Our Introduction to Biology course (BIOL 1010) changed in 2004 from a standard instructor-centered, lecture-homework-exam format to a student-centered format that used Web-enhanced, interactive pedagogy. To measure and compare conceptual learning gains in the traditional course in fall 2003 with a section of the interactive course in fall 2004, we created concept inventories for both evolution ...

Hosted by The Interlink Alliance, this faculty development conference provided higher education instructors the opportunity to share best practices in teaching and learning, discuss research on teaching and learning processes, and establish relationships with faculty from other Interlink Alliance campuses. Conference programs and activities centered on four tracks: Teachers and Leaders; Teachin...

Student-centered strategies are being incorporated into undergraduate classrooms in response to a call for reform. We tested whether teaching in an extensively student-centered manner (many active-learning pedagogies, consistent formative assessment, cooperative groups; the Extensive section) was more effective than teaching in a moderately student-centered manner (fewer active-learning pedagog...

Background The complexity of health care today requires nursing graduates to use effective thinking skills. Many nursing programs are revising curricula to include concept-based learning that encourages problem-solving, effective thinking, and the ability to transfer knowledge to a variety of situations-requiring nurse educators to modify their teaching styles and methods to promote student-cen...

Problem Statement: Student teachers’ beliefs and conceptions affect not only what and how they learn in teacher education programs, but also their future professional development in their teaching careers. Examining and understanding student teachers’ beliefs and conceptions is therefore crucial to improving their professional preparation and development, as well as the effectiveness of teacher...

A lecture section of introductory biology that historically enrolled more than 500 students was split into two smaller sections of approximately 250 students each. A traditional lecture format was followed in the "traditional" section; lecture time in the "active" section was drastically reduced in favor of a variety of in-class student-centered activities. Students in both sections took unanno...

Profound socioeconomic pressures on medical student education have been catalogued extensively. These pressures include teaching patient shortages, teacher shortages, conflicting systems, and financial problems. Many of these problems have been caused by an unregulated free market affecting medicine overall, with market values sometimes overshadowing the academic values of education, research, ...

A lecture section of introductory biology that historically enrolled more than 500 students was split into two smaller sections of approximately 250 students each. A traditional lecture format was followed in the “traditional” section; lecture time in the “active” section was drastically reduced in favor of a variety of in-class student-centered activities. Students in both sections took unanno...

The unveiling of e-learning technologies has led to an increase in the use of e-learning systems also known as educational technologies to support blended learning in Universities by providing a mix of face-to-face classroom teaching, live e-learning, self-paced e-learning and distance learning. Despite the existing benefits of using e-learning, some higher education institutions have not utili...

In recent years, university education has undergone profound changes as a result of the creation of the European Space for Higher Education. It has gone from a teacher-centered model, based on the transmission of knowledge through lectures, to being student-centered, based on the acquisition of skills and attaching great importance to independent learning. This transformation involves the need ...