This thesis reports the findings of a study of the influence of the classroom learning environment on students cognitive and affective outcomes among 2,498 third-year computing students in 50 university-level classes in Indonesia. Students perceptions of the classroom environment were measured using a modified Indonesian version of the What Is Happening In This Class? (WIHIC) questionnaire. To assess students affective outcomes, a scale derived from the Test of Science Related Attitudes was adapted for use in higher education computing classes and translated into Indonesian. Students' final scores in their mathematics course (either linear algebra or statistics) were used as a measure of cognitive achievement. Secondary aims of the present study were to examine whether differences exist between (a) students perceptions of the actual and preferred classroom learning environment, (b) the perceptions of male and female of the actual and preferred classroom environment and (c) students' perceptions of the actual learning environment in linear algebra and statistics courses. The results of this study make important contributions towards explaining why Indonesian students are achieving at less than desirable levels in their computing courses.

Local level leadership for the enhancement of learning and teaching in higher education is an under-researched area in the leadership literature. The growth of the ‘quality agenda’ in HE over the past 20 years has led to an increase in the number and range of local leadership roles. These posts, although not usually requiring the exercise of management responsibility, have the potential for considerable influence on practice in local academic communities. This study aimed to explore local leaders’ experience of their role and to examine the barriers and opportunities they faced, in order to determine the optimum conditions for the conduct of this work. The study was focused on one regional HEI in NW England, CountyUni. A subset of data was obtained from another HEI, MetroUni, for comparative purposes. The research design adopted employed an interpretive, ethnographic approach, generating qualitative data from 29 interviews and three focus groups over the course of six years. The majority of the participants were HE staff in local level leadership roles at department or faculty level. Additionally, 8 staff in managerial roles were interviewed. Data collection focused on the characteristics and practice of local level leadership in the context of learning and teaching. Purposive sampling was used to identify participants. An iterative process was used to generate interview questions, so that significant themes could be tested for ‘saturation’ as the study progressed. Data was analysed thematically, based on the approaches of Grounded Theory. A model of the features of local leadership at department level was generated from the data. The discussion of results incorporated contributions from a number of theoretical strands in social science: structuration theory; communities of practice; networks; academic culture. The nature of local level leadership was contrasted with other extant models of leadership. The findings showed that, although leadership was demonstrated by local level leaders, there was a low level of recognition and uncertainty of the leadership aspects of these roles, with individuals often feeling that they had “responsibility without power”. The importance of leadership for learning and teaching at all levels of the institution was identified as critical to the effective implementation of local enhancement activities. It was concluded that local level leadership in this context has characteristics in common with leadership elsewhere. The absence of managerial responsibility but the presence of significant responsibility for establishing links between local academic communities and the policy development tiers of an organisation, provides particular challenges. It was shown that success was dependent upon leadership and commitment at all levels of the institution. The roles provide valuable experience for career development. Opportunities for further avenues of investigation were identified.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Canterbury, 2007. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 188-204). Also available via the World Wide Web.

The purpose of this research was to investigate first-year tertiary programming students' perceptions of their learning environment, based on the subgroups of gender and "new arrivals" (immigrant and international students of diverse nationalities, culture and educational backgrounds). The literature provides strong evidence that the nature of the learning environment for females studying computing can be uninviting and may be influential in the low rates of female enrolments and retention compared with males. Studies indicate that the cultural norms and artefacts of computing, the minority status of women in computing courses, attitudes, language, experience and institutional context all contribute to a learning environment that proves unattractive and can be detrimental for some women. In recent years, there has been an increased enrolment by New Zealand educational institutions of new arrival students. Research suggests that new arrival students, who leave their home country to live and study in a foreign land, experience difficulties in their learning environment and often have problems adjusting to living and studying in their host country. This research used a mixed-method design to investigate first-year computer programming students' perceptions of their learning environment at three tertiary institutions in Wellington, New Zealand. A survey, the College and University Classroom Environment Inventory (CUCEI), was completed by 239 students, yielding quantitative data about students' perceptions of their Actual and Preferred learning environment. In addition, 28 students, selected to represent gender and new arrival subgroups, participated in interviews and 11 hours of observation were conducted in programming classrooms. / The findings from the survey indicated that students perceived their learning environment with some satisfaction but they suggested improvements relating to the innovation and individualisation dimensions of their learning environment. The perceptions of the student subgroups, defined by gender and as new arrivals were investigated. Although the findings from multivariate analysis of variance of the CUCEI results did not identify differences between the subgroups the interviews revealed wider equity issues and concerns that highlighted differences amongst students of the sex and origin subgroups. Recommendations, based on the study's findings, include suggestions to improve institutional policy relating to the organisation of teaching practice and some cautions about the further use of the survey. The findings have important implications for creating a more equitable and positive learning environment for all students.

