Reusable, or non-disposable, assignments are becoming increasingly popular with the proliferation of Open Education Practices. However, no clear nomenclature and taxonomy for these assignments exists in the literature. This literature review explores the various names and conceptualizations under which non-disposable assignments are discussed.…

This literature review applies Wenger's community of practice framework as a theoretical lens to generate insight about the complex collaborative processes of living labs. The authors explore this model with insights from the literature on labs and then set out to understand higher educational living labs. The findings show that current research…

Metacognition is a key to effective learning, foundational to critical thinking and fostering scholarly and professional identity. Yet many faculty are uncertain how to integrate metacognitive skill development into classes. This article describes two metacognitive instruments, the TTM-LS and the LSSA, that are short, simple to use, and discipline…

Understanding student perceptions of the elements that affect positive team experiences helps inform faculty about their use of teams in the classroom. Using Q Methodology (Stephenson, 1935), students evaluated a large set of teamwork elements. The results indicate both areas of student agreement as well as significant differences in perceptions…

Hoping to increase student engagement, the author decided to re-envision his course on contemporary global issues in a "flipped" format. The results proved encouraging--to a degree. Over the course of five semesters, applying lessons gleaned from the literature, students learned how to read challenging texts outside of class and…

Academic dishonesty is pervasive on college campuses, but few researchers have explored students' situational decisions about cheating. This qualitative study explores influences on students' decisions about academic dishonesty, particularly how students' course contexts affect their decisions. The author found that course context factors heavily…

With the advent of online synopses, e-guides, and Internet study aids, millennial college students have many ways to evade direct interactions with the texts assigned in humanities classes. As a result, fewer and fewer of them are developing the analytical and close reading skills that college instructors value so highly. In this essay, the author…

Students in upper-level courses are expected to observe disciplinary conventions in writing assignments. Common recommendations for teaching conventions require substantial time for instructor feedback and in-class instruction. As an alternative, we tested the effectiveness of a checklist in improving students' performance of these conventions.…

This study extends the empirical findings of the use of continuous, lecture-embedded assessments to increase engagement and enhance learning. Outcome data (exam performance and attendance rates) from college students in three upper-division business course sections who took quizzes and wrote two-minute papers (test group) were compared to outcome…

The author examined Wikipedia's use as an instructional tool in two studies. The widespread use of Wikipedia indicates that students need to learn more about its workings and validity. Wikipedia articles relevant to psychology were edited by students in one class and critiqued in another class. Analysis of the subsequent editing of students'…

The authors address three questions: (1) What are the foundational practices of team-based learning (TBL)? (2) What are the fundamental principles underlying TBL's foundational practices? and (3) In what ways are TBL's foundational practices similar to and/or different from the practices employed by problem-based learning (PBL) and…

The authors tested the predictions of a game theory model of plagiarism, using a test population of student papers submitted to an online plagiarism detection program, over five semesters in a non-majors biology course with multiple sections and high enrollment. Consistent with the model, as the probability of detection and the penalty if caught…

Argues that examinations and assignments shape the way students learn, read, write, and think, and that authentic testing is the most powerful step toward improved student learning. Assignments must pose real questions addressed by practitioners in the discipline in question, must make scholarly sense, and must challenge students to perform rather…

This article considers why journal assignments are desirable in a variety of college courses and offers a definition of empowerment, three components of a model journal entry, and criteria for journal assignments. Also described are applications of journal writing in English, management, study skills, and communication. (JB)