A Comparison of Active Student Responding Modalities in a General Psychology Course
Research on teaching has shown that incorporating active student responding (ASR) into classroom instruction facilitates learning and should be considered best practice. Nevertheless, few published studies have examined ASR using a within-participant design across a semester. Using a counterbalanced alternating treatment design, a direct comparison of three ASR methods (clickers, response cards, and hand-raising) and a control condition was conducted across four sections of a general psychology course. Students scored almost 5% higher on exams after utilizing an ASR approach than during control conditions. However, no stat...
Source: Teaching of Psychology - December 13, 2015 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Zayac, R. M., Ratkos, T., Frieder, J. E., Paulk, A. Tags: Faculty Forum Source Type: research
Learning to Read Empirical Articles in General Psychology
We describe a set of assignments for instructing general psychology students to dissect the structure of such articles. Students in General Psychology I read empirical articles and answered a set of general, factual questions applicable to nearly any empirical article. Students in General Psychology II read empirical articles and wrote two-page summaries based on the question set from General Psychology I. In both courses, student competence on the assignment and confidence in their ability to complete the assignment improved, suggesting that these assignments aid students in learning to dissect empirical articles. (Source...
Source: Teaching of Psychology - December 13, 2015 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Sego, S. A., Stuart, A. E. Tags: Methods and Techniques Source Type: research
A Dubious Distinction? The BA Versus the BS in Psychology
Previous studies have documented small differences between the bachelor of arts (BA) and the bachelor of science (BS) psychology degrees in their general education core requirements, particularly mathematics and science courses. But are there differences between the BA and BS degrees within the psychology curriculum? Using data from the Undergraduate Study in Psychology, we examined the psychology curriculum of 329 accredited, nonprofit institutions awarding bachelors’ degrees in psychology. We investigated potential differences between BA and BS programs as well as programs awarding both the BA and the BS. Overall, ...
Source: Teaching of Psychology - December 13, 2015 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Pfund, R. A., Norcross, J. C., Hailstorks, R., Aiken, L. S., Stamm, K. E., Christidis, P. Tags: Topical Articles Source Type: research
Students Reactions to Course Policy Decisions: An Empirical Investigation
Classroom management involves managing students’ requests for course policy changes. Instructors can adhere to the course policies or convey flexibility through making an exception for the student. The current study empirically examines students’ emotional reactions (hostility, guilt, and surprise) and fairness perceptions to course policy decisions. In Study 1 (N = 162), students had negative emotional reactions, but increased procedural fairness perceptions, to policy adherence. Study 2 (N = 341) examined the effects of the instructor’s interpersonal warmth and gender. Study 2 largely replicated the res...
Source: Teaching of Psychology - December 13, 2015 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Bailey, S. F., Jenkins, J. S., Barber, L. K. Tags: Topical Articles Source Type: research
The Effects of Service Learning on Student Problem Solving: The Mediating Role of Classroom Engagement
This study examined the effects of SL on the problem solving of Chinese undergraduate students as well as the mechanism through which it worked. Eighty-two students were divided into two groups: the SL group participated in a SL activity during whole semester and the contrast group (no-SL group) underwent other comparable learning tasks. The study revealed the differentiated effects of SL on students solving different types of problems and investigated the mediating role of classroom behavior engagement in problem solving. The research findings suggested that teachers should provide students with authentic and ill-structur...
Source: Teaching of Psychology - December 13, 2015 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Guo, F., Yao, M., Wang, C., Yan, W., Zong, X. Tags: Topical Articles Source Type: research
The Flipped Classroom Improves Student Achievement and Course Satisfaction in a Statistics Course: A Quasi-Experimental Study
There are but a handful of experimental or quasi-experimental studies comparing student outcomes from flipped or inverted classrooms to more traditional lecture formats. In the current study, I present cumulative exam performance and student evaluation data from two sections of a statistics course I recently taught: one a traditional lecture (N = 19) and the other a flipped class (N = 24). Independent samples t-tests revealed students in the flipped classroom outperformed their lecture peers by more than a letter grade on the final exam. Further, these students were more satisfied with the course overall, a novel finding i...
Source: Teaching of Psychology - December 13, 2015 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Peterson, D. J. Tags: Topical Articles Source Type: research
Retention of Information Taught in Introductory Psychology Courses Across Different Accelerated Course Formats
The current study is a quasi-experimental examination of the effects of traditional and accelerated course formats on learning retention. The study analyzed data on an end-of-course exam collected from 132 students enrolled in introductory psychology courses across 3 course formats: a traditional 16-week format, a 5-week accelerated format, and an 8-week accelerated format. Results suggest that students in the 8-week format performed better than students in both the traditional 16-week and 5-week formats. No significant differences were found between students in the 5-week accelerated format and students in the traditional...
