, Zarife

2009-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate what the self-efficacy and attitudes of pre-school teachers and student teachers towards inclusive education were and to elucidate the relationship between self-efficacy and the attitudes on inclusion. Therefore, the present study investigated the self-efficacy perceptions and attitudes of student teachers…

Case-Based Pedagogy Using Student-Generated Vignettes: A Pre-Service Intercultural Awareness Tool

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Cournoyer, Amy

2010-01-01

This qualitative study investigated the effectiveness of case-based pedagogy as an instructional tool aimed at increasing cultural awareness and competence in the preparation of 18 pre-service and in-service students enrolled in an Intercultural Education course. Each participant generated a vignette based on an instructional challenge identified…

Effects of Brief Psychoeducational Program on Stigma in Malaysian Pre-clinical Medical Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

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Fernandez, Aaron; Tan, Kit-Aun; Knaak, Stephanie; Chew, Boon How; Ghazali, Sazlina Shariff

2016-12-01

If presented with serious mental illness (SMI), individuals' low help-seeking behaviors and poor adherence to treatment are associated with negative stereotypes and attitudes of healthcare providers. In this study, we examined the effects of a brief psychoeducational program on reducing stigma in pre-clinical medical students. One hundred and two pre-clinical medical students (20-23 years old) were randomly assigned to face-to-face contact + educational lecture (n = 51) condition or video-based contact + educational lecture (n = 51) condition. Measures of pre-clinical medical students' mental illness-related stigma using the Opening Minds Stigma Scale for Health Care Providers (OMS-HC) were administered at pre-, post-treatment, and 1-month follow-up. A 2 (condition: face-to-face contact + educational lecture, video-based contact + educational lecture) by 3 (time: pre-treatment, post-treatment, and 1-month follow-up) mixed model MANOVA was conducted on the Attitudes, Disclosure and Help-Seeking, and Social Distance OMS-HC subscales. Participants' scores on all subscales changed significantly across time, regardless of conditions. To determine how participants' scores changed significantly over time on each subscale, Bonferroni follow-up comparisons were performed to access pairwise differences for the main effect of time. Specifically, pairwise comparisons produced a significant reduction in Social Distance subscale between pre-treatment and post-treatment and between pre-treatment and 1-month follow-up, and a significant increase between post-treatment and 1-month follow-up, regardless of conditions. With respect to the Attitudes and Disclosure and Help-Seeking subscales, pairwise comparisons produced a significant reduction in scores between pre-treatment and post-treatment and a significant increase between post-treatment and 1-month follow-up. Our findings provide additional evidence that educational lecture on mental illness, coupled

A framework for laboratory pre-work based on the concepts, tools and techniques questioning method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huntula, J; Sharma, M D; Johnston, I; Chitaree, R

2011-01-01

Learning in the laboratory is different from learning in other contexts because students have to engage with various aspects of the practice of science. They have to use many skills and knowledge in parallel-not only to understand the concepts of physics but also to use the tools and analyse the data. The question arises, how to best guide students' learning in the laboratory. This study is about creating and using questions with a specifically designed framework to aid learning in the laboratory. The concepts, tools and techniques questioning (CTTQ) method was initially designed and used at Mahidol University, Thailand, and was subsequently extended to laboratory pre-work at the University of Sydney. The CTTQ method was implemented in Sydney with 190 first-year students. Three pre-work exercises on a series of electrical experiments were created based on the CTTQ method. The pre-works were completed individually and submitted before the experiment started. Analysed pre-work, surveys and interviews were used to evaluate the pre-work questions in this study. The results indicated that the CTTQ method was successful and the flow in the experiments was better than that in the previous year. At the same time students had difficulty with the last experiment in the sequence and with techniques.

Pre-Medical Preparation in Microbiology among Applicants and Matriculants in Osteopathic Medical School in the United States.

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Ramos, Raddy L; Guercio, Erik; Martinez, Luis R

2017-01-01

It is recognized that medical school curricula contain significant microbiology-related content as part of the training of future physicians who will be responsible stewards of antimicrobials. Surprisingly, osteopathic and allopathic medical schools do not require pre-medical microbiology coursework, and the extent to which medical students have completed microbiology coursework remains poorly understood. In this report, we show that fewer than 3% of applicants and matriculants to osteopathic medical school (OMS) have completed an undergraduate major or minor in microbiology, and fewer than 17% of applicants and matriculants to OMS have completed one or more microbiology-related courses. These data demonstrate limited pre-medical microbiology-related knowledge among osteopathic medical students, which may be associated with an increase in perceived stress when learning this content or during clinical rotations as well as a potential lack of interest in pursuing a career in infectious diseases.

Failure of college students to complete an online alcohol education course as a predictor of high-risk drinking that requires medical attention.

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Abrams, Gina Baral; Kolligian, John; Mills, Douglas Lane; DeJong, William

2011-11-01

AlcoholEdu® for College and other computer-based education programs have been developed to reduce alcohol use and related problems among students. This study investigated whether the failure of incoming first-year students to complete AlcoholEdu predicts future high-risk drinking that requires medical attention. A review of clinical records kept by a single university's health service identified 684 undergraduates (classes of 2007-2011) who had presented for an alcohol event (September 2003 through June 2008). We used survival analysis to determine whether students who partially completed the course or failed to take it were disproportionately represented among student patients who presented with elevated blood alcohol concentration (BAC). Students who failed to take the online course were 4.64 times more likely than those who completed it to experience an alcohol event (p students who had partially completed the course were 1.52 times more likely (p alcohol education and gender were not significantly related to students' measured BAC level. Students who had completed AlcoholEdu were less likely to present for an alcohol event than were students who partially completed or failed to take the course. Campus administrators should consider whether students who fail to complete an online alcohol course should be flagged for more focused interventions (e.g., brief motivational interview, mandatory education classes). This is the first study to show a relationship between first-year college students' non-completion of an online alcohol course and subsequent high-risk drinking that requires medical attention.

A phenomenographic study of students' experiences with transition from pre-college engineering programs to first-year engineering

Science.gov (United States)

Salzman, Noah

Recent national dialogues on the importance of preparing more students for careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics has driven the development of formal and informal learning opportunities for children and adolescents to explore engineering. Despite the growth of these programs, relatively little research exists on how participation in these programs affects students who choose to pursue further study in engineering. The present study addressed this gap through an exploration of the different ways that First-Year Engineering students experience the transition from pre-college engineering to undergraduate engineering studies. Given the focus of this research on students' experiences, phenomenography was chosen to explore the phenomenon of transition from pre-college to first-year engineering at a large, public Midwestern university. This facilitated understanding the range of variation in the ways that students experienced this transition. Twenty-two students with different amounts of participation in a variety of different engineering programs were selected to be interviewed using a purposeful maximum variation sampling strategy. The interviews were guided by a semi-structured interview protocol that encouraged the participants to reflect on their pre-college engineering experiences, their experiences in First-Year Engineering, and the transition between the two domains. The interviews were analyzed using phenomenographic methods to develop an outcome space consisting of five qualitatively different but related ways of experiencing the transition from pre-college to First-Year Engineering. These categories of description included Foreclosure, Frustration, Tedium, Connection, and Engaging Others. With the exception of the first category which was characterized by a lack of passion and commitment to engineering, the remaining four categories formed a hierarchical relationship representing increasing integration in First-Year Engineering. The

The Medical Humanities Effect: a Pilot Study of Pre-Health Professions Students at the University of Rochester.

Science.gov (United States)

Baker, Clayton J; Shaw, Margie Hodges; Mooney, Christopher J; Daiss, Susan Dodge-Peters; Clark, Stephanie Brown

2017-12-01

Qualitative and quantitative research on the impact of medical and health humanities teaching in baccalaureate education is sparse. This paper reviews recent studies of the impact of medical and health humanities coursework in pre-health professions education and describes a pilot study of baccalaureate students who completed semester-long medical humanities courses in the Division of Medical Humanities & Bioethics at the University of Rochester. The study format was an email survey. All participants were current or former baccalaureate students who had taken one or more courses in literature and narrative in medicine, bioethics, history of medicine, and/or visual arts and healthcare during the past four years. The survey gathered numerical data in several areas: demographic information, career plans, self-reported influence of coursework on educational and career plans, and self-reported influence of coursework on intellectual skills and abilities. It also gathered narrative commentary that elaborated on students' responses to the numerically-based questions. Notable findings from preliminary analysis of the data include higher scores of self-reported impact of the coursework on specific habits of mind and on preparedness for intended career rather than on gaining admission to future educational programs. Discussion of the results focuses on several potential future directions this type of study might take, including multi-center, longitudinal, and sequential approaches.

How do student nurses learn to care? An analysis of pre-registration adult nursing practice assessment documents.

Science.gov (United States)

Young, Kate; Godbold, Rosemary; Wood, Pat

2018-01-01

There is international concern about the quality of nursing in resource constrained, high technology health care settings. This paper reports findings from a research study which explored the experiences and views of those involved in the education and learning of 'caring' with adult pre-registration students. A novel dataset of 39 practice assessment documents (PADs) were randomly sampled and analysed across both bachelors and masters programmes from September 2014-July 2015. Using an appreciative enquiry approach, the Caring Behaviours Inventory aided analysis of qualitative text from both mentors and students within the PADs to identify how student nurses learn to care and to establish whether there were any differences between Masters and Bachelors students. In contrast with existing research, we found a holistic, melded approach to caring. This combined softer skills with highly technologized care, and flexible, tailored approaches to optimise individualised care delivery. Both of these were highly valued by both students and mentors. Pre-registration MSc students tended to have higher perceptual skills and be more analytical than their BSc counterparts. We found no evidence to suggest that caring behaviour or attitudes diminish over the course of either programme. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Students' pre-knowledge as a guideline in the teaching of introductory thermal physics at university

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leinonen, Risto; Asikainen, Mervi; Hirvonen, Pekka E; Raesaenen, Esa

2009-01-01

This study concentrates on analysing university students' pre-knowledge of thermal physics. The students' understanding of the basic concepts and of the adiabatic compression of an ideal gas was studied at the start of an introductory level course. A total of 48 students participated in a paper-and-pencil test, and analysis of the responses revealed that they had several kinds of problems. They did not differentiate between concepts, confusing in particular the concepts of temperature, internal energy and heat. The students also seemed to have serious problems in applying the first law of thermodynamics: they were frequently more likely to use the ideal gas law rather than the first law, e.g., in the case of adiabatic compression, even though it cannot provide a proper explanation of the phenomenon. More detailed analysis revealed that the underlying reasons for many of the problems detected were based on an inadequate understanding of micro-level models of substance. At the upper secondary level, students have acquired an impression of how particles move, vibrate and interact, but they have not learnt how to apply the ideas and concepts of the micro-models in a scientific manner. All of this means that university teachers need to exercise great care in designing their teaching. Explicit recommendations for teachers to take into account both the findings of this research project and also students' pre-knowledge are presented in the discussion section at the end of this paper

Pre-Algebra Essentials For Dummies

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Zegarelli, Mark

2010-01-01

Many students worry about starting algebra. Pre-Algebra Essentials For Dummies provides an overview of critical pre-algebra concepts to help new algebra students (and their parents) take the next step without fear. Free of ramp-up material, Pre-Algebra Essentials For Dummies contains content focused on key topics only. It provides discrete explanations of critical concepts taught in a typical pre-algebra course, from fractions, decimals, and percents to scientific notation and simple variable equations. This guide is also a perfect reference for parents who need to review critical pre-algebra

A Study on Depression among Pre-University Students Kazeron City 1379-80

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Davoud Shoja'ei-Zadeh

2001-12-01

Full Text Available Objective: The ultimate goal of this research is determining of depression prevalence and effective factors among boys of pre university level in Kazeron city. Materials & Methods: The present research is an analytical - descriptive and cross sectional study, which was done in February 2001. In order to achieve the goal, 240 pre university boys were selected through random classified sampling and the data gathered by questionnaires and Zung depression scale. Results: The results indicate that 42.9 percent of students suffered from depression. The rate of depression among the students is as follows: low depression 28.8%, medium depression 9.6% high depression 3.3%, and profound depression 1.3%. The statistical test, such as X2 and X2 for trend has been used. The results showed that there is a significant relationship between depression and family financial status, parents’ relations, talking about problems with others, anxiety about joining to military services, anxiety for entering to university, treatment of teachers and principals and educational level of mothers. With respect to the above mentioned variables and using a logistic regression model the following results achieved: Four variables had increasing effect on depression incidence: family financial status, parents’ relations, talking about problems with others and anxiety about going to military duty. Conclusion: The advantage of the above model is not only to identify the effectiveness of the variables in depression but also by understanding of the students it is likely to prevent depression incidence.

The Effect of Student Teaching Experience and Teacher Beliefs on Pre-Service Teachers' Self-Efficacy and Intention to Use Technology in Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Insook; Shin, Won Sug; Ko, Yujung

2017-01-01

The student teaching experience has been considered important in establishing pre-service teachers' beliefs and attitudes towards their teaching. However, few studies have investigated the effect of student teaching experiences as an educational intervention for increasing technology integration--especially pre-service teachers' pedagogical…

34 CFR 668.48 - Report on completion or graduation rates for student-athletes.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... Institutional and Financial Assistance Information for Students § 668.48 Report on completion or graduation... Management and Budget under control number 1845-0004) (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1092) [60 FR 61788, Dec. 1, 1995...

Assessment of structured physical examination skills training using a retro-pre-questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Piryani, Rano Mal; Shankar, P Ravi; Piryani, Suneel; Thapa, Trilok Pati; Karki, Balmansingh; Khakurel, Mahesh Prasad; Bhandary, Shital

2013-01-01

The effectiveness of physical examination skills (PES) training is very rarely assessed using the "post-then-pre" approach. In this study, a retro-pre-questionnaire was used to study the effect of structured physical examination skills training (SPEST) imparted to second-year undergraduate medical students. KIST Medical College (KISTMC) affiliated to Tribhuvan University Nepal admitted its first batch of MBBS students in November 2008. The university curriculum recommends the involvement of Medicine and Surgery Departments in PES training, but the methods for teaching and assessment are not well defined. KISTMC has made training more structured and involved the Medicine, Surgery, Gynaecology and Obstetrics, Orthopaedics, ENT, Ophthalmology, Paediatrics, and Family Medicine Departments. SPEST includes the teaching/learning of basic PES for 210 minutes once a week for 28 weeks. Self-assessment is done by using a retro-pre-questionnaire at the end of the last session of training, and these data are analysed using SPSS. Out of 100 students, 98 participated in the objective structured clinical examination (OSCE); 82 completed the retro-pre-questionnaire. Forty-six skills representing various systems were selected for inclusion in the retro-pre-questionnaire from among the many skills taught in different departments. The average perceived skills score (maximum score, 46×4=184) before training was 15.9 and increased to 116.5 after training. The increase was statistically significant upon the application of a paired t-test. The students perceived that their level of skills improved after the training. The retro-pre- instrument seems to be useful for assessing the learners' self-reported changes in PES after training if a large number of skills need to be assessed. However, it should be noted that although a retro-pre-questionnaire may reveal valuable information, it is not a substitute for an objective measure or gold standard.

The relationship between learning preferences (styles and approaches) and learning outcomes among pre-clinical undergraduate medical students

OpenAIRE

Liew, Siaw-Cheok; Sidhu, Jagmohni; Barua, Ankur

2015-01-01

Background Learning styles and approaches of individual undergraduate medical students vary considerably and as a consequence, their learning needs also differ from one student to another. This study was conducted to identify different learning styles and approaches of pre-clinical, undergraduate medical students and also to determine the relationships of learning preferences with performances in the summative examinations. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among randomly selected...

Developing Responsibility for Completing and Handing in Daily Homework Assignments for Students in Grades Three, Four, and Five.

Science.gov (United States)

Shepard, Joan M.

This practicum was designed to increase responsibility for completing and handing in homework among students in grades three, four, and five in a mid-Atlantic school district. Of a total of 128 students in these grades, 28 were identified to learn strategies to aid in completing homework. Nine solution strategies were employed: (1) provide…

Pre-registration dietetic students' attitudes to learning communication skills.

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Power, B T; Lennie, S C

2012-04-01

  Communication is a core skill and a prerequisite for dietitians' clinical competence. It is generally acknowledged that communication skills can be taught and learned. There is a paucity of published work identifying dietetic students' attitudes towards learning communication skills, and understanding this is important.   The present cross-sectional study aimed to address this issue using an adapted version of the Communication Skills Attitude Scale (CSAS), which was designed to capture information concerning positive and negative attitudes to learning communication skills. An online questionnaire was sent to all undergraduate and post-graduate dietetic programmes in the UK.   Of the students' solicited for enrolment in the study, 33.4% (n = 300) completed the questionnaire. A one-way analysis of variance showed attitudes to learning communication skills differed significantly between years of study on both subscales of the CSAS. Subsequent analyses indicated that first-year students' attitudes to learning communication skills were significantly more positive than those of fourth-year students (P = 0.042). Third-year students had significantly more positive attitudes to learning communication skills than fourth-year students (P = 0.028). Negative attitudes were also linked to the year of study with fourth-year students having significantly more negative attitudes than third-year students (P = 0.046). Sex, practice placement experience and parental occupation did not significantly influence attitudes to learning communication skills.   These findings indicate that efforts are required to maintain positive attitudes to learning communication skills. Further longitudinal studies are recommended in this respect. © 2012 The Authors. Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics © 2012 The British Dietetic Association Ltd.

The knowledge and attitude about HIV/AIDS among Jordanian dental students: (Clinical versus pre clinical students at the University of Jordan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shayyab Mohammad H

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The present study aimed to address the suspected deficiency in the level of understanding of HIV/AIDS among clinical and pre clinical dental students at the University of Jordan. In this cross-sectional study, structured questionnaires were distributed to fifth year dental students (n = 121 and to third year dental students (n = 144 in the academic year 2008/2009. Findings Significantly higher percentage of fifth-year students compared to third-year students felt that the teaching they received on cross-infection precautions and barrier dentistry was adequate (P Significantly higher proportion of third-year students compared to fifth-year (39.2% vs. 26.3% thought that HIV patients should be referred to other centers or support groups for treatment (P = 0.04. Conclusions The level of knowledge of Jordanian dental students about HIV and AIDS was generally acceptable; there were inadequacies, however, in their understanding regarding some aspects of AIDS epidemic which demands that dental school curriculum needs some improvement.

What We Know about Guided Pathways: Helping Students to Complete Programs Faster. Research Overview

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Bailey, Thomas; Jaggars, Shanna Smith; Jenkins, Davis

2015-01-01

The idea behind guided pathways is straightforward. College students are more likely to complete a degree in a timely fashion if they choose a program and develop an academic plan early on, have a clear road map of the courses they need to take to complete a credential, and receive guidance and support to help them stay on plan. However, most…

The Effect of Visual of a Courseware towards Pre-University Students' Learning in Literature

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Masri, Mazyrah; Wan Ahmad, Wan Fatimah; Nordin, Shahrina Md.; Sulaiman, Suziah

This paper highlights the effect of visual of a multimedia courseware, Black Cat Courseware (BC-C), developed for learning literature at a pre-university level in University Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP). The contents of the courseware are based on a Black Cat story which is covered in an English course at the university. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the usability and effectiveness of BC-C. A total of sixty foundation students were involved in the study. Quasi-experimental design was employed, forming two groups: experimental and control groups. The experimental group had to interact with BC-C as part of the learning activities while the control group used the conventional learning methods. The results indicate that the experimental group achieved a statistically significant compared to the control group in understanding the Black Cat story. The study result also proves that the effect of visual increases the students' performances in literature learning at a pre-university level.

Pre-Primary Education and Long-Term Education Performance: Evidence from Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) Thailand

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Pholphirul, Piriya

2017-01-01

Several research papers have assessed the long-term benefits of pre-primary education in terms of academic performance and labor market outcomes. This study analyzes data obtained from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) to estimate the effects of preschool enrollment of Thai students on producing long-term benefits in their…

Characterizing Design Cognition of High School Students: Initial Analyses Comparing Those with and without Pre-Engineering Experiences

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Wells, John; Lammi, Matthew; Gero, John; Grubbs, Michael E.; Paretti, Marie; Williams, Christopher

2016-01-01

Reported in this article are initial results from of a longitudinal study to characterize the design cognition and cognitive design styles of high school students with and without pre-engineering course experience over a 2-year period, and to compare them with undergraduate engineering students. The research followed a verbal protocol analysis…

Distance Education in Dental Hygiene Bachelor of Science Degree Completion Programs: As Perceived by Students and Faculty

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Tsokris, Maureen

2010-01-01

This study investigated student and faculty perceptions of their experiences with online learning in dental hygiene Bachelor of Science degree completion programs on the dimensions of: quality of learning, connectedness to the learning environment, technology factors and student satisfaction. The experiences of dental hygiene students who took…

Theoretical and practice formation in oncological infirmary for pre graduate students in Colombia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chalela, S; Orduz, G; Almenares C

1999-01-01

The cancer appears in Colombia like one of the first three causes of mortality, with growing projection from 1991. To know the reality on the teaching of the oncology in the levels of pre-graduate formation in infirmary, it is the fundamental objective of the present work, to determine the theoretical contained and the practices activities that it has more than enough the topic they become trained at the moment in the country and in a same way to establish basic limits of the duty to belong to the nurse in this area. The present study is of traverse descriptive type, and it was developed in two phases. The first of quantitative type, directed to all the academic units of Colombia with pre-graduate formation in infirmary that they had a graduated promotion at least. The total was of 21 universities, 18 of those, which the surveys responded, that included the identification of the academic unit and the hours assigned for each one of the oncology topics, in theoretical contents and activities practice. The second phase, of qualitative type, was developed using the consent Delphi methodology, with selection of a group of experts (for the study they were 11 nurses of the whole country) that had pos-grade in oncology infirmary or at least 5 years of professional experience in the oncology area. Each one qualified the importance of each oncology topic and it expressed their approach about hours in theoretical contents and in activities practice that they should become trained to the infirmary students in the pre-graduate; of the 18 analyzed academic units, 13 considered as insufficient the contents that it has more than enough oncology, this at the moment teaching to the pre-graduate students in Colombia. The work concludes with the description of the topics that at the moment they are teaching the academic units in Colombia and with the basic limits that it has more than enough oncology, the experts consider necessary for the formation in the infirmary pre-graduate in

Relationship Between Academic Performance and Student Self-Assessment of Clinical Performance in the College of Podiatric Medicine and Surgery.

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Yoho, Robert M; Vardaxis, Vassilios; Millonig, Kelsey

2016-05-01

Student self-assessment is viewed as an important tool in medical education. We sought to identify the relationship between student academic performance and third-year clinical performance self-assessment. No such study exists in podiatric medical education. Third-year podiatric medical students from the classes of 2012 through 2014 completed a self-assessment of their performance for each of five broad clinical podiatric medical domains (Professionalism, Medicine, Radiology, Surgery, and Biomechanics/Orthopedics). The assessment was completed after students finished the first 12 weeks of their third-year clinical rotations (PRE) and a second time at the conclusion of the third year (POST). The mean self-assessment score for PRE and POST surveys for all combined domains was determined for each student. This mean was compared with the student's 3-year cumulative grade point average (GPA). Students' clinical experiences for the year were essentially identical. No statistically significant correlation was identified between cumulative GPA and the PRE and POST clinical self-assessments or with the change between PRE and POST assessments based on the Pearson correlation test for each class separately or on the pooled data. Published studies in allopathic medical education have shown that students with lower GPAs tend to rate their clinical performance higher in initial clinical performance self-assessment. Our results show that student academic performance was not correlated with clinical performance self-assessment. These findings may be due to the explicit description of successful clinical competency completion, the orientation students receive before the start of clinical training, and the continuous feedback received from clinical preceptors.

To embed or not to embed? A longitudinal study exploring the impact of curriculum design on the evidence-based practice profiles of UK pre-registration nursing students.

Science.gov (United States)

Scurlock-Evans, Laura; Upton, Penney; Rouse, Joanne; Upton, Dominic

2017-11-01

The use of Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) is increasingly emphasized within healthcare. However, little research has focused on nurses' pre-registration training; particularly regarding the impact of curriculum-design on learning EBP. This study compared the impact of embedding EBP throughout the curriculum, with modular-based teaching, on pre-registration nursing students' EBP profiles. A longitudinal panel study. A convenience sample of fifty-six pre-registration nursing students (55.4% studying an embedded EBP-curriculum and 44.6% studying a modular EBP-curriculum), were recruited from a UK University between 2011 and 2014. Participants completed the Student Evidence-Based Practice Questionnaire (S-EBPQ) in the first, second and third year of their course. This questionnaire measures four EBP domains: frequency of use, attitude, knowledge and skills in retrieving and reviewing evidence, and knowledge and skills in applying and sharing evidence. Two-way mixed between-within Analyses of Variance revealed significant improvements across all domains, except attitude (which remained broadly positive across all years), for both curriculum-groups. No significant differences in this improvement were identified between the two curricula overall. However, the direction and rate of change of scores on the retrieving and applying subscales (but not frequency of use) for the two groups differed across time; specifically those on the embedded curriculum showed a dip in scores on these subscales in year 2. This appeared to be related to associated features of the course such as the timing of placements and delivery of theory. Taking a modular or embedded approach to EBP may have little impact on students' final EBP profiles. However, careful consideration should be given to the timing of related course features which may play a key role in students' perceptions of their knowledge and skills in its application. Further research should explore how curriculum-design might build on

Biblio-Therapeutic Book Creations by Pre-Service Student Teachers: Helping Elementary School Children Cope

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Haeseler, Lisa Ann

2009-01-01

Many elementary school children may cope with difficult life struggles such as disabilities, abuse, loss, and identity issues. This article details original, student generated, biblio-therapeutic book creations and how this genre teaches positive ways for children at-risk to cope with tough life circumstances. Pre-service, elementary college…

Networks for Success: Preparing Mexican American AVID College Students for Credentials, Completion, and the Workforce

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Kirk, Richard; Watt, Karen M.

2018-01-01

This qualitative study examines how Mexican American students participating in an AVID for Higher Education course perceived their preparation for the workforce and efficacy of completing a college credential. A focus group approach was used to explore how social and cultural networks (networks for success) contribute to college completion. The…

Factors and Processes That Influence E-Professionalism among Pre-Licensure Baccalaureate Nursing Students When Utilizing Social Media

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Skrabal, Julie

2017-01-01

There is limited research related to nursing students' social media use. Because of this, there was a need to further explore how they were using social media and their ability to maintain e-professionalism. This study discovered that pre-licensure baccalaureate nursing students are actively using multiple social media accounts on a daily basis.…

Students' Understanding of Alkyl Halide Reactions in Undergraduate Organic Chemistry

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Cruz-Ramirez de Arellano, Daniel

2013-01-01

Organic chemistry is an essential subject for many undergraduate students completing degrees in science, engineering, and pre-professional programs. However, students often struggle with the concepts and skills required to successfully solve organic chemistry exercises. Since alkyl halides are traditionally the first functional group that is…

[The effect of pre-surgical orthodontics on secondary alveolar bone grafting in the patients with complete cleft lip and palate].

