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Teaching techniques, and cognitive level of discourse, questions, and course objectives, and their relationship to student cognition in College of Agriculture class sessions

Ewing, John C
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1154989421

Abstract Details

2006, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, Agricultural Education.
The purpose of this study was to determine the cognitive level of teaching and learning in selected agriculture courses in the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences at The Ohio State University. The research was designed to explore relationships between professors’ teaching and students’ thinking. Twenty-one undergraduate class sessions were videotaped in twelve professors’ classes. Five instruments were used in this research study to determine cognitive level of professor discourse, professor questions, student questions, and course objectives, as well as to examine the teaching techniques, student level of engagement, and three variables related to the course. The relationship between these nine variables and student cognition was then examined. Results showed that professors’ discourse was mostly (62%) at the two lowest levels of cognition, knowledge and comprehension. Teaching technique results showed that lecture and discussion were the most often used group-teaching techniques, and that individualized-teaching techniques were seldom used. Professor questions were categorized by cognitive level using Bloom’s Taxonomy (1956). Most questions (43%) were asked at the knowledge level of cognition. Each course objective (n = 56) was analyzed for cognitive level. Approximately 63 percent of the recorded course objectives were written at the knowledge and comprehension levels of cognition. Students asked a total of 107 questions; 62 percent of the student questions were at the knowledge and comprehension levels of cognition. During the 21 class sessions 1,448 student thoughts were recorded. Forty percent of those thoughts were found to be engaged thoughts. The cognitive level of student thoughts was then analyzed using Bloom’s Taxonomy (1956). Sixty-two percent of the total 564 engaged thoughts were at the knowledge and comprehension levels of cognition. The regression model, which used nine variables related to professor, student, and course to explore their relationship to student cognition, must be approached very cautiously when interpreting the results. Due to the low number of class sessions (n = 21) observed, the model was overfitted. However, the model does indicate that the time of day a class is taught, the cognitive level of professor discourse, and the percent of engaged student thoughts have the largest impact on student cognition during a class session.
Melena Whittington (Advisor)
189 p.
Education, Higher
cognition; teaching techniques; questions

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Ewing, J. C. (2006). Teaching techniques, and cognitive level of discourse, questions, and course objectives, and their relationship to student cognition in College of Agriculture class sessions [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1154989421

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Ewing, John. Teaching techniques, and cognitive level of discourse, questions, and course objectives, and their relationship to student cognition in College of Agriculture class sessions. 2006. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1154989421.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Ewing, John. "Teaching techniques, and cognitive level of discourse, questions, and course objectives, and their relationship to student cognition in College of Agriculture class sessions." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2006. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1154989421

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1154989421
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© 2006, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.