Source: Teaching of Psychology - December 13, 2015 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Deichert, N. T., Maxwell, S. J., Klotz, J. Tags: Topical Articles Source Type: research
Acknowledgment
(Source: Teaching of Psychology)
Source: Teaching of Psychology - December 13, 2015 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Tags: Acknowledgment Source Type: research
Teaching Leadership: Most Any Psychologist Can Do It
The past two decades have seen a growing interest in college courses on leadership in a variety of academic disciplines. The study of leadership has a long history, much of it based on psychology. As a result, psychologists are well informed and quite capable of teaching leadership courses. In this article, I discuss core theories of leadership, make connections to specific areas of psychology, and review current and future trends in leadership research. I also discuss the value that a course on leadership has for undergraduates, as well as specific suggestions for enhancing a psychologist’s ability to teach leadersh...
Source: Teaching of Psychology - September 23, 2015 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Riggio, R. E. Tags: The Generalist ' s Corner Source Type: research
Undergraduate Summer Research Programs and Graduate School Outcomes: Don't Ignore Rejected Program Applicants
We tracked a sample of primarily Black psychology baccalaureates’ advanced degree enrollments and completions and estimated the association of those outcomes with summer research experience by merging three data sets: (a) summer research program participants, (b) a comparison group of alumni, mostly without summer research, and (c) degree completions from the national Student Tracker (ST) database. Rates of degree completion reported by ST were higher for summer research applicants than for those not applying, but among applicants, rates were similar for those accepted and rejected. Controlling for grade point averag...
Source: Teaching of Psychology - September 23, 2015 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Sibulkin, A. E., Butler, J. S. Tags: Faculty Forum Source Type: research
Applying Equity Theory to Students' Perceptions of Research Participation Requirements
Human subject pools have been a valuable resource to universities conducting research with student participants. However, the costs and benefits to student participants must be carefully weighed by students, researchers, and institutional review board administrators in order to avoid coercion. Participant perceptions are pivotal in deciding whether coercion is a concern. In the current study, students answered an anonymous survey after completing 3 hr of research-related activities. In order to gauge the relative value of research participation in participants’ eyes, we computed perceived benefits–costs ratios ...
Source: Teaching of Psychology - September 23, 2015 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Miles, S. R., Cromer, L. D., Narayan, A. Tags: Faculty Forum Source Type: research
Teaching Group Dynamics Through an Application-Based Learning Approach
The purpose of this study was to demonstrate how a structured experiential course can be used to teach students to lead group discussions. Group dynamics and leadership skills were taught through two teaching strategies in the course: the first method required junior- and senior-level undergraduate students to participate in a process-oriented group led by the faculty instructor, and the second method required these students to participate in a practicum by serving as facilitators leading their own process-oriented groups comprised of first-year university students. Results indicated that the student leaders’ confide...
Source: Teaching of Psychology - September 23, 2015 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Harper, M. S., Allegretti, C. L. Tags: Faculty Forum Source Type: research
A Motivational Interviewing Intervention for the Classroom
Despite attempts to engage students, undergraduate instructors are often challenged by low motivation among students to study outside of the classroom. The current study adapted motivational interviewing, which is often used with therapy clients ambivalent to change, to target college student motivation to study for exams. Findings indicated improved performance on exams following the brief 15- to 20-min intervention. The present study supports both the effectiveness and feasibility of this brief, classroom-based motivational intervention. This psychological intervention might be particularly fitting for psychology classes...
Source: Teaching of Psychology - September 23, 2015 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Reich, C. M., Howard Sharp, K. M., Berman, J. S. Tags: Faculty Forum Source Type: research
Psychology Students' Understanding of the Skill-Based Learning Fostered Through University Assignments
We examined first-year psychology majors’ (N = 195) beliefs about the relevance of two types of university assignments (individual essay and group wiki) and their connection to the development of career-related skills. Students reported that assignments were only somewhat relevant to their career goals, and relevance ratings were typically justified by referring to assignment features (content and type) rather than skill development. Our results suggest that it is important for faculty to be explicit with students—particularly those in the early stages of their degree—about the career-related skills that ...
Source: Teaching of Psychology - September 23, 2015 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Martini, T. S., Rail, A., Norton, C. Tags: Faculty Forum Source Type: research
"But I Thought I Knew That!" Student Confidence Judgments on Course Examinations in Introductory Psychology
Students in an introductory psychology class rated their level of confidence in their answers to exam questions on four multiple-choice exams through the course of a semester. Correlations between confidence judgments and accuracy (correct vs. incorrect) at the individual item level showed modest but significant relationships for item sets scaled to levels in Bloom’s taxonomy of educational objectives. We also found stronger relationships between confidence judgments and accuracy for items scaled to lower levels in Bloom’s taxonomy. Overconfident judgments occurred significantly more often among the lowest perf...
Source: Teaching of Psychology - September 23, 2015 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Nevid, J. S., Cheney, B., Thompson, C. Tags: Faculty Forum Source Type: research
