Can Personality Traits Predict Students' Satisfaction with Blended Learning during the COVID-19 Pandemic? Anna Tovmasyan, Daniel Walker & Linda Kaye The present study aimed to assess the impact of personality traits on student satisfaction with blended learning which many higher education institutions have adopted since the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK. Personality traits were assessed using the International Personality Item Pool and student satisfaction was recorded on a 7-point Likert scale. Data analysis of 72 undergraduate students revealed that low extraversion and high neuroticism predicted higher levels of student satisfaction. Implications are discussed considering the current pandemic with a view of increasing student satisfaction and in-turn improving National Student Survey results that impact on Teaching Excellence Framework scores and league tables.

Cumulative Cross Course Exposure to Evidence-Based Teaching is Related to Increases in STEM Student Buy-in and Intent to Persist Philip M. Reeves, Andrew J. Cavanagh, Melanie Bauer, Cong Wang & Mark J. Graham A growing body of evidence had demonstrated that increased student exposure and commitment to evidence-based teaching (EBT) leads to improved academic performance, greater persistence, and higher buy-in to instructional methods. Despite the increasing number of teaching development opportunities available to STEM instructors, which often encourage the use of EBT, implementation is still highly variable across instructors. The frequency with which students are exposed to EBT across multiple courses in a department or university has not been studied in relation to students' success in a given course or their ultimate persistence in STEM. This study shows that there is a cumulative benefit of exposure to EBT across multiple courses. Students who are frequently exposed to EBT also find these practices to be more valuable and report a higher intention to persist in STEM. If students demonstrate higher commitment after multiple EBT exposures, this may increase the likelihood that faculty will incorporate these teaching practices into their courses. The findings are useful for instructors, faculty, department chairs, and administrators who are attempting to support a more unified, evidence-based approach to teaching in their department or institution.

Effective Practices for High Performing Interdisciplinary Faculty Teams Elaine Perignat, Fraser F. Fleming, Diana Nicholas, Daniel King, Jen Katz-Buonincontro & Paul Gondek Interdisciplinary teaching by teams of diverse faculty is highly effective in providing students with intellectual tools for creating innovative solutions to 21st century problems. This article examines the effective practices for interdisciplinary teaching used by a five-membered, disciplinarily diverse faculty team with expertise in chemistry, design, education, and business/psychology. The team found convergence, reaching a common understanding of information through discussion, to be more important, and difficult, than conveyance, sharing new information. The influence of convergence and conveyance on the faculty team impacted their team dynamic and their content delivery, encouraging similar characteristics from their students. A collaborative case study approach, augmented with interviews and meeting notes, provide the qualitative data from which best practices for fostering an effective interdisciplinary faculty team in higher education are identified. The findings reveal the importance of, and processes for, balancing individual and team priorities within the broad areas of convergence and conveyance: recognizing intrinsic rewards, maintaining a shared focus, developing a team mindset, translating ideas across disciplines, and proactively working on good team practices. The article addresses the dearth of research on the effective practices of interdisciplinary teams in higher education concluding with practical examples and strategies for high performing faculty teams.

Embodied Engagement with Scientific Concepts: An Exploration into Emergent Learning. Arlette R. C. Baljon, Joseph W. Alter & Marilee J. Bresciani Ludvik In response to an invitation to integrate science and art pedagogy, science and dance students enrolled in specific disciplinary courses, collaboratively produced choreography based on scientific principles. This paper reports students' experience of this process. Science students reported an increased understanding of concepts, while dance students found inspiration for choreography within scientific concepts. Tensions and misconceptions were evident in the process with respect to disciplinary language, the notion of scientific thought, and the level of physical awareness. The relationship between movement and forms of knowledge production in science was investigated as well. The paper ends with recommendations for future classes.

Experiences, Supports, and Strategies of First-Generation College Students Gavin W. Watts, Theresa A. Garfield & Mariya T. Davis The experiences of first-generation college students (FGCS) can guide the development of effective practices for supporting and retaining these students. Open-ended interviews with 10 FGCS produced themes related to challenges and strategies for success. Applied thematic analysis identified barriers in school, home, and work settings, including a lack of knowledge of administrative processes, financial stress, instructor communication, and familial support. Strategies and needs of FGCS included developing social supports, time management skills, clear and explicit communication, and acknowledgment and reinforcement of academic successes. Findings align with previous research showing FGCS to be underprepared and under-supported in applying for, enrolling in, and paying for college. Implications and future research are discussed.

Instructor and Student Perceptions of Teacher Empathy in Higher Education Jenifer Ross, Kristen Hicks-Roof, Meghan Cosby & Andrea Arikawa Empathy is recognized as the ability to relate emotionally to an experience or another person's emotions. Evidence supports the notion that students learn better and have greater positive perceptions when instructors display empathetic values and seek more meaningful relationships with their students. The purpose of this study was to assess instructor self-reported empathy and students' perceptions of instructor empathy, using the Toronto Empathy Questionnaire (TEQ) and a newly developed Instructor Empathy Practices questionnaire (IEP7), among a convenience sample from a public university. This convergent mixed-methods study consisted of a cross-sectional survey sent to both students and instructors and focus groups conducted with students. A total of 168 students and 68 faculty members completed the survey and 19 students participated in the focus groups. Contextual factors such as race (p = 0.036), classification (p = 0.003) and GPA (p = 0.028) played significant roles in student empathy scores. Among instructors, only total student enrollment (p = 0.028) had an association with teacher empathy. Focus groups revealed themes related to recognizing empathy including understanding its definition, instructional techniques, perception in relation to class motivation, and importance. This study was the first to employ a convergent study design to assess and better characterize empathy from both instructors' and students' perspectives.

Pushing Active Learning to the Extreme: Is It Worth It? Deborah South Richardson, Robert S. Bledsoe & Kailea Manning The authors' scholarly reflective narrative addresses the rewards and challenges of an immersive experiential active learning pedagogy. They ask, "was it worth it?" for students and for themselves. Although research evidence makes it clear that active learning benefits student learning and engagement, designing a course to incorporate active learning often requires extensive effort from instructors. Thus, it is reasonable to consider whether the benefits outweigh the costs. They conclude that the direct and indirect benefits of observing student learning and development in addition to the rewards of scholarly collaboration outweighed the costs of continual course redesign and student discomfort. They offer questions for others to consider before implementing active learning practices.

The First Paragraph Is As Good As It Gets: STEM Articles in Wikipedia and Opportunistic Learning Peter K. Dunn, Elizabeth Brunton, Margaret Marshman, Robert McDougall, Damon Kent, Nicole Masters & David McKay Despite questions about academic rigor, undergraduates use Wikipedia for opportunistic learning: self-regulated study to learn, relearn, or be introduced to concepts. STEM topics are potentially immune from some of Wikipedia's criticism, as many are based on well-established facts. This article evaluates 28 articles from seven STEM disciplines on four criteria important for undergraduate opportunistic learners. Some articles contained inaccuracies, while common criticisms included poor conceptual development, poor procedural explanations, poor diagrams and failing to utilize internet technologies. Often, the best advice is to read the first paragraph: the rest of the article generally did not enhance opportunistic learning.