Perceptions and their influences on approaches to learning

Tudor, Jenna, Penlington, Roger and McDowell, Liz (2010) Perceptions and their influences on approaches to learning. In: Engineering Education 2010, 6-8 July 2010, Aston University.

[img]
Preview
PDF (Conference paper)
48_GP_Tudor.pdf

Download (262kB) | Preview

Abstract

This paper aims to highlight the importance of considering students perceptions and approaches in undergraduate engineering education. Whilst considering techniques to retain engineering students it is suggested that understanding how students perceive their learning contexts at university is vital. It is also essential that we understand how these perceptions influence students’ approaches to their studies. The paper builds on existing research which takes a discipline focus to a discussion of the relationships linking quality of learning with generic research into approaches and perceptions of teaching and learning. This paper discusses an ongoing research project which is making use of a Mixed Methods research methodology to investigate the complex nature of students’ perceptions and approaches. It is presented here that this methodology is valuable for Engineering Education researchers to adopt. The design of this research is an exploratory sequential mixed methods design where the qualitative data is the dominant source of data. The use of this methodology will be evaluated once all data has been collected and analysed. Initial analysis of the data collected during the pilot phase, supported by relevant literature, has been used to identify the areas of the learning context which appear to influence students’ approaches on the engineering modules involved in the study. Some of the emerging themes will be discussed in this paper with consideration for the impact on the teaching of Engineering.

Item Type: Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)
Additional Information: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License
Uncontrolled Keywords: Student adjustment, Learning-Education, Higher
Subjects: X200 Research and Study Skills in Education
X300 Academic studies in Education
X900 Others in Education
Department: Faculties > Engineering and Environment > Mathematics, Physics and Electrical Engineering
Related URLs:
Depositing User: EPrint Services
Date Deposited: 20 Dec 2010 14:17
Last Modified: 17 Dec 2023 14:05
URI: https://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/3473

Actions (login required)

View Item View Item

Downloads

Downloads per month over past year

View more statistics