Masters Theses

Date of Award

5-2009

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Major

English

Major Professor

Mary Jo Reiff

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between student engagement and teaching techniques in English 101 courses at the University of Tennessee - Knoxville. Specifically, the main goals of this study were to determine which techniques are most related to engagement, and whether students and instructors consider the same techniques to be beneficial. Student and instructor surveys were collected from approximately 215 students and nine teachers. Student responses to multiple choice questions have revealed that student engagement is most closely associated with variables related to course organization, feedback and assessment, active learning techniques, and institutional involvement. Additionally, students and instructors mostly agree about the effectiveness of student engagement techniques, with the exception of detailed feedback, which students rate more highly, and use of computer communication, which instructors rate more highly. Furthermore, short answer responses show students and instructors concur that active learning methods and selection of interesting paper topics are techniques currently used to engage students. Students and instructors agree that use of active learning techniques will increase in the future, and instructors also report that they will incorporate more technology in the course. Significantly, the results also demonstrated that many students consider themselves engaged in English 101. Implications for composition pedagogy are provided as well as suggestions for future research.

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