Allowing students to voluntarily ask and answer questions in front of the whole class are common teaching practices used in college science courses. However, few studies have examined college science students’ perceptions of these practices, the extent to which students choose to engage in these practices, and what discourages students from participating. In this study, we surveyed 417 undergraduates at a research-intensive institution about their experiences asking and answering questions in large-enrollment college science courses. Specifically, students answered questions about to what extent they perceive voluntarily asking and answering questions in large-enrollment science courses is helpful to them and why. They also answered questions about to what extent they engage in asking and answering questions in large-enrollment college science courses and what factors could discourage them from participating. Using binary logistic regression, we examined whether there were differences among students of different demographic groups regarding their opinions about asking and answering questions. We found that overwhelmingly students reported that other students voluntarily asking and answering instructor questions is helpful to them. Notably, compared to continuing generation students, first-generation students were more likely to perceive other students asking questions to be helpful. Despite perceiving asking and answering questions to be helpful, over half of students reported that they never ask or answer questions in large-enrollment college science courses during a semester, and women were more likely than men to report never asking questions. We identified fear of negative evaluation, or students’ sense of dread associated with being unfavorably evaluated, as a primary factor influencing their decision to answer instructor questions. This work adds to a growing body of literature on student participation in large-enrollment college science courses and begins to uncover underlying factors influencing student participation.

This study of 2111 undergraduates examined the impact of online science courses on their anxiety. More than 50% of students reported experiencing at least moderate anxiety in online science courses. Aspects of online learning that increase and decrease anxiety are identified, and actions that instructors can take to lessen anxiety in online science courses are offered.

Allowing students to ask and answer questions is a common practice employed by college science instructors. However, recent literature has identified that women participate in whole-class discussions less often than men. One hypothesized reason for this gender gap is that women may be less comfortable participating.

Depression is a top mental health concern among college students, yet there is a lack of research exploring how online college science courses can exacerbate or alleviate their depression. We surveyed 2,175 undergraduates at a large research-intensive institution about the severity of their depression in large-enrollment online science courses. The survey also explored aspects of online science courses that exacerbate or alleviate depression and we used regression analyses to assess whether demographics predicted responses. Over 50% of undergraduates reported experiencing depression and LGBTQ+ students, financially unstable students, and lower division students were more likely to experience severe rather than mild depression compared to their counterparts. Students reported difficulty building relationships and struggling to perform well online as aspects of online science courses that exacerbated their depression and the flexible nature of online courses and caring instructors as aspects of online courses that alleviated their depression. This study provides insight into how instructors can create more inclusive online learning environments for students with depression.

Allowing students to voluntarily ask and answer questions in front of the whole class is a common teaching practice used in college science courses. However, few studies have examined college science students’ perceptions of this practice, the extent to which students choose to engage in this practice, and what discourages students from participating. In this study, our research questions were: (1) To what extent do students perceive that instructors allowing students to ask and answer questions in front of the whole class is helpful to them and why? (2) To what extent do students report asking and answering questions in front of large‐enrollment college science courses? (3) What factors discourage students from asking and answering questions in front of large‐enrollment science courses? and (4) To what extent do student demographics predict whether students perceive asking and answering questions to be helpful and the factors that discourage them from participating? This study was conducted by 19 students enrolled in a course‐based undergraduate research experience (CURE) at the University of Central Florida. The study built upon a pilot interview study of 50 undergraduates about their experiences asking and answering questions in science courses, which was used to develop a framework of factors that influenced student participation in class. This framework informed the development of the survey for this study. To answer our research questions, we surveyed 417 undergraduates at a research‐intensive institution about their experiences asking and answering questions in large‐enrollment college science courses. Using binary logistic regression, we examined whether there were differences among students of different demographic groups regarding their opinions about asking and answering questions. We found that overwhelmingly students reported that other students voluntarily asking and answering instructor questions is helpful to them. Notably, compared to continuing generation students, first generation students were more likely to perceive other students asking questions to be helpful. Despite perceiving asking and answering questions to be helpful, over half of students reported that they never ask or answer questions in large‐enrollment college science courses during a semester, and women were more likely than men to report never asking questions. We identified fear of negative evaluation, or students’ sense of dread associated with being unfavorably evaluated, as a primary factor influencing their decision to answer instructor questions. This work adds to a growing body of literature on student participation in large‐enrollment college science courses and begins to uncover underlying factors influencing student participation.