Research and Scholarship

My teaching approach is founded on student engagement theory (Kuh, 2008; Christenson et al., 2012; Zepke, 2015), founded on the 7 principles of good practice (Chickering and Gamson, 1987). The seven principles of good practice in undergraduate education, as elucidated by Chickering and Gamsen (1987), are to encourage contact between faculty and students, develop cooperation among students, encourage active learning, give prompt feedback, emphasize the time on task, communicate high expectations, and respect diverse ways of learning. Student engagement theory is defined as “... synergistic interaction between activity and motivation” (Barkley, 2010). The synergistic interaction I have achieved/attempted to promote is a combination of a sense of classroom community, optimal level of challenge, and holistic learning. A critical aspect of student engagement is that it is strongly correlated with improved student success (e.g., Coates, 2005; Graham et al., 2007; Pascarella et al., 2010).

Sense of classroom community, also known as “learning communities,” is often defined as “groups of people engaged in intellectual interaction for the purpose of learning” (Cross, 1998). Such learning communities are recognized as a high impact education practice (Kuh, 2008), and also promote collaborative learning. The concept of learning communities is to cause effective learning through groups “of people working together with shared interests, common goals, and responsibilities towards one another and the group as a whole” (Brophy, 2004). It is through working in groups that students feel connected to each other rather than isolated and through this feeling of connection students feel the basic human need to be a part of a social community (e.g., Coates, 2010). This requirement is even more necessary in South Africa as many people-groups operate as groups to provide for their “group” or “community”. The concept of the Ubuntu philosophy, originating from Xhosa and Zulu people groups and is well spread among South African communities, refers to humanity and has translations equivalent to “humanity towards others” and “I am because we are” (Nabudere, 2005). The importance of community conveyed in Ubuntu can be embraced for more effective learning of students.

The optimal level of challenge for students is an activity that is sufficiently difficult to pose a challenge, but not so difficult that it destroys the willingness of students to attempt the task (McKeachie, 1994). This is related to the zone of proximal development (Vygotsky, 1978), in which learning best takes place when activities are designed at a level slightly above the student’s current level of development. In connection with creating situations of this learning caliber, the students are taught metacognitive skills where students themselves are partners in the learning process (Harper, 2009). To affect an optimal level of challenge, it is critical to provide timely feedback paired with authentic assessment (knowledge tested in real-world situations). Students must use and develop their own judgement and innovation skills, as well as efficiently and effectively using a repertoire of knowledge and skills, both geological and otherwise, to negotiate the complex tasks.

The concept of holistic learning is centered on integrating brain, body, and mind in the learning exercise. In kind, students learn through integrating cognitive, affective (feelings, attitudes, and motivation), and psychomotor (skill) domains. I aim to employ holistic learning through presenting the learning exercise as a game, as described by gamification. Gamification is a method to increase the immersive aspect of the work and replace the feeling of arduous learning with enjoyment, competition, and fun, thereby promoting the motivational aspect of student engagement.

References:

Barkley, E. (2010). Student Engagement Techniques: A handbook for college faculty. Wiley, 417 p.

Brophy, J. E. (2004). Motivating students to learn. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

Chickering, A. W., & Gamson, Z. F. (1987). Seven principles for good practice in undergraduate education. AAHE Bulletin, 3, 1–6.

Christenson, S., Reschly A. L., & Wylie, C. (2012). Handbook of Research on Student Engagement. Springer. 840 p.

Coates, H . (2010). Development of the Australasian Survey of Student Engagement (AUSSE). Higher Education. 60(1), 1–17 .


Cross, K. P. (1998). Opening windows on learning. Cross Paper 2. Mission Viejo, CA:League for Innovation in the Community College.

Graham, C. R., Tripp, T. R., Seawright, L. and Joeckel, G. L. (2007). Empowering or Compelling Reluctant Participators Using Audience Response Systems. Active Learning in Higher Education. 8(3), 233–258 .

Harper, S. R. (2009). Institutional Seriousness Concerning Black Male Student Engagement: Necessary Conditions and Collaborative Partnerships.

Kuh, G.D. (2008). High-impact educational practices. Peer Review, 10(4), pp.30-31.

McKeachie, W. J. (1994). Teaching tips: Strategies, research and theory for college and university teachers. Lexington, MA: D. C. Heath.

Nabudere, D. W. (2005). Ubuntu philosophy: memory and reconciliation. Texas Scholar Works, 1-20.

Pascarella, E. T., Seifert, T. A. and Blaich, C. (2010). How Effective Are the NSSE Benchmarks in Predicting Important Educational Outcomes? Change: The Magazine of Higher Learning. 42 (1), 16–22.

Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Zepke, N. (2015). Student engagement research: thinking beyond the mainstream. Higher Education Research & Development, 34(6), 1311-1323. doi:10.1080/07294360.2015.1024635