Can first-year undergraduate geography students do individual research?

ABSTRACT

Based on the affirmation in the scholarship of teaching and learning that adding research component into early geography classes is mutually beneficial to both instructors and students, this paper presents a case study that quantitatively articulates the effects of adding a research project into a first-year physical geography class on students’ academic performance. Pushing research into earlier stages of undergraduate students’ academics, even in large classes, can be very beneficial yet challenging because most students at this level have no experience in research; plus, they may still be adjusting to university life. Part of the Undergraduate Research Initiative called First Year Research Experience (FYRE) at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada invited faculty to embed a research component into first year undergraduate classes to align research and teaching. A two-year endeavour in a first year physical geography class resulted in some interesting outcomes. (1) The most challenging part of research for students was the research question formation. (2) Students valued the opportunity to conduct a research project. (3) Doing in-class research actually improved student performance as seen in the higher overall average grades. (4) Students who attained the highest exam marks were not those who attained the highest research project marks.

KEYWORDS:

• Research
• undergraduate
• first year
• physical geography
• FYRE

Acknowledgements

Thanks are due to the two anonymous manuscript referees for guiding us though the literature and providing constructive suggestions. Without them, this manuscript would never have reached its intended audience. Appreciation is also due to the students who provided feedback and advice on the project quoted here, and for those students whose projects are reference. Thanks also go to the two research coaches who made their great efforts on helping students (Dr. Dandan Xu and Ms. Sarah Baines). Funding for printing students’ posters and refreshments for poster events was supported by the Experiential Learning Fund, generously provided by the Gwenna Moss Centre for Teaching and Learning (GMCTL); and funding for the research coaches’ salaries was provisioned by the Undergraduate Research Initiative, through the Office of the Vice- President Research (OVPR). The Centre and the OPVR are part of the University of Saskatchewan.