Science.gov (United States)

Jia, Yi-lin; Fu, Min-kui; Ma, Lian

2004-05-01

To examine the effect of pre-surgical orthodontics on the outcome of the secondary alveolar bone grafting in the patients with complete cleft lip and palate. Sixteen complete cleft lip and palate patients (9 males and 7 females) with collapsed upper arch or severe mal-positioned upper incisors were selected. The cleft was not easily grafted because of the poor access. The total cleft sites were 22 (10 patients with UCLP and 6 patients with BCLP). The age range of the patients was from 8 to 22 years. Pre-surgical orthodontic treatment was mainly to expand the collapsed upper arch and correct the mal-positioned upper incisors. After the secondary alveolar bone grafting, the patients were followed up and anterior occlusal radiograph/intraoral panograph were taken regularly. The observation period was from 6 months to 4 years. Bergland criteria were used to evaluate the interdental septal height. Upper arch expansion and the correction of the mal-positioned upper incisors done by the orthodontic treatment made the bone grafting procedure easier. The clinically successful rate reached 86%. The severe upper arch collapse and mal-positioned upper incisors in the patients with complete cleft lip and palate should be corrected orthodontically before the secondary alveolar bone grafting.

Student Teacher Challenges: Using the Cognitive Load Theory as an Explanatory Lens

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Moos, Daniel C.; Pitton, Debra

2014-01-01

Cognitive load theory (CLT) can explain the challenges faced by student teachers. This study, guided by the CLT, included 26 pre-service teachers. Participants completed a cognitive load self-report questionnaire and were interviewed at two points during their student teaching. Results revealed that student teachers decreased mental effort related…

STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS OF COPING WITH PRE-EXAMS ANXIETY AND UNCERTAINTY (COPEAU) IN PERUVIAN COLLEGE STUDENTS

OpenAIRE

Dominguez-Lara, Sergio Alexis; Merino Soto, César A.

2016-01-01

The objective of this research was analyze the internal structure of Coping with Pre-Exam Anxiety and Uncertainty (COPEAU) in Peruvian college students from a private institution. Participated 312 psychology students (227 women) from from the first to sixth term, with age between 16 and 49 (M = 20.54; SD = 4.29). Using the structural equation modeling, five models were assessed, among which the four oblique factor model shows greater theoretical and empirical coherence.. Also, the reliability...

Texas Student Success Council: Finding Common Ground to Increase Community College Completion

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Collins, Michael Lawrence

2014-01-01

In 2011, a prominent Texas business group erected provocative billboards condemning low completion rates at the state's community colleges and questioning the value of tax dollars spent there. The Texas Association of Business put up the signs to prod community colleges to do more to increase student success and help create a better educated…

Assessing Student Teaching Experiences: Teacher Candidates' Perceptions of Preparedness

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Joohi; Tice, Kathleen; Collins, Denise; Brown, Amber; Smith, Cleta; Fox, Jill

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of student teaching experiences by measuring teacher candidates' perceptions of their preparedness. The participants were 130 teacher candidates who had completed their student teaching as part of a program preparing them to teach children in pre-K through grade 4. Teacher candidates…

PhD Students' Excellence Scholarships and Their Relationship with Research Productivity, Scientific Impact, and Degree Completion

Science.gov (United States)

Lariviere, Vincent

2013-01-01

This paper examines the relationship between excellence scholarships and research productivity, scientific impact, and degree completion. Drawing on the entire population of doctoral students in the province of Quebec, this pa- per analyzes three distinct sources of data: students, excellence scholarships, and scientific publications. It shows…

Indonesian students' participation in an interprofessional learning workshop.

Science.gov (United States)

Ernawati, Desak Ketut; Lee, Ya Ping; Hughes, Jeffery

2015-01-01

Interprofessional learning activities, such as workshops allow students to learn from, with and about each other. This study assessed the impact on Indonesian health students' attitudes towards interprofessional education (IPE) from participating in a workshop on medication safety. The students attended a two-day IPE workshop on medication safety. Thirty-five (48.6%) students completed pre-/post-workshop surveys using a modified Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale (RIPLS) survey. The post-workshop survey also had a series of open-ended questions. Students' responses to each RIPLS statement pre-/post-workshop were compared, whilst their responses to open-ended questions in post-workshop survey were thematically analysed. Students reported positive attitudinal changes on statements of shared learning and teamwork sub-scale (Wilcoxon p value importance of teamwork and communication skills. This study found that learning with other health students through an IPE workshop improved medical, nursing and pharmacy students' attitudes towards the importance of shared learning, teamwork and communication in healthcare service.

A Bystander Bullying Psychoeducation Program with Middle School Students: A Preliminary Report

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Midgett, Aida; Doumas, Diana; Sears, Dara; Lundquist, Amanda; Hausheer, Robin

2015-01-01

This study evaluated the effectiveness of a brief, stand-alone bystander bullying psychoeducation program for middle school students. The purpose of the program was to train students to take action as peer advocates. Pre- and post-tests indicated that after completing the 90-minute psychoeducation program, students reported an increase in their…

The relationship between learning preferences (styles and approaches) and learning outcomes among pre-clinical undergraduate medical students.

Science.gov (United States)

Liew, Siaw-Cheok; Sidhu, Jagmohni; Barua, Ankur

2015-03-11

Learning styles and approaches of individual undergraduate medical students vary considerably and as a consequence, their learning needs also differ from one student to another. This study was conducted to identify different learning styles and approaches of pre-clinical, undergraduate medical students and also to determine the relationships of learning preferences with performances in the summative examinations. A cross-sectional study was conducted among randomly selected 419 pre-clinical, undergraduate medical students of the International Medical University (IMU) in Kuala Lumpur. The number of students from Year 2 was 217 while that from Year 3 was 202. The Visual, Auditory, Read/Write, Kinesthetic (VARK) and the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST) questionnaires were used for data collection. This study revealed that 343 students (81.9%) had unimodal learning style, while the remaining 76 (18.1%) used a multimodal learning style. Among the unimodal learners, a majority (30.1%) were of Kinesthetic (K) type. Among the middle and high achievers in summative examinations, a majority had unimodal (Kinaesthetic) learning style (30.5%) and were also strategic/deep learners (79.4%). However, the learning styles and approaches did not contribute significantly towards the learning outcomes in summative examinations. A majority of the students in this study had Unimodal (Kinesthetic) learning style. The learning preferences (styles and approaches) did not contribute significantly to the learning outcomes. Future work to re-assess the viability of these learning preferences (styles and approaches) after the incorporation of teaching-learning instructions tailored specifically to the students will be beneficial to help medical teachers in facilitating students to become more capable learners.

Benefits Access for College Completion: Lessons Learned from a Community College Initiative to Help Low-Income Students

Science.gov (United States)

Duke-Benfield, Amy Ellen; Saunders, Katherine

2016-01-01

This report analyzes how students were served by Benefits Access for College Completion (BACC), a 2.5-year initiative designed to increase access to public benefits (such as SNAP or Medicaid) for eligible low-income students. These crucial supports reduce students' unmet financial needs and help them finish school. Launched in 2011, BACC funded…

The relationship between English language learning strategies and gender among pre-university students: An overview of UMS

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Kiram, Johannah Jamalul; Sulaiman, Jumat; Swanto, Suyansah; Din, Wardatul Akmam

2014-06-01

This study aims to analyze the effects psychological gender differences on the relationship between language learning strategies and their proficiency in English language for pre-university students. Previous researchers found that the more employment of language learning strategies, the more successful the learners are and those with higher level of strategy use are female rather than male. In this study, fifty-six pre-university students (22 males, 34 females) of University Malaysia Sabah participated in this study. Oxford's Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) self-report questionnaire was adopted to identify the students' language learning strategies, whereas their proficiencies were based on their Malaysian University English Test (MUET) results. Pearson's correlation coefficient, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and the t-test were utilized to make statistical interpretation about the relationship. The knowledge obtained from this study will be helpful for future studies on how to improve the quality of learning and proficiency in English.

Setting Them up for Success: Assessing a Pre-Research Assignment for First-Year International Students

Science.gov (United States)

Avery, Susan

2017-01-01

As the international student population continues to grow, librarians must adjust their instruction to meet the needs of students who are adapting to a new country, culture, and language. This study assesses first-year international students as they engage in the research process through the completion of concept maps that precede database…

Deciding the On-line Chromatic Number of a Graph with Pre-coloring is PSPACE-complete

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kudahl, Christian

2015-01-01

In an on-line coloring, the vertices of a graph are revealed one by one. An algorithm assigns a color to each vertex after it is revealed. When a vertex is revealed, it is also revealed which of the previous vertices it is adjacent to. The on-line chromatic number of a graph, G, is the smallest...... number of colors an algorithm will need when on-line-coloring G. The algorithm may know G, but not the order in which the vertices are revealed. The problem of determining if the on-line chromatic number of a graph is less than or equal to k, given a pre-coloring, is shown to be PSPACE-complete....

Students' Understanding of Alkyl Halide Reactions in Undergraduate Organic Chemistry

Science.gov (United States)

Cruz-Ramírez de Arellano, Daniel; Towns, Marcy H.

2014-01-01

Organic chemistry is an essential subject for many undergraduate students completing degrees in science, engineering, and pre-professional programs. However, students often struggle with the concepts and skills required to successfully solve organic chemistry exercises. Since alkyl halides are traditionally the first functional group that is…

Age dynamic of physical condition changes in pre-school age girls, schoolgirls and students, living in conditions of Eastern Siberia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V.Y. Lebedinskiy

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Purpose: to analyze dynamic of physical condition, considering sex (females and age of the tested, living in region with unfavorable ecology. Material: we studied pre school age girls (n=1580, age 4-7 years. In the research we did not include children with chronic diseases, who were under observation. We tested schoolgirls (n=3211, age 7-17 years and girl students (n=5827, age 17-21 years, 1-4 years of study. Girl students were divided into five age groups: from 17 to 21 years. All participants lived in conditions of Eastern Siberia (Irkutsk. This region is characterized by unfavorable ecology and climate geographic characteristics. Results: in dynamic of physical condition of pre-school girls, schoolgirls and students we marked out three substantial periods of it characteristics' changes. Age 7-8 years is critical (transition from 1st to 2nd stage. The least values of these characteristics are found in older (after 17-18 years ages. In students we observed relative stabilization of these indicators. Conclusions: the received results shall be considered in building physical education training process in pre-school educational establishments, secondary comprehensive schools and higher educational establishments.

Promoting Information Literacy of Pre-Medical Students through Project-Based Learning: A Pilot Study

Science.gov (United States)

Saliba, Reya; Mussleman, Paul; Fernandes, Melanie; Bendriss, Rachid

2017-01-01

This study describes the implementation of information literacy (IL) skills through the use of the project-based learning (PjBL) method in an English for Academic Purposes (EAP) course. Participants were Arabic speaking students enrolled in the Foundation Program that prepared them for the pre-medical curriculum in a U.S. medical college in the…

[Application of problem-based learning in pre-job training of postgraduate students in department of endodontics].

Science.gov (United States)

Shao, Li-na; Wang, Xue-mei; Qiu, Li-hong; Zhan, Fu-liang; Xue, Ming

2013-08-01

To apply problem-based learning (PBL) in pre-job training of postgraduate students in department of endodontics. Thirty master degree postgraduate students of China Medical University were randomly divided into 2 groups, there were 15 students in each group. One group were taught with PBL method while the other group with lecture-based learning (LBL) method. The teaching effect was measured with examination and questionnaire survey. The data were analyzed by student's t-test using SPSS 11.5 software package. There was no significant difference in basic knowledge, medical records writing, oral examination between the two groups (P>0.05). There were significant differences in case analysis, dental operation, theory examination, practical examination and total scores between the two groups (Pjob training of postgraduate students.

Determining which introductory physics topics pre-service physics teachers have difficulty understanding and what accounts for these difficulties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Şahin, Esin; Yağbasan, Rahmi

2012-01-01

This study aims at diagnosing which subjects pre-service physics teachers have difficulty understanding in introductory physics courses and what accounts for these difficulties. A questionnaire consisting of two qualitative questions was used to collect data for this study. The questionnaire was administered to 101 pre-service physics teachers who have completed the courses Physics 1 (Mechanics 1), Physics 2 (Mechanics 2), Physics 3 (Electricity) and Physics 4 (Magnetism). Of the pre-service physics teachers 28 were second year, 26 were third year, 27 were fourth year and 20 were fifth year students. The results of the data analysis indicated that the percentage of students who think that Magnetism has the most difficult subjects is the highest compared to the others. The reasons why the pre-service physics teachers experience difficulty in understanding the subjects have been grouped into four categories. (paper)

Learning style preferences: A study of pre-clinical medical students in Barbados

OpenAIRE

OJEH, NKEMCHO; SOBERS-GRANNUM, NATASHA; GAUR, UMA; UDUPA, ALAYA; MAJUMDER, MD.ANWARUL AZIM

2017-01-01

Introduction: Educators need to be aware of different learning styles to effectively tailor instructional strategies and methods to cater to the students’ learning needs and support a conductive learning environment. The VARK [an acronym for visual (V), aural (A), read/write (R) and kinesthetic (K)] instrument is a useful model to assess learning styles. The aim of this study was to use the VARK questionnaire to determine the learning styles of pre-clinical medical students in order to compar...

The analysis of probability task completion; Taxonomy of probabilistic thinking-based across gender in elementary school students

Science.gov (United States)

Sari, Dwi Ivayana; Budayasa, I. Ketut; Juniati, Dwi

2017-08-01

Formulation of mathematical learning goals now is not only oriented on cognitive product, but also leads to cognitive process, which is probabilistic thinking. Probabilistic thinking is needed by students to make a decision. Elementary school students are required to develop probabilistic thinking as foundation to learn probability at higher level. A framework of probabilistic thinking of students had been developed by using SOLO taxonomy, which consists of prestructural probabilistic thinking, unistructural probabilistic thinking, multistructural probabilistic thinking and relational probabilistic thinking. This study aimed to analyze of probability task completion based on taxonomy of probabilistic thinking. The subjects were two students of fifth grade; boy and girl. Subjects were selected by giving test of mathematical ability and then based on high math ability. Subjects were given probability tasks consisting of sample space, probability of an event and probability comparison. The data analysis consisted of categorization, reduction, interpretation and conclusion. Credibility of data used time triangulation. The results was level of boy's probabilistic thinking in completing probability tasks indicated multistructural probabilistic thinking, while level of girl's probabilistic thinking in completing probability tasks indicated unistructural probabilistic thinking. The results indicated that level of boy's probabilistic thinking was higher than level of girl's probabilistic thinking. The results could contribute to curriculum developer in developing probability learning goals for elementary school students. Indeed, teachers could teach probability with regarding gender difference.

Effectiveness of virtual classroom training in improving the knowledge and key maternal neonatal health skills of general nurse midwifery students in Bihar, India: A pre- and post-intervention study.

Science.gov (United States)

Agrawal, Neeraj; Kumar, Somesh; Balasubramaniam, Sudharsanam Manni; Bhargava, Saurabh; Sinha, Pallavi; Bakshi, Bhawna; Sood, Bulbul

2016-01-01

In 2008-09, the National Health Systems Resource Center of India reported overall quality of nurse-midwifery education in Bihar as grossly sub-optimal. To address this, we implemented a competency-based training using virtual classrooms in two general nurse midwives (GNM) schools of Bihar. The students from remotely located nursing institutions were now able to see live demonstrations of maternal and newborn health (MNH) practices performed by a trained faculty on simulation models at instructor location. To evaluate the effectiveness of virtual classroom training in improving the MNH-related skills of the nursing-midwifery students in Bihar, India. This study used a pre- and post-intervention design without a control group. Students from two public GNM schools of Bihar. Final-year students from both the GNM schools who have completed their coursework in MNH. A total of 83 students from selected GNM schools were assessed for their competencies in six key MNH practices using objective structured clinical examination method prior to intervention. A 72hour standardized training package was then implemented in these schools through virtual classroom approach. Post-intervention, 92 students from the next batch who attended virtual training were assessed for the same competencies. The mean student score assessed before the intervention was 21.3 (95% CI, 19.9-22.6), which increased to 62.0 (95% CI, 60.3-63.7) post-intervention. This difference was statistically significant. When adjusted for clustering using linear regression analysis, the students in post-intervention scored 52.3 (95% CI, 49.4%-55.3%) percentage points higher than pre-intervention, and this was statistically significant. Virtual classroom training was found to be effective in improving knowledge and key MNH skills of GNM students in Bihar, India. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Learning style preferences: A study of pre-clinical medical students in Barbados

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OJEH, NKEMCHO; SOBERS-GRANNUM, NATASHA; GAUR, UMA; UDUPA, ALAYA; MAJUMDER, MD.ANWARUL AZIM

2017-01-01

Introduction: Educators need to be aware of different learning styles to effectively tailor instructional strategies and methods to cater to the students’ learning needs and support a conductive learning environment. The VARK [an acronym for visual (V), aural (A), read/write (R) and kinesthetic (K)] instrument is a useful model to assess learning styles. The aim of this study was to use the VARK questionnaire to determine the learning styles of pre-clinical medical students in order to compare the perceived and assessed learning style preferences, assess gender differences in learning style preferences, and determine whether any relationships exists between awareness of learning styles and academic grades, age, gender and learning modality. Methods: The VARK questionnaire was administered to pre-clinical students taking a variety of courses in the first three years of the undergraduate MB BS degree programme at the Faculty of Medical Sciences, The University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados in 2014. Results: The majority of the students were multimodal learners with no differences observed between males (59.5%) and females (60.0%), with tetramodal being the most common. Read/write (33.8%) followed by kinesthetic (32.5%) were the most common learning style preferences. The sensory modality preference for females was read/write (34.2%) and for males it was kinesthetic (40.5%). Significant differences were observed between the perceived and assessed learning style preferences with a majority of visual and read/write learners correctly matching their perceived to their actual learning styles. Awareness of learning styles was associated with learning modality but not with academic performance, age or gender. Overall, 60.7% of high achievers used multimodal learning compared to 56.9% low achievers. Conclusion: The findings from this study indicated that the VARK tool was useful in gathering information about different learning styles, and might assist

Negative Opinion of Company Environment Mediates Career Choice of Accountancy Students

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Tong, David Yoon Kin; Tong, Xue Fa

2012-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore accountancy students' pre-employment decisions as regards pursuing a career after completing an internship. The paper aims to analyse the mediating effect of aspects of students' training experience in firms as direct/indirect factors which influence their career decisions.…

Developing pre-qualification inter-professional education for nursing and medical students: sampling student attitudes to guide development.

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Morison, Sue; Boohan, Mairead; Moutray, Marianne; Jenkins, John

2004-03-01

Teamwork and collaboration are regarded as important goals for health and social care education and inter-professional education (IPE) the vehicle to achieve this. However, there is debate concerning the best strategies for implementation, location and delivery of IPE. This exploratory study was undertaken to anticipate some of the problems of implementing a pre-qualification IPE programme for Children's Branch nursing students and medical students undertaking a Paediatrics module and to identify strategies to maximise success. A modified version of the readiness for inter-professional learning scale (RIPLS), including additional open-ended questions, was used with a convenient, purposeful sample of 20 medical and 10 nursing students. Both groups regarded learning team-working skills as important. Medical students regarded IPE as a means to learn about team-work and professional roles otherwise they indicated a preference for a discipline-based approach. Both groups were found to have acquired a strong sense of their own professional role. Both perceived IPE as disadvantageous if it impeded their own professional learning. Results also highlighted the importance of class size, stage of learning, appropriate skills and subject in IPE planning. We conclude that a small exploratory study can provide a useful guide for programme planning and additional qualitative data can enable a more comprehensive explanation of results.

Learning processes of students pre-vocational secondary education: relations between goal orientations, information processing strategies and development of conceptual knowledge

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Koopman, M.; Brok, den P.J.; Beijaard, D.; Teune, P.J.

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate relations between goal orientations, information processing strategies and development of conceptual knowledge of pre-vocational secondary education students (n = 719; 14 schools). Students' preferences for certain types of goals and information

Learning Critical Thinking in Saudi Arabia: Student Perceptions of Secondary Pre-Service Teacher Education Programs

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Allamnakhrah, Alhasan

2013-01-01

Saudi scholars have been agitating for education reforms to incorporate critical thinking in education programs. This paper is a qualitative case study undertaken at King Abdul Aziz University and Arab Open University and examines students' perception of learning critical thinking in secondary pre-service teacher education programs in Saudi…

A Pre-Engineering Program Using Robots to Attract Underrepresented High School and Community College Students

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Mosley, Pauline Helen; Liu, Yun; Hargrove, S. Keith; Doswell, Jayfus T.

2010-01-01

This paper gives an overview of a new pre-engineering program--Robotics Technician Curriculum--that uses robots to solicit underrepresented students pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The curriculum uses a project-based learning environment, which consists of part lecture and part laboratory. This program…

Longitudinal evaluation of the importance of homework assignment completion for the academic performance of middle school students with ADHD.

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Langberg, Joshua M; Dvorsky, Melissa R; Molitor, Stephen J; Bourchtein, Elizaveta; Eddy, Laura D; Smith, Zoe; Schultz, Brandon K; Evans, Steven W

2016-04-01

The primary goal of this study was to longitudinally evaluate the homework assignment completion patterns of middle school age adolescents with ADHD, their associations with academic performance, and malleable predictors of homework assignment completion. Analyses were conducted on a sample of 104 middle school students comprehensively diagnosed with ADHD and followed for 18 months. Multiple teachers for each student provided information about the percentage of homework assignments turned in at five separate time points and school grades were collected quarterly. Results showed that agreement between teachers with respect to students assignment completion was high, with an intraclass correlation of .879 at baseline. Students with ADHD were turning in an average of 12% fewer assignments each academic quarter in comparison to teacher-reported classroom averages. Regression analyses revealed a robust association between the percentage of assignments turned in at baseline and school grades 18 months later, even after controlling for baseline grades, achievement (reading and math), intelligence, family income, and race. Cross-lag analyses demonstrated that the association between assignment completion and grades was reciprocal, with assignment completion negatively impacting grades and low grades in turn being associated with decreased future homework completion. Parent ratings of homework materials management abilities at baseline significantly predicted the percentage of assignments turned in as reported by teachers 18 months later. These findings demonstrate that homework assignment completion problems are persistent across time and an important intervention target for adolescents with ADHD. Copyright © 2015 Society for the Study of School Psychology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Interactive Pre-Simulation Strategies: Engaging Students in Experiential Learning from the Start

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Beverly J. D. Bye

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Decrease in clinical nursing facilities created a need to develop supplemental real-life patient scenarios outside of the traditional nursing units. Over the past five years, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of simulation exercises integrated into the clinical and classroom aspect of nursing education. However, many students are not engaged and are not effectively participating in the simulation. Many students state they are perplexed and do not understand the purpose and roles of simulation, and often do not take it seriously. The challenge to nurse educators is to develop realistic goals and objectives with a variety of activities that occur prior to the actual simulation experience Debriefing is one of the most important aspects of the simulation activity, but if students are not participating, then the learning is not occurring. The key with simulation is to engage students through the use of various strategies that incorporate visual, auditory, tactile, and cognitive learning prior to the simulation experience. This study investigated the use of interactive pre-simulation strategies such as concept mapping, group discussion, teaching, and body mapping prior to the simulation experience. The focus of this research was on student success and knowledge acquisition. The most important overall goal is to engage students prior to the simulation experience in a safe, nonthreatening learning environment in order to allay students' fear of failure and ultimately increase knowledge, retention, and critical thinking. Results of the study have implications on the development and integration of innovative teaching pedagogies.

The Development of Inquiry Learning Materials to Complete Content Life System Organization in Junior High School Students

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Mayasari, F.; Raharjo; Supardi, Z. A. I.

2018-01-01

This research aims to develop the material eligibility to complete the inquiry learning of student in the material organization system of junior high school students. Learning materials developed include syllabi, lesson plans, students’ textbook, worksheets, and learning achievement test. This research is the developmental research which employ Dick and Carey model to develop learning material. The experiment was done in Junior High School 4 Lamongan regency using One Group Pretest-Posttest Design. The data collection used validation, observation, achievement test, questionnaire administration, and documentation. Data analysis techniques used quantitative and qualitative descriptive.The results showed that the developed learning material was valid and can be used. Learning activity accomplished with good category, where student activities were observed. The aspects of attitudes were observed during the learning process are honest, responsible, and confident. Student learning achievement gained an average of 81, 85 in complete category, with N-Gain 0, 75 for a high category. The activities and student response to learning was very well categorized. Based on the results, this researcher concluded that the device classified as feasible of inquiry-based learning (valid, practical, and effective) system used on the material organization of junior high school students.

Improving completion rates of students in biomedical PhD programs: an interventional study.

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Viđak, Marin; Tokalić, Ružica; Marušić, Matko; Puljak, Livia; Sapunar, Damir

2017-08-25

Analysis of graduation success at the University of Split School of Medicine PhD programs conducted in 2011 revealed that only 11% of students who enrolled and completed their graduate coursework between 1999 and 2011 earned a doctoral degree. In this prospective cohort study we evaluated and compared three PhD programs within the same medical school, where the newest program, called Translational Research in Biomedicine (TRIBE), established in the academic year 2010/11, aimed to increase the graduation rate through an innovative approach. The intervention in the new program was related to three domains: redefined recruitment strategy, strict study regulations, and changes to the curriculum. We compared performance of PhD students between the new and existing programs and analyzed their current status, time to obtain a degree (from enrolment to doctorate), age at doctorate, number of publications on which the thesis was based and the impact factor of journals in which these were published. These improvement strategies were associated with higher thesis completion rate and reduced time to degree for students enrolled in the TRIBE program. There was no change in the impact factor or number of publications that were the basis for the doctoral theses. Our study describes good practices which proved useful in the design or reform of the PhD training program.

Determinants of timely completion : the impact of Bachelor's degree programme characteristics and student motivation on study progress

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Suhre, Cor J. M.; Jansen, Ellen P. W. A.; Torenbeek, M.

2013-01-01

Timely completion of university degree programmes is a topic of growing concern to higher education institutions and their students. This paper reports on a study about the impact of degree programme characteristics and student motivation on study progress. The setting for the study is a Dutch law

Complexities and Challenges of Researching Student Completion and Non-Completion of HE Programmes in Europe: A Comparative Analysis between England and Norway

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Thomas, Liz; Hovdhaugen, Elisabeth

2014-01-01

There is a growing interest in policy research on student completion and non-continuation and bodies such as the European Commission and OECD are focusing on the subject. There is also increasing national interest in the issue in many countries and they are looking to each other for input on effective policies. However, there are significant…

Student-centered and teacher-centered learning environment in pre-vocational secondary education: Needs and motivation

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Smit, Karin; De Brabander, Cornelis; Martens, Rob

2017-01-01

In this study the perception of psychological needs and motivation in a student-centred and a teacher-centred learning environment are compared, using Self Determination Theory as a framework. The self-report Intrinsic Motivation Inventory was completed by 230 students (mean age 16.1 years) in

Improving professional IT doctorate completion rates

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Oliver Kisalay Burmeister

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Professional doctorates in Information Technology (IT have been a relatively recent phenomenon, giving IT professionals career management choices not previously available to them. However, successful completion rates are the lowest of all disciplines. Completed doctorates rate in quality equivalent to PhDs, and retention has been identified as a major obstacle to completion. This qualitative study, involving 44 semi-structured interviews with students, supervisors and institutional support personnel, investigated the obstacles. Amongst the strategies discovered to improve completion rates were retention, student engagement with supervisors, feedback on progress, student engagement in the course, and student involvement in institutional communities of practice.

