Paper Presentations

Examining Factor Structure of the Community of Inquiry Framework: A Bifactor Tactic

NUS CDTL Paper Presentations , , , , ,

Jingwen LOW1, Teck Kiang TAN2*, Yuan Yi CHONG1, and Tao Tao NG3
1Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science (FOS), NUS
2Institute for Applied Learning Sciences and Educational Technology (ALSET), NUS
3NUS Library
*alsttk@nus.edu.sg  

 

Low, J. W., Tan, T. K., Chong, Y. Y., & Ng, T. T. (2023). Examining factor structure of the community of inquiry framework: A bifactor tactic [Paper presentation]. In Higher Education Campus Conference (HECC) 2023, 7 December, National University of Singapore. https://blog.nus.edu.sg/hecc2023proceedings/examining-factor-structure-of-the-community-of-inquiry-framework-a-bifactor-tactic/

 

SUB-THEME

Interdisciplinarity and Education 

 

KEYWORDS

Community of inquiry, factorial structure, exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, bifactor model 

 

CATEGORY

Paper Presentation 

 

ABSTRACT

The Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework was commonly used for blended as well as online teaching and learning in higher education. This paper presentation examines the factorial structure of CoI, providing evidence to demonstrate that the bifactor factorial structure gives the most preferred conceptualising of the CoI framework. The findings confirmed that the One & Ten Bifactor Model fitted best, indicating the construct-relevant multidimensionality of CoI. This factorial structure is valuable for educators and researchers to understand students’ experiences through the application of CoI in a chemistry course. It also helps researchers intending to use the results for future research to use this validated factorial structure CoI that is capable of understanding the conceptualisation of CoI and its constructs.  

 

FRAMEWORK OF COMMUNITY OF INQUIRY

The Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework was commonly used for blended as well as online teaching and learning in higher education. This framework, from the socio-constructivist perspective, is based on a meaningful educational conception of teaching, social, and cognitive presence. These three presences are subdivided into ten subcategories, as shown in Figure 1 below. 

Figure 1. Conceptual framework and factorial structure of the Community of Inquiry (CoI).

 

The factorial structure defines the CoI dimensionality and its hierarchical relationship. This conceptual structure links the structural configuration to its assessment items. However, the factorial structure and its dimensionality are far from confirmation. While the application of the CoI framework has gained attention, was widespread, extended, and changed from its original intent, its factorial structure was not satisfactorily settled and agreed upon empirically. Stenbom (2018) reported the review results of 103 journals published between 2008 and 2017, which showed high validity and reliability; however, CoI factorial structure remained unanswered. The numerous factor structures suggested in the literature include the original three-category, and the ten-category structure. However, there is no evidence to show whether the three categories or the ten subcategories fit better empirically. Validation of the factorial structure thus requires further validation. The results of the study allow researchers and practitioners to use it with confidence as  a reliable structural source. More importantly, the bifactor model, which is the main model proposed in the current paper, specifies simultaneously two structural forms that make this model closer to reality. While Yang and Su (2021) supported the bifactor model as a valid and reliable representation of the CoI instrument but it was restricted to a general factor with the three main presences without further examining the ten subfactors. This study proceeds to examine the inclusion of a general factor with the ten subfactors.

 

RESULTS

This paper presentation examines eight factorial structures of CoI, comparing their fits (Table 1), and finds that the One & Ten Bifactor Model fits best, as depicted in Figure 2 below. This model allows for specifying both the general and specific factors. The general factor is a general common model that is loaded to all the CoI items together with a set of specific factors that represent a unique narrow set of dimensions that concurrently and essentially contributed under the CoI framework 

Figure 2. One & Ten Bifactor Model

 

Table 1 shows the results of the eight models, indicating M1, the hypothesised One & Ten Bifactor, fits best for all the five fit indices, namely χ2, CFI, TLI, RMSEA, and SRMR. 

