90 likes | 201 Views
Assisting Students in Making Connections Between Undergraduate Courses. Vivian Dayeh vrdayeh@uwaterloo.ca Department of Biology. Research Challenge. The problem: Students often perceive their courses as a series of disconnected pieces
E N D
Assisting Students in Making Connections Between Undergraduate Courses Vivian Dayeh vrdayeh@uwaterloo.ca Department of Biology
Research Challenge • The problem: • Students often perceive their courses as a series of disconnected pieces • Instructors may complain that their students do not remember material taught in a previous course • The possible solution: • Using ePortfolios (electronic portfolio) to aid students in making the connections between their courses
ePortfolios • Provides students with a medium to collect and organize artifacts that document their performance • Readily accessible electronic format online • Students can refer to that artifact when in a future course • Appreciate how their previous knowledge connects with a new concept introduced or enhanced in a current context
Research Team • Principal Investigator – Vivian Dayeh (Biology) • Co-investigators – Dragana Miskovic (Biology) – Doug Painter (Kinesiology) • Project Team Members – Katherine Lithgow (LT3) – Jane Holbrook (LT3) • Student Volunteer – Rema Saati
Project Goals • The project aims to: • Help students make connections between three courses – Biol 130, Biol 273 and Kin 105 • Help students develop strategic learning practices • Help students articulate & evaluate what they have learned • Jointly promote student learning between two faculties to develop UW graduate skills • Add to the existing data on ePortfolios
Course Descriptions • Biol 130 – Introductory Cell Biology • Covers concepts & function of the cell • Biol 273 – Principles of Human Physiology 1 • Examines 5 major systems in the human: Nervous, Muscular, Cardiovascular, Respiratory & Immune • Kin 105 – Cardiovascular and Respiratory Responses to Exercise • Covers the cardiovascular, respiratory and thermoregulatory responses to physical activity in the human
Making Connections How cells communicate with other cells Biol 130 Communication between cells in a system Biol 273 Effects of physical activity on organ systems Kin 105
What to put in the ePortfolio • Artifacts • Specific assignments or reports completed in the course • One-minute summaries • Student written summary of a given topic • Self-assessment quizzes • Students complete these at the beginning of a course to gage their knowledge of material • Others: CV, copy of Undergrad transcript