"I know exactly what I'm going into": recommendations for pre-nursing experience from an evaluation of a pre-nursing scholarship in rural Scotland.

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Smith, Annetta; Beattie, Michelle; Kyle, Richard G

2015-11-01

To develop a model of pre-nursing experience from evaluation of a pre-nursing scholarship for school pupils in Scotland. Action research study. School pupils ( n  = 42) completed questionnaire surveys and participated in anecdote circles. Student nurses acting as pupil 'buddies' ( n  = 33) participated in focus groups. Descriptive quantitative data and thematic analyses of qualitative data were integrated across cohorts and campuses. Ten recommended components of a model of pre-nursing experience were identified: educational experience of: (1) face-to-face on-campus teaching; (2) hands-on clinical skills sessions; and (3) andragogy, practice exposure to (4) nursing language; (5) nurses' emotional labour; (6) patients' stories; (7) pupils socializing with buddies; (8) buddies planning placement activities; and (9) supporting pupils during placements. Academic attainment was not a central component of the model due to pupils' need to (10) prioritize examined work for further/higher education entry.

Development of a fresh cadaver model for instruction of ultrasound-guided breast biopsy during the surgery clerkship: pre-test and post-test results among third-year medical students.

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McCrary, Hilary C; Krate, Jonida; Savilo, Christine E; Tran, Melissa H; Ho, Hang T; Adamas-Rappaport, William J; Viscusi, Rebecca K

2016-11-01

The aim of our study was to determine if a fresh cadaver model is a viable method for teaching ultrasound (US)-guided breast biopsy of palpable breast lesions. Third-year medical students were assessed both preinstruction and postinstruction on their ability to perform US-guided needle aspiration or biopsy of artificially created masses using a 10-item checklist. Forty-one third-year medical students completed the cadaver laboratory as part of the surgery clerkship. Eight items on the checklist were found to be significantly different between pre-testing and post-testing. The mean preinstruction score was 2.4, whereas the mean postinstruction score was 7.10 (P cadaver models have been widely used in medical education. However, there are few fresh cadaver models that provide instruction on procedures done in the outpatient setting. Our model was found to be an effective method for the instruction of US-guided breast biopsy among medical students. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Promoting Inclusivity in STEM through Active Recruiting and Mentoring: The Pre-Major in Astronomy Program (Pre-MAP) at the University of Washington

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Schwieterman, Edward; Binder, Breanna A.; Pre-Major in Astronomy Program

2016-01-01

The Pre-Major in Astronomy Program (Pre-MAP) is a research and mentoring program for entering undergraduate students offered by the University of Washington Astronomy Department since 2005. The primary goal of Pre-MAP is to recruit and retain students from groups traditionally underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) through early exposure to guided research projects. The Pre-MAP seminar is the core component of the program and offers instruction in computing skills, data manipulation, science writing, statistical analysis, and scientific speaking and presentation skills. Students choose research projects proposed by faculty, post-docs and graduate students in areas related to astrophysics, planetary science, and astrobiology. Pre-MAP has been successful in retaining underrepresented students in STEM fields relative to the broader UW population, and we've found these students are more likely to graduate and excel academically than their peers. As of fall 2015, more than one hundred students have taken the Pre-MAP seminar, and both internal and external evaluations have shown that all groups of participating students report an increased interest in astronomy and science careers at the end of the seminar. This talk will provide an overview of the program and the structure of the core seminar. In particular, the talk will focus on additions and revisions to the seminar course over the last few years, such as the introduction of a public speaking coach, career and internship modules, and the formalization of external lab tours.

Impact of Student vs Faculty Facilitators on Motivational Interviewing Student Outcomes.

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Widder-Prewett, Rebecca; Draime, Juanita A; Cameron, Ginger; Anderson, Douglas; Pinkerton, Mark; Chen, Aleda M H

2017-08-01

Objective. To determine the impact of student or faculty facilitation on student self-assessed attitudes, confidence, and competence in motivational interviewing (MI) skills; actual competence; and evaluation of facilitator performance. Methods. Second-year pharmacy (P2) students were randomly assigned to a student or faculty facilitator for a four-hour, small-group practice of MI skills. MI skills were assessed in a simulated patient encounter with the mMITI (modified Motivational Interviewing Treatment Integrity) tool. Students completed a pre-post, 6-point, Likert-type assessment addressing the research objectives. Differences were assessed using a Mann-Whitney U test. Results. Student (N=44) post-test attitudes, confidence, perceived or actual competence, and evaluations of facilitator performance were not different for faculty- and student-facilitated groups. Conclusion. Using pharmacy students as small-group facilitators did not affect student performance and were viewed as equally favorable. Using pharmacy students as facilitators can lessen faculty workload and provide an outlet for students to develop communication and facilitation skills that will be needed in future practice.

Isoniazid completion rates for latent tuberculosis infection among college students managed by a community pharmacist.

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Hess, Karl; Goad, Jeffery; Wu, Joanne; Johnson, Kathleen

2009-01-01

The authors' objective was to document 9-month and previously recommended 6-month treatment completion rates for latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) in a pharmacist-managed LTBI clinic in a community pharmacy on a college campus, and to describe patient characteristics. Participants were university students diagnosed with LTBI. The authors conducted a retrospective review of pharmacy records from 2000 to 2006. Main outcome measures included 6-month and 9-month LTBI treatment completion rates, total isoniazid (INH) tablets taken, characteristics of completers versus noncompleters, average time to treatment completion, and reported adverse drug events. The 9-month completion rate was 59%, and the 6-month completion rate was 67%. Among those not completing treatment, 15.2% experienced fatigue and 2.2% experienced a rash (p=.04 and p=.03, respectively). LTBI clinics are a unique niche for community pharmacies and can provide individualized patient care to ensure LTBI treatment adherence, monitoring for disease progression, and safety of INH.

Impact of Delivery Modality, Student GPA, and Time-Lapse since High School on Successful Completion of College-Level Math after Taking Developmental Math

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Acosta, Diane; North, Teresa Lynn; Avella, John

2016-01-01

This study considered whether delivery modality, student GPA, or time since high school affected whether 290 students who had completed a developmental math series as a community college were able to successfully complete college-level math. The data used in the study was comprised of a 4-year period historical student data from Odessa College…

Medical students' perceptions of racial diversity and gender equality.

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Lee, May; Coulehan, John L

2006-07-01

To assess attitudes of medical students toward issues of racial diversity and gender equality and to ascertain changes in these attitudes during the pre-clinical curriculum. Attitudes toward multiculturalism and gender equality were assessed using a 43-item questionnaire. The survey was completed by incoming Year 1 students in 2000 and 2001, and was completed again in 2002 by the students who had entered in 2000. Mean scores were analysed at baseline by gender, ethnic group and political affiliation using analysis of variance. The paired scores of the first and follow-up surveys of the 2000 entering class were compared using paired t-tests. Upon entry into medical school, women, minority group students and Democrats scored significantly higher on the cultural sensitivity scale than their comparison groups. No significant changes were seen overall in the matched data. However, minority groups showed a significant increase in scores, while Republicans and white men experienced a non-significant decline. In addition, incoming students judged cultural competency education to be important. The perceived need to increase the numbers of minority group doctors varied by gender, ethnic group and political affiliation. Among incoming medical students, perceptions of racial diversity and gender equality vary along ethnic, gender and political lines. Additionally, pre-clinical education was associated with increased cultural sensitivity by minority group students, but not by others. These findings demonstrate the continuing need for diversity in medical school and for medical students to recognise and address their personal and group biases.

Pre-Service and In-Service Secondary School Teachers' Knowledge about Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Attitudes toward Students with ADHD

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Liang, Limeng; Gao, Xuesong

2016-01-01

This article reports on a mixed-method inquiry into pre-service and in-service secondary school teachers' knowledge about Attention-deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and attitudes toward students with this disorder in Hong Kong. The inquiry revealed no differences between pre-service and in-service secondary school teachers concerning their…

A feasibility study of dementia communication training based on the VERA framework for pre-registration nurses: Part II impact on student experience.

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Naughton, Corina; Beard, Chloe; Tzouvara, Vasiliki; Pegram, Anne; Verity, Rebecca; Eley, Rhiannon; Hingley, David

2018-04-01

People living with dementia have complex communication needs, especially during acute hospital admissions. The VERA framework (validation, emotion, reassurance, activity) was designed to promote person centred communication between student nurses and people living with dementia, but there is limited evaluation of its impact. To measure the impact of dementia communication training (based on VERA) plus older adult unit (OAU) placement on students' ability to recognise opportunities for person centred (PC) communication compared to OAU placement alone. A control pre-post-study design was used. Dementia communication training plus follow-up during OAU placement was delivered to 51 students (5 OAU, two hospitals) while 66 students (7 OAUs, five hospitals) acted as controls. The primary outcome was students' ability to recognise PC communication assessed using case vignettes. Data were collected using electronic survey and focus group interviews. Data analysis used independent non-parametric Mann-Whitney U test and thematic analysis. In total 52 students (response rate 40%) completed surveys at the end of placements (38 intervention, 14 control group students). In the intervention group, participants were significantly more likely to identify PC responses with a mean score of 10.5 (SD 3.0) compared with 7.5 (SD 3.0) in the control group (p = 0.006). In focus group interviews (n = 19 students), the main themes were connecting with patients, VERA in practice, communication challenges, and learning environment. VERA was described as a flexible approach that added to participants' communication toolkit. The learning environment, complexity of patients and organisational resources were important contextual factors. The VERA framework has potential as a foundation level dementia communication training intervention, but it requires more rigorous testing. Nursing can lead the way in developing and embedding evidence-based, interdisciplinary dementia communication

Implementing Reflective Portfolios for Promoting Autonomous Learning among EFL College Students in Taiwan

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Lo, Ya-Fen

2010-01-01

This article depicts challenges for students and teachers involved in developing a reflective portfolio to promote autonomous learning in Taiwan. One hundred and one students in a Taiwan university completed their individual portfolio projects. A pre-course questionnaire, post-course self-evaluation, and the instructor's field notes were the data…

Combining program visualization with programming workspace to assist students for completing programming laboratory task

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Elvina Elvina

2018-06-01

Full Text Available Numerous Program Visualization tools (PVs have been developed for assisting novice students to understand their source code further. However, none of them are practical to be used in the context of completing programming laboratory task; students are required to keep switching between PV and programming workspace when they need to know how their code works. This paper combines PV with programming workspace to handle such issue. Resulted tool (which is named PITON has 13 features extracted from PythonTutor, PyCharm, and student’s feedbacks about PythonTutor. According to think-aloud and user study, PITON is more practical to be used than a combination of PythonTutor and PyCharm. Further, its features are considerably helpful; students rated these features as useful and frequently used.

Houston Pre-Freshman Enrichment Program (Houston PREP). Final report, June 9, 1997--July 25, 1997

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NONE

1997-10-01

The 1997 Houston Pre-Freshman Enrichment Program (PREP) was conducted at the campus of the University of Houston-Downtown from June 9 to July 25, 1997. Program participants were recruited from the Greater Houston Area. All participants were identified as high-achieving students with an interest in learning about the engineering and science professions. The goal of the program was to better prepare our pre-college youth prior to entering college as mathematics, science and engineering majors. The program participants were middle school and high school students from the Aldine, Alief, Channel View, Clear Creek, Cypress-Fairbanks, Fort Bend, Galena Park, Houston, Humble, Katy, Klein, North Forest, Pasadena, Private, and Spring Branch Independent School Districts. Of the 194 students starting the program, 165 students were from economically and socially disadvantage groups under-represented in the engineering and science professions, and 118 of the 194 were women. Our First Year group for 1997 composed of 96% minority and women students. Second and Third Year students combined were 96% minority or women. With financial support from the Center for Computational Sciences and Advanced Distributed Simulation, the Fourth Year Program was added to PREP this year. Twelve students completed the program (83% minority or women).

Moving college students to a better understanding of substrate specificity of enzymes through utilizing multimedia pre-training and an interactive enzyme model

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Saleh, Mounir R.

Scientists' progress in understanding enzyme specificity uncovered a complex natural phenomenon. However, not all of the currently available biology textbooks seem to be up to date on this progress. Students' understanding of how enzymes work is a core requirement in biochemistry and biology tertiary education. Nevertheless, current pre-college science education does not provide students with enough biochemical background to enable them to understand complex material such as this. To bridge this gap, a multimedia pre-training presentation was prepared to fuel the learner's prior knowledge with discrete facts necessary to understand the presented concept. This treatment is also known to manage intrinsic cognitive load during the learning process. An interactive instructional enzyme model was also built to motivate students to learn about substrate specificity of enzymes. Upon testing the effect of this combined treatment on 111 college students, desirable learning outcomes were found in terms of cognitive load, motivation, and achievement. The multimedia pre-training group reported significantly less intrinsic cognitive load, higher motivation, and demonstrated higher transfer performance than the control and post-training groups. In this study, a statistical mediation model is also proposed to explain how cognitive load and motivation work in concert to foster learning from multimedia pre-training. This type of research goes beyond simple forms of "what works" to a deeper understanding of "how it works", thus enabling informed decisions for multimedia instructional design. Multimedia learning plays multiple roles in science education. Therefore, science learners would be some of the first to benefit from improving multimedia instructional design. Accordingly, complex scientific phenomena can be introduced to college students in a motivating, informative, and cognitively efficient learning environment.

The Quantitative Effect of Students Using Podcasts in a First Year Undergraduate Exercise Physiology Module

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Abt, Grant; Barry, Tim

2007-01-01

This study reports the quantitative effect of students using podcasts in a 1st year undergraduate exercise physiology module. From a cohort of 70 students, 50 volunteered and completed the study. Using a pre-post random allocation research design, students were allocated to either a podcast group (PG) or control group (CG) based on a 32-question…

Learning Processes of Students in Pre-Vocational Secondary Education: Relations between Goal Orientations, Information Processing Strategies and Development of Conceptual Knowledge

Science.gov (United States)

Koopman, Maaike; Den Brok, Perry; Beijaard, Douwe; Teune, Peter

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate relations between goal orientations, information processing strategies and development of conceptual knowledge of pre-vocational secondary education students (n = 719; 14 schools). Students' preferences for certain types of goals and information processing strategies were examined using questionnaires.…

Student perceptions of the care of children: impacts of pre-clerkship pediatric and primary care clinical teaching

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Beverley Karras

2014-12-01

Conclusions: Students had already formed positive attitudes toward the medical care of children and intended to care for children in their future practice. Further research is needed into the effects of pre-clerkship experiences in the care of children on choice of medical specialty.

Student Mastery of the Sun-Earth-Moon System in a Flipped Classroom of Pre-service Elementary Education Students

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Larsen, Kristine

2014-01-01

One of the current trends in pedagogy at all levels(K-college) is the so-called ‘flipped classroom’, in which students prepare for a class meeting through self-study of the material. It is based on a rejection of the classic model of the faculty member as the ‘sage on the stage’ instead, responsibility for learning shifts to the individual student. The faculty member takes on the role of learning facilitator or mentor, and focuses the students’ learning by crafting and administering timely formative assessments (in multiple formats and applied multiple times) that aid both students and the faculty member in tracking the students’ mastery of the learning outcomes. In a flipped, freshman-only, section of SCI 111 Elementary Earth-Physical Sciences (a required introductory science course for pre-service elementary school teachers) the students learned through a combination of individual and group hands-on in-class activities, technology (including PowerPoint presentations and short videos viewed prior to attending class), in-class worksheets, and in-class discussions. Students self-differentiated in how they interacted with the available teaching materials, deciding which activities to spend the most time on based on their individual needs (based on an online quiz taken the night before the class period, and their personal self-confidence with the material). Available in-class activities and worksheets were developed by the faculty member based on student scores on the online quiz as well as personal messages submitted through the course management system the night before the class meeting. While this placed a significant burden on the faculty member in terms of course preparation, it allowed for just-in-time teaching to take place. This poster describes the results of student mastery of content centered on the sun-earth-moon system (specifically seasons, moon phases, and eclipses) as compared to traditional classroom sections.

Predictive factors of premedical student retention and degree completion within a private undergraduate university

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Carter, Frances E.

Undergraduate retention and eventual graduation is of paramount importance to universities globally. Approximately 58% of students who began their college career at a four-year institution with the intention of receiving a bachelor's degree actually received that degree in a 6-year timeframe, according to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) annual report The Condition of Education 2009 (Planty, 2009). In certain subgroups of the undergraduate population, this graduation rate is even lower. This dissertation presents research into the academic integration of students in premedical programs subgroup based on Vincent Tinto's Integrationist Model of Student Departure. Pre-entry factors of interest for this study included incoming high school grade point average (GPA), incoming SAT total test scores, while post-matriculation factors included grade in organic chemistry, and the initial calculus course taken. A sample of 519 students from a private coeducational institution in the southeastern United States was examined. A logistic regression was performed to determine the effect of high school GPA, SAT total scores, organic chemistry grades, and calculus-readiness on graduation. A significant regression equation was found. The findings suggest that of the four predictor variables, high school GPA and organic chemistry grade were the only variables that showed significant predictive ability based on a significance level of p < .05. Further research should involve the examination of additional indicators of academic integration as well as information on the social integration of the student. Additionally, institutional leaders should continue to evaluate the premedical curriculum based on potential changes in medical school requirements.

FIRST Robotics as a model for experiential problem-based learning: A comparison of student attitudes and interests in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology

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Griffith, Donald Sanford, Jr.

2005-07-01

This research study was undertaken to examine potential relationships between high school students' attitudes and interests in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology, and their participation in the FIRST Robotics Competition six-week challenge to design, and build a robot. High school students' gender and race, in relationship to students' interest in the aforementioned topics was also examined in this study. A convenience sample of 727 South Carolina public high school students agreed to participate in the study. Data were collected using pre-and post-survey questionnaires. Student participants completed pre-survey questionnaires at the onset of the 2005 FIRST Robotics Competition Kick-off, concurrent with the beginning of the second semester of the 2004--2005 school year. Participants completed post-survey questionnaires after six-weeks, the period of time allocated for teams to design, build, and ship their 2005 FIRST Robotics Competition robot. Data analyzed was collected from the group of students participating in FIRST Robotics (treatment), the experimental group, and the group of students who are not participating in FIRST Robotics (control). Findings reported that the pre- and post-survey questionnaire responses regarding attitudinal change were not significantly different in either the experimental or control group. High pre-survey dependent variable scores provided by students in the FIRST group did not allow for significant gain in each of the seven-attitudinal categories. Findings also indicated that there were significant attitudinal differences between students in the experimental group (FIRST), and students the control group (SMET) pre- and post-survey responses. Students in the FIRST group had statistically significant higher attitude means than students in the SMET group on both pre- and post-surveys in the seven-attitudinal categories. The frequency for responses to each question in the three interest categories on the pre- and post

Use of Simulation to Integrate Cultural Humility Into Advanced Health Assessment for Nurse Practitioner Students.

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Ndiwane, Abraham N; Baker, Nancy C; Makosky, Antonia; Reidy, Patricia; Guarino, Anthony J

2017-09-01

Increasing cultural humility among nursing students requires the application of knowledge and skills. The integration of an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) offered nurse practitioner students practice in simulation. This learning activity included pre- and postassessments of knowledge regarding cultural issues and level of student satisfaction. Course content included an exemplar video and a simulation interview with an African American standardized patient. Of the 65 students enrolled, 97% completed OSCE interviews and 81% completed pre- and postsurveys. A 2-domain 3 × 2-time within-subjects ANOVA indicated a statistically significant interaction effect, reinforced by descriptive statistics. Follow-up paired t tests detected a significantly large knowledge increase. Standardized patient scenarios scored highest for satisfaction, followed by critical thinking, and with self-confidence scoring lowest. The favorable knowledge outcomes from this teaching intervention support future applications of OSCE methodology for teaching sensitive cross-cultural content. [J Nurs Educ. 2017;56(9):567-571.]. Copyright 2017, SLACK Incorporated.

Interns reflect: the effect of formative assessment with feedback during pre-internship

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McKenzie S

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Susan McKenzie,1 Annette Burgess,2 Craig Mellis1 1Central Clinical School, 2Education Office, Sydney Medical School, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia Background: It is widely known that the opportunity for medical students to be observed and to receive feedback on their procedural skills performance is variable in the senior years. To address this problem, we provided our Pre-Intern (PrInt students with “one-to-one” formative feedback on their ability to perform urethral catheterization (U/C and hypothesized that their future practice of U/C as interns would benefit. This study sought to evaluate the performance and practice of interns in U/C 4–5 months after having received feedback on their performance of U/C as PrInt students.Methods: Between 2013 and 2014, two cohorts of interns, (total n=66 who had received recent formative feedback on their U/C performance as PrInt students at Central Clinical School, were invited to complete an anonymous survey. The survey contained nine closed unvalidated questions and one open-ended question, designed to allow interns to report on their current practice of U/C.Results: Forty-one out of 66 interns (62% completed the survey. Thirty-five out of 41 respondents (85% reported that the assessment with feedback during their PrInt term was beneficial to their practice. Thirty of 41 (73% reported being confident to perform U/C independently. Eleven out of 41 respondents (27% reported that they had received additional training at intern orientation. Nine of the 11 interns (82% reported that they had a small, but a significant, increase in confidence to perform U/C when compared with the 30 of the 41 respondents (73% who had not (p=0.03.Conclusion: Our results substantiate our hypothesis that further education by assessment with feedback in U/C during PrInt was of benefit to interns’ performance. Additional educational reinforcement in U/C during intern orientation further improved intern

Assessing students' knowledge regarding the roles and responsibilities of a pharmacist with focus on care transitions through simulation.

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Serag-Bolos, Erini S; Miranda, Aimon C; Gelot, Shyam R; Dharia, Sheetal P; Shaeer, Kristy M

2017-07-01

To evaluate the impact of a pharmacist-focused transitions of care (TOC) simulation on students' perceptions and knowledge of pharmacist roles in the healthcare continuum. Educational Activity and Setting: Two simulations, highlighting pharmacist roles in various practice settings, were conducted within the Pharmaceutical Skills courses in the third-year doctor of pharmacy curriculum. Patient cases were built utilizing electronic medical records (EMR). Students' knowledge was assessed before and after the simulations regarding pharmacist involvement in medication reconciliation, reduction in patient readmissions, reduction of inappropriate medication use, roles and communication on an interprofessional team, and involvement with health information technology (HIT) during care transitions. Fifty-one third-year pharmacy students were anonymously evaluated prior to and following the simulation to assess changes in knowledge and perceptions during the fall semester. Thirty-two (62.7%) students completed the pre-simulation and 21 (41.2%) students completed the post-simulation assessments, respectively. In the spring semester, 40 (80%) students completed the pre-simulation and 23 (46%) students finished the post-simulation assessments. Students predominately had community pharmacy work experience (n=28, 55%). Overall, students enjoyed the variety of pharmacist-led encounters throughout the simulation and assessments demonstrated an increase in knowledge after the simulations. TOC simulations enhance students' understanding of the significant impact that pharmacists have in ensuring continuity of care as members of an interdisciplinary team. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Pre-Service Teachers' Conceptions of Effective Teacher Talk: Their Critical Reflections on a Sample Teacher-Student Dialogue

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Lee, Ji-Eun; Kim, Kyoung-Tae

2016-01-01

This study aimed to explore pre-service elementary teachers' (PSTs') conceptions of effective teacher talk in mathematics instruction, which were interpreted primarily based on the concept of communicative approach. This was accomplished through a task that involves analyzing and evaluating a sample teacher-student dialogue. This study…

Comparing the Factors That Predict Completion and Grades among For-Credit and Open/MOOC Students in Online Learning

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Almeda, Ma. Victoria; Zuech, Joshua; Utz, Chris; Higgins, Greg; Reynolds, Rob; Baker, Ryan S.

2018-01-01

Online education continues to become an increasingly prominent part of higher education, but many students struggle in distance courses. For this reason, there has been considerable interest in predicting which students will succeed in online courses and which will receive poor grades or drop out prior to completion. Effective intervention depends…

Academic Performance, Course Completion Rates, and Student Perception of the Quality and Frequency of Interaction in a Virtual High School

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Hawkins, Abigail; Graham, Charles R.; Sudweeks, Richard R.; Barbour, Michael K.

2013-01-01

This study examined the relationship between students' perceptions of teacher-student interaction and academic performance at an asynchronous, self-paced, statewide virtual high school. Academic performance was measured by grade awarded and course completion. There were 2269 students who responded to an 18-item survey designed to measure student…

The use of well completion efficiency in the assessment of formation damage in initial well completion and workover operations

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Amieibibama JOSEPH

2016-07-01

Full Text Available The calculation of well completion efficiency is very important in comparing pre/post workover or re-entry completion efficiencies of wells to enable the quantification and ranking of the success of workover operations. However, the quantification of the success of an operation could be misleading if comparisons are wrongly placed on wells or fields basis by different operators. In this work, comparative analysis of pre and post well completion efficiencies for different completions types are evaluated for wells in different fields using averaging techniques. According with this, the aim is to quantify the success rate of workover operations. The average completion efficiencies were calculated using the arithmetic mean for wells in different reservoirs and fields having the same completion type. The analysis of the results from the workover operation showed that some operations were successful while others are not and no field had all operations completely successful. Those that were adjudged successful are fields were enhanced production due to the operations was able to offset low productions from failed operations. However, it was observed in some fields that there was complete failure in the operations as all post-operation productions are lower than the pre-operation productions. The operations where failure occurred are due to loss of completion fluids into the formations, resulting to formation damage. Hence, chemical consolidation treatments must be handled with caution as they seem to be more susceptible to damage than other completion types.

Evaluation of timing and dosage of a parent-based intervention to minimize college students' alcohol consumption.

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Turrisi, Rob; Mallett, Kimberly A; Cleveland, Michael J; Varvil-Weld, Lindsey; Abar, Caitlin; Scaglione, Nichole; Hultgren, Brittney

2013-01-01

The study evaluated the timing and dosage of a parent-based intervention to minimize alcohol consumption for students with varying drinking histories. First-year students (N = 1,900) completed Web assessments during the summer before college (baseline) and two follow-ups (fall of first and second years). Students were randomized to one of four conditions (pre-college matriculation [PCM], pre-college matriculation plus boosters [PCM+B], after college matriculation [ACM], and control conditions). Seven indicators of drinking (drink in past month, been drunk in past month, weekday [Sunday to Wednesday] drinking, Thursday drinking, weekend [Friday, Saturday] drinking, heavy episodic drinking in past 2 weeks, and peak blood alcohol concentration students.

[Application of role-play simulation in pre-clinical practice of the fourth grade students in department of endodontics].

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Zhu, Lin-lin; Qiu, Li-hong; Qu, Liu; Xue, Ming; Yan, Lu

2014-10-01

To apply role- play simulation in pre-clinical practice of the fourth grade students in department of endodontics. Thirty-two students were randomly divided into 2 groups, there were 16 students in each group. Students in one group were taught with role-play simulation while the other group with lecture-based learning method. The teaching effect was measured with examination and questionnaire survey. The data was analyzed by using SPSS 17.0 software package. There were no significant differences in basic knowledge, case analysis and oral examination between 2 groups (P>0.05), but there was significant difference in history taking and medical records writing, practical examination and total scores between 2 groups (Pendodontics.

