ERIC Number: EJ1470653
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025
Pages: 9
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0047-231X
EISSN: EISSN-1943-4898
Available Date: 0000-00-00
Are My Students Engaged? Nonverbal Interactions as an Indicator of Engagement in a Stadium-Style Lecture Hall
Nicole E. States1; Carina Bruno1; Karsten Martin1; Renée S. Cole1
Journal of College Science Teaching, v54 n2 p91-99 2025
Many large introductory classes are taught in stadium-style classrooms, which makes group work more difficult due to the room layout and immobile seating. These classrooms may create challenges for an instructor who wants to monitor student engagement because the layouts make it difficult to interact with the students as they work. Student nonverbal actions, such as eyes on the paper or an unsettled gaze, can be used to determine when students are actively engaged during group work. While other methods have been implemented to determine student actions during a class period, in larger settings these protocols require time-consuming data collection and cannot give in-the-moment feedback. In this study, student verbal and nonverbal interactions were analyzed and compared to determine the types of nonverbal interactions students take when collaboratively engaging in group work during lectures. It was found that a larger variety of nonverbal interactions, such as gesturing and leaning, were used when students were collaboratively working within their groups. Instructors of large enrollment classrooms can use the results of this work to aid in their facilitation of group work within stadium-style classrooms.
Descriptors: Nonverbal Communication, Learner Engagement, Large Group Instruction, Group Activities, Verbal Communication, Cooperative Learning, Introductory Courses, Chemistry, Science Instruction, College Science, College Students, Audience Response Systems
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: 1915047
Author Affiliations: 1Department of Chemistry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, United States