As the use of collaborative-learning methods such as group work in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics classes has grown, so has the research into factors impacting effectiveness, the kinds of learning engendered, and demographic differences in student response. Generalizing across the range of this research is complicated by the diversity of group-learning approaches used. In this overview, I discuss theories of how group-work formats support or hinder learning based on the ICAP (interactive, constructive, active, passive) framework of student engagement. I then use this model to analyze current issues in group learning, such as the nature of student discourse during group work, the role of group learning in making our classrooms inclusive, and how classroom spaces factor into group learning. I identify key gaps for further research and propose implications from this research for teaching practice. This analysis helps identify essential, effective, and efficient features of group learning, thus providing faculty with constructive guidelines to support their work and affirm their efforts.
Written comments on student evaluations often seem idiosyncratic, lacking the power of numerical statistical data. These statements, however, may sometimes reveal intellectual challenges common to novice learners in our disciplines. Instructors can use these insights as part of a scholarly approach to teaching, making meaningful adjustments to future classes and informing curricular choices in productive ways. In this article we examine common student complaints in three particular situations: quantitative classes, writing-intensive courses, and classes taught using student-active formats. We discuss implications of these comments for faculty as they seek to promote students' intellectual development.Key words student evaluations . student learning . personal epistemology Student evaluations are the bane of many a faculty member's existence and an identified source of real faculty anxiety (Ameen, Guffey, & Jackson, 2002;Gardner & Leak, 1994). As instructors we invest time, energy, and self in our teaching. We naturally expect our students to appreciate how we have taught them and reward our "performance" with good marks. When these expectations fail to materialize, we are disappointed, confused, and angry. Our reaction can lead us to discount these sources of information and may even contribute to our disillusionment with the value of our work. Many authors have written Innov High Educ (2007) 31:279-286
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