A Tale of Two Institutions: Analyzing the Impact of Gamified Student Response Systems on Student Anxiety in Two Different Introductory Biology Courses

Abstract

Students in two large-enrollment introductory biology classes were surveyed about their perceptions of how a gamified student response system, Kahoot!, affected their anxiety. Kahoot! was less anxiety inducing than most other classroom techniques, and this difference was more pronounced for lower-achieving students.

Effects of Multimedia Assisted Song Integrated Teaching on College Students' English Learning Interests and Learning Outcomes

“…In such a learning environment, learners increased their confidence and performance in language learning, because, with musical accompaniment, all learners opened their mouths to sing to promote the learning outcome. Adkins-Jablonsky et al ( 2021 ) indicated that teaching with English pop songs can improve students' English. English pronunciation is different from Chinese pronunciation, and the stress, intonation, accent, and rhythm of English words and sentences often cause difficulties for some learners.…”

A Lesson from the Pandemic: Utilizing Digital Tools To Support Student Engagement during Instructional Assistant-Led Sessions

“…ARSs have been found to improve classroom dynamics, engagement, student motivation, and learning experiences ( 31 – 33 ). These tools are also less anxiety-inducing than other active learning activities ( 31 ) and enhance student attention by generating healthy competition among the students via gamification ( 34 – 38 ).…”

“…ARSs have been found to improve classroom dynamics, engagement, student motivation, and learning experiences ( 31 – 33 ). These tools are also less anxiety-inducing than other active learning activities ( 31 ) and enhance student attention by generating healthy competition among the students via gamification ( 34 – 38 ). The ease of use and live feedback provided by these tools make them a valuable formative assessment tool for either in-person or online instruction ( 39 – 41 ).…”

Aspects of Large-Enrollment Online College Science Courses That Exacerbate and Alleviate Student Anxiety

“…Recent research has aimed to identify specific aspects of college science courses that affect student anxiety in an effort to identify potential targets for interventions that could make classrooms more inclusive for students. For example, studies have examined student anxiety as it relates to students asking and answering questions in large-enrollment courses (Nadile et al, 2021), as well as how active learning, defined as having students engage in their learning through activities and discussion in class (Freeman et al, 2014), affects student anxiety at research-intensive (R1) institutions (England et al, 2017;Cooper et al, 2018a;Adkins-Jablonsky et al, 2021) and community colleges (Downing et al, 2020;Hood et al, 2021). Collectively, these studies have identified that active-learning courses have the potential to increase students' anxiety because they often increase social interactions among students and between students and instructors.…”

“…, 2017 ; Cooper et al. , 2018a ; Adkins-Jablonsky et al. , 2021 ) and community colleges ( Downing et al.…”