School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588.
Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools, Methodology, Analytics, and Psychometrics (MAP) Academy, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68583.
CBE Life Sci Educ. 2022 Dec;21(4):ar80. doi: 10.1187/cbe.22-05-0098.
Instructors use a variety of online formative assessment (FA) activities to support learning outside class. Previous studies have revealed barriers for students in online courses, but little is known about the barriers students experience when completing online FA assignments. Understanding these barriers to access is critical to fostering more inclusive learning for all students. Using a framework from previous work in online learning, we examined student perceptions of online FA access with respect to five barrier categories: technical resources, instructor organization, social interactions, personal engagement, and learning environment. We developed and administered a survey to more than 1200 undergraduate biology students at 2-year and 4-year institutions. Students responded to statements using Likert scales and open-ended prompts. Statistical models indicated differences in access across the barrier categories and revealed that demographic characteristics were associated with certain barrier categories. Furthermore, technical resources, instructor organization, and personal engagement barriers were associated with lower course performance. In open-ended responses, students most frequently suggested that changes to scheduling logistics, course delivery, and FA format would improve their online FA experience. We discuss how these findings and student suggestions can inform instruction, particularly how instructors can alter their FA characteristics to better suit their student populations.
教师使用各种在线形成性评估 (FA) 活动来支持课外学习。先前的研究揭示了在线课程中学生面临的障碍，但对于学生在完成在线 FA 作业时所经历的障碍知之甚少。了解这些访问障碍对于促进所有学生更具包容性的学习至关重要。我们使用在线学习中先前工作的框架，从五个障碍类别（技术资源、教师组织、社交互动、个人参与和学习环境）来研究学生对在线 FA 访问的看法。我们向两年制和四年制院校的 1200 多名大学生发放了一份调查问卷。学生使用李克特量表和开放式提示回答问题。统计模型表明，在各个障碍类别中，访问存在差异，并揭示了人口统计学特征与某些障碍类别相关。此外，技术资源、教师组织和个人参与障碍与较低的课程成绩相关。在开放式回复中，学生最常建议改变日程安排、课程交付和 FA 格式，以改善他们的在线 FA 体验。我们讨论了这些发现和学生建议如何为教学提供信息，特别是教师如何改变他们的 FA 特征，以更好地适应学生群体。
