Teaching the students we have : two perspectives on first year students at the University of Johannesburg and the UJ first year experience initiative
- Authors: Van Zyl, André
- Date: 2013
- Subjects: Student success , Academic achievement , First year students - South Africa - Johannesburg , University of Johannesburg. Students , University of Johannesburg’s First Year Experience initiative
- Type: Article
- Identifier: uj:5343 , ISBN 978-0-620-60939-5 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/12491
- Description: Over the past decade it has become clear that the South African Higher Education sector is marked by low participation rates coupled with low levels of student success. Although a lot of money, time and effort have been spent in trying to improve student success rates, no real systemic improvement has taken place. This paper argues that key elements of any strategy aimed at improving student success should include that it should “reach the classroom” (Tinto, 2012); it should be systemic in nature and it should be based on a thorough knowledge of the student population the institution serves. The paper then reports back on the results of research undertaken at the University of Johannesburg as well as on the First Year Experience that has been implemented at the institution since 2010. Results reported in the paper includes data from the Student Profile Questionnaire (SPQ) (used since 2006 and containing more than 30 000 records) and the Initial Student Experience Survey (ISES) (used since 2010 and containing about 20 000 records). Some of the findings from these questionnaires confirmed previously held beliefs while others were completely surprising. The data were used to inform the planning and implementation of the University of Johannesburg’s First Year Experience initiative which is aimed at assisting the institution to more effectively “teach the students it has”.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Van Zyl, André
- Date: 2013
- Subjects: Student success , Academic achievement , First year students - South Africa - Johannesburg , University of Johannesburg. Students , University of Johannesburg’s First Year Experience initiative
- Type: Article
- Identifier: uj:5343 , ISBN 978-0-620-60939-5 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/12491
- Description: Over the past decade it has become clear that the South African Higher Education sector is marked by low participation rates coupled with low levels of student success. Although a lot of money, time and effort have been spent in trying to improve student success rates, no real systemic improvement has taken place. This paper argues that key elements of any strategy aimed at improving student success should include that it should “reach the classroom” (Tinto, 2012); it should be systemic in nature and it should be based on a thorough knowledge of the student population the institution serves. The paper then reports back on the results of research undertaken at the University of Johannesburg as well as on the First Year Experience that has been implemented at the institution since 2010. Results reported in the paper includes data from the Student Profile Questionnaire (SPQ) (used since 2006 and containing more than 30 000 records) and the Initial Student Experience Survey (ISES) (used since 2010 and containing about 20 000 records). Some of the findings from these questionnaires confirmed previously held beliefs while others were completely surprising. The data were used to inform the planning and implementation of the University of Johannesburg’s First Year Experience initiative which is aimed at assisting the institution to more effectively “teach the students it has”.
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Talk that counts : participation in practicums and student success in civil engineering
- Authors: Simpson, Z. , Bester, J.
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Student success , Engineering education , Engineering - Study and teaching
- Type: Article
- Identifier: uj:5137 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/14104
- Description: Engineering courses across the globe include practical components generally undertaken in small groups. This study aims to determine whether the quantity and quality of students’ participation in these group-based practicums could be correlated with their academic performance. A first year course in Concrete Technology was selected, and groups of students were filmed as they undertook a practicum that required them to mix, test, cast and crush concrete cubes as per the guidelines of two established procedures. Approximately four hours of film was then time-coded according to student activity. The resulting transcripts were analysed quantitatively in terms of total time spent on specific activities, and qualitatively in terms of the nature of student engagement with those activities. The results show that group discussion may have a greater impact on student learning than time spent on the task itself. However, this depends on the specific nature of this talk. Implications of the study include the fact that attention needs to be given to designing group tasks in such a way that they facilitate group interaction, and the fact that tutors and lecturers should promote group discussion and be aware of interactional dynamics that act to the detriment of student learning.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Simpson, Z. , Bester, J.
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Student success , Engineering education , Engineering - Study and teaching
- Type: Article
- Identifier: uj:5137 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/14104
- Description: Engineering courses across the globe include practical components generally undertaken in small groups. This study aims to determine whether the quantity and quality of students’ participation in these group-based practicums could be correlated with their academic performance. A first year course in Concrete Technology was selected, and groups of students were filmed as they undertook a practicum that required them to mix, test, cast and crush concrete cubes as per the guidelines of two established procedures. Approximately four hours of film was then time-coded according to student activity. The resulting transcripts were analysed quantitatively in terms of total time spent on specific activities, and qualitatively in terms of the nature of student engagement with those activities. The results show that group discussion may have a greater impact on student learning than time spent on the task itself. However, this depends on the specific nature of this talk. Implications of the study include the fact that attention needs to be given to designing group tasks in such a way that they facilitate group interaction, and the fact that tutors and lecturers should promote group discussion and be aware of interactional dynamics that act to the detriment of student learning.
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Do higher education entrance exams predict success in Engineering study?
- Authors: Prince, R , Simpson, Z
- Subjects: Engineering student , Student success , University entrance exams
- Language: English
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10210/494841 , uj:44926 , Citation: Prince, R. & Simpson, Z. 2021. Do higher education entrance exams predict success in Engineering study?.
- Description: Abstract: In South Africa, as elsewhere in the world, graduation rates in engineering study are notoriously low. A 2017 report by the American Society for Engineering Education, for example, shows that fewer than 40% of students who enter into an engineering qualification in the United States graduate in the minimum time of four years. This paper investigates the predictive value of the national higher education (HE) entrance exam in South Africa, the National Benchmark Tests (NBTs), for success in engineering study in one HE institution in South Africa. The NBTs attempt to redress the problem of poor throughput and graduation rates by providing institutions with more information about the preparedness of school-leavers prior to entry into HE. In South Africa, the NBTs include three assessments, one each in academic literacy, quantitative literacy and mathematics. The performance of students in these three assessments was captured and correlated with student success in engineering study (measured as either having graduated, continuing study or having dropped out). Across all three assessments, it was found that there is a correlation between performance on the NBTs and success in engineering study, and that performance on the NBTs offers the potential for a rich and nuanced understanding of student success in engineering.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Prince, R , Simpson, Z
- Subjects: Engineering student , Student success , University entrance exams
- Language: English
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10210/494841 , uj:44926 , Citation: Prince, R. & Simpson, Z. 2021. Do higher education entrance exams predict success in Engineering study?.
- Description: Abstract: In South Africa, as elsewhere in the world, graduation rates in engineering study are notoriously low. A 2017 report by the American Society for Engineering Education, for example, shows that fewer than 40% of students who enter into an engineering qualification in the United States graduate in the minimum time of four years. This paper investigates the predictive value of the national higher education (HE) entrance exam in South Africa, the National Benchmark Tests (NBTs), for success in engineering study in one HE institution in South Africa. The NBTs attempt to redress the problem of poor throughput and graduation rates by providing institutions with more information about the preparedness of school-leavers prior to entry into HE. In South Africa, the NBTs include three assessments, one each in academic literacy, quantitative literacy and mathematics. The performance of students in these three assessments was captured and correlated with student success in engineering study (measured as either having graduated, continuing study or having dropped out). Across all three assessments, it was found that there is a correlation between performance on the NBTs and success in engineering study, and that performance on the NBTs offers the potential for a rich and nuanced understanding of student success in engineering.
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