|
Abstract:
|
Learning Assistants are undergraduate students who have been successful in their courses and are recruited by faculty to help with course instruction and innovation for a course they recently took. Learning Assistants do not evaluate students they work with. Rather, Learning Assistants support course transformation by facilitating more student-centered methods of teaching and learning, such as peer engagement through group discussions. Often, the courses that use Learning Assistants are large enrollment courses. In the Fall of 2016, a randomized study was performed at Oregon State University to assess the impact of Learning Assistants on student success in an introductory statistics course taught in a large lecture format. A group of four Learning Assistants were randomly assigned to help in one of the two lectures. Both lectures were roughly the same size (215 in each lecture) and taught in the same room using identical material. Final grade distributions, exam scores, and responses to an end-of-term survey will be compared between the two lectures. In addition, student success will be compared for the fall 2016 and previous fall terms to assess any changes in the lecture format.
|
