As a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, most courses at a large technical university were adapted so that students had a free choice of whether to attend lectures on-site or online; in addition, in many courses, lecture recordings were available. At the subsequent exam session, over 17,000 student-survey responses were collected regarding attendance choices, learning behavior, interest in the course, perception of the exam, and recommendations to future students. A total of 27 learner attributes and their relationships were investigated. In addition, conditional attributes and free-response statements were analyzed, and the students’ exam grades were retrieved to gauge their performance. We found only minute differences with respect to exam performance, but the analysis indicates distinctly different preferences and constraints in taking advantage of learning opportunities. We also found some indications that performance differences might be larger for interactive-engagement courses. The results of the analysis may be key to answering why at many universities, faculty report that live-lecture attendance has decreased more strongly than expected with the availability of new, virtual attendance modes.
The article presents the theoretical and methodological reflexions guiding the research project "The Development of Cognitive-Academic Language Proficiency of Monolingual and Bilingual Primary and Secondary School Students. A comparison" (2006–2010).
(1) The first part gives an overview of immigrant pupils' situations in the Swiss educational system and shows the reasons for their unsatisfying success in school. Swiss school system is mainly defined by an assimilative philosophy not sufficiently taking into account the specific conditions of the 23.7% of bilingual students in Swiss schools.
(2) The theoretical bases of the study refer to the framework of socio-cognitive theory. On the individual level, factors such as the "linguistic self-concept" and "intelligence", and on the exogenous level, context factors such as the "institutional support", specific "classroom programs" for migrant pupils and the "aspirations and support opportunities of the families" are supposed to have a systematic impact on the pace and the level of second language acquisition. We further discuss the theoretical conception of language competencies underlying the project.
(3) Finally the methodology of the project, including 1200 monolinguals and bilingual students, is discussed. The project follows the rules of a quasi-longitudinal study measuring the development of language competencies levels twice in the interval of one year in the 2nd/3rd-, 5th/6th-, and 8th/9th-grades.
The results will lead to insights in the acquisition process and eventual stagnations in educational language development.
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