The successful first year student:
enhancing academic & social
integration in a supportive learning
environment
Dr Corriene Reed
Learning
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Learning and Teaching Research
Group
Learning
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Alan Porter
Carol Pearson
Paula Hixenbaugh
Hazel Dewart
Sanjay Jobanputra
The University of Westminster
 Large urban university in Central London
 Commuter University Student Profile
 Living at home
 Part-time work
 High Proportion of Non-traditional students
 Mature students (37% are 22+)
 Part-time students
 Family commitments
 First generation to attend University
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Background
 Our aim is to increase student diversity,
- widening participation
- non traditional entry
- Government aim of 50% 18-30 yr olds in
University by 2010
 BUT there is a challenge ..….
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Social and Academic Integration
 Lack of social contact between
students
 Lack social contact between staff
and students
 Research on student retention and
attrition (Tinto 2002) stresses the
importance of academic and social
integration
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Previous attempts ……
 End of term parties
 Annual pub style quiz pitting staff against
students
 Low level of attendance
 Academic seminars by outside speakers
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The Psychology Quiz and Study Group
Projects
 The Psychology Quiz Project focussed on
encouraging social integration and
indirectly enhancing academic integration
 The Study Group Project aimed to enhance
academic and social integration
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1. The Psychology Quiz Project
 A voluntary, extra-curricular activity aimed at increasing
student interaction.
 Linked to learning outcomes
 Delivered using a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) Blackboard
 Face to face interaction not necessary
 Available in the student own time
 Ubiquitous use of e-mail/chat rooms etc
 Pub Quiz without the pub.
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Why a quiz format?
 Attractive to students “Sugaring the pill”
 “not serious, light hearted”
 Quiz culture
 Medical education
 “Can medical education be fun as well as
educational?”
 Howarth-Hockey and Stride (2002)
 Imagination, creativity
 Games and debates
 But it is still assessment!
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Use of group work



Perform an “ice breaking” function
Increases communication between students
Also useful in stimulating academic
integration leading to the creation of
learning
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Pedagogical Issues I
 Group or individual entries?
 Allocation of students to groups
 Self-allocation
 Time consuming
 Divisiveness?
 Lecturer allocation
 Integration
 Disintegration
 Division of labour/fairness/unfairness
 No involvement in internal workings of groups
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Pedagogical Issues II
 Prizes and assessment
 If questions are too easy how do we allocate prizes?–
ceiling effect, lottery?
 If questions are too difficult then students might give up.
 Formative assessment




Linking assessment to learning outcomes
Feedback to regulate own learning
Are prizes appropriate?
Can questions be used again?
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Design
 History and Philosophy of Psychology
Module (90 students, 3 seminar groups)
 Seminar followed by lecture
 Quiz made available after lecture
 Closed 1 week later before seminar
 Prizes awarded at the start of lecture.
 5 Prize questions, 10 non prize questions
linked to particular lectures
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Example Questions
 What was the real name of Freud’s small patient who grew up
to be a famous opera director? Herbert Graf (Freud’s small
patient was “Little Hans”. Little Hans was Herbert Graf).
 Who was the pioneer psychologist who classified women as
“attractive, indifferent or repellent” and used the data he
collected to map female attractiveness in the UK? Sir Francis
Galton
(If you don’t believe it read this excerpt from his autobiography:
http://www.mugu.com/galton/books/memories/chapter-XXI.html
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And some more…….
 Who was the famous psychologist nicknamed “Klex” who
went on to design a famous psychological test? Herman
Rorschach
 Who was the student who put the “t” in the t-test? William
Gosset
 Who was the American student of Wundt who wrote in his
diary “Am very drunk. Lectures-laboratory practice
gymnasium. Drank fifteen glasses of beer or thereaboutsthen three whiskies” and “This evening I took a large amount
of hasheesh- I did not weigh it but it must have been over 75
grms…..I imagine I had better let it alone hereafter.” James
McKeen Cattell
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Evaluation of Psychology Quiz
 Overall use of Blackboard
 Subjective impressions – module feedback
form
 Formal feedback questionnaire in final
seminar
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Figure 1: Access to Blackboard Area
before the Quiz the discussion boards were not used
12000
10000
8000
Weeks 2 to 5
6000
Weeks 6 to 9
4000
2000
0
Com
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Content
Group
Student
Figure 2: Access by time of day
Before Quiz 12:00 pm, after Quiz 8:00 pm
500
Hits
400
300
Weeks 2-5
200
Weeks 6-9
100
Hour of the day
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23
21
19
17
15
13
11
9
7
5
3
1
0
Figure 3: Access by day of week
Days of the week
Before Quiz Tuesday, after Quiz Thursday
1000
900
800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
Week 2-5
Weeks 6-9
Hits
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Student Evaluation
Easy
access to
is useful
The quiz
was fun
The
questions
were too
hard
No time to
take part
Difficult
working
in groups
It is worth
doing
again
Media 4.0
n
4.0
3.0
3.0
4.0
4.0
4.0
Mode
4.0
4.0
3.0
3.0
5.0
3.0
3.0
Rang
e
4.0
4.0
4.0
3.0
4.0
4.0
3.0
Blackboard
Blackboard
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Conclusions
Changed patterns of access
Students want it to continue
It is affecting social and academic
integration
 But there are problems of timing, it is
expensive and some students could see it
as an assessment burden



