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This mixed methods case study sought to understand cultural competency in the students of a service-learning based course, “Citizenship and Social Activism (HDFS 310),” taught at North Dakota State University in Fargo, North Dakota. Cultural competency refers to how people interact with those who are of different cultural groups. For the purposes of this study, cultural competency was also defined by four components: attitudes, knowledge, awareness, and skills. Using a pre- and post-test survey, the participants showed statistically significant changes in the levels of self-reported cultural competency in the overall scores and in the subsection scores that correspond to the four components. Survey data was complemented by qualitative data collected by coding participants’ reflective journals. The qualitative data provided situation-specific information about what levels of cultural competency participants were demonstrating; additionally, the journals provided information about how participants define, perceive, and struggle with the concept of cultural competency.

Internships are a great way for college students to gain real-world work experience. Students who participate in an internship should learn valuable skills, build a network and gain professional confidence. Employers want to see prior, relevant work experience when deciding who to hire and an internship can provide that. This quantitative research study examined the impacts on career outcomes and starting salaries for college graduates who participated in a paid internship, unpaid internship or no internship and in a structured internship program for which they receive college credit, a non-credit internship and no internship. The results clearly showed that students who completed any type of internship were employed at a higher rate than those who did not complete an internship. There was also a substantial impact on higher starting salaries for those who completed a paid internship.

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The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which the learning experiences of mentors and mentees in their mentoring relationships were reflective of Kolb's experiential learning cycle. The researcher interviewed five mentors and five principals who participated in the mentoring programme as encapsulated in the ACE School Leadership programme at the University of Pretoria. The principals were selected from the Nkangala education district of Mpumalanga province. Research questions covered the four modes of Kolb's experiential learning cycle: (i) Concrete Experience, (ii) Reflective Observation, (iii) Abstract Conceptualisation, and (iv) Active Experimentation. The participants were required to describe their experiences in the mentoring programme and their anticipated future mentorship practices within their schools. Participants described the reflective processes they engaged in and the skills and knowledge gained, as well as their interpretation of the mentoring phenomenon. The participants' responses were subsequently analysed to determine the extent to which their learning experiences were reflective of the experiential learning cycle as presented by Kolb (1984). The study confirmed the participants' learning as reflective of Kolb's experiential learning cycle. The outcomes confirmed mentoring as a vital tool for enhancing principals' leadership and management knowledge and skills in order to, in turn, develop their schools as effective learning institutions. The mentoring programme not only contributed towards school improvement, but also gave a huge boost to the principals' personal and professional development. Moreover, the mentors in the programme were instrumental in helping principals to become reflective practitioners as anticipated in the Department of Education's National Policy Framework for Teacher Education and Development in South Africa (2007). During this research it was discovered that the programme was not without its challenges, however. Mentor selection was found to contain serious flaws. Moreover, the principals selected for the programme were not fully informed of the reasons for their selection to the programme; the only information they were in possession of in this regard was centred on the academic aspect of the qualification, which meant that this was what they focused on. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2016. / Education Management and Policy Studies / PhD / Unrestricted

Objective: This article describes the process of determining the need for a pass/fail grading system for APPE rotations and the development and implementation of a pass/fail grading process. Methods: Preceptors, faculty, and students were surveyed prior to the development and implementation of pass/fail grading and a new evaluation tool. Preceptors were surveyed after the new grading scheme had been in place for one year about their perceptions of student performance. Rates of APPE commendations under a pass/fail system and the number of students achieving a 4.0 under a point-based system are reported. Results: Surveys from preceptors indicate that pass/fail grading decreased preceptors concerns about distinguishing between student performances (56.6% had concerns prior to switching versus 30.6% having concerns after switching to pass/fail). Survey results also indicate that pass/fail grading did not affect preceptor's perception of student motivation (61.4% felt concerned under a graded system versus 12.2% were concerned after switching to pass/fail). A pass with honors commendation was given in 17.2% of rotation evaluations, contrasting with 83.1% of students achieving a 4.0 grade in a rotation prior to switching to pass/fail. Conclusions: The transition to a pass/fail grading system for APPE rotations is not associated with reductions in student motivation or performance, and is acceptable to preceptors. The implementation of a pass/fail system is complicated and takes a significant investment of time, but resulted in an APPE evaluation system which preserves student motivation, fosters robust feedback, decreases grade inflation, and allows preceptors to distinguish and reward student performance.

Undergraduate programs in nutrition and dietetics do not require experiential learning as part of their curriculum. This study examines the benefits of working as a camp counselor at a weeklong kids’ cooking camp on undergraduate nutrition students. Observations and surveys were used to determine the effects of the camp as an experiential learning scenario on nine undergraduate nutrition students at Mississippi State University. The study found that the experience provided academic benefits through reinforcing classroom knowledge, professional benefits through career discernment, and personal benefits through the development of softs skills such as problem solving and time management. The study can be used as evidence in favor of adding more hands-on learning experiences to undergraduate nutrition education.

The purpose of this study was to determine if secondary agricultural education courses provide students with more experiential learning opportunities than other science-based courses in the high school curriculum. An ex post facto research design was employed for the study. A researcher created instrument was distributed to a sample of Alabama agriscience teachers (23), science teachers (35), and agriscience students (909). Based on the responses of 8 agriscience teachers, 12 science teachers, and 103 students, there was a statistically significant difference in the percentage of class time students spent participating in experiential learning activities. Teachers and students indicated that agriscience classes allowed students to spend a greater percentage of class time participating in service learning projects, and a lesser percentage of class time participating in teacher-centered activities and standardized test preparation and completion. Teachers and students also indicated that agriscience classes presented more opportunities for participation in service learning projects.

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This phenomenological study sought to identify the common attributes of meaningful learning experiences as found in an outdoor education program. The pragmatic educational philosophy of John Dewey provides the rationale for the essence of meaningful learning in our schools and this research identifies the attributes of educative reflective experiences that are also meaningful learning experiences. Thirteen students enrolled in the Wilderness Writing Program, offered during the fall semester of 2003 at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, made up the focus group of this study. Their participation in four outdoor recreational activities and their reflections about their experiences became the basis of this research. Through written journal entries, focus group discussions, observations, and writing assignments, this study took a qualitative approach to identifying patterns of attributes that appeared to occur in meaningful learning experiences. This study found that meaningful learning experiences were identified by participants who experienced a period of awkwardness followed by a purifying process, or sublimation. A reflective period allowed for reconstruction of a person 19s view of himself or herself and this was closely tied with feedback from others in the group. The findings of this study can give educators specific components that appear to be crucial ingredients to meaningful learning experiences.