Traditional tutorial system - fit for purpose or past its sell by date? University students' experiences

Davids, M. Noor

doi:10.20853/28-2-352

Cited by 5 publications

(12 citation statements)

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“…According to Davids (2014), South African universities are experiencing large class sizes on account of increased student enrolment. Davids (2014) further observes that an increase in enrolment of students is often not matched by an increase in the provision of teaching staff and resources, which has led to uncertain educational outcomes.…”

Section: The Value Of Discipline-specific Tutorialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Davids (2014) further observes that an increase in enrolment of students is often not matched by an increase in the provision of teaching staff and resources, which has led to uncertain educational outcomes. Given the unproductive and detrimental effects of large classes on student learning, tutorials are viewed as a teaching strategy to minimise the negative consequences of large classes.…”

Section: The Value Of Discipline-specific Tutorialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Tutorials are "recognised as a crucial academic development service for students in higher education" (Underhill, Clarence-Fincham & Petersen, 2014) and has therefore become an essential feature of many universities' teaching structures. Davids (2014) suggests that a smaller tutorial is more effective than a larger one, because it is more interactive and it allows students to exchange ideas in small groups.…”

Section: The Value Of Discipline-specific Tutorialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The ethic of care also encompasses elements such as responsibility, competence, honesty and concern for others, the community and society at large, which requires early induction into this ethos. Evidence is provided from the Department of Social Work at UWits, which recently initiated a discipline-specific support programme for first-year students called the Social Work Students' Support Programme (SWSSP).There is evidence to suggest that students' experiences of discipline-specific programmes are under-researched in the South African context (Davids, 2014). Hence, this paper explores learning strategies designed by the Department of Social Work (UWits) to assist first-year students in achieving academic excellence.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Inducting First-Year Social Work Students: Reflections on a Discipline-Specific Approach to Academic Development

Khosa

Pillay²,

Dube

2018

SWORK

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First-year students at tertiary education institutions face multiple problems including under-preparedness, financial problems and adjustment to university. In response, some universities have introduced generic academic development programmes. In contrast, three educators from the Department of Social Work at the University of the Witwatersrand (UWits) engage in a reflective analysis of a discipline-specific academic development programme. Thematic content analysis was used to analyse transcripts of two focus group interviews with students and reflective reports written by two educators on strategies used to design the programme. Findings suggest that this programme meets the unique needs and professional identity development of Social Work students. 111Social Work/Maatskaplike Werk 2018:54(1) INDUCTING FIRST-YEAR SOCIAL WORK STUDENTS: REFLECTIONS ON A DISCIPLINE-SPECIFIC APPROACH TO ACADEMIC DEVELOPMENTPriscalia Khosa, Roshini Pillay, Nkosiyazi Dube INTRODUCTIONStudent success and retention are among the major debates in higher education institutions (HEIs). An area of special concern is the students' drop-out and failure rate in their first year of study, which is a worldwide problem (Spaull, 2013). Although the problem is common globally, within the South African context first-year students at institutions of higher education are confronted with additional challenges. Students coming from situations of low socioeconomic status (SES) have the added burden imposed by certain faculty members who assume and communicate publicly that financial limitations translate into limited educational and linguistic abilities (Notshulwana, 2011). The communication of this deficit view of students as deficient places an additional burden of stigma on them: this is especially so when the higher educational institution (HEI) and more specifically the teaching departments are unable to offer adequate structures of support to meet the specific needs of these students. In the South African context this position reinforces the social perception (experienced therefore by students) that access to an HEI does not mean success. This deficit view of low SES students is inextricably linked to shame, which exacerbates the burden carried by the student, and limits the potential or basic capabilities available to the student to thrive, exercise agency and feel at home within the university environment (Leibowitz, Bozalek, Carolissen, Nicholas, Rohleder, & Swartz, 2010).In the light of these serious concerns the majority of South African HEIs have recognised the need to put supportive programmes in place to help students successfully adjust to life and the demands of tertiary education and to achieve excellence in their academic performance (Andrews & Osman, 2015; Bozalek & Boughey, 2012;Potgieter, Davidowitz, & Mathabatha, 2008). However, many universities have adopted "one-sizefits all" generic academic development programmes for the first year, which are often unable to meet the specific needs of students. While these generic academic de...

