Foundational undergraduate courses in chemistry and mathematics are gateways to a number of lucrative majors and pre-professional programs. Historically, however, students often struggle with these disciplines and can benefit from alternate approaches to examining their learning strategies. This article describes the use of exam…

An adaptation of Halpern's (1998) model of critical thinking (CT) was implemented for seven semesters of data collection involving 904 students in 44 classes. A pretest-posttest quasi-experimental design was utilized for evaluating student growth in CT. The model comprised the development of higher education students' CT skills and dispositions by…

Instructors' ability to foster students' disposition to engage in critical thinking (CT) is instrumental for CT growth. University students' (N = 1,352) semester-long gains across specific dispositions were compared when taught by professors who had received zero, one, two, or three semesters of training in CT pedagogy. All groups experienced…

We examined the effects of team-based learning (TBL) versus traditional and enhanced lecture-based instruction over time (Study 1; N = 532 nursing students) and the psychometric properties of the Team Based Learning Student Assessment Instrument (TBL-SAI), a popular measure of reactions to TBL (Study 2; N = 323 nursing and medical students).…

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…

The author presents self-report data from students in three upper-level undergraduate courses to illustrate the comparative effectiveness of different out-of-class assessment approaches in promoting completion and comprehension of reading assignments. Students reported agreeing or strongly agreeing that all three assignments motivated them to…

Teaching large classes is increasingly common; thus, demand for effective large-class pedagogy is rising. One method, titled "SCALE-UP" (Student-Centered Active Learning Environment for Undergraduate Programs), is intended for large classes and involves collaborative, active learning in a technology-rich and student-centered environment.…

The author argues that deliberation is an innovative method for teaching communication skills, particularly group communication, in the undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) curriculum. A case study using a deliberation activity on global climate change in an introductory biology course demonstrates how deliberative…

This mixed-methods research study compared the level of community of inquiry (CoI) in online graduate classes that use web conferencing (WC) compared to those that do not. This study also investigated students' perceptions of Teaching Presence (TP), Social Presence (SP), and Cognitive Presence (CP). The authors found that students had…

Russell Tufts University This study examines the potential of designing and teaching online courses to prompt university faculty members to reflect on the essence of good teaching, and as a result reconsider their beliefs concerning effective pedagogy. A phenomenological investigation was conducted based on interviews with six long-time university…

Good mentoring of graduate students influences their perseverance and success to completion, whereas bad mentoring can result in negative outcomes, including delayed degree completion or non-completion. What the authors refer to as the gray zone is that which falls between good and bad mentoring. Examples are partial mentoring or changes in…