Why students learn by rote: A new twist

1. Why students learn by rote: A new twist Andy Elby U.Md. Physics Education Research Group ... in partnership with the northern California chapter of TYC21 Elby 1

2. Epistemological beliefs • Beliefs about the nature of physics knowledge and learning • Pieces vs. coherence • Absorbed vs. built up • Formulas vs. concepts • Epistemological sophistication often correlates with academic performance. • Obvious hypothesis: Unsophisticated epistemology is a primary cause of “bad” (formula-based) study habits. 2

3. My subjects • N = 106 California community college students at various schools with TYC21 professors • All taking first- or second-semester college physics • Their instructors don’t get to read students’ survey responses Elby, epistemology 3

4. My survey • Students estimate what percentage of their study time they spend focusing on • Formulas • Concepts • Real-life examples • Practice problems • Historical sketches • Students elaborate upon their answers Elby, epistemology 4

5. My survey Imagine “Diana, a student just like you, with the same abilities, background knowledge, and time constraints. Diana’s grade in the course doesn’t matter; in fact, she’s taking the course pass-fail. So, she does not need to worry about grades. Her goal is simply to understand physics more deeply.” Elby, epistemology 5

6. My survey • What percentage of her study time should Diana focus on • Formulas • Concepts • Real-life examples • Practice problems • Historical sketches • Students elaborate upon their advice to Diana. Elby, epistemology 6

7. Results: Distortions • Students spend more time on formulas (31%) than they would have Diana spend (22%). • They say exams reward this, or at least fail to discourage it. • High-achievers and low-achievers “play this game” equally. Elby, epistemology 7

8. Results: Total distortion % Elby, epistemology 8

9. Discussion of distortions • Students study differently from the way they think would maximize understanding. • Their expectations about how to succeed in the course differ from their epistemological beliefs about how to learn and understand. • DISCUSSION QUESTION: Why? What can we do about it? Elby, epistemology 9

10. Which habits/beliefs most affect academic performance? • The “sophistication” of students’ study habits correlates with grades. “Sophistication” = % of time spent on concepts – % of time spent on formulas. Correlation coefficient r = .27 Elby, epistemology 10

11. Which habits/beliefs most affect academic performance? • The “sophistication” of students’ advice to Diana also correlates with grades. “Sophistication” = % of time Diana should spend on concepts – % of time Diana should spend on formulas. Correlation coefficient r = ?? Elby, epistemology 11

12. Which habits/beliefs most affect academic performance? r = .50 Elby, epistemology 12

13. What’s going on? • Maybe epistemological beliefs affect the fine-grained details of students’ study behavior. • It’s really important to help students develop more sophisticated epistemological stances. Elby, epistemology 13