Science & uniready: tailoring an online preparatory workshop for successful university transition and academic performance in health sciences
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(Published version)
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2019
Authors
O'Flaherty, J.A.
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Conference paper
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9th International Conference The Future Of Education, 2019, pp.103-107
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9th International Conference on Future of Education (27 Jun 2019 - 28 Jun 2019 : Florence, Italy)
Abstract
Given that unsuccessful transition can incur significant cost to the student and to the institution in which they are studying, an online workshop, "JumpStart your Science and Online Learning", was designed to assist in narrowing the gap between high school and university studies to smooth the transition for first year nursing and midwifery students. Most Australian Universities offer similar bridging workshops or short courses in a number of the STEM disciplines that introduce the fundamentals of a complex subject. However, "JumpStart" is unique in that's its design and instructor intentions are informed by pedagogical research that has identified three key indicators that can be used as predicators of both poor transition and subsequent low academic performance and/or a student being at risk of attrition, and aims to address these in the workshop. These indicators include the student's entry level of biological science knowledge and academic literacy, as well as their level of engagement with specific parameters in the online learning environment within the first two weeks of starting their University course. Of those students that have participated in the three Jumpstart workshops to date (2015-2017), 93% have successfully completed their first year program studies. Participants in the 2017 workshop achieved a 96% pass rate for their compulsory first year nursing and midwifery course (an introduction to Anatomy and Physiology). Additionally, all students participating in the workshop's academic writing skills module successfully passed all written assessments in three of their other major first year compulsory courses. This paper will discuss workshop design, access, learning effectiveness, student & faculty satisfaction, equipment necessary to implement the workshop, and scale (cost effectiveness and commitment).
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Copyright 2019 The author(s)