Grouped to Achieve: Are There Benefits to Assigning Students to Heterogeneous Cooperative Learning Groups Based on Pre-Test Scores?

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Werth, Arman Karl

Cooperative learning has been one of the most widely used instructional practices around the world since the early 1980's. Small learning groups have been in existence since the beginning of the human race. These groups have grown in their variance and complexity overtime. Classrooms are getting more diverse every year and instructors need a way to take advantage of this diversity to improve learning. The purpose of this study was to see if heterogeneous cooperative learning groups based on student achievement can be used as a differentiated instructional strategy to increase students' ability to demonstrate knowledge of science concepts and ability to do engineering design. This study includes two different groups made up of two different middle school science classrooms of 25-30 students. These students were given an engineering design problem to solve within cooperative learning groups. One class was put into heterogeneous cooperative learning groups based on student's pre-test scores. The other class was grouped based on random assignment. The study measured the difference between each class's pre-post gains, student's responses to a group interaction form and interview questions addressing their perceptions of the makeup of their groups. The findings of the study were that there was no significant difference between learning gains for the treatment and comparison groups. There was a significant difference between the treatment and comparison groups in student perceptions of their group's ability to stay on task and manage their time efficiently. Both the comparison and treatment groups had a positive perception of the composition of their cooperative learning groups.

Motivation and academic achievement in medical students.

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Yousefy, Alireza; Ghassemi, Gholamreza; Firouznia, Samaneh

2012-01-01

Despite their ascribed intellectual ability and achieved academic pursuits, medical students' academic achievement is influenced by motivation. This study is an endeavor to examine the role of motivation in the academic achievement of medical students. In this cross-sectional correlational study, out of the total 422 medical students, from 4th to final year during the academic year 2007-2008, at School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, 344 participated in completion of the Inventory of School Motivation (ISM), comprising 43 items and measuring eight aspects of motivation. The gold standard for academic achievement was their average academic marks at pre-clinical and clinical levels. Data were computer analyzed by running a couple of descriptive and analytical tests including Pearson Correlation and Student's t-student. Higher motivation scores in areas of competition, effort, social concern, and task were accompanied by higher average marks at pre-clinical as well as clinical levels. However, the latter ones showed greater motivation for social power as compared to the former group. Task and competition motivation for boys was higher than for girls. In view of our observations, students' academic achievement requires coordination and interaction between different aspects of motivation.

Using the Lunar Phases Concept Inventory to Investigate College Students' Pre-instructional Mental Models of Lunar Phases

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Lindell, Rebecca S.; Sommer, Steven R.

2004-09-01

The Lunar Phases Concept Inventory (LPCI) is a twenty-item multiple-choice inventory developed to aid instructors in assessing the mental models their students utilize when answering questions concerning phases of the moon. Based upon an in-depth qualitative investigation of students' understanding of lunar phases, the LPCI was designed to take advantage of the innovative model analysis theory to probe the different dimensions of students' mental models of lunar phases. As part of a national field test, pre-instructional LPCI data was collected for over 750 students from multiple post-secondary institutions across the United States and Canada. Application of model analysis theory to this data set allowed researchers to probe the different mental models of lunar phases students across the country utilize prior to instruction. Results of this analysis display strikingly similar results for the different institutions, suggesting a potential underlying cognitive framework.

Character education in perspective of chemistry pre-service teacher

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Merdekawati, Krisna

2017-12-01

As one of the pre-service teacher education programs, Chemistry Education Department Islamic University of Indonesia (UII) is committed to providing quality education. It is an education that can produce competent and characteristic chemistry pre-service teacher. The focus of research is to describe the perception of students as a potential teacher of chemistry on character education and achievement of character education. The research instruments include questionnaires and observation sheets. Research data show that students have understood the importance of character education and committed to organizing character education later in schools. Students have understood the ways in which character education can be used. The students stated that Chemistry Education Department has tried to equip students with character education. The observation result shows that students generally have character as a pre-service teacher.

Isoniazid Completion Rates for Latent Tuberculosis Infection among College Students Managed by a Community Pharmacist

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Hess, Karl; Goad, Jeffery; Wu, Joanne; Johnson, Kathleen

2009-01-01

Objective: The authors' objective was to document 9-month and previously recommended 6-month treatment completion rates for latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) in a pharmacist-managed LTBI clinic in a community pharmacy on a college campus, and to describe patient characteristics. Participants: Participants were university students diagnosed with…

The value of a core clinical rotation in urology for medical students.

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Patel, Premal; Nayak, Jasmir G; McGregor, Thomas B

2015-01-01

In 2013, our institution underwent a change to the undergraduate medical curriculum whereby a clinical urology rotation became mandatory. In this paper, we evaluated the perceived utility and value of this change in the core curriculum. Third year medical students, required to complete a mandatory 1-week clinical urology rotation, were asked to complete a survey before and after their rotation. Fourth year medical students, not required to complete this rotation, were also asked to complete a questionnaire. Chi-squared and Fisher's exact test were used for data analysis. In total, 108 third year students rotated through urology during the study period. Of these, 66 (61%) completed the pre-rotation survey and 54 (50%) completed the post-rotation survey. In total, there were 110 fourth year students. Of these, 44 (40%) completed the questionnaire. After completing their mandatory rotations, students felt more comfortable managing and investigating common urological problems, such as hematuria and renal colic. Students felt they had a better understanding of how to insert a Foley catheter and felt comfortable independently inserting a Foley catheter. Importantly, students felt they knew when to consult urology and were also more likely to consider a career in urology. Compared to fourth year students, third year students felt urology was an important component to a family medicine practice and felt they had a better understanding of when to consult urology. The introduction of a mandatory urology rotation for undergraduate medical students leads to a perceived improvement in fundamental urological knowledge and skill set of rotating students. This mandatory rotation provides a valuable experience that validates its inclusion.

Experiential Education Builds Student Self-Confidence in Delivering Medication Therapy Management

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Wendy M. Parker

2017-07-01

Full Text Available To determine the impact of advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPE on student self-confidence related to medication therapy management (MTM, fourth-year pharmacy students were surveyed pre/post APPE to: identify exposure to MTM learning opportunities, assess knowledge of the MTM core components, and assess self-confidence performing MTM services. An anonymous electronic questionnaire administered pre/post APPE captured demographics, factors predicted to impact student self-confidence (Grade point average (GPA, work experience, exposure to MTM learning opportunities, MTM knowledge and self-confidence conducting MTM using a 5-point Likert scale (1 = Not at all Confident; 5 = Extremely Confident. Sixty-two students (26% response rate responded to the pre-APPE questionnaire and n = 44 (18% to the post-APPE. Over 90% demonstrated MTM knowledge and 68.2% completed MTM learning activities. APPE experiences significantly improved students’ overall self-confidence (pre-APPE = 3.27 (0.85 SD, post-APPE = 4.02 (0.88, p < 0.001. Students engaging in MTM learning opportunities had higher self-confidence post-APPE (4.20 (0.71 vs. those not reporting MTM learning opportunities (3.64 (1.08, p = 0.05. Post-APPE, fewer students reported MTM was patient-centric or anticipated engaging in MTM post-graduation. APPE learning opportunities increased student self-confidence to provide MTM services. However, the reduction in anticipated engagement in MTM post-graduation and reduction in sensing the patient-centric nature of MTM practice, may reveal a gap between practice expectations and reality.

Learning processes of students in competence-based pre-vocational secondary education: relations between goal orientations, information processing strategies and development of conceptual knowledge

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Dr. M. Koopman; prof dr Douwe Beijaard; Dr P.J. Teune; P. den Brok

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate relations between goal orientations, information processing strategies and development of conceptual knowledge of pre-vocational secondary education students (n=719; 14 schools). Students' preferences for certain types of goals and information processing

Pre-service teachers’ challenges in presenting mathematical problems

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Desfitri, R.

2018-01-01

The purpose of this study was to analyzed how pre-service teachers prepare and assigned tasks or assignments in teaching practice situations. This study was also intended to discuss about kind of tasks or assignments they gave to students. Participants of this study were 15 selected pre-service mathematics teachers from mathematics education department who took part on microteaching class as part of teaching preparation program. Based on data obtained, it was occasionally found that there were hidden errors on questions or tasks assigned by pre-service teachers which might lead their students not to be able to reach a logical or correct answer. Although some answers might seem to be true, they were illogical or unfavourable. It is strongly recommended that pre-service teachers be more careful when posing mathematical problems so that students do not misunderstand the problems or the concepts, since both teachers and students were sometimes unaware of errors in problems being worked on.

Identifying Important Career Indicators of Undergraduate Geoscience Students Upon Completion of Their Degree

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Wilson, C. E.; Keane, C. M.; Houlton, H. R.

2012-12-01

a second pilot testing with Spring 2012 graduates from 45 departments across the United States. These graduating students from undergraduate and graduate programs answered questions about their earth science education experiences at the high school, community college, and university levels; their quantitative skills; their research and internship experiences and their immediate plans after graduation. Out of the 294 complete responses to the survey, 233 were from undergraduate students. This presentation will focus on the responses of these undergraduate students. AGI hopes to fully deploy this survey broadly to geosciences departments across the country in Spring 2013. AGI will also begin longitudinally participants from the previous Exit Survey efforts in order to understand their progression through their chosen career paths.

Assessment of minimally invasive surgical skills of pre-medical students: What can we learn from future learners?

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Borahay, Mostafa A; Jackson, Mary; Tapısız, Omer L; Lyons, Elizabeth; Patel, Pooja R; Nassar, Ramsey; Kılıç, Gökhan Sami

2014-01-01

Knowledge of baseline laparoscopic and robotic surgical skills of future learners is essential to develop teaching strategies that best fit them. The objectives of this study are to determine baseline laparoscopic and robotic skills of high school and college students and compare them to those of current obstetrics and gynecology residents. A cross-sectional (Class II-2) pilot study. Laparoscopic and robotic surgical skills of college and high (secondary) school students were evaluated using simulators and compared to those of obstetrics and gynecology residents. In addition, questionnaire data were collected regarding video game playing and computer use. A total of 17 students, both high school (n=9) and college (n=8), in addition to 11 residents, completed the study. Overall, students performed comparably to the residents in simple exercises (p>.05). However, students took significantly longer time to complete complex exercises (p=.001). Finally, students played video games significantly more than residents (pskill set. This difference may be related to improved hand-eye coordination, possibly due to playing video games. The results of this pilot study should spur more research into surgical teaching strategies.

The Use of Grounded Theory to Develop a Framework for Understanding Student Retention in Community College Nursing Programs

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Priode, Kimberly S.

2013-01-01

Gaining admission into pre-licensure nursing programs has proven to be quite difficult for the average college student. Topping the list of crucial priorities for many academic institutions is the retention of these nursing students. Yet, the reality is that many students decide not to complete their course of study for reasons other than academic…

Rethinking Dental School Admission Criteria: Correlation Between Pre-Admission Variables and First-Year Performance for Six Classes at One Dental School.

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Rowland, Kevin C; Rieken, Susan

2018-04-01

Admissions committees in dental schools are charged with the responsibility of selecting candidates who will succeed in school and become successful members of the profession. Identifying students who will have academic difficulty is challenging. The aim of this study was to determine the predictive value of pre-admission variables for the first-year performance of six classes at one U.S. dental school. The authors hypothesized that the variables undergraduate grade point average (GPA), undergraduate science GPA (biology, chemistry, and physics), and Dental Admission Test (DAT) scores would predict the level of performance achieved in the first year of dental school, measured by year-end GPA. Data were collected in 2015 from school records for all 297 students in the six cohorts who completed the first year (Classes of 2007 through 2013). In the results, statistically significant correlations existed between all pre-admission variables and first-year GPA, but the associations were only weak to moderate. Lower performing students at the end of the first year (lowest 10% of GPA) had, on average, lower pre-admission variables than the other students, but the differences were small (≤10.8% in all categories). When all the pre-admission variables were considered together in a multiple regression analysis, a significant association was found between pre-admission variables and first-year GPA, but the association was weak (adjusted R 2 =0.238). This weak association suggests that these students' first-year dental school GPAs were mostly determined by factors other than the pre-admission variables studied and has resulted in the school's placing greater emphasis on other factors for admission decisions.

Third-year pharmacy students propose an interprofessional prediabetes educational programme: PreDiaMe (Prediabetes + Me).

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Chaitin, Chava; Velasquez, Jaimie; Khanfar, Nile M; Chassange, Stephanie; Perez Torres, Rennie; Loan Pham, Ngoc; Rodriguez, Martha M; Hale, Genevieve M

2018-01-01

The American Diabetes Association announced in 2012 that 86 million Americans were diagnosed with prediabetes compared to 79 million in 2010. Prediabetes + Me (PreDiaMe) is an innovative educational programme developed by pharmacy students at Nova Southeastern University College of Pharmacy, which provides collaborative interprofessional care for patients with prediabetes. A literature review using EBSCOhost, EMBASE, and MEDLINE databases searching the terms education, health services, interprofessional team, and prediabetes was conducted. Human studies published in English between 2006 and 2016 were included. Investigators interviewed a community pharmacist and a consultant pharmacist certified in diabetes education. Based on these interviews and the literature found, PreDiaMe was created to unite healthcare professionals through a three-step community outreach programme. The goal of PreDiaMe is to identify patients at risk of prediabetes, to decrease the prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), to reduce healthcare costs, and to improve the quality of life for patients with prediabetes. PreDiaMe benefits patients with prediabetes, the healthcare system, and pedagogy as it aims to decrease in the prevalence and economic burden and increase health outcomes of patients with prediabetes while being used as a tool to provide integrative education in health professional programmes.

Secondary Pre-Service Teachers' Perceptions of an Ideal Classroom Environment

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Bartelheim, Frederick J.; Conn, Daniel R.

2014-01-01

The classroom environment can impact students' motivation and engagement, and can influence students' academic learning. In some cases, pre-service teachers' influence on the classroom environment may not always be conducive for student learning. This exploratory study investigated pre-service teachers' perceptions of an ideal classroom…

The effects of using screencasting as a multimedia pre-training tool to manage the intrinsic cognitive load of chemical equilibrium instruction for advanced high school chemistry students

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Musallam, Ramsey

Chemistry is a complex knowledge domain. Specifically, research notes that Chemical Equilibrium presents greater cognitive challenges than other topics in chemistry. Cognitive Load Theory describes the impact a subject, and the learning environment, have on working memory. Intrinsic load is the facet of Cognitive Load Theory that explains the complexity innate to complex subjects. The purpose of this study was to build on the limited research into intrinsic cognitive load, by examining the effects of using multimedia screencasts as a pre-training technique to manage the intrinsic cognitive load of chemical equilibrium instruction for advanced high school chemistry students. A convenience sample of 62 fourth-year high school students enrolled in an advanced chemistry course from a co-ed high school in urban San Francisco were given a chemical equilibrium concept pre-test. Upon conclusion of the pre-test, students were randomly assigned to two groups: pre-training and no pre-training. The pre-training group received a 10 minute and 52 second pre-training screencast that provided definitions, concepts and an overview of chemical equilibrium. After pre-training both group received the same 50-minute instructional lecture. After instruction, all students were given a chemical equilibrium concept post-test. Independent sample t-tests were conducted to examine differences in performance and intrinsic load. No significant differences in performance or intrinsic load, as measured by ratings of mental effort, were observed on the pre-test. Significant differences in performance, t(60)=3.70, p=.0005, and intrinsic load, t(60)=5.34, p=.0001, were observed on the post-test. A significant correlation between total performance scores and total mental effort ratings was also observed, r(60)=-0.44, p=.0003. Because no significant differences in prior knowledge were observed, it can be concluded that pre-training was successful at reducing intrinsic load. Moreover, a significant

Using Biomedically Relevant Multimedia Content in an Introductory Physics Course for Life Science and Pre-Health Students

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Mylott, Elliot; Kutschera, Ellynne; Dunlap, Justin C.; Christensen, Warren; Widenhorn, Ralf

2016-01-01

We will describe a one-quarter pilot algebra-based introductory physics course for pre-health and life science majors. The course features videos with biomedical experts and cogent biomedically inspired physics content. The materials were used in a flipped classroom as well as an all-online environment where students interacted with multimedia…

Identifying Pre-High School Students' Science Class Motivation Profiles to Increase Their Science Identification and Persistence

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Chittum, Jessica R.; Jones, Brett D.

2017-01-01

One purpose of this study was to determine whether patterns existed in pre-high school students' motivation-related perceptions of their science classes. Another purpose was to examine the extent to which these patterns were related to their science identification, gender, grade level, class effort, and intentions to persist in science. We…

Oral health knowledge among pre-clinical students of International Branch of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

2015-01-01

Full Text Available   Background and Aims: Oral health is an important issue in public health with a great impact on individuals’ general health status. A good access to oral healthcare services and a good knowledge of it play a key role in the oral disease prevention. A better health attitude and practice require a better knowledge. The aims of this study was to evaluate the oral health knowledge among the International students branch (Kish of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences in 2011-12.   Materials and Methods: 159 pre-clinical students in medicine (54 students, dentistry (69 students and pharmacy (36 students participated in this research. A standard questionnaire was used as the main tool of research to evaluate the attitude and knowledge of students about the oral health. Data were analyzed using Chi-square test.   Results: According to the results, dental students had the best level of knowledge and pharmacy students had a better knowledge level compared to the medical students. The results also showed a significant relationship between students’ oral health knowledge and their field and duration of study and the place of their secondary school (P0.05.   Conclusion: The results showed that the students at the International Branch of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences had a relatively good knowledge of oral health. Students’ knowledge level can be improved by providing students with educational materials, organized workshops and seminars.

Pre-Service Identification of Talented Teachers through Non-Traditional Measures: A Study of the Role of Affective Variables as Predictors of Success in Student Teaching.

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Basom, Margaret; And Others

1994-01-01

Researchers examined relationships between the SRI Gallup Pre-Professional Teacher Interview and performance-based student teaching evaluations and between SRI Interview and California Student Achievement Test (CAT) scores. A relationship between SRI Interview scores and performance-based student teaching evaluations surfaces. CAT scores did not…

Investigating how students communicate tree-thinking

Science.gov (United States)

Boyce, Carrie Jo

Learning is often an active endeavor that requires students work at building conceptual understandings of complex topics. Personal experiences, ideas, and communication all play large roles in developing knowledge of and understanding complex topics. Sometimes these experiences can promote formation of scientifically inaccurate or incomplete ideas. Representations are tools used to help individuals understand complex topics. In biology, one way that educators help people understand evolutionary histories of organisms is by using representations called phylogenetic trees. In order to understand phylogenetics trees, individuals need to understand the conventions associated with phylogenies. My dissertation, supported by the Tree-Thinking Representational Competence and Word Association frameworks, is a mixed-methods study investigating the changes in students' tree-reading, representational competence and mental association of phylogenetic terminology after participation in varied instruction. Participants included 128 introductory biology majors from a mid-sized southern research university. Participants were enrolled in either Introductory Biology I, where they were not taught phylogenetics, or Introductory Biology II, where they were explicitly taught phylogenetics. I collected data using a pre- and post-assessment consisting of a word association task and tree-thinking diagnostic (n=128). Additionally, I recruited a subset of students from both courses (n=37) to complete a computer simulation designed to teach students about phylogenetic trees. I then conducted semi-structured interviews consisting of a word association exercise with card sort task, a retrospective pre-assessment discussion, a post-assessment discussion, and interview questions. I found that students who received explicit lecture instruction had a significantly higher increase in scores on a tree-thinking diagnostic than students who did not receive lecture instruction. Students who received both

Changing College Students' Conceptions of Autism: An Online Training to Increase Knowledge and Decrease Stigma

Science.gov (United States)

Gillespie-Lynch, Kristen; Brooks, Patricia J.; Someki, Fumio; Obeid, Rita; Shane-Simpson, Christina; Kapp, Steven K.; Daou, Nidal; Smith, David Shane

2015-01-01

College students with autism may be negatively impacted by lack of understanding about autism on college campuses. Thus, we developed an online training to improve knowledge and decrease stigma associated with autism among college students. Participants (N = 365) completed a pre-test, online training, and post-test. Women reported lower stigma…

Comparing the Effectiveness of a Supplemental Online Tutorial to Traditional Instruction with Nutritional Science Students

Science.gov (United States)

Zubas, Patrice; Heiss, Cindy; Pedersen, Mary

2006-01-01

The purpose of this study was to ascertain if an online computer tutorial on diabetes mellitus, supplemented to traditional classroom lecture, is an effective tool in the education of nutrition students. Students completing a web-based tutorial as a supplement to classroom lecture displayed greater improvement in pre- vs. post-test scores compared…

The cost and value of pre-registration clinical placements for Project 2000 students.

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, M L; Akehurst, R

1999-07-01

The research outlined in this article was commissioned by the Sheffield and North Trent College of Nursing and Midwifery to explore the cost implications of pre-registration clinical placements in the context of Project 2000. The authors outline the methodology and findings of an exercise designed to collect relevant cost information which was not readily available. On the basis of these findings, they suggest that: at 1995/1996 pay and prices, clinical placements cost the education provider approximately pound 890 per student per annum; in terms of real resources, the value to service providers of the service contribution made by second- and third-year nursing and midwifery students on ward-based placements outweighs the value of the time spent by qualified staff on their supervision and education. Once the funding assumptions underlying the introduction of Project 2000 have been taken into account, second- and third-year nursing and midwifery students benefit the service provider by on average pound 3.46 for every hour they spend in an unrostered ward-based placement. The service contribution made by students in community-based clinical placements cannot free staff time in the same way as on the wards and, because qualified staff in these areas are generally more highly graded, the value of the time they spend on the supervision and education of students on placement is higher than in ward-based placements. Second- and third-year students therefore appear to cost the service provider on average pound 0.48 for each hour they spend in a community-based placement. It was not possible to determine whether this cost translates into a reduction in patient contacts.

An Increase in Medical Student Knowledge of Radiation Oncology: A Pre-Post Examination Analysis of the Oncology Education Initiative

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hirsch, Ariel E.; Mulleady Bishop, Pauline; Dad, Luqman; Singh, Deeptej; Slanetz, Priscilla J.

2009-01-01

Purpose: The Oncology Education Initiative was created to advance oncology and radiation oncology education by integrating structured didactics into the existing core radiology clerkship. We set out to determine whether the addition of structured didactics could lead to a significant increase in overall medical student knowledge about radiation oncology. Methods and Materials: We conducted a pre- and posttest examining concepts in general radiation oncology, breast cancer, and prostate cancer. The 15-question, multiple-choice exam was administered before and after a 1.5-hour didactic lecture by an attending physician in radiation oncology. Individual question changes, overall student changes, and overall categorical changes were analyzed. All hypothesis tests were two-tailed (significance level 0.05). Results: Of the 153 fourth-year students, 137 (90%) took the pre- and posttest and were present for the didactic lecture. The average test grade improved from 59% to 70% (p = 0.011). Improvement was seen in all questions except clinical vignettes involving correct identification of TNM staging. Statistically significant improvement (p ≤ 0.03) was seen in the questions regarding acute and late side effects of radiation, brachytherapy for prostate cancer, delivery of radiation treatment, and management of early-stage breast cancer. Conclusions: Addition of didactics in radiation oncology significantly improves medical students' knowledge of the topic. Despite perceived difficulty in teaching radiation oncology and the assumption that it is beyond the scope of reasonable knowledge for medical students, we have shown that even with one dedicated lecture, students can learn and absorb general principles regarding radiation oncology

Reducing Racism, Sexism, and Homophobia in College Students by Completing a Psychology of Prejudice Course

Science.gov (United States)

Pettijohn, Terry F., II; Walzer, Amy S.

2008-01-01

Students enrolled in Psychology of Prejudice and Introductory Psychology courses completed measures of racism, sexism, and attitudes toward homosexuals at the beginning and end of the term. We predicted that those who took part in the Psychology of Prejudice class would have significantly reduced prejudice as a result of the course experience. We…

A profile of pre-graduate physics students and their coarse evaluation: University of Stellenbosch, 1986-88

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. Saayman

1989-03-01

Full Text Available A thorough investigation has been undertaken of the pre-graduate B.Sc. physics sillabi. A comprehensive opinion poll consisting of 156 questions were answered by 406 B.Sc. students enrolled at the University of Stellenbosch during 1986-88. An analysis was made of the personal particulars of students, their choice of accompanying subjects, evaluation of the physics course contents, mathematical needs, lecturers’ didactics, lecture attendance, study methods, leisure time occupation, learning assessment and interaction with their lecturers. Dominating majority opinions were critically discussed by the lecturing staff and a plan of action implemented in order to improve the quality of physics education and the resulting new physicists.

Medical specialty selection criteria of Israeli medical students early in their clinical experience: subgroups.

Science.gov (United States)

Avidan, Alexander; Weissman, Charles; Elchalal, Uriel; Tandeter, Howard; Zisk-Rony, Rachel Yaffa

2018-04-18

Israeli medical school classes include a number of student subgroups. Therefore, interventions aimed at recruiting medical students to the various specialties should to be tailored to each subgroup. Questionnaires, distributed to 6 consecutive 5th-year classes of the Hebrew University - Hadassah School of Medicine, elicited information on criteria for choosing a career specialty, criteria for choosing a residency program and the importance of finding a specialty interesting and challenging when choosing a residency. Completed questionnaires were returned by 540 of 769 (70%) students. The decision processes for choosing a medical specialty and choosing a residency program were different. Family and colleagues had minimal influence on choosing a specialty, while family and their residential locality had much influence on choosing a residency, especially among women. Older age, marriage, and spousal influence were positively associated with choice of a specialty. Two-thirds of the students had completed military service, 20% were attending medical school prior to military service, 5% had completed national service and 9% had entered medical school without serving. Despite the pre-military subgroup being younger and having another 7 years of medical school, internship and military service before residency, they had begun thinking about which specialty to choose, just like the post-military students. When choosing a residency program, post-military women were more influenced by their families and family residential locality than their pre-military counterparts; differences ascribed to the older and often married post-military women having or wanting to begin families. This difference was reinforced by fewer post- than pre-military women willing to wait 2-3 years for a residency in the specialty that interested them most and were willing to begin residency immediately after internship in a specialty that interested them less. Medical school classes are composed of

Pre-Service Mathematics Teachers' Noticing Skills and Scaffolding Practices

Science.gov (United States)

Kilic, Hulya

2018-01-01

A 14-week course program was designed to investigate pre-service teachers' noticing skills and scaffolding practices. Six pre-service teachers were matched with a pair of sixth grade students to observe and scaffold students' mathematical understanding while they were working on the given tasks. Data was collected through pre-service teachers' own…

Online cultural competency education for millennial dental students.

Science.gov (United States)

Evans, Lorraine; Hanes, Philip J

2014-06-01

Teaching cultural competence is now an educational requirement for U.S. dental curricula to meet 2013 accreditation standards. The question now is, given time restrictions, limited resources, and budget constraints faced by the majority of dental schools, how can they provide effective cultural competency education to prepare future dental professionals? An additional concern regarding instruction is the recent focus on techniques to engage Millennial learners since this generation is characterized as technologically savvy with a preference for multimedia and general dislike of traditional lectures. With these issues in mind, Georgia Regents University developed Healthy Perspectives, an online, interactive course in cultural competence designed to engage Millennial students. Both before and after the course, the students were asked to complete a modified version of the Clinical Cultural Competency Questionnaire. Of the eighty-eight students in the course (eighty-one first-year dental students and seven entering radiology students), seventy-one completed the questionnaire both before and after the course, for an 81 percent response rate. Seventy-five students also completed the course evaluation. The pre and post questionnaires showed statistically significant gains for students across the four primary areas of self-awareness, knowledge, attitudes, and skills. Student evaluations of the course were generally positive, particularly regarding content, but somewhat surprisingly their assessment of the interactive components (which were designed to meet generational expectations) was ambivalent.