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Section: The Value Of Discipline-specific Tutorialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Value Of Discipline-specific Tutorialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Value Of Discipline-specific Tutorialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Inducting First-Year Social Work Students: Reflections on a Discipline-Specific Approach to Academic Development

Khosa

Pillay²,

Dube

2018

SWORK

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“…The high attrition and drop-out rates of first-year students in universities have been a challenging phenomenon and explored by many researchers (Arco-Tirado, Fernándes-Martín & Fernándes-Balboa, 2011; Badat, 2010; Council on Higher Education [CHE], 2013; Tinto, 1987;Tinto, 2014;Van Zyl, 2016;Veenstra, 2009). Many reasons, for example underpreparedness for university, lack of or poor skills such as time management, study strategies, academic literacy and inability to adjust to university environment, have been provided for these high drop-out rates (Boughey, 2013;Davids, 2014;Jaffer & Garraway, 2016;Mouton, Louw & Strydom, 2013;Underhill & McDonald, 2010;Wilson-Strydom, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maximising the First-Year Experience through the Incorporation of Generic Skills in a Medical Curriculum at the University of the Free State

Jama¹

2018

JSAA

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The highest attrition rates occur among first-year students. Universities have designed different curricular programmes, such as the development of generic skills, to address this challenge. In the medical school at the University of the Free State in South Africa, these skills were incorporated in the MBChB curriculum as an eight credit-bearing module in 2000 and later increased to 12 credits in 2009. To date, the effectiveness of this first-year module in equipping students with generic skills was last determined in 2002. The aim of this research was to determine the perceptions of first-year students regarding the effectiveness of this module in equipping them with generic skills. A questionnaire survey was distributed to 596 first-year medical students each year from 2013 to 2016. A focus group discussion (FGD) was held with 13 students who failed the first year of study in 2016 and had to repeat in 2017. According to the results, most students had a positive perception about the structure and organisation as well as the benefits of the module. However, from the questionnaire results, the overall rating of the effectiveness of the module was not very positive, with 35% of students rating it effective, 45% rating it relatively effective and 20% rating it not effective. However, during the FGD, seven (54%) of the 13 students rated it effective. In the qualitative statements of the questionnaire, a common comment related to the poor rating was about the unnecessary long hours in some sessions. Other comments from the questionnaire were medically related, with some students suggesting more practical and clinical demonstrations. During the FGD, students could not understand why their peers needed practical demonstrations in the first year. The incorporation of generic skills should be contextand discipline-specific and students should be "re-equipped" with certain skills during different stages of the curriculum.

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Higher education institutional innovation: An analysis of challenges to e-academic advising during emergency remote teaching

Mangundu

2022

SA Journal of Information Management

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Background: The sudden shift by higher education institutions (HEIs) to emergency remote teaching (ERT), driven by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, pushed academic advisors of HEIs to suddenly shift towards e-academic advising to continue with the provision of academic advisory support services. However, few studies have concentrated on e-academic advising innovation challenges in the context of developing countries.Objectives: Therefore, the objective of this study was to examine students’ challenges in the innovative e-academic advising during ERT in a HEI in South Africa.Method: The study employed an online survey method and a stratified random sampling technique to select 240 first-year university undergraduate students from six faculties for the study. Structural equation modelling (SEM) with post hoc analysis, Bonferroni correlation, factor analysis with promax rotation and the Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin measure of sampling adequacy were employed in analysing the collected data.Results: The findings revealed significantly correlated institutional, technological and personal challenges to e-academic advising. Despite e-academic advising challenges being experienced differently across faculties, findings revealed that students experienced personal challenges more than institutional and technological challenges.Conclusion: Personal challenges are the most important factors for consideration when innovating to e-academic advising. The study concludes that the management of the HEI studied could improve the success of its innovation of integrating e-academic advising solutions to its academic affairs by considering a holistic approach that recognises the multifaceted challenges identified.Contribution: The study contributes to the discussion on student success in online learning environments. Once the challenges are identified, measures can be put in place to address them.

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Traditional tutorial system - fit for purpose or past its sell by date? University students' experiences

Cited by 5 publications

References 0 publications

Inducting First-Year Social Work Students: Reflections on a Discipline-Specific Approach to Academic Development

Inducting First-Year Social Work Students: Reflections on a Discipline-Specific Approach to Academic Development

Maximising the First-Year Experience through the Incorporation of Generic Skills in a Medical Curriculum at the University of the Free State

Higher education institutional innovation: An analysis of challenges to e-academic advising during emergency remote teaching

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