Perceived collaboration among peers positively predicts academic engagement, but competitive climates can undercut collaboration¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study (2 entries) · associational r3 · q1–q3
Currency · newest study 2012 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q3 i? Students who reported feeling collaboration among other students in the course reported significantly higher engagement (p < 0.05). → Gasiewski 2012 q1 i? Focus-group students described competitive climates, especially among pre-meds, in which peers withheld help and some students avoided study groups, limiting collaboration. → Gasiewski 2012 (2)

Evidence¶

Gasiewski 2012¶

Gasiewski, J. A., Eagan, M. K., Garcia, G. A., Hurtado, S., & Chang, M. J. (2012). From Gatekeeping to Engagement: A Multicontextual, Mixed Method Study of Student Academic Engagement in Introductory STEM Courses. Research in Higher Education, 53, 229–261. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11162-011-9247-y

q3 · i? · associational · r3

Emotional engagement block of the HLM results (Table 3). The authors interpret that more active learning with peers enhances students' connection and interest in the class.

"Frequency: Felt collaboration among other students in this course 0.09 0.01 *"

Gasiewski 2012 (2)¶

Gasiewski, J. A., Eagan, M. K., Garcia, G. A., Hurtado, S., & Chang, M. J. (2012). From Gatekeeping to Engagement: A Multicontextual, Mixed Method Study of Student Academic Engagement in Introductory STEM Courses. Research in Higher Education, 53, 229–261. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11162-011-9247-y

q1 · i? · qualitative · r3

Focus-group evidence from 41 groups with 241 students at eight institutions; Celina's quote (Southwestern Private Research University) illustrates students avoiding collaborative learning because of peers' competitiveness.

"I don't really, really like to do study groups because I feel like it's just them trying to compete and them trying to show me how much they know versus how much I know"

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Feeling comfortable asking questions in class is the strongest classroom-climate predictor of students' behavioral academic engagement in introductory STEM courses — related
• Pre-med aspiration, excitement about learning, and competitiveness each predict higher engagement; gender, race, and most pre-college measures do not — related
• Faculty-signaled classroom climate relates to engagement: courses where instructors treat no question as too elementary and own responsibility for student success show more engaged students — related
• Small-group learning improves undergraduate STEM achievement — related
• Schools where students report feeling more safe, supported, and challenged show stronger academic and social-emotional growth, and student reports predict future school improvement — related
• The Skill-Application Paradox: stopped competitive programmers self-report higher theoretical confidence than active peers yet show significantly weaker practice habits and peer support — related
• Chinese teachers emphasize competition among students more than Flemish teachers, while perceived power distance and collaboration are similar across the two groups — related
• Teacher support is among the strongest predictors of school belonging — related
• Viewing STEM courses as competitive was associated with impostorship and, in turn, lower engagement and grades, especially for first-generation students — related
• Teachers' provision of opportunities to belong predicts Black and Latine students' class engagement and overall school engagement — related