{"id":160,"date":"2019-07-10T15:55:29","date_gmt":"2019-07-10T19:55:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/?p=160"},"modified":"2019-07-18T12:43:57","modified_gmt":"2019-07-18T16:43:57","slug":"bonem-et-al-2019-learning-environment-and-student-outcomes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/2019\/07\/10\/bonem-et-al-2019-learning-environment-and-student-outcomes\/","title":{"rendered":"Reading &#8220;Learning environment and student outcomes&#8221;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>I am reading\u00a0<span style=\"font-size: 1rem\">&#8220;What you do is less important than how you do it: the effects of learning environment on student outcomes&#8221;, Bonem, Fedesco, and Zissimopoulos 2019 (Learning Environment Research).<\/span><\/p>\n<p>They survey a large number (14,000) students across a variety of disciplines and find students &#8221; in highly autonomy-supportive learning environments experience significant increases in satisfaction of students&#8217; basic psychological needs, student motivation, course evaluations and academic performance&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>They reference &#8220;self-determination theory&#8221; and distinguish between courses where the focus is on pressuring students to think like the instructor (controlling), and courses where students have more ownership of the course, with their thoughts and feelings welcome. \u00a0See Ryan and Deci 2017 for information about the learning benefits of autonomy-supporting environments (environments where students &#8220;learn more conceptual knowledge, have a deeper understanding of the content, and retain information longer&#8221;).<\/p>\n<p>In terms of course outcomes, autonomy, competence and relatedness are named as basic psychological needs (they say to see Deci and Ryan 1985 and 2000), and they are rated, via surveys, for each course in the study.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Autonomy: Options and choices can create a sense of autonomy.<\/li>\n<li>Competence: A sense of competence is also important: this is about student perception of their progress. \u00a0Perceiving progress can lead to motivation, which can lead to improved progress.<\/li>\n<li>Relatedness: This is about feeling like other people in the course (instructor and students) care about them and that they are contributing to the course.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The measure of learning environment for each course in the study was set by a learning climate questionnaire (LQC, 6 questions):<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>I feel that my instructor provides me choices and options.<\/li>\n<li>I feel understood by my instructor.<\/li>\n<li>My instructor conveyed confidence in my ability to do well in the course.<\/li>\n<li>My instructor encouraged me to ask questions.<\/li>\n<li>My instructor listens to how I would like to do things.<\/li>\n<li>My instructor tries to understand how I see things before suggesting a new way to do things.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>They also use a basic psychological needs survey (7 items are about autonomy, 6 about competence and 8 about relatedness):<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>I feel like I can make a lot of inputs in deciding how my coursework gets done.<\/li>\n<li>I really like the people in this course.<\/li>\n<li>I do not feel very competent in this course.<\/li>\n<li>People in this course tell me I am good at what I do.<\/li>\n<li>I feel pressured in this course.<\/li>\n<li>I get along with people in this course.<\/li>\n<li>I pretty much keep to myself when in this course.<\/li>\n<li>I am free to express my ideas and opinions in this course.<\/li>\n<li>I consider the people in this course to be my friends.<\/li>\n<li>I have been able to learn interesting new skills in this course.<\/li>\n<li>When I am in this course, I have to do what I am told.<\/li>\n<li>Most days I feel a sense of accomplishment from this course.<\/li>\n<li>My feelings are taken into consideration in this course.<\/li>\n<li>In this course I do not get much of a chance to show how capable I am.<\/li>\n<li>People in this course care about me.<\/li>\n<li>There are not many people in this course that I am close to.<\/li>\n<li>I feel like I can pretty much be myself in this course.<\/li>\n<li>The people in this course do not seem to like me much.<\/li>\n<li>I often do not feel very capable in this course.<\/li>\n<li>There is not much opportunity for me to decide for myself how to go about my coursework.<\/li>\n<li>People in this course are pretty friendly towards me.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>My impression is that the LQC was used to grade the learning environment of the course, and then the basic psychological needs survey was used to create dependent variables. \u00a0It doesn&#8217;t seem surprising that 1, 5, 8, 11, 13, 17, 20 of the basic needs survey (the autonomy questions) would be closely related to the LQC questions, so it seems worth focusing on the relationship between the LQC score and other outcomes of the course.<\/p>\n<p>The course rating, the instructor rating, and the student rating of knowledge transfer each has a \u00a0 positive relationship with the learning environment rating.<\/p>\n<p>Looking at regression coefficients (see Table 3), competence seems perhaps more important than autonomy. \u00a0Competence looks to be closely related to autonomy, though, and also to a &#8220;self determination index&#8221;. \u00a0In the self determination index, students rate agreement with the following statements:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Because it allows me to develop skills that are important to me.<\/li>\n<li>Because I would feel bad if I didn\u2019t.<\/li>\n<li>Because learning all I can about academic work is really essential for me.<\/li>\n<li>I don\u2019t know. I have the impression I\u2019m wasting my time.<\/li>\n<li>Because acquiring all kinds of knowledge is fundamental for me.<\/li>\n<li>Because I feel I have to.<\/li>\n<li>I\u2019m not sure anymore. I think that maybe I should quit (drop the class).<\/li>\n<li>Because I really enjoy it.<\/li>\n<li>Because it\u2019s a sensible way to get a meaningful experience.<\/li>\n<li>Because I would feel guilty if I didn\u2019t.<\/li>\n<li>Because it\u2019s a practical way to acquire new knowledge.<\/li>\n<li>Because I really like it.<\/li>\n<li>Because experiencing new things is a part of who I am.<\/li>\n<li>Because that\u2019s what I\u2019m supposed to do.<\/li>\n<li>I don\u2019t know.I wonder if I should continue.<\/li>\n<li>Because I would feel awful about myself if I didn\u2019t.<\/li>\n<li>Because it\u2019s really fun.<\/li>\n<li>Because that\u2019s what I was told to do.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>I suppose that this paper ends up setting up a list of 13 or so factors that are worth investigating further (6 learning environment questions and 7 autonomy questions), as well as highlighting the importance of what the authors are terming autonomy, competence and relatedness.