Mindfulness based stress reduction for medical students: optimising student satisfaction and engagement.

Science.gov (United States)

Aherne, Declan; Farrant, Katie; Hickey, Louise; Hickey, Emma; McGrath, Lisa; McGrath, Deirdre

2016-08-18

Medical practitioners and students are at increased risk of a number of personal and psychological problems. Stress and anxiety due to work-load and study requirements are common and self-care methods are important in maintaining well-being. The current study examines perceptions of and satisfaction ratings with a mindfulness based stress reduction (MBSR) programme for 1(st) year (compulsory) and 2(nd) year (optional) Graduate Entry Medical School students. A mixed method pre and post study of Year 1 (n = 140) and Year 2 (n = 88) medical students completing a 7 week MBSR course compared student satisfaction ratings. Thematic analysis of feedback from the students on their perception of the course was also carried out. Year 1 students (compulsory course) were less satisfied with content and learning outcomes than Year 2 students (optional course) (p levels of satisfaction and positive feedback when delivered on an optional basis. Catering for the individual needs of the participant and promoting a safe environment are core elements of a successful self-care programme.

Measuring critical thinking in pre-registration midwifery students: A multi-method approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Carter, Amanda G; Creedy, Debra K; Sidebotham, Mary

2018-02-01

Test the concurrent validity of three newly developed tools (student self-rating, preceptor rating, and reflective writing) that aim to measure critical thinking in midwifery practice. A descriptive matched cohort design was used. Australian research intensive university offering a three year Bachelor of Midwifery programme. Fifty-five undergraduate midwifery students. Students assessed their ability to apply critical thinking in midwifery practice using a 25-item tool and a 5-item subscale in Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire. Clinical preceptors completed a 24-item tool assessing the students' application of critical thinking in practice. Reflective writing by students was assessed by midwifery academics using a 15-item tool. Internal reliability, and concurrent validity were assessed. Correlations, t-tests, multiple regression and confidence levels were calculated for the three scales and associations with student characteristics. The three scales achieved good internal reliability with a Cronbach's alpha coefficient between 0.93 and 0.97. Matched total scores for the three critical thinking scales were moderately correlated; student/preceptor (r=0.36, pstudent/reflective writing (r=0.38, pstudents with a previous degree, but only significant for reflective writing (t (53)=-2.35, p=0.023). Preceptor ratings were predictive of GPA (beta=0.50, pStudents' self-rating scores were predictive of year level (beta=0.32, pstudent, preceptor, and reflective writing tools were found to be reliable and valid measures of critical thinking. The three tools can be used individually or in combination to provide students with various sources of feedback to improve their practice. The tools allow formative measurement of critical thinking over time. Further testing of the tools with larger, diverse samples is recommended. Crown Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Solving the Unknown with Algebra: Poster/Teaching Guide for Pre-Algebra Students. Expect the Unexpected with Math[R

Science.gov (United States)

Actuarial Foundation, 2013

2013-01-01

"Solving the Unknown with Algebra" is a new math program aligned with the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) standards and designed to help students practice pre-algebra skills including using formulas, solving for unknowns, and manipulating equations. Developed by The Actuarial Foundation with Scholastic, this program provides…

Students Across Texas Celebrate Astronomy Day

Science.gov (United States)

Preston, S.; Wetzel, M.; Hemenway, M. K.

2010-08-01

Over the past three years, McDonald Observatory has offered special Astronomy Day videoconference programs to students across Texas—the second largest state in the U.S. (Only Alaska is larger). Videoconferencing allows many students and teachers access to our Observatory, which is remotely located 180 miles (290 kilometers) from any major city. McDonald Observatory partners with Connect2Texas to advertise the Astronomy Day event. Connect2Texas provides the electronic bridge between schools and the Observatory. They also provide an online evaluation for teachers to complete. In 2009 the Astronomy Day videoconference celebrated the International Year of Astronomy and the historic observations made by Galileo Galilei. During the videoconference, the classes explore the Moon or Venus by making real-time telescopic observations. Students also receive an introduction to the Observatory, an opportunity to perform an activity relating to Galileo's observations, and an interview with an astronomer. A website provides teachers pre-and post-video conference materials, instructions, and a certificate of completion that can be customized for each student. The website also lists content alignment with state science education standards.

Improving medical student toxicology knowledge and self-confidence using mannequin simulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Halm, Brunhild M; Lee, Meta T; Franke, Adrian A

2010-01-01

Learning medicine without placing patients at increased risk of complications is of utmost importance in the medical profession. High-fidelity patient simulators can potentially achieve this and are therefore increasingly used in the training of medical students. Preclinical medical students have minimal exposure to clinical rotations and commonly feel anxious and apprehensive when starting their clinical years. The objective of this pilot study was to determine if toxicology knowledge and confidence of preclinical second-year medical students could be augmented with simulation training. We designed and implemented a simulation exercise for second-year medical students to enhance learning of Basic Life Support, toxidromes, and management of a semiconscious overdose victim. Groups of 5-6 students were tasked to identify abnormal findings, order tests, and initiate treatment on a mannequin. Faculty observers provided video-assisted feedback immediately afterwards. On-line pre- and posttests were completed in the simulation lab before and after the exercise. This simulation exercise, completed by 52 students, increased test scores on average from 60% to 71% compared to a pre-test. Among the topics tested, students scored worst in identifying normal/abnormal vital signs. Mean confidence increased from 2.0 to 2.6 using a 5-point Likert scale (1-very low to 5-very high). This study suggests that simulation exercises for second-year medical students may be a valuable tool to increase knowledge and student self-confidence at a key transition period prior to beginning clerkship experiences. Further research is needed to prove long-term educational benefits of simulation interventions in the preclinical setting.

Psychosocial problems of pre-clinical students in the University of Ibadan Medical School.

Science.gov (United States)

Omokhodion, F O

2003-06-01

Recent changes in the psychosocial environment of the university campus such as the steep rise in student numbers, the high cost of living standards and the increase in violence and cult activities has prompted the need to assess the impact of these changes on the students. A cross sectional study was carried out among pre-clinical medical students to identify their psychosocial problems. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect information about socio-demographic variables including age, sex, sources of financial support, type of accommodation, smoking and drinking habits and use of recreational facilities. Causes of insecurity and depression among students were also recorded. The General Health Questionnaire GHQ-12 was used to assess their mental health status. One hundred and seventy-six students responded to the enquiry, 94 males (53%) and 80 females (45%). One hundred and thirty-seven (79%) live on the campus while 37 (21%) live off campus. Only 9 of the students (5%) were smokers and 28 (16%) were drinkers. Monthly pocket money ranged from Naira 1,000 to Naira 25,000. Forty-one (23%) thought their pocket money was adequate, 92 (52%) thought it was fair and 39 (22%) thought it was inadequate. Causes of insecurity on the campus were cultism 34 (19%), lack of money 27 (15%), lack of textbooks 13 (7%) and stealing 10 (6%). Causes of depression include fear of failure of examinations, 62 (35%), lack of money, 48 (27%) and family problems 17 (10%). Mental health scores ranged from 1 to 10. Using a cut off point of 3 to delineate those with traits of poor mental health, 35 (21%) fell into the category 15 boys and 20 girls. Mean mental health score were higher for females, those living on campus, smokers and drinkers but this was not statistically significant. Fear of failure of examinations, cultism and lack of money are major concerns among medical students on the main university campus. Counselling services should be provided to assist students with

How to investigate the goal orientations of students in competence-based pre-vocational secondary education: choosing the right instrument.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dr. M. Koopman; prof dr Douwe Beijaard; Dr P.J. Teune

2008-01-01

This study explores the psychometric properties of three instruments: a semi-structured interview, a questionnaire and a sorting task. The central question is which instrument is most suitable to investigate the goal orientations of students in competence-based Pre-Vocational Secondary Education.

Benefits Access for College Completion: Innovative Approaches to Meet the Financial Needs of Low-Income Students

Science.gov (United States)

Center for Postsecondary and Economic Success, 2014

2014-01-01

Benefits Access for College Completion (BACC) was designed to help colleges develop new policies that increase low-income students' access to public benefits, easing their financial burden to allow them to finish school and earn postsecondary credentials. Colleges participating in BACC have developed and institutionalized scalable, sustainable…

Vaccine-critical videos on YouTube and their impact on medical students' attitudes about seasonal influenza immunization: a pre and post study.

Science.gov (United States)

Robichaud, Pierre; Hawken, Steven; Beard, Leslie; Morra, Dante; Tomlinson, George; Wilson, Kumanan; Keelan, Jennifer

2012-05-28

YouTube is a video-sharing platform that is increasingly utilized to share and disseminate health-related information about immunization. Using a pre-post survey methodology, we compared the impact of two of the most popular YouTube videos discussing seasonal influenza vaccine, both vaccine-critical, on the attitudes towards immunizing of first year medical students attending a Canadian medical school. Forty-one medical students were randomized to view either a scientifically styled, seemingly "evidence-based", vaccine-critical video or a video using anecdotal stories of harms and highly sensationalized imagery. In the pre-intervention survey, medical students frequently used YouTube for all-purposes, while 42% used YouTube for health-related purposes and 12% used YouTube to search for health information. While medical students were generally supportive of immunizing, there was suboptimal uptake of annual influenza vaccine reported, and a subset of our study population expressed vaccine-critical attitudes and behaviors with respect to seasonal influenza. Overall there was no significant difference in pre to post attitudes towards influenza immunization nor were there any differences when comparing the two different vaccine-critical videos. The results of our study are reassuring in that they suggest that medical students are relatively resistant to the predominately inaccurate, vaccine-critical messaging on YouTube, even when the message is framed as scientific reasoning. Further empirical work is required to test the popular notion that information disseminated through social media platforms influences health-related attitudes and behaviors. However, our study suggests that there is an opportunity for public health to leverage YouTube to communicate accurate and credible information regarding influenza to medical students and others. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Trends in Algebra II Completion and Failure Rates for Students Entering Texas Public High Schools. REL 2018-289

Science.gov (United States)

Stoker, Ginger; Mellor, Lynn; Sullivan, Kate

2018-01-01

This study examines Algebra II completion and failure rates for students entering Texas public high schools from 2007/08 through 2014/15. This period spans the time when Texas students, beginning with the 2007/08 grade 9 cohort, were required to take four courses each in English, math (including Algebra II), science, and social studies (called the…

An approach to improving science knowledge about energy balance and nutrition among elementary- and middle-school students.

Science.gov (United States)

Moreno, Nancy P; Denk, James P; Roberts, J Kyle; Tharp, Barbara Z; Bost, Michelle; Thomson, William A

2004-01-01

Unhealthy diets, lack of fitness, and obesity are serious problems in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control, Surgeon General, and Department of Health and Human Services are calling for action to address these problems. Scientists and educators at Baylor College of Medicine and the National Space Biomedical Research Institute teamed to produce an instructional unit, "Food and Fitness," and evaluated it with students in grades 3-7 in Houston, Texas. A field-test group (447 students) completed all unit activities under the guidance of their teachers. This group and a comparison group (343 students) completed pre and postassessments measuring knowledge of concepts covered in the unit. Outcomes indicate that the unit significantly increased students' knowledge and awareness of science concepts related to energy in living systems, metabolism, nutrients, and diet. Pre-assessment results suggest that most students understand concepts related to calories in food, exercise and energy use, and matching food intake to energy use. Students' prior knowledge was found to be much lower on topics related to healthy portion sizes, foods that supply the most energy, essential nutrients, what "diet" actually means, and the relationship between body size and basal metabolic rate.

Teaching Communication Skills to Medical and Pharmacy Students Through a Blended Learning Course.

Science.gov (United States)

Hess, Rick; Hagemeier, Nicholas E; Blackwelder, Reid; Rose, Daniel; Ansari, Nasar; Branham, Tandy

2016-05-25

Objective. To evaluate the impact of an interprofessional blended learning course on medical and pharmacy students' patient-centered interpersonal communication skills and to compare precourse and postcourse communication skills across first-year medical and second-year pharmacy student cohorts. Methods. Students completed ten 1-hour online modules and participated in five 3-hour group sessions over one semester. Objective structured clinical examinations (OSCEs) were administered before and after the course and were evaluated using the validated Common Ground Instrument. Nonparametric statistical tests were used to examine pre/postcourse domain scores within and across professions. Results. Performance in all communication skill domains increased significantly for all students. No additional significant pre/postcourse differences were noted across disciplines. Conclusion. Students' patient-centered interpersonal communication skills improved across multiple domains using a blended learning educational platform. Interview abilities were embodied similarly between medical and pharmacy students postcourse, suggesting both groups respond well to this form of instruction.

Opinions of Students Completing Master Thesis in Turkish Education Field about Academic Writing and Thesis Formation Process

OpenAIRE

Mustafa Onur KAN; Fatma Nur GEDİK

2016-01-01

The overall aim of this research is to evaluate opinions of students completing master thesis in the field of Turkish education about academic writing and process of forming thesis. The study has been devised using phenomenological design within the qualitative research methods. The study group of research is consisted of 9 participants completed master thesis in the field of Turkish education at Mustafa Kemal University Instıtute of Social Sciences in 2015. In this study, semi-structured int...

Using Online Blogs to Develop Student Teachers' Behaviour Management Approaches

Science.gov (United States)

Reupert, Andrea; Dalgarno, Barney

2011-01-01

This paper reports on a study involving 74 third and 17 fourth year student teachers enrolled in a Bachelor of Education (Primary) course at an Australian regional, multi-campus university. These pre-service primary teachers completed the single semester, compulsory subject Managing the Learning Environment, which involves the application of…

A quantitative analysis of factors that influence and predict students' intention to major in and complete an undergraduate program in STEM or non-STEM

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Xuemei

2005-11-01

The goal of this study was to explore and understand the factors that influence students' intention to major in and complete an undergraduate program in a science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) discipline, in a non-STEM field, and how students' gender directly and indirectly affects their success in college. A quantitative study of three thousand four (3004) ACT-tested students who entered a Midwestern, land-grant university as freshmen in fall, 1999 was conducted based on their ACT Assessment information and their enrollment and graduation status after five years. A wide variety of variables were considered and logistic regression, factor analysis, and path analysis were used to analyze the data. The results show that students who intended to major in or completed STEM programs generally have better academic qualifications than their counterparts who intended to major in non-STEM fields. Students who intended to major in or completed STEM programs came from lower income families and smaller communities than those who intended to major in or graduated from non-STEM programs. In this study, gender's direct effect on students' college achievement is eleven times the total of gender's indirect effects through several major factors for students in both STEM fields and non-STEM fields. Perhaps nature has favored females when students' achievement is measured as their college GPA. The results also show that the overall high dropout rate is strongly associated with students' inadequate preparation in high school and family income. Out-of-school accomplishment in community service is a negative influence on their completion of a college degree. ACT scores are not necessary for prediction of college graduation.

Lifelong Learning Theory and Pre-Service Teachers' Development of Knowledge and Dispositions to Work with Australian Aboriginal Students

Science.gov (United States)

Bennet, Maria; Moriarty, Beverley

2016-01-01

This article draws on previous research by the authors and others as well as lifelong learning theory to argue the case for providing pre-service teachers with deep and meaningful experiences over time that help them to build their personal capacity for developing knowledge and dispositions to work with Australian Aboriginal students, their…

The Benefits and Challenges Hospitality Management Students Experience by Working in Conjunction with Completing Their Studies

Science.gov (United States)

Schoffstall, Donald G.

2013-01-01

Previous researchers have suggested that in order to be successful in the hospitality industry, students need to obtain work experience in addition to completing their degrees. Although the benefit of gaining such experience from the industry viewpoint has been well documented, few studies have assessed the benefits and challenges faced by…

Effects of a service learning experience on confidence and clinical skills in baccalaureate nursing students.

Science.gov (United States)

Saylor, Jennifer; Hertsenberg, Lindsey; McQuillan, Malissa; O'Connell, Ashley; Shoe, Kimberly; Calamaro, Christina J

2018-02-01

Camp programs yield positive and lasting benefits for children. Integrating a summer camp into a nurse course with a service learning design fosters learning beyond the classroom and enhances community engagement. The purpose of this study is to describe the nursing students' experience and perceived confidence after completing a service learning nursing course. This is a descriptive, qualitative research study that used reflection and a perceived confidence questionnaire. The study was conducted in a school of nursing and surrounding university campus facilities during the diabetes camp. The participants (n=23) were nursing students who enrolled in the nursing course. As part of the course requirements, students completed an eight item question confidence survey before and after the diabetes camp related to diabetes and camp management, and interpersonal abilities with patients, families, and healthcare professionals. Within 48-72h after diabetes camp, the students completed the reflection paper. The pre and post Confidence Surveys were analyzed using a t-test and thematic analysis was used to analyze the reflection paper. Overall, perceived confidence levels increased after completing the service learning course (t=-9.91, p=0.001). Four themes emerged from the qualitative analysis: pre-camp assumptions and fears, growth in confidence, understanding diabetes management in the community, and appreciation for learning beyond the classroom and hospital setting. This service learning course provided nursing students the ability to not only develop diabetes clinical skills and perceived confidence, but also life skills including teamwork, leadership, and conflict resolution. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Evaluating Student Self-Assessment through Video-Recorded Patient Simulations.

Science.gov (United States)

Sanderson, Tammy R; Kearney, Rachel C; Kissell, Denise; Salisbury, Jessica

2016-08-01

The purpose of this pilot study was to determine if the use of a video-recorded clinical session affects the accuracy of dental hygiene student self-assessment and dental hygiene instructor feedback. A repeated measures experiment was conducted. The use of the ODU 11/12 explorer was taught to students and participating faculty through video and demonstration. Students then demonstrated activation of the explorer on a student partner using the same technique. While faculty completed the student assessment in real time, the sessions were video recorded. After completing the activation of the explorer, students and faculty completed an assessment of the student's performance using a rubric. A week later, both students and faculty viewed the video of the clinical skill performance and reassessed the student's performance using the same rubric. The student videos were randomly assigned a number, so faculty reassessed the performance without access to the student's identity or the score that was initially given. Twenty-eight students and 4 pre-clinical faculty completed the study. Students' average score was 4.68±1.16 on the first assessment and slightly higher 4.89±1.45 when reviewed by video. Faculty average scores were 5.07±2.13 at the first assessment and 4.79±2.54 on the second assessment with the video. No significant differences were found between the differences in overall scores, there was a significant difference in the scores of the grading criteria compared to the expert assessment scores (p=0.0001). This pilot study shows that calibration and assessment without bias in education is a challenge. Analyzing and incorporating new techniques can result in more exact assessment of student performance and self-assessment. Copyright © 2016 The American Dental Hygienists’ Association.

Distance education in dental hygiene bachelor of science degree completion programs: As perceived by students and faculty

Science.gov (United States)

Tsokris, Maureen

This study investigated student and faculty perceptions of their experiences with online learning in dental hygiene Bachelor of Science degree completion programs on the dimensions of: quality of learning, connectedness to the learning environment, technology factors and student satisfaction. The experiences of dental hygiene students who took their core BS dental hygiene (BSDH) courses completely online were compared and contrasted with the perceptions of dental hygiene students who had taken a portion of the BSDH courses online and a portion in a traditional face-to-face classroom setting. Furthermore, this study compared and contrasted the perceptions of faculty on these same four dimensions based on the position held by the faculty member and the course format they are teaching in: online or a combination of online and a traditional face-to-face classroom setting. This study revealed several important differences and similarities between students who had taken their courses online and those who had taken a portion of the BSDH courses online and a portion in a traditional face-to-face classroom setting. The results showed students who had taken their courses online described factors related to the instructor as important to the quality of the learning experience such as: the experience and qualifications of the professor, the examples they provided and the instructors prompt response to questions. Students who had taken courses in both formats described factors related to the amount of effort they put into the course, their classmates' preparedness, the course materials and assignments as important to the quality of the learning experience. Although students who completed courses online reported difficulty participating in group activities, they were more positive regarding the level of interaction they experienced with their classmates online Findings indicated students who had taken their courses in both formats would have liked more opportunities to interact

Topologies of an Effective Mentoring Model: At the Intersection of Community Colleges, Underrepresented Students, and Completion

Science.gov (United States)

Leslie, Janet Lee

2012-01-01

This evidenced-based study was conducted using a systemic review of the literature to verify scholarly consensus about the effectiveness of mentoring as an intervention to impact college completion for underrepresented students in a community college setting. The study explored the impact of having access to mentors for the target population:…

DOE/Project SEED student scholars partnership. Final report, June 7, 1994--April 27, 1995

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-06-13

Project SEED is an innovative career development activity administered by ACS for economically disadvantaged high school students. SEED students spend 10 weeks during the summer in an academic, industrial, or governmental research laboratory working under the supervision of a researcher. Intent is to attempt to overcome obstacles which have excluded the economically disadvantaged from professional careers. Students are required to prepare a technical summary, give presentations to their sponsoring groups, and design and display a poster session. Each student also completed a pre- and post-program survey.

Collaborative learning in pre-clinical dental hygiene education.

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Mueller-Joseph, Laura J; Nappo-Dattoma, Luisa

2013-04-01

Dental hygiene education continues to move beyond mastery of content material and skill development to learning concepts that promote critical-thinking and problem-solving skills. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the effectiveness of collaborative learning and determine the growth in intellectual development of 54 first-year dental hygiene students. The control group used traditional pre-clinical teaching and the experimental group used collaborative pedagogy for instrument introduction. All students were subjected to a post-test evaluating their ability to apply the principles of instrumentation. Intellectual development was determined using pre- and post-tests based on the Perry Scheme of Intellectual Development. Student attitudes were assessed using daily Classroom Assessment Activities and an end-of-semester departmental course evaluation. Findings indicated no significant difference between collaborative learning and traditional learning in achieving pre-clinical competence as evidenced by the students' ability to apply the principles of instrumentation. Advancement in intellectual development did not differ significantly between groups. Value added benefits of a collaborative learning environment as identified by the evaluation of student attitudes included decreased student reliance on authority, recognition of peers as legitimate sources of learning and increased self-confidence. A significant difference in student responses to daily classroom assessments was evident on the 5 days a collaborative learning environment was employed. Dental hygiene students involved in a pre-clinical collaborative learning environment are more responsible for their own learning and tend to have a more positive attitude toward the subject matter. Future studies evaluating collaborative learning in clinical dental hygiene education need to investigate the cost/benefit ratio of the value added outcomes of collaborative learning.

The value of community-focused interprofessional care in peru for developing cultural competency in health professions students.

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Allen, Carol B; Smart, Denise A; Odom-Maryon, Tamara; Swain, Deborah

2013-07-04

International immersion experiences for health-care students have increased over the past 10 years. Students and faculty expect these experiences to increase cultural competency; however, research on outcomes of these programs has lacked rigor. Over a 4-year period, groups of nursing and other health professions students spent 3 weeks in Peru providing primary care and health education. Students attended pre-departure seminars addressing personal travel health and safety, culture and health care in Peru, working with interpreters, and ethics of international health care. Student participants (N=77) completed an instrument assessing self-perceived cultural competency before and after the experience. Results of pre- and post-immersion scores showed significant increases in perceived cultural competency and increased self-efficacy in cultural knowledge, skills, and attitudes for four groups of students. Implications and future directions are discussed and recommended.

Use of a Social Annotation Platform for Pre-Class Reading Assignments in a Flipped Introductory Physics Class

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Kelly Miller

2018-03-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we illustrate the successful implementation of pre-class reading assignments through a social learning platform that allows students to discuss the reading online with their classmates. We show how the platform can be used to understand how students are reading before class. We find that, with this platform, students spend an above average amount of time reading (compared to that reported in the literature and that most students complete their reading assignments before class. We identify specific reading behaviors that are predictive of in-class exam performance. We also demonstrate ways that the platform promotes active reading strategies and produces high-quality learning interactions between students outside class. Finally, we compare the exam performance of two cohorts of students, where the only difference between them is the use of the platform; we show that students do significantly better on exams when using the platform.

Identifying Students' Intercultural Communicative Competence at the Beginning of Their Placement: Towards the Enhancement of Study Abroad Programmes

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Gutiérrez Almarza, G.; Durán Martínez, R.; Beltrán Llavador, F.

2015-01-01

A pre-placement questionnaire was completed by a cohort of 30 students participating in the Erasmus exchange programmes from the University of Salamanca, placed in British universities, and by a group of 25 Nottingham Trent University students hosted by diverse Spanish universities. The questionnaire was then analysed with the aim of providing a…

Teaching Assistants, Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) and Special Educational Needs: "Reframing" the Learning Experience for Students with Mild SEN

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Kudliskis, Voldis

2014-01-01

This study examines how an understanding of two NLP concepts, the meta-model of language and the implementation of reframing, could be used to help teaching assistants enhance class-based interactions with students with mild SEN. Participants (students) completed a pre-intervention and a post-intervention "Beliefs About my Learning…

Student Mental Models of the Greenhouse Effect: Retention Months After Interventions

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Harris, S. E.; Gold, A. U.

2013-12-01

Individual understanding of climate science, and the greenhouse effect in particular, is one factor important for societal decision-making. Ideally, learning opportunities about the greenhouse effect will not only move people toward expert-like ideas but will also have long-lasting effects for those individuals. We assessed university students' mental models of the greenhouse effect before and after specific learning experiences, on a final exam, then again a few months later. Our aim was to measure retention after students had not necessarily been thinking about, nor studying, the greenhouse effect recently. How sticky were the ideas learned? 164 students in an introductory science course participated in a sequence of two learning activities and assessments regarding the greenhouse effect. The first lesson involved the full class, then, for the second lesson, half the students completed a simulation-based activity and the other half completed a data-driven activity. We assessed student thinking through concept sketches, multiple choice and short answer questions. All students generated concept sketches four times, and completed a set of multiple choice (MCQs) and short answer questions twice. Later, 3-4 months after the course ended, 27 students ('retention students') completed an additional concept sketch and answered the questions again, as a retention assessment. These 27 students were nearly evenly split between the two contrasting second lessons in the sequence and included both high and low-achieving students. We then compared student sketches and scores to 'expert' answers. The general pattern over time showed a significant increase in student scores from before the lesson sequence to after, both on concept sketches and MCQs, then an additional increase in concept sketch score on the final exam (MCQs were not asked on the final exam). The scores for the retention students were not significantly different from the full class. Within the retention group

VOCABULARY DEVELOPMENT OF KINDERGARTEN STUDENTS OF APPLE TREE PRE-SCHOOL SAMARINDA BY USING FLASHCARDS

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Nadia Mustika Rachmita

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract:This present study aimed to investigate 14 kindergarten students of Apple Tree pre-school Samarinda with various ability toward their English vocabularies development by flashcards. A Class Action Research was applied in this study. The data was collected through observation checklist, sequence of cycles and interview transcript. Then, building on the analysis of the collected data, it further discusses the vocabulary development of YL and provides suggestions for TEYL. This study revealed that; (1 most of the students developed their English vocabularies gradually by flashcards. (2 These result indicated that TEYL especially kindergarten students by using flashcards could give significant vocabularies development in learning process. Flashcards is one of the simplest and effective teaching materials for teaching YL vocabulary due to the fact that flashcards are categorized based on themes with full colored pictures which attractive for YL. As this study showed the students were engaged with the topics given since the teachers used flashcards to teach English vocabulary. It was difficult to make engagement with YL in English teaching and learning because YL have different mood, self-motivation, and self-confidence which influenced to the willingness in grasping the lesson. Finally, through this based-picture learning, the students indicated that their progress in vocabulary development although this phenomena was commonly happened in TEFL for YL that lead to teaching method done by English teachers who are required to do more innovation toward their teaching method, to develop sufficient knowledge and to use proper teaching media.        