 

Table 1
Fit indices of hypothesised CFA and competing models 

Model  χ2

 

 p-value  df  CFI  TLI  RMSEA  SRMR 
M1 Hypothesised One and Ten Bifactor  711  0.3495  458  0.9981  0.9976  0.0489  0.0455 
M2 Competing One-Factor  5607  0  527  0.9610  0.9585  0.2043  0.1222 
M3 Competing Three-Factor Oblique  1555  0  524  0.9921  0.9915  0.0923  0.0634 
M4 Competing Ten-Factor Oblique  912  0  482  0.9967  0.9962  0.0622  0.0521 
M5 Competing Second-Order, Three-Factor First-Order  1555  0  524  0.9921  0.9915  0.0923  0.0634 
M6 Competing Second-Order, Ten-Factor First-Order  3555  0  517  0.9767  0.9747  0.1595  0.1022 
M7 Competing Third-Order, Ten-Factor First-Order, Three-Factor Second-Order  1183  0  493  0.9947  0.9940  0.0778  0.0537 
M8 Competing One and Three Bfactor  929  0  487  0.9966  0.9961  0.0627  0.0488 

Note:

χ2=Chi-Square Statistics; df=Degrees of Freedom; CFI=Comparative Fit Index; TLI=Tucker-Lewis Index; RMSEA= Root Mean Square Error of Approximation; SRMR=Standardized Root Mean Square.   

* p <0.01 

 

CONCLUSION

While it is not out of expectation that the bifactor generally gives a better fit (Caci et al, 2015; Chen et al, 2006; Reise, 2012), it has been rediscovered and returned as an effective approach to modeling construct-relevant multidimensionality in a set of items (Reise, 2012). As the application of bifactor models remained poorly understood in the CoI research communities, the basic argument is that the utility of the bifactor model is capable of resolving important issues in conceptualising and measuring constructs. The current paper adds to the literature by providing evidence to demonstrate that the bifactor not only provides a better fit statistically but also provides a strong foundation for conceptualising the CoI framework and uses all ten subdimensions for measurement. 

 

REFERENCES

Chen, F. F., West, S. G., & Sousa, K. H. (2006). A comparison of bifactor and second-order models of quality of life. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 41(2), 189–225. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327906mbr4102_5  

Caci, H., Morin, A. J. S., & Tran, A. (2015). Investigation of a bifactor model of the strengths and difficulties questionnaire. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 24(1), 1291–1301. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00787-015-0679-3  

Reise, S. P. (2012). The rediscovery of bifactor measurement models. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 47(5), 667-96. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00273171.2012.715555  

Stenbom, S. (2018). A systematic review of the Community of Inquiry survey. The Internet and Higher Education, 39, 22–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iheduc.2018.06.001  

Yang, H., & Su, J. (2021). A construct revalidation of the community of inquiry survey: Empirical evidence for a general factor under a bifactor structure. International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 22(4), 22-40. https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v22i4.5587  

 

Constructions Of Community and Diversity in College Applicants’ Admissions Essays

NUS CDTL Paper Presentations , , , , ,

Sixian HAH
Tembusu College
sxhah@nus.edu.sg  

 

Hah, S. (2023). Constructions of community and diversity in college applicants’ admissions essays [Paper presentation]. In Higher Education Campus Conference (HECC) 2023, 7 December, National University of Singapore. https://blog.nus.edu.sg/hecc2023proceedings/constructions-of-community-and-diversity-in-college-applicants-admissions-essays/

 

SUB-THEME

Communities and Education 

 

KEYWORDS

Community, diversity, admissions essays, cultural capital, narratives 

 

CATEGORY

Paper Presentation 

 

ABSTRACT

This paper presentation discusses how the notions of ‘community’ and ‘diversity’ are constructed by applicants in their admission essays to residential colleges at NUS. Given that admission essays serve as an avenue for prospective students to demonstrate their suitability for the college they are applying to, most essays reflect applicants’ perceptions of the college. In a textual analysis of 60 admissions essays from successful applicants, a discourse analytic approach is taken to show how these students make attempts to display membership into a perceived community which they aspire to be part of. This study began by asking the question: How do students construct themselves as potential members of a community in which they aspire to join?