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I am reading\u00a0&#8220;What you do is less important than how you do it: the effects of learning environment on student outcomes&#8221;, Bonem, Fedesco, and Zissimopoulos 2019 (Learning Environment Research). They survey a large number (14,000) students across a variety of disciplines and find students &#8221; in highly autonomy-supportive learning environments experience significant increases in satisfaction [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8032,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[157887],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-160","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-learning-and-teaching"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7E5LF-2A","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":32,"url":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/2017\/08\/25\/reading-student-learning-objectives-and-mathematics-teaching\/","url_meta":{"origin":160,"position":0},"title":"Reading &#8220;Student learning objectives and mathematics teaching&#8221;","author":"siams","date":"25 August 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"I am working to write learning objectives for multivariable calculus this Fall. This article helped distinguish between overarching goals (that students are able to fit the math in the course into a greater understanding of math and of the world) and the learning objectives, of what I hope students will\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Learning and teaching&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Learning and teaching","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/category\/learning-and-teaching\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":36,"url":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/2017\/08\/25\/reading-mental-maps-and-learning-objectives-the-fast-slo-algorithm-for-creating-student-learning-objectives\/","url_meta":{"origin":160,"position":1},"title":"Reading &#8220;Mental Maps and Learning Objectives: The FAST-SLO Algorithm For Creating Student Learning Objectives&#8221;","author":"siams","date":"25 August 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"This article is focused on a method for writing student learning objectives for a course (SLOs).\u00a0 I find writing learning objectives challenging when working alone.\u00a0 They can be written at so many different levels of detail.\u00a0 Almost every example or question in a textbook has an implicit objective associated with\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Learning and teaching&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Learning and teaching","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/category\/learning-and-teaching\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":96,"url":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/2018\/06\/04\/notes-on-how-learning-works-by-ambrose-et-al-2010\/","url_meta":{"origin":160,"position":2},"title":"Notes on &#8220;How Learning Works&#8221; by Ambrose et. al., 2010","author":"siams","date":"4 June 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Notes based on How Learning Works : Seven Research-Based Principles for Smart Teaching by Susan A. Ambrose, Michael W. Bridges, , Michele DiPietro, , Marsha C. Lovett, Marie K. Norman, and Richard E. Mayer.\u00a0 Wiley 2010. Chapter 1: Prior knowledge. There can be a mismatch between the prior knowledge and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Learning and teaching&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Learning and teaching","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/category\/learning-and-teaching\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":175,"url":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/2019\/07\/18\/notes-on-how-a-detracked-mathematics-approach-promoted-respect-responsibility-and-high-achievement\/","url_meta":{"origin":160,"position":3},"title":"Notes on &#8220;How a Detracked Mathematics Approach Promoted Respect, Responsibility, and High Achievement&#8221;","author":"siams","date":"18 July 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Boaler, 2006. \u00a0\"How a Detracked Mathematics Approach Promoted Respect, Responsibility, and High Achievement\". \u00a0\u00a0Theory Into Practice, 45:1, 40-46 This article is about a high school math program with high and equitable math achievement, where mixed-ability approaches led to \"higher overall attainment and more equitable outcomes\". \u00a0The students in this study\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Learning and teaching&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Learning and teaching","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/category\/learning-and-teaching\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":81,"url":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/2018\/01\/03\/grading\/","url_meta":{"origin":160,"position":4},"title":"Grading!","author":"siams","date":"3 January 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"I'm reading Effective Grading: A Tool for Learning and Assessment in College, by Barbara Walvoord and Virginia Johnson Anderson. To think about grading, they emphasize that building learning objectives is core to the process.\u00a0 They break these into a few categories: the vocabulary and content and concepts that students should\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":222,"url":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/2020\/05\/23\/python-in-my-dynamical-systems-class\/","url_meta":{"origin":160,"position":5},"title":"Python in my dynamical systems class","author":"siams","date":"23 May 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"I have been using Mathematica in my dynamical systems class for a few years. I don't have a systematic curriculum related to it, though, and need to develop clearer computational learning goals, as well as a pathway for students to develop computational skills. Ideally, by the end of the semester,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Dynamical Systems&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Dynamical Systems","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/category\/dynamical-systems\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/160","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8032"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=160"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/160\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":180,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/160\/revisions\/180"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=160"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=160"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/siams\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=160"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}