A combination of traditional learning and e-learning can be more effective on radiological interpretation skills in medical students: a pre- and post-intervention study.

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Salajegheh, Ali; Jahangiri, Alborz; Dolan-Evans, Elliot; Pakneshan, Sahar

2016-02-03

The ability to interpret an X-Ray is a vital skill for graduating medical students which guides clinicians towards accurate diagnosis and treatment of the patient. However, research has suggested that radiological interpretation skills are less than satisfactory in not only medical students, but also in residents and consultants. This study investigated the effectiveness of e-learning for the development of X-ray interpretation skills in pre-clinical medical students. Competencies in clinical X-Ray interpretation were assessed by comparison of pre- and post-intervention scores and one year follow up assessment, where the e-learning course was the 'intervention'. Our results demonstrate improved knowledge and skills in X-ray interpretation in students. Assessment of the post training students showed significantly higher scores than the scores of control group of students undertaking the same assessment at the same time. The development of the Internet and advances in multimedia technologies has paved the way for computer-assisted education. As more rural clinical schools are established the electronic delivery of radiology teaching through websites will become a necessity. The use of e-learning to deliver radiology tuition to medical students represents an exciting alternative and is an effective method of developing competency in radiological interpretation for medical students.

Informing the scale-up of Kenya’s nursing workforce: a mixed methods study of factors affecting pre-service training capacity and production

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2014-01-01

Background Given the global nursing shortage and investments to scale-up the workforce, this study evaluated trends in annual student nurse enrolment, pre-service attrition between enrolment and registration, and factors that influence nurse production in Kenya. Methods This study used a mixed methods approach with data from the Regulatory Human Resources Information System (tracks initial student enrolment through registration) and the Kenya Health Workforce Information System (tracks deployment and demographic information on licensed nurses) for the quantitative analyses and qualitative data from key informant interviews with nurse training institution educators and/or administrators. Trends in annual student nurse enrolment from 1999 to 2010 were analyzed using regulatory and demographic data. To assess pre-service attrition between training enrolment and registration with the nursing council, data for a cohort that enrolled in training from 1999 to 2004 and completed training by 2010 was analyzed. Multivariate logistic regression was used to test for factors that significantly affected attrition. To assess the capacity of nurse training institutions for scale-up, qualitative data was obtained through key informant interviews. Results From 1999 to 2010, 23,350 students enrolled in nurse training in Kenya. While annual new student enrolment doubled between 1999 (1,493) and 2010 (3,030), training institutions reported challenges in their capacity to accommodate the increased numbers. Key factors identified by the nursing faculty included congestion at clinical placement sites, limited clinical mentorship by qualified nurses, challenges with faculty recruitment and retention, and inadequate student housing, transportation and classroom space. Pre-service attrition among the cohort that enrolled between 1999 and 2004 and completed training by 2010 was found to be low (6%). Conclusion To scale-up the nursing workforce in Kenya, concurrent investments in expanding the

Predicting High School Completion Using Student Performance in High School Algebra: A Mixed Methods Research Study

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Chiado, Wendy S.

2012-01-01

Too many of our nation's youth have failed to complete high school. Determining why so many of our nation's students fail to graduate is a complex, multi-faceted problem and beyond the scope of any one study. The study presented herein utilized a thirteen-step mixed methods model developed by Leech and Onwuegbuzie (2007) to demonstrate within a…

A Study of the Significant Factors That Affect the Job Placement Rates of Students Who Have Completed a HERO Program.

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Instructional Development and Evaluation Associates, Inc., Berkeley, MI.

A three-year study examined the significant factors that affect the job placement rates of students completing a Home Economics Related Occupations (HERO) program. Other purposes of the study were to develop and pilot test a model that could be used to determine factors related to student placement in a variety of vocational education programs and…

Is a career in medicine the right choice? The impact of a physician shadowing program on undergraduate premedical students.

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Wang, Jennifer Y; Lin, Hillary; Lewis, Patricia Y; Fetterman, David M; Gesundheit, Neil

2015-05-01

Undergraduate (i.e., baccalaureate) premedical students have limited exposure to clinical practice before applying to medical school-a shortcoming, given the personal and financial resources required to complete medical training. The Stanford Immersion in Medicine Series (SIMS) is a program that streamlines the completion of regulatory requirements for premedical students and allows them to develop one-on-one mentor-mentee relationships with practicing physicians. The program, offered quarterly since 2007, is an elective available for Stanford University sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Participants apply to the program and, if accepted, receive patient rights and professionalism training. Students shadow the physician they are paired with at least four times and submit a reflective essay about their experience.SIMS program coordinators administered surveys before and after shadowing to assess changes in students' perceptions and understanding of medical careers. The authors observed, in the 61 Stanford premedical students who participated in SIMS between March and June 2010 and completed both pre- and postprogram questionnaires, significant increases in familiarity with physician responsibilities and in understanding physician-patient interactions. The authors detected no significant changes in student commitment to pursuing medicine. Student perceptions of the value of shadowing-high both pre- and post shadowing-did not change. Physician shadowing by premedical baccalaureate students appears to promote an understanding of physician roles and workplace challenges. Future studies should identify the ideal timing, format, and duration of shadowing to optimize the experience and allow students to make informed decisions about whether to pursue a medical career.

Improving the Comprehension of Students with Significant Developmental Disabilities: Systematic Instruction on the Steps for Completing and Using a Graphic Organizer

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Britt, Alexander P.

2015-01-01

A single-subject, multiple-baseline across participants design was used to examine the functional relation between systematic instruction and the ability to complete a graphic organizer and recall facts about informational texts by students with significant development disabilities. Four high school students enrolled in an adapted academic program…

Addressing medical absenteeism in pre-vocational secondary students: effectiveness of a public health intervention, using a quasi-experimental design.

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Vanneste, Yvonne T M; Mathijssen, Jolanda J P; van de Goor, Ien A M; Rots-de Vries, Carin M C; Feron, Frans J M

2016-10-21

Students' health and school absenteeism affect educational level, with adverse effects on their future health. This interdependence is reflected in medical absenteeism. In the Netherlands, a public health intervention has been developed to address medical absenteeism in pre-vocational secondary education. This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of this intervention on students' medical absenteeism, compared to "medical absenteeism policy as usual". A quasi-experimental design with an intervention group (493 students) and a control group (445 students) was applied. Multilevel analysis was used to study differences in the development of the level of a student's medical absence over time (after 3 and 12 months). In the intervention group, the level of absenteeism decreased from 8.5 days reported sick in 12 school weeks to 5.7 days after 3 months, and to 4.9 days after 12 months. The number of absence periods fell from 3.9 in 12 school weeks to 2.5 after 3 months, and to 2.2 after 12 months. In the control group, the absence days initially decreased from 9.9 days reported sick in 12 school weeks to 8.4 days after 3 months, after which an increase to 8.9 days was measured. The number of absence periods initially decreased from 4.5 in 12 school weeks to 3.5, after which an increase to 3.7 was measured. The number of absence days per period remained about the same in both groups. The study provides first indications for the intervention to be effective for Dutch pre-vocational secondary students with increased medical absence rates. The intervention, which consists of personalised management of medical absenteeism by systematic identification of students with extensive medical absenteeism and consistent referral to youth health care physicians, appears to reduce the absence rates more effectively than "medical absenteeism policy as usual". The effectiveness of the intervention is shown primarily by a decrease in the number of periods reported sick.

Pre-simulation orientation for medical trainees: An approach to decrease anxiety and improve confidence and performance.

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Bommer, Cassidy; Sullivan, Sarah; Campbell, Krystle; Ahola, Zachary; Agarwal, Suresh; O'Rourke, Ann; Jung, Hee Soo; Gibson, Angela; Leverson, Glen; Liepert, Amy E

2018-02-01

We assessed the effect of basic orientation to the simulation environment on anxiety, confidence, and clinical decision making. Twenty-four graduating medical students participated in a two-week surgery preparatory curriculum, including three simulations. Baseline anxiety was assessed pre-course. Scenarios were completed on day 2 and day 9. Prior to the first simulation, participants were randomly divided into two groups. Only one group received a pre-simulation orientation. Before the second simulation, all students received the same orientation. Learner anxiety was reported immediately preceding and following each simulation. Confidence was assessed post-simulation. Performance was evaluated by surgical faculty. The oriented group experienced decreased anxiety following the first simulation (p = 0.003); the control group did not. Compared to the control group, the oriented group reported less anxiety and greater confidence and received higher performance scores following all three simulations (all p simulation orientation reduces anxiety while increasing confidence and improving performance. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Factors influencing the approaches to studying of preclinical and clinical students and postgraduate trainees

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Samarasekera Dharmabandu N

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Students can be classified into three categories depending on their approaches to studying; namely, deep approach (DA, strategic approach (SA and surface apathetic or superficial approach (SAA. The aim of this study was to identify factors affecting the approaches to studying among Sri Lankan medical undergraduates and post graduate trainees and to analyze the change in the pattern of study skills with time and experience. Method Pre-clinical and clinical students of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Colombo and postgraduate trainees in Surgery at the National Hospital of Sri Lanka were invited to complete the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST questionnaire. Results A total of 187 pre clinical (M: F = 96:91, 124 clinical (M: F = 61:63 and 53 post graduate trainees (M: F = 50:3 participated in the study. Approaches of male and female students were similar. SA was significantly affected by age among the preclinical students (p = 0.01, but not in other groups. Among pre-clinical students, males preferred a teacher who supported understanding (p = 0.04 but females preferred a passive transmission of information (p Conclusion Different factors affect the approach to studying in different groups but these explain only a small fraction of the variance observed.

MCSA Microsoft Windows 8.1 complete study guide exams 70-687, 70-688, and 70-689

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Shapiro, Jeffrey R

2015-01-01

Comprehensive, hands-on study guide for the Microsoft Windows 8.1 exams The MCSA: Microsoft Windows 8.1 Complete Study Guide is a comprehensive package loaded with educational study tools, including a pre-assessment test, hands-on exercises, hundreds of review questions, exclusive practice exam questions, electronic flashcards, and over an hour of author-led videos. For IT students and professionals, getting certified on Microsoft Windows 8.1 can mean huge career opportunities. Over 90% of all personal computing devices run on Windows, and those certified on the newest version will be in high

Students interest in learning science through fieldwork activity encourage critical thinking and problem solving skills among UPSI pre-university students

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Jamil, Siti Zaheera Muhamad; Khairuddin, Raja Farhana Raja

2017-05-01

Graduates with good critical thinking and problem solving (CTPS) skills are likely to boost their employability to live in 21st century. The demands of graduates to be equipped with CTPS skills have shifted our education system in focusing on these elements in all levels of education, from primary, the secondary, and up to the tertiary education, by fostering interesting teaching and learning activities such as fieldwork activity in science classes. Despite the importance of the CTPS skills, little is known about whether students' interests in teaching and learning activities, such as fieldwork activity, have any influence on the students CTPS skills. Therefore, in this investigation, firstly to examine students interests in learning science through fieldwork activity. Secondly, this study examined whether the students' interest in learning science through fieldwork activity have affect on how the students employ CTPS skills. About 100 Diploma of Science students in Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) were randomly chosen to participate in this study. All of the participants completed a survey on how they find the fieldwork activity implemented in their science classes and it relevents towards their CTPS skills development. From our findings, majority of the students (91%) find that fieldwork activity is interesting and helpful in increasing their interest in learning science (learning factor) and accommodate their learning process (utility). Results suggest that students' interest on the fieldwork activity in science classes does have some influence on the students development of CTPS skills. The findings could be used as an initial guideline by incorporating students' interest on other teaching and learning activities that being implemented in science classes in order to know the impacts of these learning activities in enhancing their CTPS skills.

Interns reflect: the effect of formative assessment with feedback during pre-internship.

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McKenzie, Susan; Burgess, Annette; Mellis, Craig

2017-01-01

It is widely known that the opportunity for medical students to be observed and to receive feedback on their procedural skills performance is variable in the senior years. To address this problem, we provided our Pre-Intern (PrInt) students with "one-to-one" formative feedback on their ability to perform urethral catheterization (U/C) and hypothesized that their future practice of U/C as interns would benefit. This study sought to evaluate the performance and practice of interns in U/C 4-5 months after having received feedback on their performance of U/C as PrInt students. Between 2013 and 2014, two cohorts of interns, (total n=66) who had received recent formative feedback on their U/C performance as PrInt students at Central Clinical School, were invited to complete an anonymous survey. The survey contained nine closed unvalidated questions and one open-ended question, designed to allow interns to report on their current practice of U/C. Forty-one out of 66 interns (62%) completed the survey. Thirty-five out of 41 respondents (85%) reported that the assessment with feedback during their PrInt term was beneficial to their practice. Thirty of 41 (73%) reported being confident to perform U/C independently. Eleven out of 41 respondents (27%) reported that they had received additional training at intern orientation. Nine of the 11 interns (82%) reported that they had a small, but a significant, increase in confidence to perform U/C when compared with the 30 of the 41 respondents (73%) who had not ( p =0.03). Our results substantiate our hypothesis that further education by assessment with feedback in U/C during PrInt was of benefit to interns' performance. Additional educational reinforcement in U/C during intern orientation further improved intern confidence. Our results indicate that extra pre- and post-graduation procedural skills training, with feedback, should be universal.

Relationship between Female Pre University Students' Critical Thinking Skills and Their Mental Health

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Y. Maroofi

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Introduction & Objective: Critical thinking is simply defined as ability for analysis and evaluation of information. Today, this skill is considered as an undeniable necessity for social life. So fostering critical thinking ability is one of the basic goals of different levels of education from primary school to higher education. Each conscious behavior is related to the theoretical and intellectual foundation and origin. Therefore, the quality and types of thought play an important role in human mental health. This research studies the relationship between female pre-university students' critical thinking skills and their mental health in the academic year 2009-2010 in Hamadan city. Materials & Methods: This study is a cross sectional research and our method is based on correlation. Using random multiple stages clustering method, we selected 331 students as statistical sample. The data gathering instruments are two standard questionnaires: California form b critical thinking questionnaire and 28-question Goldberg and Hilier general health questionnaire. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistic indexes such as frequency, percent, mean and standard deviation and inferential tests such as Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regressions. Results: Research findings show that the average point of students' critical thinking skills is (6.51 out of 34 and their average point of mental health is (31.52 .About 61 persons(18.4 percent have not any psychological disorder, about 270 person (81.6 percent seemed to have psychological disorder symptoms. There are negative and significant differences between critical thinking skills and disorder in mental health. Multiple regression analysis show that: there is negative and significant differences between critical analysis and deductive rational skills with psychological disorder symptoms, that is when students' critical thinking skills increases, the psychological disorder symptoms decrease

The relationship between English language learning strategies and proficiency of pre-university students: A study case of UMS

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Kiram, Johannah Jamalul; Sulaiman, Jumat; Swanto, Suyansah; Din, Wardatul Akmam

2014-07-01

This paper seeks to investigate the relationship between language learning strategies and proficiency in English. Fifty-six pre-university students (22 males, 34 females) of University Malaysia Sabah participated in this study. Oxford's Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) self-report questionnaire was adopted to identify the students' language learning strategies, whereas their proficiencies were judged based on their Malaysian University English Test (MUET) Results. Pearson's correlation coefficient, Spearman's rank correlation coefficient and the t-test were utilized to make statistical interpretation about the relationship. The knowledge obtained from this study will be helpful for future studies on how to improve the quality of learning and proficiency in English.

Teaching medical students a clinical approach to altered mental status: simulation enhances traditional curriculum

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Jeremy D. Sperling

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Simulation-based medical education (SBME is increasingly being utilized for teaching clinical skills in undergraduate medical education. Studies have evaluated the impact of adding SBME to third- and fourth-year curriculum; however, very little research has assessed its efficacy for teaching clinical skills in pre-clerkship coursework. To measure the impact of a simulation exercise during a pre-clinical curriculum, a simulation session was added to a pre-clerkship course at our medical school where the clinical approach to altered mental status (AMS is traditionally taught using a lecture and an interactive case-based session in a small group format. The objective was to measure simulation's impact on students’ knowledge acquisition, comfort, and perceived competence with regards to the AMS patient. Methods: AMS simulation exercises were added to the lecture and small group case sessions in June 2010 and 2011. Simulation sessions consisted of two clinical cases using a high-fidelity full-body simulator followed by a faculty debriefing after each case. Student participation in a simulation session was voluntary. Students who did and did not participate in a simulation session completed a post-test to assess knowledge and a survey to understand comfort and perceived competence in their approach to AMS. Results: A total of 154 students completed the post-test and survey and 65 (42% attended a simulation session. Post-test scores were higher in students who attended a simulation session compared to those who did not (p<0.001. Students who participated in a simulation session were more comfortable in their overall approach to treating AMS patients (p=0.05. They were also more likely to state that they could articulate a differential diagnosis (p=0.03, know what initial diagnostic tests are needed (p=0.01, and understand what interventions are useful in the first few minutes (p=0.003. Students who participated in a simulation session

Pre-college education

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Stein, Sylvia

1990-01-01

Pre-college education efforts are many and varied, involving the teachers, students, parents, museums, and youth groups. However, it is necessary to reach out to school administration at all levels if teachers are to be innovative in their approaches. This introductory meeting clearly indicated that more interaction between the participants would be profitable. It is clear that the science pipeline leading from kindergarten to college entry needs to be filled with students. What is not clear is how we can do it. The plethora of projects being pursued by the NASA Space Grant College Fellowship (NSGC) programs to accomplish that goal are heartening and exciting. However, this large gamut of programs may also indicate how new we are in this game and how little anyone knows about creating a pre-college interest in science and engineering. In a way, it resembles the situation of the common cold--there is no known cure yet, so there are many so-called remedies. Unfortunately, the time we had together was entirely too short to address the evaluation situation, so that we can in the future zero in on the most effective approaches. This report is a summary of the many ways the different NSGC' s are approaching pre-college education and a list of suggestions.

Educational Gaming for Pharmacy Students - Design and Evaluation of a Diabetes-themed Escape Room.

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Eukel, Heidi N; Frenzel, Jeanne E; Cernusca, Dan

2017-09-01

Objective. To design an educational game that will increase third-year professional pharmacy students' knowledge of diabetes mellitus disease management and to evaluate their perceived value of the game. Methods. Faculty members created an innovative educational game, the diabetes escape room. An authentic escape room gaming environment was established through the use of a locked room, an escape time limit, and game rules within which student teams completed complex puzzles focused on diabetes disease management. To evaluate the impact, students completed a pre-test and post-test to measure the knowledge they've gained and a perception survey to identify moderating factors that could help instructors improve the game's effectiveness and utility. Results. Students showed statistically significant increases in knowledge after completion of the game. A one-sample t -test indicated that students' mean perception was statistically significantly higher than the mean value of the evaluation scale. This statically significant result proved that this gaming act offers a potential instructional benefit beyond its novelty. Conclusion. The diabetes escape room proved to be a valuable educational game that increased students' knowledge of diabetes mellitus disease management and showed a positive perceived overall value by student participants.

Impact of Interprofessional Simulation on Nursing Students' Attitudes Toward Teamwork and Collaboration.

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Krueger, Linda; Ernstmeyer, Kim; Kirking, Ellen

2017-06-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of a multipatient, interprofessional simulation session on nursing students' attitudes toward nurse-physician collaboration using the Jefferson Scale of Attitudes Toward Physician-Nurse Collaboration. Final-semester nursing students, along with medical resident and students from other health programs, participated in a simulation exercise that included a period of prebriefing, simulation, and debriefing. Participants completed pre- and postsimulation surveys to assess the impact on collaboration. In total, 268 nursing students completed the survey. Participants had a more positive attitude toward nurse-physician collaboration following the simulation event, compared with prior to it. Significant differences between male and female nursing students were found on mean postsimulation scores and for three of the four subscales of the tool. Interprofessional simulation may be an effective way to enhance collaborative relationships, which ultimately may influence patient safety and quality of care. [J Nurs Educ. 2017;56(6):321-327.]. Copyright 2017, SLACK Incorporated.

Exploring Pre-Service EFL Teachers’ Beliefs About Their Roles in an Elementary School Classroom in Regard to Pedagogical and Emotional Aspects of Students

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Iván Aguirre Sánchez

2014-04-01

Full Text Available This article aims at exploring the beliefs of a group of pre-service teachers from a B.Ed. program in Bilingual Education in Bogotá (Colombia, regarding their role as teachers in some general pedagogical and emotional aspects of their primary school students inside the classroom. They were observed over 16 weeks during their pre-service practice and were asked to submit weekly log entries with pedagogical reflections on their performance. Results show that these pre-service teachers believe motivation and identification of their students’ academic needs to be their main role inside the classroom.

Implementing the Flipped Classroom in a Veterinary Pre-clinical Science Course: Student Engagement, Performance, and Satisfaction.

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Dooley, Laura M; Frankland, Sarah; Boller, Elise; Tudor, Elizabeth

2018-01-01

There has been a recent move toward active learning pedagogies in veterinary education, with increasing use of a blended approach that incorporates both online resources and live classroom sessions. In this study, an established veterinary pre-clinical course in introductory animal health was transitioned from a traditional didactic lecture delivery mode to a flipped classroom approach with core content delivered online. This study compared the experiences of two cohorts of students who studied the same course in the different formats in consecutive years. Online learning resources included short video segments and a variety of short problems and activities. Online materials were complemented with weekly small-group case-based learning classes facilitated by academic staff. A mixed methods evaluation strategy was applied using student grades, surveys, and focus groups to compare student academic performance, satisfaction, and engagement between the two cohorts. The flipped classroom cohort achieved significantly higher grades in the written answer section of the final examination. Student satisfaction with learning resources was also higher in this cohort. However, satisfaction with other aspects of the course was largely the same for both cohorts. This study revealed some of the challenges associated with achieving adequate student preparation for class using online resources. The outcomes of this study have implications for veterinary educators considering the design and development of new online learning resources.

Motivation and academic performance of medical students from ethnic minorities and majority: a comparative study.

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Isik, Ulviye; Wouters, Anouk; Ter Wee, Marieke M; Croiset, Gerda; Kusurkar, Rashmi A

2017-11-28

Medical students from ethnic minorities underperform in knowledge and skills assessments both in pre-clinical and clinical education compared to the ethnic majority group. Motivation, which influences learning and academic performance of medical students, might play an important role in explaining these differences, but is under-investigated. This study aimed to compare two types of motivation (autonomous and controlled) of ethnic minority (Western and non-Western) and majority (Dutch) students, and their association with academic performance. In a cross-sectional study, all students of a Dutch medical school were invited to complete a survey including the Academic Self-Regulation Questionnaire, measuring autonomous and controlled motivation, in the academic year 2015-2016. Motivation was compared using Kruskal-Wallis test and performance was compared using One-Way ANOVA. Linear regression analysis was used to determine the association between motivation and performance (grade point average; GPA). The response rate was 38.6% (n = 947). Autonomous motivation (AM) of non-Western students was higher than that of Dutch students in pre-clinical and clinical education (p motivation was higher in Western students than in Dutch students (pre-clinical education; p motivation between the ethnic majority and minority groups. The association of motivation with performance also differs between ethnic groups. We found that AM has a positive influence on GPA. Further research is needed to uncover the underlying mechanisms.

Basic airway skills acquisition using the American College of Surgeons/Association for Surgical Education medical student simulation-based surgical skills curriculum: Initial results.

Science.gov (United States)

Muratore, Sydne; Kim, Michael; Olasky, Jaisa; Campbell, Andre; Acton, Robert

2017-02-01

The ACS/ASE Medical Student Simulation-Based Skills Curriculum was developed to standardize medical student training. This study aims to evaluate the feasibility and validity of implementing the basic airway curriculum. This single-center, prospective study of medical students participating in the basic airway module from 12/2014-3/2016 consisted of didactics, small-group practice, and testing in a simulated clinical scenario. Proficiency was determined by a checklist of skills (1-15), global score (1-5), and letter grade (NR-needs review, PS-proficient in simulation scenario, CP-proficient in clinical scenario). A proportion of students completed pre/post-test surveys regarding experience, satisfaction, comfort, and self-perceived proficiency. Over 16 months, 240 students were enrolled with 98% deemed proficient in a simulated or clinical scenario. Pre/post-test surveys (n = 126) indicated improvement in self-perceived proficiency by 99% of learners. All students felt moderately to very comfortable performing basic airway skills and 94% had moderate to considerable satisfaction after completing the module. The ACS/ASE Surgical Skills Curriculum is a feasible and effective way to teach medical students basic airway skills using simulation. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

[Effectiveness and difficulty of education on nosocomial infection control for pre-clinical practice in the clinic, so-called inclusive clinical practice phase I, for students in the Faculty of Dentistry, Tokyo Medical and Dental University].

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Sunakawa, Mitsuhiro; Matsumoto, Hiroyuki

2009-03-01

It has been planned to give pre-clinical practice in the clinic, so-called inclusive clinical practice phase I, for fifth-grade students in the School of Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, to give them the clinical training needed to perform dental practice and clinical practicum for comprehensive patient care, namely inclusive clinical practice phase II. This study analyzed the educative efficiency of the class on nosocomial infection control (NIC) by comparing achievements pre- and post-test, and discussed appropriate education planning on the NIC for dental students. Sixty-two fifth-grade students in the 2007 academic year sat the pre- and post-tests; the mean score and standard deviation of these tests were 5.30 +/- 1.26 (n = 56) and 8.59 +/- 1.18 (n = 59), respectively. There was a statistically significant difference between them (paired t-test, p < 0.01). Another finding was that students with high scores in the post-test did not necessarily achieve high ratings in the pre-test. It is suggested that the introduction of pre- and post-tests and the clarification of main points in the class as a theme of NIC could be a useful tool for increasing the comprehension of students on the theme. Since students at lower grades will attend clinical practice in the university hospital, it is thought that students should be given NIC training early in the clinical course, and the current curriculum should be improved to increase the opportunity for students to study this important issue.

Calculus, Biology and Medicine: A Case Study in Quantitative Literacy for Science Students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kim Rheinlander

2011-01-01

Full Text Available This paper describes a course designed to enhance the numeracy of biology and pre-medical students. The course introduces students with the background of one semester of calculus to systems of nonlinear ordinary differential equations as they appear in the mathematical biology literature. Evaluation of the course showed increased enjoyment and confidence in doing mathematics, and an increased appreciation of the utility of mathematics to science. Students who complete this course are better able to read the research literature in mathematical biology and carry out research problems of their own.