   

Scholars have argued that admissions essay prompts may not be as easily interpreted as thought and that such essays may favour students who have a better grasp of the unspoken rules of the academic game or who are more well-versed in “academic acculturation” (Warren, 2013). In other words, successful essays often come from students who have a greater degree of awareness of what assessors are looking for in their applications. 

 

In positioning themselves as potential members of a community which they aspire to join, students engage with institutional expectations and discourses of what are perceived as valued by a particular community (Todorova, 2018). It was found that students in this study perceived diversity as a valued mindset which they aspire towards, or as a valued attribute of the community which they desire to join and contribute to. Thus, the study also asks the questions: How do students express their desire for diversity or embody the ‘diversity’ that they claim to bring to the college? How are the notions of ‘diversity’ and ‘community’ understood and constructed by students in the essays? Another intriguing finding stemmed from the kinds of narratives that applicants chose to construct in their attempts to express their desire for seeking diversity in their college of choice. Through their positioning, students are seen to display certain knowledge or even cultural capital which has been shown to privilege certain groups of students over others. This builds on Bourdieu’s notions of cultural capital  and other studies which have shown that social class and cultural capital can impact on students’ success in attaining admissions into college (Stevens, 2009), or achieving other academic outcomes such as engagement with authority figures in academia (Jack, 2016). 

 

This paper presentation invites educators to reflect on the following implications arising from the study:  

  • How does the task of writing an application essay privilege students with certain levels of academic acculturation? 
  • What implications are there for the kinds of knowledge and cultural capital that are reinforced in new cohorts of entering students? How may this enact certain barriers for students who did not get selected?  

 

The application essay formed only one part of the admissions process at the residential colleges. Successful application essays are selected to enter the second round of selections, i.e. an interview with Fellows at the college. Hence, the essay is not the only determining factor in an applicant’s successful entry into the college. Rather, it posed the first gatekeeping barrier that students need to overcome to get an opportunity for an interview. The essays analysed in this study had come only from students who had given consent. Thus, there are limitations on the sample of essays that could be studied and to an indeterminable degree, limitations in investigating how the data may be affected by certain propensities in students who are more likely to have given consent. Future studies could possibly investigate implicit evaluation criteria by comparing successful applications with unsuccessful ones. 

 

REFERENCES

Jack, A. A. (2016). (No) harm in asking: Class, acquired cultural capital, and academic engagement at an elite university. Sociology of Education, 89(1), 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1177/0038040715614913  

Stevens, M. L. (2009). A school in a garden. In Creating a Class (pp. 5-30). Harvard University Press.  

Todorova, R. (2018). Institutional expectations and students’ responses to the college application essay. Social Sciences, 7(10), 205. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci7100205  

Warren, J. (2013). The rhetoric of college application essays: Removing obstacles for low income and minority students. American Secondary Education, 42(1), 43-56. http://www.jstor.org/stable/43694176 

Building a Critical Self-Reflexive Authorial Voice

NUS CDTL Paper Presentations , , ,

Yurni Said-Sirhan and Nina VENKATARAMAN
Centre for English Language Communication (CELC)
yurni.s@nus.edu.sg; nina-v@nus.edu.sg 

 

Said-Sirhan, Y., & Venkataraman, N. (2023). Building a critical self-reflexive authorial voice [Paper presentation]. In Higher Education Campus Conference (HECC) 2023, 7 December, National University of Singapore. https://blog.nus.edu.sg/hecc2023proceedings/building-a-critical-self-reflexive-authorial-voice/

 

SUB-THEME

Interdisciplinarity and Education 

 

KEYWORDS

Authorial voice, critical self-reflection, literature review 

 

CATEGORY

Paper Presentation 

 

ABSTRACT

Given that different Ideas and Exposition courses in the NUS University Town College Programme (UTCP) encourage students to develop nuanced arguments, it is crucial that students identify and develop their own authorial voice in relation to the literature they read on the specified subject. We adopt a Bakhtinian (1986) orientation towards authorial voice, which is located in the text-mediated interaction between the writer and the reader that not only projects confidence, but also shows ownership over one’s arguments. In doing so, it prevents students from merely reproducing ideas from their reading of academic sources. 

