This study explored the relationship between graduate students' sense of community in online learning environments and their academic behaviors (online activity and final grades). Sense of community refers to social (connectedness) and feedback (learning) aspects of the environment that can potentially promote engagement and academic performance.…

This mixed-methods study examined end-of-semester evaluations from an undergraduate course comparing perceptions of instructional support, academic support, and instructor caring in online and face-to-face settings. Results showed statistically significant differences in perceptions of instructional support, with lower ratings in online sections.…

This study sought to better understand students' experiences with instructor feedback on writing assignments. Undergraduate students (n = 162) completed an online survey about the frequency, type, and nature of feedback they received from instructors, their feedback preferences, their satisfaction with feedback, and their use of feedback. Findings…

Research indicates that students don't fully utilize instructor feedback. The "immediate feedback assessment technique" (IF AT, Epstein Educational Enterprise, Inc.) is a testing system that promotes student engagement with immediate feedback during an exam. With IF-AT, students use an answer sheet resembling a lottery scratch-off…

This study examined online student feedback to determine the extent to which students identify strengths of character in their perceptions of professors and whether student-identified character strengths could distinguish between teaching-award winners (n = 120) and research-award winners (n = 119). A content analysis of posted comments on…

This study aims to reveal the factors behind students' personal biases and preferences in the evaluation process in order to assess the value of using students' ratings of professors' teaching effectiveness. A questionnaire was completed by 330 students at Lebanese universities asking them to provide their feedback on 23 traits commonly regarded…

Two professors co-taught critical and civic thinking in the same first-semester course for four years. For the first year, they used computerized argument mapping and critical-thinking-for-civic-thinking (CT)[superscript 2] exercises based on open-ended scenarios framed within a civic context. The instructors assessed student skill levels using…

How do teachers situate themselves in their roles as assessors of student work? How do they maintain high standards and provide critical feedback while also doing their best not to shame students who fail to meet those standards? The purpose of this article is to propose a relational approach to assessment. This approach calls on faculty to…

Routine correspondence with the author's business technology students indicated the need for increased skill and professionalism in social media communications as a key driver of successful career development strategies. A new course designed to assist students in transitioning from typical, casual social media use to the more rigorous and…

The purpose of the authors' research was to create a tool to evaluate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) literacy in service-learning projects. The researchers posited that components of service-learning, which in this case included the deliverable and reflections, are examples of fundamental STEM literacy and thus can be…

Expanding faculty buy-in to retention efforts may be improved through training and opportunities for assessment. Materials created for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) faculty based on the scholarly literature may dispel the view held by some that student attrition is beneficial to STEM disciplines and may expand an…

The author describes the principal findings of a survey study looking at student perceptions of a new form-based approach to reflective journaling. A form-based journal assignment was developed for use in introductory lecture courses and tested over a two-year period in an Honors General Chemistry course for engineers with a total of 157…

Using Max Weber's theory of ideal types, the authors classify the formative assessment techniques used by 12 college instructors. Their data reveal two pairs of opposing preferences: (1) highly preplanned vs. highly emergent and (2) focused on individual students vs. focused on the class as a whole. Using interview data, they illustrate how each…

The authors describe an Enhanced Formative Assessment and Self-Regulated Learning (EFA-SRL) program designed to improve the achievement of community college students enrolled in developmental mathematics courses. Their model includes the use of specially formatted quizzes designed to assess both the students' mathematics and metacognitive skill…

The authors captured students' and instructors' views of teaching effectiveness at the postsecondary level in two ways: open-ended questions delivered online to 500 students and one-on-one interviews with 15 instructors. A grounded theory approach suggested that effective teaching involves good communication aimed at helping students understand…