Student feedback from end-of-course evaluations repeatedly indicated a desire to change the format of the course by de-emphasizing the PowerPoint-based lectures. The goal of the present study was to determine whether including a set of new active-learning techniques in an Aviation Weather course would result in better student understanding (as measured by exam scores) and make the course more engaging (as measured by end-of-course evaluations). During 2018-19, three instructors implemented five different active-learning techniques into their classes (i.e., the experimental group), while two instructors continued to use the unrevised course materials (i.e., the control group). The new active-learning techniques, described below, included daily quizzes, polling questions, flipped classroom sessions, in-class activities, and assertion-evidence-based lectures. All sections used the same assignments and exams, allowing for direct assessment of the effectiveness of the active-learning techniques. Analyses of Variance (ANOVA) tables were used to determine the statistical significance of the differences in exam scores. Indirect assessments in the form of end-of-course evaluations were also examined.
Project Details
Research Team
Principal Investigators
Daniel Halperin
Associate Professor and Program Coordinator
- Department of Applied Aviation Sciences
- Daytona Beach College of Aviation
Joseph R. Keebler
Professor
- Dept of Human Factors and Behavioral Neurobiology
- Daytona Beach College of Arts & Sciences
CO-Investigators
Rob Eicher
Associate Professor
- Department of Applied Aviation Sciences
- Daytona Beach College of Aviation
Thomas Guinn
Professor and Chair
- Department of Applied Aviation Sciences
- Daytona Beach College of Aviation