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2. The Study Groups Project
 Develop academic as well as social
connections
 Creation of PsychComm group on
Blackboard
 All first year BSc Psychology students
enrolled
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Student Handout for study groups
 Where are you now? Survived 1st semester, Results
looming, How do I improve?
 What we know about students who develop learning
communities
 How can a study group help? It deepens your learning.
It provides feedback. It prepares you for the working
world, with its emphasis on teamwork. It provides a
"support group." It helps you overcome shyness about
discussing issues in class. It helps you become
motivated to study.
 How can we help you to help yourselves? Provide
rooms to meet on a regular basis. Provide Blackboard
discussion groups so that you don’t have to meet face to
face. Provide chat tools so that you can talk to each other
on-line. Provide chat tools so you can talk to us on-line.
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Student Handout II
 Practical Issues: details of rooms & time slots,
with a lecturer that study groups could consult
 Help provided: emphasis on student’s
independent learning
 Discussion board: PsychComm would be
monitored
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Evaluating the Quiz & Study Group Project
 Technical issues – Blackboard and on-line
chat problems
 Group formation – about 50% formed study
groups ( 70% of these joined a group
themselves, 30% asked to be placed in a
group).
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Focus Group Evaluation
 ‘allows me more contact with staff and
other students’
 ‘I can be anonymous & ask questions
that I couldn’t in person’
 ‘can get a response from someone
quite quickly even when I’m at home’
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Concerns over use of ICT
 ‘prefer face to face – technology too
anonymous’
 ‘feeling ‘fobbed off’ by technology
replacing human contact’
 ‘just used to fill-in the gaps between
staff & students’
students
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Comments sent via the Discussion Board
 ‘its a brilliant idea!!! loving it!’
 ‘think it is a fantastic idea.....u lot really
smacked it this time (did well).
Thank you sooooo much in advance cuz i think
it's gonna be a real success. My only concern is
u guys getting bombarded with msn messages,
but im sure u can find a way around that....this
whole concept sounds really good, thank u
sooo much, look forward to its beginning!!!!’
’THANKS!!!!’
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Unintended consequences: Changing
expectations
 The “safety net” issue – students who didn’t use
the chat facility complained when it didn’t work
 The “burden” issue – student’s perception of ICT
as replacement rather than supplement to face-to
face interaction
 Challenges – in terms of time, enthusiasts and
evaluation
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What is next?
 PsychComm will continue
 A short version of the Quiz will be rolled out
at the start of the semester
 Monitor 2nd year use of study groups
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References
 Howarth-Hockey, G & Stride,P. (2002) Can medical
education be fun as well as educational? British Medical
Journal Volume 325 , :1453-1454 ( 21 December )
 Tinto, V. (1987) Leaving College: Rethinking the Causes and
Cures of Student Attrition. Chicago: University of Chicago
Press.
 Tinto, V. (2002) The Impact of learning Communities on
Student Success. NY: Higher Education program, Syracuse
University
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