Active learning is increasingly promoted within institutions of higher education to assist students develop higher order thinking and link knowledge to meaning. In this paper, the authors evaluate the use of weekly online quizzes based on prescribed preparatory material as a tool to incentivize preparatory reading in order to enable and encourage…

Writing Center faculty at the Medical University of South Carolina teach humanities courses in which we include literary texts that are not ostensibly "about health care" to introduce to students how unique an illness narrative can be--to challenge, in fact, preconceived notions student may have about what "counts" as a…

Many tertiary-level courses assess students' participation in tutorial or online discussions. However, in educational and pedagogical research literature, criteria for assessing students' skills in engaging with peers remain unclear. This article describes an online assignment with a set of participation criteria and a method for assessing the…

Using principles underlying the social constructivist approach, we redesigned an undergraduate course on social problems, seeking to employ three learning activities (online assignments and small-group and class discussions) to facilitate knowledge construction by students and promote their intellectual capabilities and critical-thinking skills.…

In this study, we assessed small and large group discussions and repeated writing assignments with the intent to objectively measure the values of these learning pedagogies. We crafted a model where students researched a question, formulated a written answer, discussed it with their peers, and revised their answers. Then, we did it with repetition…

Discusses factors related to the successful delivery of online programs, based on experiences at Nova Southeastern University. Topics include on-campus visits by online students; timing; synchronous versus asynchronous methods; threaded discussion boards; assignments; learning resources; administrative and technical support; faculty issues; the…

Discusses results of interviews with five university teacher education professors that asked about their first-time experiences offering online courses. Recommends four categories for improvements: preparation, including a good introductory Web page for students; structure, including promoting interactivity by limiting class size and using…

This paper reports on the effectiveness of an innovative course design that bridges classes from two different disciplines. The "Bridge" design creates assignments in two classes: a summary class and a panel class. The design encourages students to engage in teaching and interacting with their peers within and across disciplines, and…

Describes a collaborative program between the University System of Georgia and the University of Munch (Germany) that provides students with a global education experience through a virtual exchange program in order to improve student's understanding of global issues. Discusses course format, language barriers, class discussions, instructor and…

A teaching guide designed for use by new university teaching assistants provides help in preparing for and carrying out instructional responsibilities. Separate chapters give guidance with: preparing the course description and syllabus, including writing objectives; selecting teaching strategies (lecture, discussion, and laboratory experience);…