Mediating Students' Fixation With Grades in an Inquiry-Based Undergraduate Biology Course

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  In Roundtable Session: Negotiating Students' Experiences in Classrooms

Abstract

This paper analyzes focus group data to explore student perceptions of an inquiry-based undergraduate biology course. Though the course was designed to mimic the scientific process by incorporating uncertainty, peer review, and self-reflection, students came to class focused on getting As and with a developed schema for didactic instruction and passive learning. They perceived the novel learning experience as a threat to their grade, and responded with learned helplessness and disengagement. Students could identify merits of the inquiry-based approach; however they made clear: they prioritize grades, and are unwilling to trust an unfamiliar pedagogy if they perceive it jeopardizes grades. In the framework of self-regulated learning, the discussion considers how to scaffold students to foreground learning over achievement.

Authors

• Dayna Jean DeFeo, The University of Alaska - Anchorage

• Sarah Gerken, University of Alaska