 

Here, we suggest that students incorporate a critical self-reflexive survey of academic literature. We define critical self-reflexivity as the awareness of how students can situate themselves in relation to the texts they read. This is demonstrated through the stances they adopt in reviewing literature and then using it to rationalise their arguments. 

 

According to our proposed framework, students first define their topics, in order to identify the relevant domains and disciplines for conducting a library research review. This enables students to narrow their research focus, as well as identify the goals, purpose, and scope of the review. Next, students identify the relationships or patterns between the works. These patterns reveal the outliers or counterarguments which help them establish the gaps in timeline, scale, methodology, context, or perspective. Subsequently students choose to focus on gaps and patterns that address their research questions feasibly. They then spend time understanding how these patterns and gaps warrant their arguments and counterarguments. Finally, in the critical self-reflexive stage, students develop a set of questions that help them establish new contexts and connections with their core arguments. These questions help students develop their authorial voice by identifying their own contribution to the academic conversation. Following this, students synthesise with intent using relevant discourse markers to put forth their position. These discourse markers are ways by which we understand that students have acquired the ability to read critically and write with a strong authorial stance.   

 

The literature review section in an academic paper can be a challenging task for most first-year students; yet it is “the genre of paper that every researcher looks for when starting a research study” (Rowe, 2014, p. 242). The difficulty that some students face when reading academic literature is not knowing how to use the literature purposefully to develop contexts and connections in their own arguments. To help students transit from critical reading of literature to critical construction of arguments, our framework includes a critical self-reflexive component through key questions. This helps students move away from a simple survey of academic literature to knowledge transformation. 

 

REFERENCES

Bakhtin, M. M. (2010). Speech genres and other late essays. University of Texas Press. 

Rowe, F. (2012). Toward a richer diversity of genres in information systems research: New categorization and guidelines. European Journal of Information Systems, 21(5), 469-78. https://doi.org/10.1057/ejis.2012.38  

Saeed, M., & Ahmed. I (2021). An analytical review on rethinking service-learning as critical transformative paradigm in higher education. Journal of Humanities, Social and Management Sciences (JHSMS), 2(2), 318-34. https://doi.org/10.47264/idea.jhsms/2.2.23  

Choices and Collaborations in University-Community Partnerships: Intentional Pedagogy and Its Impact on Student Learning

NUS CDTL Paper Presentations , , , , ,

Kankana MUKHOPADHYAY*, Siok Kuan TAMBYAH, and Daniel JEW
College of Alice & Peter Tan (CAPT)
*kankana.m@nus.edu.sg 

 

Mukhopadhyay, K., Tambyah, S. K., & Jew, D. (2023). Choices and collaborations in university-community partnerships: intentional pedagogy and its impact on student learning [Paper presentation]. In Higher Education Campus Conference (HECC) 2023, 7 December, National University of Singapore. https://blog.nus.edu.sg/hecc2023proceedings/choices-and-collaborations-in-university-community-partnerships-intentional-pedagogy-and-its-impact-on-student-learning/ 
 

SUB-THEME

Communities and Education 

 

KEYWORDS

University-community partnership, study trips, experiential learning, survey analysis, intentional pedagogy 

 

CATEGORY

Paper Presentation 

 

ABSTRACT

The current discourse on “communities and education” in higher education emphasises building partnerships with diverse community stakeholders to create authentic learning opportunities for students. Studies have indicated that university-community partnerships (UCPs) can provide positive pedagogical outcomes, like enhanced quality of teaching and student access to applied learning (Buys & Bursnall, 2007). Although a great deal of research has focused on the impact of the different forms of collaboration (Kellet & Goldstein, 1999; Waddock & Walsh, 1999; Watson, 2003), research on how to organise effective UCPs in overseas experiential learning is still limited.  

