Pedagogies of engagement use in postsecondary chemistry education in the United States: results from a national survey

Abstract

Pedagogies of engagement (i.e., Peer-Led Teaming Learning, Problem-Based Learning, and Process-Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning) are active learning approaches used in postsecondary chemistry courses. In this study, we use data from a national survey of postsecondary chemistry instructors in the United States to estimate use of three pedagogies in the course for which the instructor feels they have the most control. We found that 16.6% of these faculties report they are implementing Peer-Led Team Learning (PLTL), 10.6% report implementing Problem-Based Learning (PBL), and 10.7% report implementing Process-Oriented Guided-Inquiry Learning (POGIL). We compare use of select teaching practices and other active learning strategies with implementation of PLTL, PBL, and POGIL. Additionally, we use items from the survey to understand course, institution, and instructor characteristics associated with use. Key findings include that lower-level courses and courses with large enrollments are the most likely places for PLTL to be implemented and that instructors who are not on the tenure track are more likely to implement PLTL and POGIL than tenured/tenure-track instructors. Instructors who report implementing PLTL and PBL have more student-centered beliefs about teaching and learning, while instructors who report implementing POGIL have more teacher-centered beliefs about learning, albeit all with small effect sizes. Implications are offered for how instructors, researchers, developers and disseminators of these pedagogies can use our results to inform their practices and efforts.

Assessment Tools in Context: Results from a National Survey of Postsecondary Chemistry Faculty

“…The survey was administered through Qualtrics online and was approved by the University of South Florida Institutional Review Board #Pro00025183. A complete and detailed description of the survey design methodology, including sample selection, can be found elsewhere. , The total number of survey respondents was 829.…”

“…The most important contextual factors informing this study are course level (i.e., first-year, second-year, etc.) and course size (i.e., number of students enrolled). , Faculty members were asked to respond “yes” or “no” if freshmen (first-year), sophomores (second-year), juniors (third-year), and seniors (fourth-year) were enrolled in the course. Faculty members were asked to report how many total students were enrolled in the course.…”

“…A complete and detailed description of the survey design methodology, including sample selection, can be found elsewhere. 38,64 The total number of survey respondents was 829.…”

“…The “Enacted Practices” node is the central focus of the model. We explore enacted assessment practices in the same way enacted instructional practice has been studied in the past. ,,, Innovations are typically developed and evaluated by “enthusiastic faculty”, making it difficult to determine implementation of the innovations “in the wild” . One method to develop a contextual understanding of the use of evidence-based practices is through observation; , studies using such methods have resulted in profiles of instructional practices in STEM disciplines, including chemistry .…”

Disaggregated General Chemistry Grades Reveal Differential Success among BIPOC Students in Partial Flipped Team Learning Classrooms

“…There is a plethora of data to suggest that alternative pedagogical approaches may be more successful in teaching and thus retaining STEM majors. Examples include POGIL lessons, active learning, team-peer led learning, flipped classrooms, inquiry-based learning, and combinations of all approaches. − Unfortunately, in a recent large-scale evaluation of baccalaureate teaching in North America which included over 500 faculty working in 25 institutions, chemistry courses were among the most didactic (lecture-based) of the STEM fields …”