Browsing by Subject "teamwork"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Development and Validation of a Survey to Measure Perceived Team Communication Skills in Middle and High School STEM Out-of-School Time Programs
    (2017-12) Grack Nelson, Amy
    Twenty-first century skills are vital for preparing youth for careers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. STEM out-of-school time (OST) programs play an important role in helping youth develop these skills, particularly the teamwork skills necessary for the growing collaborative nature of STEM jobs. However, there is a lack of appropriate measures to evaluate this key programmatic outcome in STEM OST settings. This dissertation research addresses the lack of measures through the development of an instrument to assess team communication skills in middle and high school STEM OST programs. The instrument was developed and validity evidence was gathered though a rigorous four-phase process. Phase 1 focused on identifying and operationalizing the teamwork skill area to be measured by the instrument. The skill area of team communication was most common among STEM OST programs and was defined as information exchange, closed-loop communication, and listening. In Phase 2, the survey scenario and items were developed and then reviewed by experts in STEM OST, youth development evaluation, teamwork, and measurement. Phase 3 involved think-aloud interviews and a national pilot test. Revisions to the survey occurred throughout each phase, leading to the final phase: a national field test of the instrument with 959 youth from 40 STEM OST programs across the country. Through confirmatory factor analysis, a five-factor model of team communication skills was found to be a good fit. The model included two factors for closed-loop communication, two factors for information exchange, and a listening factor. Responses for each of the five factors were reliable with coefficient alphas ranging from  = .70 to  = .79. The final instrument is a 28-item scenario-based, self-report measure of middle and high school youths’ perceptions of their team communication skills. The survey instrument and operationalization of team communication skills in STEM OST programs will be valuable for both the evaluation and STEM OST fields.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Enhancing Employability Skills In Graduate Business Programs: Service-Learning In Capstone Courses
    (2015-10) Wickam, Molly
    Situated in a theoretical framework of experiential learning, adult-learning theory, constructivist theory, and the elements of capstones and service-learning, this study examined the alignment between employability skills employers need and employability skills graduate business students gain through service-learning in business capstones. The study also investigated whether reflection enhances the employability skills of graduate business students who participate in service-learning during a capstone. This non-experimental, mixed-methods, comparative, descriptive study examined outcomes of students’ development of employability skills through service-learning participation in capstones embedded in MBA programs, and assessed whether the inclusion of service-learning influences students’ development of employability skills. Quantitative data explored which employability skills were enhanced by service-learning in business capstones, and whether there were differences in gender and GPA. The top three employability skills enhanced were decision-making, presentation skills, and teamwork. Of these three, presentation skills was statistically significant, meaning capstones that had service-learning enhanced presentation skills more than capstones that did not include service-learning. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) found a four-factor solution and one factor, Collaborative Learning, was statistically significant. Collaborative Learning was enhanced for capstone students who had a service-learning experience more than students whose capstone did not include service-learning. Qualitative data were analyzed through semi-structured interviews from ten MBA graduates. Four themes were revealed: 1) Structure and Deliverables of Capstones; 2) Opportunities to Make Decisions; 3) Opportunities to Build Teamwork Skills; and, 4) Opportunities to Build Presentation Skills. Participants were also asked in what ways reflection enhanced their employability skills. One theme emerged: Reflection Enhanced the Ability to Complete a Project. Limitations of this study include a lack of generalizability because of the non-experimental design; there are not universal definitions of skills; and the employability skills measured were not an exhaustive list. The main findings included: there is alignment in the collaborative learning skills needed by employers and those skills enhanced through service-learning in graduate business capstones; written and oral reflection improves the ability to accomplish a team-based client project; the instructor’s role in structuring and facilitating service-learning is a key to learning; and presentation skills are enhanced during client-based business capstone courses that include service-learning.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Integrative Student Learning: An Effective Team Learning Activity in a Learner-Centered Paradigm
    (University of Minnesota, College of Pharmacy, 2011) Karimi, Reza; Elbarbry, Fawzy; Fortner, Jeff
    Purpose: An Integrative Student Learning (ISL) activity was developed with the intent to enhance the dynamic of student teamwork and enhance student learning by fostering critical-thinking skills, self-directed learning skills, and active learning. Case Study: The ISL activity consists of three portions: teambuilding, teamwork, and a facilitator driven “closing the loop” feedback discussion. For teambuilding, a set of clue sheets or manufacturer‘s drug containers were distributed among student pairs who applied their pharmaceutical knowledge to identify two more student pairs with similar clues or drugs, thus building a team of six. For teamwork, each team completed online exams, composed of integrated pharmaceutical science questions with clinical correlates, using only selected online library resources. For the feedback discussion, facilitators evaluated student impressions, opened a discussion about the ISL activity, and provided feedback to teams’ impressions and questions. This study describes three different ISL activities developed and implemented over three days with first year pharmacy students. Facilitators’ interactions with students and three surveys indicated a majority of students preferred ISL over traditional team activities and over 90% agreed ISL activities promoted active learning, critical-thinking, self-directed learning, teamwork, and student confidence in online library searches. Conclusions: The ISL activity has proven to be an effective learning activity that promotes teamwork and integration of didactic pharmaceutical sciences to enhance student learning of didactic materials and confidence in searching online library resources. It was found that all of this can be accomplished in a short amount of class time with a very reasonable amount of preparation.