 

Over the past decade, study trips at the College of Alice & Peter Tan (CAPT-STEERs)1 have invested in building relationships with overseas community partners as an intentional pedagogical practice (Mukhopadhyay et al., 2022). Classroom discussions have been complemented with field visits and real-world experiences, where students had engagements and interactions with different partners and communities and in different contexts.  

 

Careful choices were made in selecting partners, communities2 and sites3 visited, and in designing a range of interactive activities and engagements. In this presentation, we specifically examine the impact of choices of sites and communities visited, and collaborations with various partners on learning outcomes.  

 

Data for this quantitative study is derived from surveys conducted by three different CAPT STEERs—India, Myanmar, and Nepal—from 2015-2019 (see Table 1). We asked participants about the effectiveness of visits to the different sites, communities and partners, which include non-governmental organisations (NGOs), institutions of learning, businesses4, and government (see Table 2). We then examined their relationship with the multi-faceted learning outcomes of the programme, indicating participants’ perception of relevance and meaningfulness of the engagements, and level of satisfaction. We also explored whether the STEER experience had broadened students’ perspectives and enhanced their ability to perform in a globalised environment. Table 3 shows the average degree of agreement among the participants on these learning outcomes across STEERs over the years.  

 

Table 1
Number of survey respondents across STEERs (India, Myanmar, Nepal) from 2015-2019  

STEERs/Year  Frequency 
STEER India 2015  18 
STEER India 2017  11 
STEER Myanmar 2016  21 
STEER Myanmar 2017  24 
STEER Nepal 2018  13 
STEER Nepal 2019  18 

 

 Table 2
Sites, communities, partners in different STEERs/years 

STEER/Year  Sites  Communities  Partner-organisation  Partner-institution  Partner-business  Partner-government 
India 2015/2017  N = 4-6  

E.g., Gandhi Ashram, Ahmedabad;  

Lake Pichola, Udaipur; 

Rann of Kutch, Bhuj  

 N = 2-5  

E.g., Gujari market, Ahmedabad;  

Hodka village, Udaipur;  

Shilpgram, Bhuj 

 N = 6-8  

E.g., Aajeevika Bureau;  

Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA);  

Khamir;  

Hunnarshala 

 N = 1  

Indian Institute of Technology, Ahmedabad 

 N = 1-2  

Aavaran 

  
Myanmar 2016/2017  N = 6-9  

E.g., Shwedagon Pagoda Yangon;  

Bagan Archaeological Museum;  

U Bein Bridge 

 N = 1-2  

Community clinic 

 N = 2-3  

E.g., Inle Heritage Centre;  

Community Agency for Rural Developmentin Mandalay;  

Shwe Min Tha Foundation 

 N = 2  

E.g., University of Mandalay; University of Global Peace in Mandalay 

 

   N = 1 

Mandalay Regional Parliament; Singapore Embassy in Yangon 
Nepal 2018/2019  N = 6-12 E.g., Durbar Square, Kathmandu;  

Boudanath Temple 

 N = 1-7  

Bhujung village 

 N = 7  

E.g., Bikas Udhyami; Avni Centre for Sustainability (ACS); Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP); Namaste Community Foundation 

 N = 2-3  

E.g., Prithvi Narayan Campus, Tribhuban University;  

Madan Puraskar Putakalaya 

 N = 1-2  

Ecoprise 

  

N = number of sites visited/interactions with communities/engagement with partners 

 