The learning environment in the obstetrics and gynecology clerkship: an exploratory study of students' perceptions before and after the clerkship.

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Baecher-Lind, Laura E; Chang, Katherine; Blanco, Maria A

2015-01-01

For reasons that remain not entirely clear, Obstetrics and Gynecology (Ob/Gyn) clerkships often exhibit comparatively higher rates of medical student mistreatment. To explore perceptions of our local learning environment, focus groups were held with students yet to start (pre-students) and students having completed (post-students) their Ob/Gyn clerkship. Topics of discussion included learning expectations and experiences, perceptions of mistreatment, and suggestions for improving the learning environment and student treatment. Using a naturalistic approach, we conducted a conventional content analysis to identify emergent themes. Nine pre-students and nine post-students participated. While pre-students anticipated being actively engaged, they also expected - based on peer accounts - to be subject to an unwelcoming learning environment on the Ob/Gyn clerkship, despite working hard to become team members. Due to patient advocacy and protection concerns, post-students reported low levels of student involvement and, subsequently, an overall passive learning experience. Students from both groups offered valuable suggestions for improving the learning environment and student treatment. The sensitive nature of Ob/Gyn clinical encounters may lead to overprotective behaviors that contribute to students feeling mistreated and excluded from patient care and team membership. Students' experiences during Ob/Gyn clerkships could be improved by better balancing patient advocacy and student involvement. Practical implications to address these issues are offered.

Opportunity to learn: Investigating possible predictors for pre-course Test Of Astronomy STandards TOAST scores

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Berryhill, Katie J.

As astronomy education researchers become more interested in experimentally testing innovative teaching strategies to enhance learning in introductory astronomy survey courses ("ASTRO 101"), scholars are placing increased attention toward better understanding factors impacting student gain scores on the widely used Test Of Astronomy STandards (TOAST). Usually used in a pre-test and post-test research design, one might naturally assume that the pre-course differences observed between high- and low-scoring college students might be due in large part to their pre-existing motivation, interest, experience in science, and attitudes about astronomy. To explore this notion, 11 non-science majoring undergraduates taking ASTRO 101 at west coast community colleges were interviewed in the first few weeks of the course to better understand students' pre-existing affect toward learning astronomy with an eye toward predicting student success. In answering this question, we hope to contribute to our understanding of the incoming knowledge of students taking undergraduate introductory astronomy classes, but also gain insight into how faculty can best meet those students' needs and assist them in achieving success. Perhaps surprisingly, there was only weak correlation between students' motivation toward learning astronomy and their pre-test scores. Instead, the most fruitful predictor of TOAST pre-test scores was the quantity of pre-existing, informal, self-directed astronomy learning experiences.

Developing a Measurement Tool for Assessing Physiotherapy Students' Self-Efficacy: A Pilot Study

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Jones, Anne; Sheppard, Lorraine

2012-01-01

The aim of this research was to determine if self-efficacy can be correlated with prior academic achievement and whether self-efficacy can be an outcome measure of education. A self-efficacy instrument was developed and administered to physiotherapy students following completion of their pre-clinical theory experience. The questionnaire results…

Disconnections Between Teacher Expectations and Student Confidence in Bioethics

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Hanegan, Nikki L.; Price, Laura; Peterson, Jeremy

2008-09-01

This study examines how student practice of scientific argumentation using socioscientific bioethics issues affects both teacher expectations of students’ general performance and student confidence in their own work. When teachers use bioethical issues in the classroom students can gain not only biology content knowledge but also important decision-making skills. Learning bioethics through scientific argumentation gives students opportunities to express their ideas, formulate educated opinions and value others’ viewpoints. Research has shown that science teachers’ expectations of student success and knowledge directly influence student achievement and confidence levels. Our study analyzes pre-course and post-course surveys completed by students enrolled in a university level bioethics course ( n = 111) and by faculty in the College of Biology and Agriculture faculty ( n = 34) based on their perceptions of student confidence. Additionally, student data were collected from classroom observations and interviews. Data analysis showed a disconnect between faculty and students perceptions of confidence for both knowledge and the use of science argumentation. Student reports of their confidence levels regarding various bioethical issues were higher than faculty reports. A further disconnect showed up between students’ preferred learning styles and the general faculty’s common teaching methods; students learned more by practicing scientific argumentation than listening to traditional lectures. Students who completed a bioethics course that included practice in scientific argumentation, significantly increased their confidence levels. This study suggests that professors’ expectations and teaching styles influence student confidence levels in both knowledge and scientific argumentation.

An outline of possible pre-course diagnostics for differential calculus

OpenAIRE

Maharaj, Aneshkumar; Wagh, Vivek

2014-01-01

There is a view that many first-year students lack the basic knowledge and skills expected of them to study at university level. We examined the expected work habits and pre-course diagnostics for students who choose to take a course on differential calculus. We focused on the lecturer pre-course expectations of a student in the context of work habits, knowledge and technical skills. In particular, we formulated outcomes and then sample diagnostic questions to test whether the identified lear...

A Study on the Relationship between English Vocabulary Threshold and Word Guessing Strategy for Pre-University Chinese Students in Malaysia

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Juan, Wu Xiao; Abidin, Mohamad Jafre Zainol; Eng, Lin Siew

2013-01-01

This survey aims at studying the relationship between English vocabulary threshold and word guessing strategy that is used in reading comprehension learning among 80 pre-university Chinese students in Malaysia. T-test is the main statistical test for this research, and the collected data is analysed using SPSS. From the standard deviation test…

Impact of sexual health course on Malaysian university students.

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Low, W Y

2004-10-01

A sexual health course was offered and taught by academic staff from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya during semester II of every year as a university elective course to other university students apart from medical students. The course covered a wide range of topics: adolescent sexuality, family planning and pregnancy, violence against women, alternative sexual behavior, physiology of sex, sex and the disabled, gender bias in sexuality, relationship and marriage, sexual dysfunctions, clarification of sexual attitudes and STDs and AIDS. The Sexual Knowledge and Attitude Test (SKAT-II) was used to measure students' pre- and post-course scores on sexual knowledge and attitudes. Fifty-four students who completed both the pre- and post-course tests showed a significant change in sexual knowledge and their attitudes towards sexual myths and autoeroticism. Sexual knowledge was also positively correlated with age, heterosexual relations, autoeroticism and sexual myths scores. However, sexual knowledge is negatively related to religiosity and the influence of religious beliefs on one's attitudes towards sexual matters. This study showed that the sexual health course offered does have a positive impact in increasing one's knowledge and changing one's attitudes towards sexual issues.

A model for partnering first-year student pharmacists with community-based older adults.

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Martin, Beth A; Porter, Andrea L; Shawl, Lauren; Motl Moroney, Susannah E

2012-06-18

To design, integrate, and assess the effectiveness of an introductory pharmacy practice experience intended to redefine first-year student pharmacists' views on aging and medication use through their work with a healthy, community-based older-adult population. All students (N = 273) completed live skills training in an 8-hour boot camp provided during orientation week. Teams were assigned an independently living senior partner, completed 10 visits and reflections, and documented health-related information using an electronic portfolio (e-portfolio). As determined by pre- and post-experience survey instruments, students gained significant confidence in 7 skill areas related to communication, medication interviews, involving the partner in health care, and applying patient-care skills. Student reflections, in-class presentations, and e-portfolios documented that personal attitudes toward seniors changed over time. Senior partners enjoyed mentoring and interacting with students and many experienced health improvements as a result of the interaction. The model for partnering first-year student pharmacists with community-based older adults improved students' skills and fostered their connections to pharmacist roles and growth as person-centered providers.

Engaging Pre-Service Teachers to Teach Science Contextually with Scientific Approach Instructional Video

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Susantini, E.; Kurniasari, I.; Fauziah, A. N. M.; Prastowo, T.; Kholiq, A.; Rosdiana, L.

2018-01-01

Contextual teaching and learning/CTL presents new concepts in real-life experiences and situations where students can find out the meaningful relationship between abstract ideas and practical applications. Implementing contextual teaching by using scientific approach will foster teachers to find the constructive ways of delivering and organizing science content. This research developed an instructional video that represented a modeling of using a scientific approach in CTL. The aim of this research are to engage pre-service teachers in learning how to teach CTL and to show how pre-service teachers’ responses about learning how to teach CTL using an instructional video. The subjects of this research were ten pre-service teachers in Department of Natural Sciences, Universitas Negeri Surabaya, Indonesia. All subjects observed the instructional video which demonstrated contextual teaching and learning combined with the scientific approach as they completed a worksheet to analyze the video content. The results showed that pre-service teachers could learn to teach contextually as well as applying the scientific approach in science classroom through a modeling in the instructional video. They also responded that the instructional video could help them to learn to teach each component contextual teaching as well as scientific approach.

The Challenges and Success of Implementing Climate Studies Lessons for Pre-Professional Teachers at a Small Historically Black College to Engage Student Teaching of Science Pedagogy and Content Skill Based Learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Arnold, J.; Wider-Lewis, F.; Miller-Jenkins, A.

2017-12-01

This poster is a description of the challenges and success of implementing climate studies lessons for pre-service teachers to engage student teaching pedagogy and content skill based learning. Edward Waters College is a historical black college with an elementary education teacher program focused on urban elementary school teaching and learning. Pre-Service Elementary Educator Students often have difficulty with science and mathematics content and pedagogy. This poster will highlight the barriers and successes of using climate studies lessons to develop and enhance pre-service teachers' knowledge of elementary science principles particularly related to climate studies, physical and earth space science.

Training student pharmacists to administer emergency pediatric influenza vaccine: A comparison of traditional vs. just-in-time training.

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Terriff, Colleen M; McKeirnan, Kimberly

2017-07-01

This study compared traditional training (TT) and just-in-time training (JITT) of P3 student pharmacists regarding interest, confidence, and comfort pre- and post-training (primary objective); and assessment and administration competency (secondary objective) during a simulated influenza vaccination clinic. Student pharmacists were randomized 1:1 to receive either TT or JITT, completed pre- and post-training surveys assessing interest, confidence and comfort; and evaluated on performance during a simulated emergency infant vaccination. An infant manikin simulated a child <1 year of age, and an actor role-played the mother. All students received a briefing about the simulated mass vaccination prior to their performance assessment. Survey differences between groups were analyzed by ANOVA. The competency assessment was analyzed by a Chi-square or Fisher's exact test for individual steps and Student t-test for mean scores. Pre-training interest was high and maintained post-training. Pre-training confidence and comfort levels were low and improved in both groups. Mean competency scores were comparable between the TT and JITT groups. Comparing groups, TT students more commonly missed proper injection site selection and care; while JITT missed distracting the infant and administration documentation. JITT for student pharmacists to learn skills required to immunize infants elicits similar outcomes (interest, confidence, comfort, and administration competency) as TT for emergency pediatric influenza vaccination. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Learning style preferences: A study of Pre-clinical Medical Students in Barbados

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NKEMCHO OJEH

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Educators need to be aware of different learning styles to effectively tailor instructional strategies and methods to cater to the students’ learning needs and support a conductive learning environment. The VARK [an acronym for visual (V, aural (A, read/write (R and kinesthetic (K] instrument is a useful model to assess learning styles. The aim of this study was to use the VARK questionnaire to determine the learning styles of pre-clinical medical students in order to compare the perceived and assessed learning style preferences, assess gender differences in learning style preferences, and determine whether any relationships exists between awareness of learning styles and academic grades, age, gender and learning modality. Methods: The VARK questionnaire was administered to preclinical students taking a variety of courses in the first three years of the undergraduate MB BS degree programme at the Faculty of Medical Sciences, The University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados in 2014. Results: The majority of the students were multimodal learners with no differences observed between males (59.5% and females (60.0%, with tetramodal being the most common. Read/write (33.8% followed by kinesthetic (32.5% were the most common learning style preferences. The sensory modality preference for females was read/write (34.2% and for males it was kinesthetic (40.5%. Significant differences were observed between the perceived and assessed learning style preferences with a majority of visual and read/write learners correctly matching their perceived to their actual learning styles. Awareness of learning styles was associated with learning modality but not with academic performance, age or gender. Overall, 60.7% of high achievers used multimodal learning compared to 56.9% low achievers. Conclusion: The findings from this study indicated that the VARK tool was useful in gathering information about different learning styles, and might

Learning centred approach for developing the electronic information search processes of students.

Science.gov (United States)

Shanahan, Madeleine

2009-11-01

Undergraduate students of the twenty-first century are widely regarded as 'technologically savvy' and have embraced the electronic information world. The literature, however, describes undergraduate students as using a limited range of electronic information sources and not critically evaluating the information they retrieve from internet searches. The aim was to evaluate a purposefully designed intervention that sought to expand the information search and evaluation practices of undergraduate students. The intervention scaffolded an independent learning activity in the form of a group-based project. Survey methodology was used to collect data from student pre- and post-intervention for two cohorts of students who undertook the intervention in 2005 and 2006 involving a total of 71 students. Percentages were used to describe survey findings and chi-square analysis and Fisher's exact test examined differences between groups. Questionnaires were completed by 59 students (response rate 83%) pre-intervention and 49 students (response rate 69%) post-intervention. Post-intervention there were positive and statistically significant differences in database searching behaviour (p = 0.000), use of Google Scholar (p = 0.035) and number of criteria used to evaluate information retrieved from the internet (p = 0.000) by students. By positively reshaping the electronic information search and evaluation practices of students we are helping students to find informed information sources as they engage in independent learning activities at university and as future health professionals.

Pre-writing Techniques In The Writing Process For The L2 Classroom

OpenAIRE

Gülşah Geyimci

2014-01-01

This study investigated pre-writing techniques in the learning process to improve written communication skills of learners using qualitative research methods. This study was performed in a public school, Suphi Öner Primary School in Turkey, in Mersin. Students were seventh grade class that their level was pre-intermediate. This class was made up of twenty students. It took three weeks, the students' samples, drawings and blogs were documented by the students. In order to examine the results, ...

Timely Post-Graduate Degree Completion: A Case Study of Jamshoro Education City

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Jagul Huma Lashari

2013-01-01

Full Text Available This study identifies the status of postgraduate students at the master degree level regarding their degree completion in the three public sector universities at Jamshoro Education City. The status is identified by analyzing enrolment of the postgraduate and comparing it with rate of their degree completion. In addition, the paper also discusses their characteristics which lead them towards the degree completion. For this paper, enrolment of the postgraduate students at the master level is compared with the degree completion rate of 2008 academic session only. The result shows the obvious difference between enrolment and rate of the degree completion. In total 417 postgraduate students were enrolled in 2008 session, however, only 60 (14% of students have completed their postgraduate degrees. Those who have completed their degrees, with respect to universities 6% students belong to US (University of Sindh, 22% belong to MUET (Mehran University of Engineering & Technology and 8% students belong to LUMHS (Liaquat University of Medical & Health Sciences. The demographical data of the postgraduate students has also shown some variations like gender, age, employment, and financial resources. In addition, the research requirements also vary for different postgraduate students. The research requirements include lab based, field based and library based resources. The characteristics of the postgraduate students of three public sector universities including financial resources, employment status, and working organization also show differences with each-other in terms of the degree completion.

Areas and Volumes in Pre-Calculus

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Jarrett, Joscelyn A.

2008-01-01

This article suggests the introduction of the concepts of areas bounded by plane curves and the volumes of solids of revolution in Pre-calculus. It builds on the basic knowledge that students bring to a pre-calculus class, derives a few more formulas, and gives examples of some problems on plane areas and the volumes of solids of revolution that…

Student involvement in learning: Collaboration in science for PreService elementary teachers

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Roychoudhury, Anita; Roth, Wolff-Michael

1992-03-01

The present study provided insights regarding the interactions that take place in collaborative science laboratory and regarding the outcome of such interactions. Science laboratory experiences structured by teachers have been criticized for allowing very little, if any, meaningful learning. However, this study showed that even structured laboratory experiments can provide insightful experience for students when conducted in a group setting that demanded interactive participation from all its members. The findings of the present study underscored the synergistic and supportive nature of collaborative groups. Here, students patiently repeated explanations to support the meaning construction on the part of their slower peers and elaborated their own understanding in the process; groups negotiated the meaning of observations and the corresponding theoretical explanations; students developed and practiced a range of social skills necessary in today’s workplace; and off-task behavior was thwarted by the group members motivated to work toward understanding rather than simply generating answers for task completion. The current findings suggest an increased use of collaborative learning environments for the teaching of science to elementary education majors. Some teachers have already made use of such settings in their laboratory teaching. However, collaborative learning should not be limited to the laboratory only, but be extended to more traditionally structured classes. The effects of such a switch in activity structures, increased quality of peer interaction, mastery of subject matter content, and decreased anxiety levels could well lead to better attitudes toward science among preservice elementary school teachers and eventually among their own students.

Outcome and Impact Evaluation of a Transgender Health Course for Health Profession Students.

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Braun, Hannan M; Garcia-Grossman, Ilana R; Quiñones-Rivera, Andrea; Deutsch, Madeline B

2017-02-01

Being transgender is associated with numerous health disparities, and transgender individuals face mistreatment and discrimination in healthcare settings. At the same time, healthcare professionals report inadequate preparation to care for transgender people, and patients often have to teach their own medical providers about transgender care. Our study aimed to evaluate the impact of an elective course for health profession students in transgender health that was implemented to address these gaps in provider knowledge. Students participated in a 10-session, lunch-hour elective course during the spring of 2015. To evaluate impact, course participants completed pre-, immediately post-, and 3-month postcourse questionnaires, including a previously validated nine-item transphobia scale, to determine the course's effect on knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs about transgender health. Forty-six students completed the pre- and immediately postelective questionnaire (74% response rate). Compared with pre-elective surveys, immediately postelective scores demonstrated increased knowledge in most domains and reduced transphobia. Specific knowledge domains with improvements included terminology, best practices for collecting gender identity, awareness of the DSM-V gender dysphoria diagnosis, medications used for gender affirmation, and relevant federal policies. A previously validated transphobia scale was found to have good reliability in the current sample. This elective course led to positive short-term changes in measures of multiple knowledge domains and reduced measures of transphobia among health profession students. Further study is needed to assess the long-term impact. Our methods and findings, including the demonstration of reliability of a previously validated nine-item transphobia scale, serve as formative data for the future development of theory-based transgender medicine curricula and measures.

Growing Pebbles and Conceptual Prisms - Understanding the Source of Student Misconceptions about Rock Formation.

Science.gov (United States)

Kusnick, Judi

2002-01-01

Analyzes narrative essays--stories of rock formation--written by pre-service elementary school teachers. Reports startling misconceptions among preservice teachers on pebbles that grow, human involvement in rock formation, and sedimentary rocks forming as puddles as dry up, even though these students had completed a college level course on Earth…

English language pre-service and in-service teachers’ self-efficacy and attitudes towards integration of students with learning difficulties

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Cimermanová Ivana

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The study of foreign languages is obligatory for all pupils in Slovakia, where the first foreign language is English. Conforming to integration legislation, pupils with special educational needs (SEN are taught in mainstream classes. Foreign language teachers, however, lack training and where not prepared how to apply teaching methods and techniques for pupils with SEN in the regular language learning class. In the study presented, 187 elementary school teachers filled out questionnaires dealing with integration of pupils with SEN and possible inclusion of learners with disabilities in Slovakia and a group of 56 university FLT students - teachers-to-be. Teachers are not forced and/or encouraged to take part in in-service courses or other education on how to teach these pupils. The pre-service teachers are offered courses on SEN teaching, however, these are not compulsory and mostly general education oriented. The majority of in-service and pre-service teachers felt that pupils with SEN should be taught in regular education class. The article also describes the current situation concerning integration of students with SEN using the official statistical data.

Understanding groundwater - students' pre-conceptions and conceptual change by a theory-guided multimedia learning program

Science.gov (United States)

Unterbruner, U.; Hilberg, S.; Schiffl, I.

2015-11-01

Groundwater is a crucial topic in education for sustainable development. Nevertheless, international studies with students of different ages have shown that the basic hydrogeological concept of groundwater defined as water within porous and permeable rocks is not an established everyday notion. Building upon international research a multimedia learning program ("Between the raincloud and the tap") was developed. Insights from the fields of conceptual change research, multimedia research, and the Model of Educational Reconstruction were specifically implemented. Two studies were conducted with Austrian pupils (7th grade) and teacher training students from the fields of biology and geography in order to ascertain the effectiveness of the learning program. Using a quasi-experimental research design, the participants' conceptions and knowledge regarding groundwater were determined in a pre- and post-test. The pupils and students greatly profited from independently working through the learning software. Their knowledge of groundwater increased significantly compared to the control group and there was a highly significant increase in the number of scientifically correct notions of groundwater. The acceptance of the program was also generally very high. The results speak for the fact that theory-guided multimedia learning programs can play an important role in the transfer of research results into the classroom, particularly in science education.

Predicting the academic success of architecture students by pre-enrolment requirement: using machine-learning techniques

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ralph Olusola Aluko

2016-12-01

Full Text Available In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of applicants seeking admission into architecture programmes. As expected, prior academic performance (also referred to as pre-enrolment requirement is a major factor considered during the process of selecting applicants. In the present study, machine learning models were used to predict academic success of architecture students based on information provided in prior academic performance. Two modeling techniques, namely K-nearest neighbour (k-NN and linear discriminant analysis were applied in the study. It was found that K-nearest neighbour (k-NN outperforms the linear discriminant analysis model in terms of accuracy. In addition, grades obtained in mathematics (at ordinary level examinations had a significant impact on the academic success of undergraduate architecture students. This paper makes a modest contribution to the ongoing discussion on the relationship between prior academic performance and academic success of undergraduate students by evaluating this proposition. One of the issues that emerges from these findings is that prior academic performance can be used as a predictor of academic success in undergraduate architecture programmes. Overall, the developed k-NN model can serve as a valuable tool during the process of selecting new intakes into undergraduate architecture programmes in Nigeria.

Paving the Road for Student Success: Building a Case for Integrated Strategic Planning from Pre-K to Post-Doc

Science.gov (United States)

Kealey, Jarrett; Peterson, Renee; Thompson, Angela; Waters, Kristin

2015-01-01

The road from prekindergarten (pre-K) to post-doctoral (post-doc) work is riddled with potholes, detours, u-turns, and construction zones. National education initiatives such as No Child Left Behind, the Common Core, Race to the Top, Performance-Based Funding, College Readiness and Completion Acts, and Post-Graduate Gainful Employment Reports…

Impact of an Advanced Cardiac Life Support Simulation Laboratory Experience on Pharmacy Student Confidence and Knowledge.

Science.gov (United States)

Maxwell, Whitney D; Mohorn, Phillip L; Haney, Jason S; Phillips, Cynthia M; Lu, Z Kevin; Clark, Kimberly; Corboy, Alex; Ragucci, Kelly R

2016-10-25

Objective. To assess the impact of an advanced cardiac life support (ACLS) simulation on pharmacy student confidence and knowledge. Design. Third-year pharmacy students participated in a simulation experience that consisted of team roles training, high-fidelity ACLS simulations, and debriefing. Students completed a pre/postsimulation confidence and knowledge assessment. Assessment. Overall, student knowledge assessment scores and student confidence scores improved significantly. Student confidence and knowledge changes from baseline were not significantly correlated. Conversely, a significant, weak positive correlation between presimulation studying and both presimulation confidence and presimulation knowledge was discovered. Conclusions. Overall, student confidence and knowledge assessment scores in ACLS significantly improved from baseline; however, student confidence and knowledge were not significantly correlated.

Reply to "Comment on "Benefits of Completing Homework for Students with Different Aptitudes in an Introductory Electricity and Magnetism Course""

Science.gov (United States)

Kontur, F. J.; de La Harpe, K.; Terry, N. B.

2016-01-01

We reply to Rieger, Reinsberg, and Wieman's forgoing Comment [Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res., Comment on "Benefits of completing homework for students with different aptitudes in an introductory electricity and magnetism course" 12, 028001 (2016)].

Designer babies on tap? Medical students' attitudes to pre-implantation genetic screening.

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Meisenberg, Gerhard

2009-03-01

This paper describes two studies about the determinants of attitudes to pre-implantation genetic screening in a multicultural sample of medical students from the United States. Sample sizes were 292 in study 1 and 1464 in study 2. Attitudes were of an undifferentiated nature, but respondents did make a major distinction between use for disease prevention and use for enhancement. No strong distinctions were made between embryo selection and germ line gene manipulations, and between somatic gene therapy and germ line gene manipulations. Religiosity was negatively associated with acceptance of "designer baby" technology for Christians and Muslims but not Hindus. However, the strongest and most consistent influence was an apparently moralistic stance against active and aggressive interference with natural processes in general. Trust in individuals and institutions was unrelated to acceptance of the technology, indicating that fear of abuse by irresponsible individuals and corporations is not an important determinant of opposition.

Brewing for Students: An Inquiry-Based Microbiology Lab.

Science.gov (United States)

Sato, Brian K; Alam, Usman; Dacanay, Samantha J; Lee, Amanda K; Shaffer, Justin F

2015-12-01

In an effort to improve and assess student learning, there has been a push to increase the incorporation of discovery-driven modules and those that contain real-world relevance into laboratory curricula. To further this effort, we have developed, implemented, and assessed an undergraduate microbiology laboratory experiment that requires students to use the scientific method while brewing beer. The experiment allows students to brew their own beer and characterize it based on taste, alcohol content, calorie content, pH, and standard reference method. In addition, we assessed whether students were capable of achieving the module learning objectives through a pre-/posttest, student self-evaluation, exam-embedded questions, and an associated worksheet. These objectives included describing the role of the brewing ingredients and predicting how altering the ingredients would affect the characteristics of the beer, amongst others. By completing this experimental module, students accomplished the module objectives, had greater interest in brewing, and were more likely to view beer in scientific terms. Journal of Microbiology & Biology Education.

How well does pre-service education prepare midwives for practice: competence assessment of midwifery students at the point of graduation in Ethiopia

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Yigzaw, T; Ayalew, F; Kim, Y.M.; Gelagay, M; Dejene, D; Gibson, H; Teshome, A; Broerse, J.E.W.; Stekelenburg, J.

2015-01-01

Background: Midwifery support and care led by midwives is the most appropriate strategy to improve maternal and newborn health. The Government of Ethiopia has recently improved the availability of midwives by scaling up pre-service education. However, the extent to which graduating students acquire

How well does pre-service education prepare midwives for practice : competence assessment of midwifery students at the point of graduation in Ethiopia

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Yigzaw, Tegbar; Ayalew, Firew; Kim, Young-Mi; Gelagay, Mintwab; Dejene, Daniel; Gibson, Hannah; Teshome, Aster; Broerse, Jacqueline; Stekelenburg, Jelle

2015-01-01

Background: Midwifery support and care led by midwives is the most appropriate strategy to improve maternal and newborn health. The Government of Ethiopia has recently improved the availability of midwives by scaling up pre-service education. However, the extent to which graduating students acquire

Evidence-Based Practice Knowledge, Attitude, Access and Confidence: A comparison of dental hygiene and dental students.

