This paper demonstrates a new application of cluster analysis to segment business school students according to their degree of satisfaction with various aspects of the academic program. The resulting clusters provide additional insight into drivers of student satisfaction that are not evident from analysis of the responses of the student body as a…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to present information about a team-teaching course on sustainable development (SD) for educators in an institution of higher education, Monterrey Campus of ITESM in Mexico. Design/methodology/approach - Four faculty members were invited to work together with the Sustainable Campus Programme coordinator in the…

In the 1990s, courses on sustainable development (SD) were introduced in technological universities. After some years of practice, there is increased interest in the evaluation of the most effective ways for teaching SD. This paper introduces the use of conceptual maps as a tool to measure the knowledge acquired by students when taking a…

As university lecturers select and sequence materials for their teaching, a linear structure emerges by default. Such a structure is made explicit within PowerPoint presentations and may even be amplified as PowerPoint invites the lecturer to reduce content to a bulleted format. Such linear sequences have been related to passive, surface…

In this article, we describe an innovative capstone course for preservice K-8 teachers integrating action research and a unifying theme in science (AAAS in Science for all Americans. Oxford University Press, New York, 1989; NRC in National science education standards. National Academy Press, Washington, DC, 1996). The goals of the capstone course…

In this inquiry, I examine the evidence of student learning in an elementary education language arts methods course. Students completed concepts maps that represented their understanding of effective writing instruction at the beginning end of the course. Eighty-one pairs of concepts maps were scored according to established methods. Students…

The skill set required of biomedical researchers continues to grow and evolve as biology matures as a natural science. Science necessitates creative yet critical thinking, persuasive communication skills, purposeful use of time, and adeptness at the laboratory bench. Teaching these skills can be effectively accomplished in an inquiry-based,…

This study aims to investigate the effects of concept maps, together with conceptual change texts, given to 11th grade students' on the subject of molecules carrying genetical information. The semistructured individual interviews were conducted with 5 upper class students to find misconceptions related to the subject. A success test was developed…

This working paper will explore the usefulness of Cummins' framework relating language proficiency to academic performance (1983) as a reflection and planning tool for continuous improvement of second language learning (SLL) instruction. SLL activities designed for a Language Experience intervention class for seventh and eighth grade English…

This paper shows how concept mapping can be used to measure the quality of e-learning. Six volunteers (all of them 3rd-year medical students) took part in a programme of e-learning designed to teach the principles of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Their understanding of MRI was measured before and after the course by the use of concept mapping.…

Theme-based learning (TBL) refers to learning modes which adopt the following sequence: (a) finding the theme; (b) finding a focus of interest based on the theme; (c) finding materials based on the focus of interest; (d) integrating the materials to establish shared knowledge; (e) publishing and sharing the integrated knowledge. We have created an…

To explore the ways in which teacher-guided and student-centered instructional approaches influence students' conceptual understanding of seasonal change, we designed a technology-enhanced learning (TEL) course to compare, by means of concept maps, the learning outcome of students in two groups: a teacher-guided (TG) class (with whole-class…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of concept mapping strategies with different levels of generativity in terms of knowledge acquisition and knowledge representation. Also, it examined whether or not learners' self-regulated learning (SRL) skills influenced the effectiveness of concept mapping strategies with different…

This study investigated the effect of concept mapping over traditional instruction on students' understanding and retention of heat and temperature concepts. The sample of this study consisted of 5th grade students from two classes of a elementary school (n=75). One intact class was randomly assigned to the comparison group whereas the other one…

An electronic portfolio system, designed to serve as a resource-based learning space, was tested in a fifth-grade science class. The control-group students accessed a traditional folder-based information display in the system and the experimental-group students accessed a concept map-based information display to review a science portfolio. The…