Table 3
Descriptive statistics of the learning outcomes 

Learning Outcomes  N  Mean  SD 
Balance in pedagogies was appropriate.  95  3.45  .56 
Overall satisfaction  71  3.55  .69 
Overall field visits were relevant and meaningful   95  3.65  .54 
Broadened perspectives in an academic area/realm  70  3.5  .63 
Enhanced ability to perform in a globalized environment  70  3.41  .602 

N = Total sample size across six STEERs from 2015-2019; SD = Standard deviation 

 

Correlational analysis and the means comparisons (ANOVA) across STEERs over time were conducted. The results reveal, firstly, that the choice of sites, communities and engagement activities can significantly enhance the learning for students across STEERs. Secondly, having collaborations with diverse partners—organisations, institutions, businesses—is effective in creating positive programme outcomes. Thirdly, having well-designed programmes make a significant difference in the depth of learning among students. The findings additionally inform broader institutional best practices when seeking to integrate UCPs within the formal and co-curriculum, in terms of policy, resource deployment, and local support.  

 

These results confirm that impactful learning in experiential learning requires a mediated learning experience (Moon, 2004; Roberts, 2012). The choice of sites, communities and collaborations with partners as intentional pedagogies should provide opportunities for students to have firsthand field experience and engagement with partners to enhance their learning (Savicki, 2008; Meyers & Jones, 1993). When experiential learning is intentionally designed and employed in intercultural teaching opportunities, deep learning happens. Understanding in this area can potentially contribute to the broader knowledge base of how universities can best develop valued, sustainable UCPs to promote learning.  

 

ENDNOTES

  1. CAPT-STEERs refer to short-term overseas experiential learning programmes conducted under the auspices of the NUS Global Relations Office (GRO)’s Study Trip for Engagement and EnRichment (STEER) programme. CAPT conducted 19 STEER trips to India, Myanmar, Eastern Europe, Botswana, the Balkans, and Nepal from 2012-2022.   
  2. The term “communities” here is defined as specific places visited during the study trips where students experienced interactions and economic and cultural activities with groups of persons associated with the space. 
  3. Places of interest with respect to geography/society/history/culture. 
  4. Including social businesses and social enterprises. 

 

REFERENCES 

Buys, N., & Bursnall, S. (2007). Establishing university-community partnerships: Processes and benefits. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, 29(1), 73–86. https://doi.org/10.1080/13600800601175797 

Kellet, C., & Goldstein, A. (1999). Transformation in the university and the community: The benefits and barriers of collaboration. Journal of Family and Consumer Sciences, 91(2), 31–35. https://www.proquest.com/docview/218162491  

Meyers, C., & Jones, T. B. (1993). Promoting active learning: Strategies for the college classroom. Jossey-Bass Publishers. 

Moon, J. A. (2004). A handbook of reflective and experiential learning: Theory and practice. Routledge Falmer. 

Mukhopadhyay, K., Balachandran, L., Wong, S.F., Lai, C. Y. J., Tan, X. Y. A., McGahan, K., Toh, T. C., Wong, R., & Tan, L. Y. (2022). Steering towards the internationalisation of higher education: Lessons from pedagogical interventions in overseas experiential learning programmes. Asian Journal of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 12(1), 1-19. https://nus.edu.sg/cdtl/engagement/publications/ajsotl-home/archive-of-past-issues/v12n1/steering-towards-the-internationalisation-of-higher-education-lessons-from-pedagogical-interventions-in-overseas-experiential-learning-programmes  

Roberts, J. W. (2012). Beyond learning by doing: Theoretical currents in experiential education. Routledge. 

Savicki, V. (2008). Experiential and affective education for international educators. In V. Savicki (Ed.), Developing intercultural competence and transformation: Theory, research, and application in international education (pp. 74-91). Stylus. 

Waddock, S. A., & Walsh, M. (1999). Paradigm shift: Toward a community–university community of practice. International Journal of Organisational Analysis, 7(3), 244–64. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb028902  

Watson, D. (2003). The university in the knowledge society. In S. Bjarnason & P. Coldstream (Eds.), The idea of engagement: Universities in society (pp. 25–47). Association of Commonwealth Universities.

