The effects of the academic environment, which is defined as the organization of curricula, teaching, and assessment on student learning, are examined. Focus is on students' perceptions of their courses and teachers in six departments at a British university, and the different demands that various environments make. (Author/JMD)

A comparison of university and polytechnic students' attitudes toward educational and instructional quality found that university students are less likely than polytechnic students to use serious approaches to study. The university students experienced poorer teaching, and the polytechnic students saw their courses as a means to gain employment.…

The purpose of the research program described here was to investigate college students' approaches to learning, and to determine the extent to which these reflected the effects of teaching and assessment demands rather than representing relatively stable characteristics of the individual learners. There were six main areas within the program: (1)…