Science.gov (United States)

Santiago, Victoria; Cardenas, Melissa; Charles, Anne Laure; Hernandez, Estefany; Oyoyo, Udochukwu; Kwon, So Ran

2018-04-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether current educational strategies at a dental institution in the United States made a difference in dental hygiene (DNHY) and dental students' (D3) learning outcomes in the four domains of evidence-based practice (EBP), knowledge, attitude, accessing evidence, and confidence (KACE), following a 12-week research design course. Methods: All participants DNHY (n=19) and D3 (n=96) enrolled in the research design course at Loma Linda University completed a paper KACE survey distributed on the first day of class. Students completed the KACE survey once more at the end of the 12-week course. Pre- and post-survey results were compared both within and between the DNHY and D3 student groups to identify the learning outcomes in the four domains of EBP; knowledge, attitude, accessing evidence, and confidence in EBP. Descriptive statistics were conducted to profile all variables in the study; the level of significance was set at α=0.05. Results: All DNHY students (n=19) completed the pre and post KACE surveys; of the D3 (n=96) students enrolled in the course 82% (n=79) competed the post-survey. Comparison of the survey results showed that both DNHY and D3 students demonstrated statistically significant increases in their level of knowledge and attitude (p 0.05). Conclusion: DNHY and D3 students increased their knowledge and developed more positive attitudes towards EBP following a 12-week research design course. Study results identify improvement areas for EBP knowledge acquisition including determining levels of evidence, analysis of study results, and evaluating the appropriateness of research study designs through the use of validated EBP survey instrument. Copyright © 2018 The American Dental Hygienists’ Association.

Pre-Service Teachers Methods of Teaching Science

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dr. Raquel C. Pambid

2015-02-01

Full Text Available The study described the teaching methods used by pre-service teachers in Science. It focused on the strategies, techniques, materials, innovative methods and pattern of teaching science used by the pre-service teachers as described in their lesson plans. The qualitative and quantitative design was used in the study. The books, teacher hand-outs from classroom lectures were the sources of methods, strategies and techniques. The chalkboard and self-made drawings and charts were the materials often used. Conventional methods like lecture, open class discussion and demonstration were commonly employed. The strategies included group discussion, use of motivating questions and stories to arouse the interest of students. The direct eye contact, body expressions, jokes and news/trivia were frequent techniques. Integration of values in the lesson became less as the year level increases. The pattern of teaching drawn followed the formal style: I Objectives, II Subject matter, III Learning Tasks, IV Synthesis of the lesson, V Assessment and VI Enrichment. The conventional method and pattern of teaching by the pre-service teachers of PSU suggest that students in the College of Teacher Education should be trained to be more innovative and open in trying out more advanced teaching methods. Furthermore, PSU science pre-service teachers should use methods which can develop higher order thinking skills among high school students.

Pre-Practicum Training in Professional Psychology to Close the Research-Practice Gap: Changing Attitudes Towards Evidence-Based Practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Bearman, Sarah Kate; Wadkins, Melanie; Bailin, Abby; Doctoroff, Greta

2015-02-01

Despite the rapid proliferation of mental health interventions with proven benefit for youth, empirically supported interventions (ESIs) are underutilized in most service settings. Treatment outcome studies in these community-based settings suggest that the majority of youth do not show improvement, underscoring the importance of addressing the gap between research and practice. Clinician attitudes toward evidence-based practice (EBP) may limit the use of ESIs, and efforts to address these attitudes with post-graduate training pose significant challenges. Pre-practicum training in EBP may address these challenges by familiarizing students with the framework of EBP as well as with the current youth treatment evidence base and the theories and strategies of well-supported interventions. We describe a required EBP course within a professional psychology doctoral program. Forty-two students in two class cohorts completed a measure of attitudes toward EBP prior to the first class and after the final class lecture. Students were predominantly Caucasian women with bachelor's degrees. As expected, over the course of the class, student attitudes became significantly more favorable toward EBP. Students who had previously received a master's degree had more favorable attitudes prior to the class, and students with a prior bachelor's degree showed the greatest change in attitude. The results support the use of pre-practicum training in EBP to improve attitudes toward EBP, which may lead to use of effective practices with clients following training.

Investigation of a reflective pedagogy to encourage pre-service physics teachers to explore argumentation as an aid to conceptual understanding

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lancaster, G.; Cooper, R.

2015-01-01

less influenced by the arguments or analysis of other students. Following the completion of the online posts, the range of ideas included in the postings were then explored during a face to face workshop where the ideas were debated and frequently defended and the implications for pedagogy and their students learning discussed. The initial feedback from the pre-service teachers during this preliminary study is encouraging and suggests there is merit in exploring the benefits of argumentation for pre-service teachers and their students in a subsequent expanded study.

Investigation of a reflective pedagogy to encourage pre-service physics teachers to explore argumentation as an aid to conceptual understanding

Science.gov (United States)

Lancaster, Greg; Cooper, Rebecca

2016-05-01

by the arguments or analysis of other students. Following the completion of the online posts, the range of ideas included in the postings were then explored during a face to face workshop where the ideas were debated and frequently defended and the implications for pedagogy and their students learning discussed. The initial feedback from the pre-service teachers during this preliminary study is encouraging and suggests there is merit in exploring the benefits of argumentation for pre-service teachers and their students in a subsequent expanded study.

Predictors of Associate's Degree Completion in Engineering and Engineering Technologies

Science.gov (United States)

Reys-Nickel, Lynsey L.

The purpose of this ex post facto study was to describe completers and non-completers of associate's degree programs in engineering and engineering technologies and determine whether and to what extent completion in these programs is a function of selected student-related variables and institutional variables. Data from the 2004/2009 Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study (BPS: 04/09) of associate's degree completers and non-completers in engineering and engineering technologies were accessed and analyzed through PowerStats, a web-based data analysis tool from National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). Descriptive data indicated that, proportionally, engineering and engineering technologies completers were mostly White, married, middle income, employed part-time, enrolled full-time, did not hold a high school diploma or certificate, completed Trigonometry/Algebra II, had a father who's highest education level was an associate's degree, but did not know their mother's highest level of education, completed remedial coursework, and started college with the goal of earning an associate's degree. While more males enrolled in the programs, males and females demonstrated similar completion rates, proportionally--with females showing a slightly higher percentage of completion. Results from the logistic regression further indicated that the variables significant to completion in associate's degree programs in engineering and engineering technologies were gender and enrollment size. Findings suggested that female students were more likely to earn the degree, and that the larger the institution, the more likely the student would become a completer. However, since a major limitation of the study was the small weighted sample size, the results of the study are inconclusive in terms of the extent to which the findings can be generalized to the population of students in associate's degree programs in engineering and engineering technologies. This study fills a

An outline of possible pre-course diagnostics for differential calculus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aneshkumar Maharaj

2014-07-01

Full Text Available There is a view that many first-year students lack the basic knowledge and skills expected of them to study at university level. We examined the expected work habits and pre-course diagnostics for students who choose to take a course on differential calculus. We focused on the lecturer pre-course expectations of a student in the context of work habits, knowledge and technical skills. In particular, we formulated outcomes and then sample diagnostic questions to test whether the identified learning outcomes on expected work habits and learning are in place. If students are made aware of the expected learning outcomes and if they take the diagnostic test, they should be able to achieve greater success in their studies. The validity of this assumption will be the subject of a future paper which will report on the implementation of the learning outcomes and diagnostic questions that we formulated for pre-course diagnostics in differential calculus.

Performance of two different digital evaluation systems used for assessing pre-clinical dental students' prosthodontic technical skills.

Science.gov (United States)

Gratton, D G; Kwon, S R; Blanchette, D R; Aquilino, S A

2017-11-01

Proper integration of newly emerging digital assessment tools is a central issue in dental education in an effort to provide more accurate and objective feedback to students. The study examined how the outcomes of students' tooth preparation were correlated when evaluated using traditional faculty assessment and two types of digital assessment approaches. Specifically, incorporation of the Romexis Compare 2.0 (Compare) and Sirona prepCheck 1.1 (prepCheck) systems was evaluated. Additionally, satisfaction of students based on the type of software was evaluated through a survey. Students in a second-year pre-clinical prosthodontics course were allocated to either Compare (n = 42) or prepCheck (n = 37) systems. All students received conventional instruction and used their assigned digital system as an additional evaluation tool to aid in assessing their work. Examinations assessed crown preparations of the maxillary right central incisor (#8) and the mandibular left first molar (#19). All submissions were graded by faculty, Compare and prepCheck. Technical scores did not differ between student groups for any of the assessment approaches. Compare and prepCheck had modest, statistically significant correlations with faculty scores with a minimum correlation of 0.3944 (P = 0.0011) and strong, statistically significant correlations with each other with a minimum correlation of 0.8203 (P < 0.0001). A post-course student survey found that 55.26% of the students felt unfavourably about learning the digital evaluation protocols. A total of 62.31% felt favourably about the integration of these digital tools into the curriculum. Comparison of Compare and prepCheck showed no evidence of significant difference in students' prosthodontics technical performance and perception. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Complementing theory with practice to enhance Students' learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Suliman, Muhammad Imran; Imran, Faiqa; Ahmed, Syed Ahsanuddin; Rahim, Ikram Ur; Shafiq, Anser; Qayum, Iftikhar

2016-01-01

Combining cognitive skills teaching related to the techniques leads to better understanding in a skill training course; but still there a substantial disagreement in curriculum on such combinations. This study aims to help guide the designers in making the outline of instructional plan for a Clinical Skills Module (CSM) for the undergraduates. Objectives were to assess performance of students on a clinical skill after training by two different models of (hands-on only or with cognitive skills) instructions and explore their perception on the employment of educational strategies through Focus Group Discussions (FGD) through a Sequential mixed method study design: (1) Quantitative (Pre- and post-assessments and comparing their results (2) Qualitative (Exploration of perspectives through constructivist approach using qualitative phenomenological design) The study was conducted during the month of September, 2015 at Rabigh Medical College, King Abdul Aziz University, Jeddah. Students entering fourth year were randomized to two groups to participate in pre-post OSCE using global rating scale and their scores were compared. The examiners were kept blinded to the randomization of students undergoing two separate training methods. The test group (group A) was trained for both procedural as well as cognitive skills whereas the control group (Group-B) was trained only with hands-on practice. Later their perception about the addition of cognitive skills to improve of procedural skills was explored through focus group discussions. The recorded audio tapes of FGDs were transcribed and analysed thematically. Triangulation of themes and trends was achieved by relating the content analysis to the relevant frequency of quotes. Auditing of the data verification was done by all the authors separately.. A total of 42 students completed both pre- and post-tests. As a result, student performance in OSCE significantly increased from pre- to post-test (pdisadvantages of combining theory

Minority Engineering Program Pipeline: A Proposal to Increase Minority Student Enrollment and Retention in Engineering

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Charity, Pamela C.; Klein, Paul B.; Wadhwa, Bhushan

1995-01-01

The Cleveland State University Minority Engineering Program Pipeline consist of programs which foster engineering career awareness, academic enrichment, and professional development for historically underrepresented minority studies. The programs involved are the Access to Careers in Engineering (ACE) Program for high school pre-engineering students: the LINK Program for undergraduate students pursuing degree which include engineering; and the PEP (Pre-calculus Enrichment Program) and EPIC (Enrichment Program in Calculus) mathematics programs for undergraduate academic enrichment. The pipeline is such that high school graduates from the ACE Program who enroll at Cleveland State University in pursuit of engineering degrees are admitted to the LINK Program for undergraduate level support. LINK Program students are among the minority participants who receive mathematics enrichment through the PEP and EPIC Programs for successful completion of their engineering required math courses. THese programs are interdependent and share the goal of preparing minority students for engineering careers by enabling them to achieve academically and obtain college degree and career related experience.

Access to Four-Year Public Colleges and Degree Completion

OpenAIRE

Joshua Goodman; Michael Hurwitz; Jonathan Smith

2015-01-01

Does access to four-year colleges affect degree completion for students who would otherwise attend two-year colleges? Admission to Georgia’s four-year public sector requires minimum SAT scores. Regression discontinuity estimates show that access to this sector increases four-year college enrollment and college quality, largely by diverting students from two-year colleges. Access substantially increases bachelor’s degree completion rates for these relatively low-skilled students. SAT retaking ...

Development of leadership behaviors in undergraduate nursing students: a service-learning approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Foli, Karen J; Braswell, Melanie; Kirkpatrick, Jane; Lim, Eunjung

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine leadership behaviors developed by nursing students and peers before and after a service-learning experience. Nurses have been called to fill growing needs in the health care setting, rendering care to vulnerable and diverse populations in a wide range of organizations. Leadership behaviors are therefore essential. Baccalaureate students (N = 65) completed the Student Leadership Practices Inventory-Self at the beginning and end of the semester. The students also rated peers using the Leadership Practices Inventory-Observer and answered six questions about service-learning. Repeated measures of analysis of variance for pre- and posttests revealed that leadership behaviors improved (p leadership course is an effective approach to the development of leadership behaviors.

Measures of student success with textbook transformations: the Affordable Learning Georgia Initiative

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Emily Croteau

2017-03-01

Full Text Available In 2014, the state of Georgia’s budget supported a University System of Georgia (USG initiative: Affordable Learning Georgia (ALG. The initiative was implemented via Textbook Transformation Grants, which provided grants to USG faculty, libraries and librarians, and institutions to “transform their use of textbooks and other learning materials into using lower cost options”, in other words to use open educational resources (OER in lieu of a traditional bound textbook. The Round One Textbook Transformation Grants have already shown to be successful in that they saved students approximately $760,000.  What is not known, is the collective impact on student learning. This study examines the learning gains or losses pre- and post-transformation in ALG Round One courses where traditional resources were replaced with OER.  It estimates differences between pre- and post- textbook transformation across the following outcomes: 1 Drop Fail Withdraw (DFW rates, 2 rates of completion, 3 numbers of students receiving a final grade of A or B, C and D, 4 numerical final grades as a percent, 5 final exam grades as a percent, and, 6 course-specific assessment grades measured in percent. Twenty-four data sets were analyzed for DFW rate, eight data sets for completion rate, fourteen data sets for grade distribution, three data sets for final exam grades, three data sets for course specific assessment and one data set for final grades. The null hypothesis that there would be no differences between pre- and post-transformation rates in these learning outcomes was supported.  Thus, this study demonstrates that the USG’s ALG initiative helped students save money without negatively impacting learning outcomes. In addition, it is the first of its kind to measure some of these learning outcomes (e.g. final exam grade, assessment grade, and distribution of letter grades at this scale.

Relationship of creative projects in anatomy to medical student professionalism, test performance and stress: an exploratory study.

Science.gov (United States)

Shapiro, Johanna; Nguyen, Vincent P; Mourra, Sarah; Boker, John R; Ross, Marianne; Thai, Trung M; Leonard, Robert J

2009-11-03

The anatomy course offers important opportunities to develop professionalism at an early stage in medical education. It is an academically significant course that also engenders stress in some students. Over a three-year period, 115 of 297 students completed creative projects. Thirty-four project completers and 47 non-completers consented to participate in the study. Projects were analyzed for professionalism themes using grounded theory. A subset of project completers and non-completers were interviewed to determine their views about the stress of anatomy and medical school, as well as the value of the creative projects. We also compared test performance of project completers and non-completers. Projects completed early in the course often expressed ambivalence about anatomy, whereas later projects showed more gratitude and sense of awe. Project completers tended to report greater stress than noncompleters, but stated that doing projects reduced stress and caused them to develop a richer appreciation for anatomy and medicine. Project completers performed significantly lower than non-completers on the first written exam (pre-project). Differences between groups on individual exams after both the first and second creative project were nonsignificant. For some students, creative projects may offer a useful way of reflecting on various aspects of professionalism while helping them to manage stress.

Preparation and procedures of pre-commissioning on DECY-13 cyclotron

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Silakhuddin

2016-01-01

A preparation and procedures for pre-commissioning of DECY-13 Cyclotron have been discussed and the steps for these have been arranged. Pre-commissioning is a testing stage of individual subsystems when all subsystems have been integrated into a cyclotron system. The discussion was taken from references, the next the readiness of devices was studied and then the preparation and procedures of the pre-commissioning were arranged. The results of the discussion are that for doing the pre-commissioning of the cyclotron DECY-13 still requires the completion of RF-dee subsystem and some components for testing are still to be completed. (author)

The electrocardiogram as an electronic filter and why ac circuits are important for pre-health physics students

Science.gov (United States)

Dunlap, Justin C.; Kutschera, Ellynne; Van Ness, Grace R.; Widenhorn, Ralf

2015-01-01

We present a general physics laboratory exercise that centres around the use of the electrocardiogram sensor as an application of circuits and electronic signal filtering. Although these topics are commonly taught in the general physics classroom, many students consider topics such as alternating current as unrelated to their future professions. This exercise provides the motivation for life science and pre-health majors to learn concepts such as voltage, resistance, alternating and direct current, RLC circuits, as well as signal and noise, in an introductory undergraduate physics lab.

Pre-registration nursing students' perceptions and experiences of violence in a nursing education institution in South Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

de Villiers, Tania; Mayers, Pat M; Khalil, Doris

2014-11-01

Violence is a growing problem worldwide in the field of health care and within the nursing profession. A study comprising a survey and focus groups with nursing students, and interviews with nurse educators was conducted to examine nursing students' perceptions and experiences of violence at a nursing education institution in the Western Cape, South Africa. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to all nursing students. Two hundred and twenty three (n = 223) respondents completed the questionnaire. Focus groups were conducted with purposively sampled student participants and semi-structured interviews with nurse educators. The findings indicated that the nature of the violent incidents experienced by students on campus, especially in the residences, ranged from verbal abuse to violation of students' property and personal space, and could be attributed primarily to substance abuse. Violence among student nurses could negatively affect learning. In a profession in which nurses are exposed to violence in the workplace, it is important that violence in the learning environment is actively prevented and respect of individual rights, tolerance and co-operation are promoted. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Pre-Employment Course: A Partnership for Success?

Science.gov (United States)

Pepper, Ian K.; McGrath, Ruth

2010-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the benefits of pre-employment education and training and its impact on the students' choice of career paths. It focuses on a programme delivered in partnership between Teesside University and a North East Police Force, and provides a model for future pre-employment education and training.…

Interactive case vignettes utilizing simulated pathologist-clinician encounters with whole slide imaging and video tutorials of whole slide scans improves student understanding of disease processes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adam J Horn

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Background: One of the drawbacks of studying pathology in the second year of medical school in a classroom setting is the relatively limited exposure to patient encounters/clinical rotations, making it difficult to understand and fully appreciate the significance of the course material, specifically the molecular and tissue aspects of disease. In this study, we determined if case vignettes incorporating pathologist-clinician encounters with whole slide imaging (WSI and narrated/annotated videos of whole slide (WS scans in addition to clinical data improved student understanding of pathologic disease processes. Materials and Methods: Case vignettes were created for several genitourinary disease processes that utilized clinical data including narratives of pathologist-clinician encounters, WSI, and annotated video tutorials of WS scans (designed to simulate "double-heading". The students were encouraged to view the virtual slide first, with the video tutorials being provided to offer additional assistance. The case vignettes were created to be interactive with a detailed explanation of each correct and incorrect question choice. The cases were made available to all second year medical students via a website and could be viewed only after completing a 10 question pre-test. A post-test could be completed after viewing all cases followed by a brief satisfaction survey. Results: Ninety-six students completed the pre-test with an average score of 7.7/10. Fifty-seven students completed the post-test with an average score of 9.4/10. Thirty-six students completed the satisfaction survey. 94% agreed or strongly agreed that this was a useful exercise and 91% felt that it helped them better understand the topics. Conclusion: The development of interactive case vignettes incorporating simulated pathologist-clinician encounters with WSI and video tutorials of WS scans helps to improve student enthusiasm to learn and grasp pathologic aspects of disease

Access to 4-Year Public Colleges and Degree Completion

OpenAIRE

Goodman, Joshua Samuel; Hurwitz, Michael; Smith, Jonathan

2017-01-01

Does access to 4-year colleges affect degree completion for students who would otherwise attend 2-year colleges? Admission to Georgia’s 4-year public sector requires minimum SAT scores. Regression discontinuity estimates show that access to this sector increases 4-year college enrollment and college quality, largely by diverting students from 2-year colleges. Access substantially increases bachelor’s degree completion rates for these relatively low-skilled students. SAT retaking behavior sugg...

The effects of an online basic life support course on undergraduate nursing students' learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Tobase, Lucia; Peres, Heloisa H C; Gianotto-Oliveira, Renan; Smith, Nicole; Polastri, Thatiane F; Timerman, Sergio

2017-08-25

To describe learning outcomes of undergraduate nursing students following an online basic life support course (BLS). An online BLS course was developed and administered to 94 nursing students. Pre- and post-tests were used to assess theoretical learning. Checklist simulations and feedback devices were used to assess the cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) skills of the 62 students who completed the course. A paired t-test revealed a significant increase in learning [pre-test (6.4 ± 1.61), post-test (9.3 ± 0.82), p online course was significant (plearning differences (p=0.475) had been observed between 1st and 2nd year (9.20 ± 1.60), and between 3rd and 4th year (9.67 ± 0.61) students. A CPR simulation was performed after completing the course: students checked for a response (90%), exposed the chest (98%), checked for breathing (97%), called emergency services (76%), requested for a defibrillator (92%), checked for a pulse (77%), positioned their hands properly (87%), performed 30 compressions/cycle (95%), performed compressions of at least 5 cm depth (89%), released the chest (90%), applied two breaths (97%), used the automated external defibrillator (97%), and positioned the pads (100%). The online course was an effective method for teaching and learning key BLS skills wherein students were able to accurately apply BLS procedures during the CPR simulation. This short-term online training, which likely improves learning and self-efficacy in BLS providers, can be used for the continuing education of health professionals.

Analysis of pre-service physics teacher skills designing simple physics experiments based technology

Science.gov (United States)

Susilawati; Huda, C.; Kurniawan, W.; Masturi; Khoiri, N.

2018-03-01

Pre-service physics teacher skill in designing simple experiment set is very important in adding understanding of student concept and practicing scientific skill in laboratory. This study describes the skills of physics students in designing simple experiments based technologicall. The experimental design stages include simple tool design and sensor modification. The research method used is descriptive method with the number of research samples 25 students and 5 variations of simple physics experimental design. Based on the results of interviews and observations obtained the results of pre-service physics teacher skill analysis in designing simple experimental physics charged technology is good. Based on observation result, pre-service physics teacher skill in designing simple experiment is good while modification and sensor application are still not good. This suggests that pre-service physics teacher still need a lot of practice and do experiments in designing physics experiments using sensor modifications. Based on the interview result, it is found that students have high enough motivation to perform laboratory activities actively and students have high curiosity to be skilled at making simple practicum tool for physics experiment.

Preparing Pre-Service Teachers for Multicultural Classrooms

Science.gov (United States)

Premier, Jessica Aimee; Miller, Jenny

2010-01-01

Cultural diversity is evident throughout schools in Victoria, Australia. Many students are new arrivals from war-torn countries including Sudan, Afghanistan and Iraq. To what extent do teacher training courses in Victoria prepare pre-service teachers to cater for the needs of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) students? This paper…

Comment on "Benefits of Completing Homework for Students with Different Aptitudes in an Introductory Electricity and Magnetism Course"

Science.gov (United States)

Rieger, G. W.; Reinsberg, S. A.; Wieman, C. E.

2016-01-01

We present a comment on "Benefits of completing homework for students with different aptitudes in an introductory electricity and magnetism course", by F. J. Kontur, K. de La Harpe, and N. B. Terry PRST-PER 11, 010105 (2015). Our data show that the conclusions Kontur and coworkers draw from their data may not be generally applicable.

The relation between information processing strategies and the development of the body of knowledge of students in competence-based pre-vocational secondary education

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Koopman, M.; Teune, P.J.; Jochems, W.M.G.

2007-01-01

The preference of students in competence-based Pre-Vocational Secondary Education (PVSE) for information processing strategies and the development of their body of knowledge were measured in a study that was carried out with 31 participants. The students’ information processing strategies were

tracing changes in pre-service English as a foreign language ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This longitudinal study aimed to trace changes in Turkish pre-service English as a foreign language teachers' self-efficacy ... Keywords:pre-service teachers; school observation; sources of teacher efficacy; student ...... International Journal.

The Impact of Student Teaching Experience on Pre-Service Teachers' Readiness for Technology Integration: A Mixed Methods Study with Growth Curve Modeling

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Yan; Strobel, Johannes; Newby, Timothy J.

2017-01-01

Adopting a two-phase explanatory sequential mixed methods research design, the current study examined the impact of student teaching experiences on pre-service teachers' readiness for technology integration. In phase-1 of quantitative investigation, 2-level growth curve models were fitted using online repeated measures survey data collected from…

Preparing for fieldwork: Students' perceptions of their readiness to provide evidence-based practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Evenson, Mary E

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to explore students' perceptions of their confidence to use research evidence to complete a client case analysis assignment in preparation for participation in fieldwork and future practice. A convenience sample of 42 entry-level occupational therapy Masters students, included 41 females and one male, ages 24 to 35. A quasi-experimental pretest-posttest design was used. Students participated in a problem-based learning approach supported by educational technology. Measures included a pre- and post-semester confidence survey, a post-semester satisfaction survey, and an assignment rubric. Based on paired t-tests and Wilcoxin Signed Ranks Tests, statistically significant differences in pre- and post-test scores were noted for all 18 items on the confidence survey (plearning methods were significantly associated with students' perceptions of their confidence to use research evidence to analyze a client case. These results cannot necessarily be generalized due to the limitations of using non-standardized measures with a convenience sample, without a control group, within the context of a single course as part of one academic program curriculum.

Pre-Service Teachers' Concept Images on Fractal Dimension

Science.gov (United States)

Karakus, Fatih

2016-01-01

The analysis of pre-service teachers' concept images can provide information about their mental schema of fractal dimension. There is limited research on students' understanding of fractal and fractal dimension. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the pre-service teachers' understandings of fractal dimension based on concept image. The…

The Effects of Automated Prompting and Self-Monitoring on Homework Completion for a Student with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Science.gov (United States)

Blicha, Amy; Belfiore, Phillip J.

2013-01-01

This study examined the effects of an intervention consisting of automated prompting and self-monitoring on the level of independent homework task completion for an elementary-age student with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Instituting a single subject, within series ABAB design, the results showed a consistent increase and…

Spatial Skill Profile of Mathematics Pre-Service Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Putri, R. O. E.

2018-01-01

This study is aimed to investigate the spatial intelligence of mathematics pre-service teachers and find the best instructional strategy that facilitates this aspect. Data were collected from 35 mathematics pre-service teachers. The Purdue Spatial Visualization Test (PSVT) was used to identify the spatial skill of mathematics pre-service teachers. Statistical analysis indicate that more than 50% of the participants possessed spatial skill in intermediate level, whereas the other were in high and low level of spatial skill. The result also shows that there is a positive correlation between spatial skill and mathematics ability, especially in geometrical problem solving. High spatial skill students tend to have better mathematical performance compare to those in two other levels. Furthermore, qualitative analysis reveals that most students have difficulty in manipulating geometrical objects mentally. This problem mostly appears in intermediate and low-level spatial skill students. The observation revealed that 3-D geometrical figures is the best method that can overcome the mentally manipulation problem and develop the spatial visualization. Computer application can also be used to improve students’ spatial skill.

Perceived Benefits of Pre-Clinical Simulation-based Training on Clinical Learning Outcomes among Omani Undergraduate Nursing Students