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Historically, physics education primarily consisted of lectures in which students have a largely passive role. Proponents of educational reform have rallied around active learning to increase engagement and retention in STEM fields, particularly advocating peer interactions to build a foundation of deep understanding. However, little is known about how students' prior preparation for introductory courses impacts their mastery of course material when instructors incorporate active learning. In the present study, we examine learning outcomes in two sections of an introductory mechanics course at an institution with a wide range of students' prior mathematics preparation as assessed by quantitative SAT scores. For each of three years, one section was taught using peer instruction in which much of the class time was spent in small-group discussions between students. The other section was taught by the same instructor using interactive lectures in which discussions primarily took place between volunteers from the class and the instructor. We find that students enrolled in the peer instruction sections earned lower grades in the course than did students in the interactive sections. We also find students in the peer instruction sections with lower quantitative SAT scores showed lower gains in understanding foundational concepts as assessed by the Force Concept Inventory and were less likely to earn an A in the course than comparable students in the interactive sections. While further research is needed to confirm these results, this study suggests that peer instruction might not be the optimal pedagogy for heterogeneous populations.
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The Differing Impact of a New Assessment Framework on Student Success – The Effect of Socioeconomic Factors
In 2016, Michigan State University developed a new model of classroom education and assessment in their Mechanics of Materials course. This model used a modified mastery approach that stresses formative assessment, guidance in the problem-solving process, and structured student reflection. We now refer to this new approach as SMART Assessment - short for Supported Mastery Assessment using Repeated Testing. The effects of this model have been very positive, and results on overall student success in Mechanics of Materials have been presented in full at prior ASEE conferences. In this paper, we focus on the effects of this new assessment model on the performance of students who may be at greater risk due to their first-generation status or economic disadvantage, while accounting for other measures such as incoming GPA and performance in the prerequisite course, Statics. The evaluation was conducted across 3.5 academic years and involved 1275 students divided among 9 experimental sections and 6 control sections. Statistical analysis indicated that there were no significant differences between the performance indices for students in the SMART sections based on their parents’ history of university education or their eligibility to receive a Pell Grant. While students in the Traditional section tended to have higher grades in ME222, this cannot be compared directly to the grades in the SMART section due to the difference in grading framework. Previous work, however, has indicated that students who complete the SMART framed sections have a deeper understanding of the course material, as demonstrated by their improved performance on common final exam problems that were evaluated with a mastery-focused rubric.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2013286
- PAR ID:
- 10350050
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- ASEE Annual Conference proceedings
- ISSN:
- 1524-4644
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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