The first purpose of this study was to validate a modified and personalised form of the College and University Classroom Environment Inventory (CUCEI) and then to use this instrument to examine the actual and preferred classroom environment perceptions of students and instructors at the senior secondary and post secondary levels. A third purpose was to examine students' attitude to their courses on three specific scales, namely, Satisfaction, Difficulty and Speed. A sample of 504 students and24 instructors from Canada and the Australian Capital Territory completed the CUCEI. The students also responded to an attitudinal questionnaire. Statistical analysis confirmed the reliability of the CUCEI. The Cronbach alpha reliability figures, using the individual student as the unit of analysis, ranged from 0.73 to 0.93 and from 0.76 to 0.94 for the actual and preferred versions respectively. Good alpha reliability figures were also apparent for instructor versions, ranging from 0.72 to 0.90 for the actual version and from 0.72 to 0.93 for the preferred version. When the two levels were compared, students at the higher level had a less favourable perception of their learning environment. Hardly any difference in perceptions was seen in the learning environment between male and female students. There were significant differences in the perceptions of the classroom environment by mature students. Mature students perceived task orientation and equity more favourably than did younger students. Senior secondary students were generally more satisfied with their science courses than post secondary students. There was no difference in their attitude to the speed of delivery of science courses. The sample of 24 instructors generally perceived their environment more favourably than did their students, however, senior secondary instructors viewed the learning environment more favourably ++ / than the instructors at the post secondary level. The study also suggests that instructors at the post secondary level are aware of the changes in students classroom environment and seem to take into account these changes. Qualitative data collected from class observations and student and instructor interviews complemented the quantitative findings of the study.

This thesis examines the potential of a learning outcome-led model of curriculum design to influence how students perceive learning in education studies within a modular context of a new university. It identifies and compares the conceptions of learning held by students and lecturers on traditional and outcome-led modules, and it explores and specifies the design factors which shape these conceptions. The issue is located within the interpretivist paradigm for the research seeks understanding which derives from the perceptions, attitudes and beliefs that students and their lecturers hold about learning in a given context. But the methodology employed is not wholly consistent with this paradigm, for a qualitative approach is complemented by the use of factor analysis techniques to facilitate the identification of the design features which influence how students perceive learning. The approach is thus eclectic drawing on quantitative methods to examine what is essentially qualitative data. An innovative model of learning outcome-led design is proposed, implemented and modified as a result of the research. The learner is placed at the centre of the learning experience which is defined as incorporating three domains: the teaching context; the assessment régime; and the directed learning undertaken by students outside of taught sessions. The model incorporates a trichotomy of outcomes which define the subject -specific, the transferable skills and the generic academic outcomes which influence directly both the content and process of learning, and which successful students are expected to achieve on completion of a module. The findings show that five design features influence how students perceive learning: the clarity of expectations; congruence between the content and process of each domain of the learning experience; direction in respect to the learning activities which should be undertaken in each domain to achieve the outcomes; and the content and process of the teaching context. The data suggest that a much higher profile should be given to metacognitive skills in curriculum development in HE because how students perceive both the process and the content of learning profoundly influences their conception of learning and, consistent with the underpinning theory, how they approach learning and therefore ultimately the kind of outcomes they achieve. The research leads to recommendations for the modification of the three models of learning in context; Ramsden (1988), Biggs (1990b) and Prosser (1995), which are presented and analysed in the thesis. The findings suggest that the learning experience should be redefined to specify the three domains - the teaching context, assessment régime and directed learning - and that clarity of expectations, metacognitive skills and congruence between the content and process of learning in each of the domains should be articulated as directly influencing students' conceptions of learning. The models should also seek to indicate that learning outcomes influence how students perceive learning, and that therefore they feature both at the starting point and as the end product of a contextualised learning process. The findings relating to students' conceptions of learning show that the study of outcome-led modules has resulted in a much greater degree of congruence between how lecturers and students perceive learning in a given module and that fewer students studying outcome-led modules hold a quantitative conception of learning. This suggests that the outcome-led model does have the potential to improve teaching and learning and consequently that there is an educational rationale for curriculum development premised on this model.