The SFI Experience: Exploring the Malaysian Jungle to Facilitate Deep Learning

NUS CDTL Paper Presentations

Patricia LORENZ
Ridge View Residential College
plorenz@nus.edu.sg

 

Lorenz, P. (2023). The SFI experience: exploring the Malaysian jungle to facilitate deep learning [Paper presentation]. In Higher Education Campus Conference (HECC) 2023, 7 December, National University of Singapore. https://blog.nus.edu.sg/hecc2023proceedings/paper-presentations/the-sfi-experience-exploring-the-malaysian-jungle-to-facilitate-deep-learning/

 

SUB-THEME

Communities and Education

 

KEYWORDS

Outdoor learning, SFI, student centric education

 

CATEGORY

Paper Presentation

 

ABSTRACT

This paper presentation in the sub-theme of “Communities and Education” examines how a newly created SFI course in the Communities and Engagement pillar of the NUS General Education (GE) Programme can facilitate deep academic learning, while engaging the students extensively in the field. Crossing the border to Malaysia can hardly be described as unchartered frontiers, and a trip modern-day Malaysia is a far cry from the experiences of the first explorers who mapped the mangroves, swamps, and jungles of the Malayan peninsular centuries ago. Yet, for many city-dwelling Singaporean students a five-hour trek through a tropical forest in Pahang might seem as alien as the unchartered terrains of peninsular Malaysia was to seasoned explorers of the past. The newly created Southeast Asia Funding Initiative (SFI) encourages academic staff of residential colleges at NUS to create credit-bearing courses with an extensive field trip component that exposes students to the ASEAN region. Under SFI a four-credit point course needs to engage students for at least 10 days abroad. A course that features such an extensive overseas field trip has to engage students a lot less in the classroom, which beckons the question whether deep academic learning can be facilitated in such a course. Avid outdoor educators will surely argue for the benefits of learning experiences outside the classroom, while many academics might reason that outdoor education lacks academic rigour (Putting nature back in human nature, 2023; Why Singapore’s “Otterman” believes in learning beyond the classroom, 2022).

This presentation examines the students’ learning experiences during RVN2002 “Wild Asia: Conservation Matters”, a course newly created under SFI and first offered to students of Ridge View Residential College in Special Term 1 of Academic Year 2022/23. As the title suggests, the course focuses on conservation efforts within the Southeast Asian region. As this course is offered under the Community and Engagement pillar of the NUS GE Programme, it requires students to actively engage with community partners and participate in community partner projects. Beyond this, students are continuously exposed to the natural world and explore forest trails in three ecologically significant areas of Peninsular Malaysia; namely the Sungei Yu Ecological Corridor, Taman Negara, and Fraser’s Hill. Prior to the overseas field trip, students participate in five educational sessions and one local field trip. Two of the academic sessions are purely student-led and engage students in peer teaching sessions, providing background knowledge relevant for the overseas experience. As such, the course is highly student-centric and encourages self-directed learning, which previous research has demonstrated to be highly beneficial (Lorenz & Guan, 2023). The candid reflections of students gathered and discussed on the last day of the overseas field trip illustrate the benefits of engaging the students in novel outdoor learning experiences. Student reflections expressed the beneficial exposure to the unknown, “this trip offered the opportunity to discover so much beyond what I was familiar with”; highlighted the value of experiential learning, “there’s a wealth of knowledge and experiences outside of the classroom that cannot be replicated”; and demonstrated that deep learning took place, “if any school trip I’ve had in my life was eye- opening it has to be this”. As such, students’ reflections on their personal learning journey demonstrate clearly that such unconventional modes of outdoor and experiential learning provide an academic platform to engage students more holistically and facilitate deeper learning than conventional courses.

