Using Expectancy Violation To Investigate Student Dissatisfaction In Studio Physics

Abstract

Abstract. Physics students, especially those in pedagogically reformed courses, are sometimes dissatisfied with the course structure. Expectancy violation (EV), which arises when students' pedagogical expectations are not met, is a possible cause for this dissatisfaction. Previous research has identified instances of EV in reformed physics classes, but detailed investigations are needed to determine how EV relates to course satisfaction. In this pilot study, we paired a modified Pedagogical Expectancy Violation Assessment (PEVA) with a course satisfaction questionnaire to measure students' perceived expectations, experiences, and satisfaction in three different physics courses: algebra-based SCALE-UP style at EKU (N=61), calculus-based lecture at UCF (N=179), and calculus-based SCALE-UP at UCF (N=88). Course satisfaction was positively correlated with performance and the number of positively-perceived EVs and negatively correlated with the number of negatively-perceived EVs. Students' opinions about the frequency of a few particular activities predicted a large amount of the variability in course satisfaction. While inconclusive, these preliminary results guide reform efforts of the PEVA.

How personal effort, student interactions, and instructor support relate to physics student satisfaction

“…Because we were concerned with course satisfaction at week 14, we investigated the three factors generated from students' reported experiences in the course (Table 2). Doing so is consistent with previous analyses [3,4].…”

“…As part of the week 14 survey, students were given an eight-question measure of course satisfaction, an extension of previous work [3]. There were no problematic questions on the measure, which was was found reliable (α = 0.91).…”

“…We also asked what grade students expected to receive in the course; we found in a previous study that students were accurate predictors of their course grade [3].…”

“…Using a seven-point scale ranging from "almost constantly" to "almost never," students report the frequency they expect to encounter (or did encounter) certain activities in the classroom, listed in Table 1. In previous work, we have seen that certain items factor somewhat consistently into clusters related to personal effort, work with classmates, instructor support (or relationship-building with the instructor), and how the instructor leads class time, based on students' reported frequency of experiencing those activities [3,4].…”

Student satisfaction in interactive engagement-based physics classes

“…We began with affect-related questions in the original PEVA [30] and incorporated questions of the type found on end-of-semester student evaluations. We fine-tuned the scale in subsequent work [31], removing two questions that compared their experience to lecture and rephrasing others for clarity [17]. Responses to the measure were reliable (N ¼ 173; α ¼ 0.91), and they were summed to make a "satisfaction score," which we used as the target construct for this study, for each participant.…”