Pub Date : 2023-11-28DOI: 10.1007/s10755-023-09682-5
Catherine T. Amelink, Dustin M. Grote, Matthew B. Norris, Jacob R. Grohs
As higher education institutions look to educate and graduate degree earners that have the skills and knowledge necessary to design, communicate, and collaborate in ways that allow for innovative solutions to complex socio-technical challenges, new approaches to educational efforts are being considered and implemented. Institutional responses have included new courses that have a transdisciplinary focus and embedded course experiences that use problem-based approaches coupled with cross-disciplinary team exposure. Often these initiatives have a singular thematic focus (i.e., sustainability). Little is known about the efficacy of transdisciplinary learning initiatives, especially those that encompass a breadth of thematic areas, as it relates to development of complex thinking skills and whether these learning environments provide for similar benefits across student majors. This study, conducted at a Research I university, was designed to address this gap in the literature by examining whether a university level learning initiative using transdisciplinary approaches was achieving desired goals to advance undergraduate students’ complex thinking skills. Findings among the respondents (n = 592) indicate that the initiative is advancing fundamental complex thinking skills in that specific courses allow students to learn about other disciplines and provide exposure to different disciplinary perspectives. However, results reveal that across all majors courses would benefit from increased real-world problem-based exposure and opportunities to interact with community stakeholders. Additionally, results suggest that undergraduates may need opportunities to develop a deeper understanding of the complexities that exist in cross-disciplinary collaboration, including how to develop integrated solutions that leverage the strengths of technical and non-technical approaches.
{"title":"Transdisciplinary Learning Opportunities: Exploring Differences in Complex Thinking Skill Development Between STEM and Non-STEM Majors","authors":"Catherine T. Amelink, Dustin M. Grote, Matthew B. Norris, Jacob R. Grohs","doi":"10.1007/s10755-023-09682-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10755-023-09682-5","url":null,"abstract":"<p>As higher education institutions look to educate and graduate degree earners that have the skills and knowledge necessary to design, communicate, and collaborate in ways that allow for innovative solutions to complex socio-technical challenges, new approaches to educational efforts are being considered and implemented. Institutional responses have included new courses that have a transdisciplinary focus and embedded course experiences that use problem-based approaches coupled with cross-disciplinary team exposure. Often these initiatives have a singular thematic focus (i.e., sustainability). Little is known about the efficacy of transdisciplinary learning initiatives, especially those that encompass a breadth of thematic areas, as it relates to development of complex thinking skills and whether these learning environments provide for similar benefits across student majors. This study, conducted at a Research I university, was designed to address this gap in the literature by examining whether a university level learning initiative using transdisciplinary approaches was achieving desired goals to advance undergraduate students’ complex thinking skills. Findings among the respondents (n = 592) indicate that the initiative is advancing fundamental complex thinking skills in that specific courses allow students to learn about other disciplines and provide exposure to different disciplinary perspectives. However, results reveal that across all majors courses would benefit from increased real-world problem-based exposure and opportunities to interact with community stakeholders. Additionally, results suggest that undergraduates may need opportunities to develop a deeper understanding of the complexities that exist in cross-disciplinary collaboration, including how to develop integrated solutions that leverage the strengths of technical and non-technical approaches.</p>","PeriodicalId":47065,"journal":{"name":"Innovative Higher Education","volume":"47 9","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2023-11-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138512794","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-11-13DOI: 10.1007/s10755-023-09684-3
KC Culver
{"title":"All in All: Tearing Down Walls in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning","authors":"KC Culver","doi":"10.1007/s10755-023-09684-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10755-023-09684-3","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47065,"journal":{"name":"Innovative Higher Education","volume":"10 9","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136346538","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-11-07DOI: 10.1007/s10755-023-09680-7
Travis K. Taylor, Rik Chakraborti, Niall Mahaney
{"title":"Do Higher Levels of Athletic Competition Benefit Small and Medium-Sized Colleges? Investigating the Causal Effect of Reclassification from NCAA Division 2 to Division 1 on Applications, Basketball Revenues, and Athletic Department Expenses","authors":"Travis K. Taylor, Rik Chakraborti, Niall Mahaney","doi":"10.1007/s10755-023-09680-7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10755-023-09680-7","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47065,"journal":{"name":"Innovative Higher Education","volume":"205 3","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135475643","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-10-19DOI: 10.1007/s10755-023-09681-6
