STUDENTS' PERCEPTIONS OF WHAT INSTRUCTORS DO TO HELP STUDENTS LEARN IN THE CLASSROOM
File(s)
Date
2009-08Author
Parrish, Denise
Advisor(s)
Marnocha, Suzanne
Jambunathan, Jaya
Chappy, Sharon
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Currently, there are few available research studies examining students'
perceptions of what instructors do to help students learn in the classroom. The purpose
of this study was to explore and describe how students in a baccalaureate nursing
degree program perceive how instructors help them learn in the classroom. The goal
was to provide nursing instructors and nursing education administrative teams with
positive educational strategies, based on student perceptions, for teaching in the
classroom.
Dunkin and Biddle's (1974) Model of the Study of Classroom Teaching was used
as the conceptual framework to guide this study. The model describes the many
variables that contribute to the instructor and learner experience and also explains how
these variables can affect the perceptions and outcomes for the learner and the
instructor.
A descriptive qualitative design was used. A convenience sample of 21 senior
level nursing students from a college of nursing in the Midwestern United States
comprised the sample. Informed consent was obtained from the volunteer sample. A
demographic questionnaire was completed along with an unstructured interview.
Interviews were tape recorded and transcribed verbatim. Data were analyzed using
Colaizzi's method.
Results indicated that the sample was comprised of participants ranging in age
from 21 to 46 years, with a mean age of 25 years and a mode of 22 years. Three of the
participants were male and 18 were female. Twelve of the participants (57%) were in the
first semester of their senior year, and the remaining 9 participants (43%) were in the
second semester of their senior year. Data analysis revealed that perceptions of what
instructors do to help students learn were diverse. The four major themes identified
coincide with the presage variables, teacher properties, of Dunkin and Biddle's Model for
the Study of Classroom Teaching (Figure 1): (a) teaching skills, (b) intelligence, (c)
motivations, and (d) instructor personality traits.
By understanding the perceptions of senior level nursing students, nursing
instructors and nursing education administrative teams can provide students with
positive education strategies for teaching in the classroom. Findings may also have
implications for future nursing students and curricula in nursing education master degree
programs.
Subject
Communication in education
Feedback (Psychology)
Teacher-student relationships
Permanent Link
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1793/46726Description
A Thesis Submitted In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of Master of Science in Nursing Nurse Educator