Students' explanation : Wider variety of teaching methods increases motivation and give higher results in biology
(2019) In NorDiNa: Nordic Studies in Science Education 15(2). p.193-205- Abstract
According to a previous study, results in one topic within an Upper Secondary School Biology course were increased due to student centered, formative working methods. The current study investigates student's perspective on the reasons for the observed increase in performance through focus group discussions. According to the findings, there was not a single factor explaining the increased result, but students felt more motivated during the topic, mainly due to the increased variation in working methods, ways to learn, and examination format. By phrasing goals in their own words and planning activities in order to achieve goals, transparency increased, and the students felt met at their level of prior knowledge. By allowing students to... (More)
According to a previous study, results in one topic within an Upper Secondary School Biology course were increased due to student centered, formative working methods. The current study investigates student's perspective on the reasons for the observed increase in performance through focus group discussions. According to the findings, there was not a single factor explaining the increased result, but students felt more motivated during the topic, mainly due to the increased variation in working methods, ways to learn, and examination format. By phrasing goals in their own words and planning activities in order to achieve goals, transparency increased, and the students felt met at their level of prior knowledge. By allowing students to suggest and choose their own working methods that met individual learning styles, students were more interested in the material and motivated to learn. Having an oral examination in a science subject was new to the students. The oral examination added variation to the assessment format and the way students had to prepare for the assessment, which, in turn, influenced the increase in the assessment results. Formative methods may be more applicable in certain topics, and practical implications are discussed.
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- author
- Granbom, Martin and Granbom, Marianne LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2019
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- in
- NorDiNa: Nordic Studies in Science Education
- volume
- 15
- issue
- 2
- pages
- 13 pages
- publisher
- University of Oslo
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85064607161
- ISSN
- 1504-4556
- DOI
- 10.5617/nordina.5918
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 94f50ba2-9daf-436d-a8fd-23c1778e426c
- date added to LUP
- 2019-05-07 12:01:01
- date last changed
- 2022-04-25 23:23:06
@article{94f50ba2-9daf-436d-a8fd-23c1778e426c, abstract = {{<p>According to a previous study, results in one topic within an Upper Secondary School Biology course were increased due to student centered, formative working methods. The current study investigates student's perspective on the reasons for the observed increase in performance through focus group discussions. According to the findings, there was not a single factor explaining the increased result, but students felt more motivated during the topic, mainly due to the increased variation in working methods, ways to learn, and examination format. By phrasing goals in their own words and planning activities in order to achieve goals, transparency increased, and the students felt met at their level of prior knowledge. By allowing students to suggest and choose their own working methods that met individual learning styles, students were more interested in the material and motivated to learn. Having an oral examination in a science subject was new to the students. The oral examination added variation to the assessment format and the way students had to prepare for the assessment, which, in turn, influenced the increase in the assessment results. Formative methods may be more applicable in certain topics, and practical implications are discussed.</p>}}, author = {{Granbom, Martin and Granbom, Marianne}}, issn = {{1504-4556}}, language = {{eng}}, number = {{2}}, pages = {{193--205}}, publisher = {{University of Oslo}}, series = {{NorDiNa: Nordic Studies in Science Education}}, title = {{Students' explanation : Wider variety of teaching methods increases motivation and give higher results in biology}}, url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.5617/nordina.5918}}, doi = {{10.5617/nordina.5918}}, volume = {{15}}, year = {{2019}}, }