Michael S. Palmer, Judith A. Giering
{"title":"Characterizing Pedagogical Innovation in Higher Education","authors":"Michael S. Palmer, Judith A. Giering","doi":"10.1007/s10755-023-09681-6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10755-023-09681-6","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47065,"journal":{"name":"Innovative Higher Education","volume":"69 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135779221","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-09-18DOI: 10.1007/s10755-023-09674-5
Raffaella Passeggia, Italo Testa, Giovanna Esposito, Raffaele De Luca Picione, Giancarlo Ragozini, Maria Francesca Freda
Abstract This study examined the relationships between first-year university students’ academic motivation, retrospective evaluation of school experiences, subjective well-being, engagement and intention to drop out. Self-determination theory, the SInAPSi model of academic engagement, the hedonic approach, and the retrospective judgment process were used to frame the study. A final sample of 565 first-year Italian students enrolled in Science-Technology-Engineering-Mathematics (STEM) courses (Biology, Biotechnologies, Chemistry, Computer Science, Physics, Mathematics) was included. Three mediation models based on structural equations were tested to analyse the relationships between the proposed variables: motivation as an antecedent of dropout intention with only commitment as a mediator (model 1); model 1 + subjective well-being as a second mediator (model 2); model 2 + retrospective judgement as an antecedent (model 3). The results showed that in all models the more autonomous motivational styles predicted students’ engagement, which in turn directly and indirectly influenced their intention to drop out. In model 2, subjective well-being acted as a mediator of the relationships between motivation, engagement and dropout intentions. In model 3, we found that subjective well-being also fully mediated the relationships between retrospective judgement and engagement. Overall, our findings provide new insights into the mechanisms underlying student engagement and dropout at university and may inform university policy.
{"title":"Examining the Relation Between First-year University Students’ Intention to Drop-out and Academic Engagement: The Role of Motivation, Subjective Well-being and Retrospective Judgements of School Experience","authors":"Raffaella Passeggia, Italo Testa, Giovanna Esposito, Raffaele De Luca Picione, Giancarlo Ragozini, Maria Francesca Freda","doi":"10.1007/s10755-023-09674-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10755-023-09674-5","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract This study examined the relationships between first-year university students’ academic motivation, retrospective evaluation of school experiences, subjective well-being, engagement and intention to drop out. Self-determination theory, the SInAPSi model of academic engagement, the hedonic approach, and the retrospective judgment process were used to frame the study. A final sample of 565 first-year Italian students enrolled in Science-Technology-Engineering-Mathematics (STEM) courses (Biology, Biotechnologies, Chemistry, Computer Science, Physics, Mathematics) was included. Three mediation models based on structural equations were tested to analyse the relationships between the proposed variables: motivation as an antecedent of dropout intention with only commitment as a mediator (model 1); model 1 + subjective well-being as a second mediator (model 2); model 2 + retrospective judgement as an antecedent (model 3). The results showed that in all models the more autonomous motivational styles predicted students’ engagement, which in turn directly and indirectly influenced their intention to drop out. In model 2, subjective well-being acted as a mediator of the relationships between motivation, engagement and dropout intentions. In model 3, we found that subjective well-being also fully mediated the relationships between retrospective judgement and engagement. Overall, our findings provide new insights into the mechanisms underlying student engagement and dropout at university and may inform university policy.","PeriodicalId":47065,"journal":{"name":"Innovative Higher Education","volume":"20 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135203158","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-09-18DOI: 10.1007/s10755-023-09675-4
Peter Felten, Johan Geertsema
{"title":"Recovering the Heart of SoTL: Inquiring into Teaching and Learning ‘as if the World Mattered’","authors":"Peter Felten, Johan Geertsema","doi":"10.1007/s10755-023-09675-4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10755-023-09675-4","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47065,"journal":{"name":"Innovative Higher Education","volume":"104 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135202687","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-09-18DOI: 10.1007/s10755-023-09677-2
Darrell Lovell, Daniel J. Mallinson
{"title":"Pencils Down… for Good? The Expansion of Test-Optional Policy After COVID-19","authors":"Darrell Lovell, Daniel J. Mallinson","doi":"10.1007/s10755-023-09677-2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10755-023-09677-2","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47065,"journal":{"name":"Innovative Higher Education","volume":"2 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135203153","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}