 

REFERENCES

Lorenz, P. & Guan, Y. (2023). Engaging students in cross-disciplinary module design: a case study on the co-creation of a sustainability module in Singapore. Journal of Applied Learning & Teaching, 6(1), Special Section 1-16. https://doi.org/10.37074/jalt.2023.6.1.ss6

Putting nature back in human nature: Exploring Asia’s environmental challenges (2023, March 2). NUS News. https://news.nus.edu.sg/putting-nature-back-in-human-nature-exploring-asias-environmental-challenges/

Why Singapore’s “Otterman” believes in learning beyond the classroom (2022, December 21). NUS News. https://news.nus.edu.sg/why-singapores-otterman-believes-in-learning-beyond-the-classroom/

Taking Students Out of Their Comfort Zone Through Experiential Learning: A Case Study from RVC1001

NUS CDTL Paper Presentations , , ,

Patricia LORENZ
Ridge View Residential College
plorenz@nus.edu.sg  


Lorenz, P. (2023). Taking students out of their comfort zone through experiential learning: A case study from RVC1001 [Paper presentation]. In Higher Education Campus Conference (HECC) 2023, 7 December, National University of Singapore. https://blog.nus.edu.sg/hecc2023proceedings/taking-students-out-of-their-comfort-zone-through-experiential-learning-a-case-study-from-rvc1001/  

 

KEYWORDS

Outdoor learning, experiential learning, community interviews 

 

CATEGORY

Paper Presentation 

 

ABSTRACT

This paper presentation in the sub-theme of “Communities and Education” examines the benefits of taking students outside their comfort zone in their interactions with people from different backgrounds and their culture in order to facilitate deep learning. While Little India lies at the heart of Singapore, many Singaporean students have never visited the area or engaged with the people who gather there. Singapore is home to more than a million Work Permit Holders, of which nearly half work in the construction industry and a majority of these originate from Bangladesh and India. Yet, most Singaporeans have rather sporadic or even no contact with members of these communities, and know little or nothing of their respective cultures. 

 

RVC1001 “The Rocky Road to SDGs” is a newly created course in the Cultures and Connections pillar of the NUS General Education (GE) Programme that focuses on the social pillar of sustainability and explores how culture might be a hindrance to achieving the UN Sustainability  

 

Development Goals (SDGs). With a focus on experiential learning, students are taken on two field trips to Little India and the Bangla Market. During the first field trip, students are tasked to observe and document physical signs of culture in the area. The second field trip engages students in extensive community interviews with migrant workers in Little India and the Bangla Market. Such engagements challenge students to go beyond their personal comfort zone and to engage with people from very different cultural backgrounds and walks of life. Through the course and the field trips, students are tasked to examine their own cultural norms, values, and perceptions, while discovering the culture and values of others. 

 

Such experiential learning experiences can be extremely daunting to students, especially when they have to engage strangers in interviews. Yet, these authentic first-hand experiences cannot be replicated in conventional classroom settings and were therefore deemed an important component of the course. As such, several techniques were developed to facilitate meaningful outdoor learning without overpowering the students. Firstly, the students worked in teams of three to five (depending on class size) and were required to work in their teams at all times during the field trips. Having fixed teams throughout the semester fosters a sense of belonging and provides a feeling of security during the field trips. Secondly, the first field trip took students to Little India and the Bangla Market to explore the area and its visible aspects of culture during class time. For this field trip, each group was provided with a map and a route they were instructed to walk. This first field trip therefore provided an initial point of contact and familiarised students with the area. The second field trip then built on these experiences and added the engagement with members of the community on a Sunday afternoon. As such, the learning experiences were scaffolded and built on each other. Thirdly, both field trips are embedded in the overall course schedule in such a manner that students were discussing relevant SDGs, such as SDG8 “Fair Work and Economic Growth”, prior to the outdoor learning sessions. Lastly, both field trips are the subject of a reflective photo essay which illustrates the students’ personal learning journeys. In combination, these measures assure that students can be taken out of their comfort zones and be engaged in experiential learning that provides valuable additions to classroom learning. 

 
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