Student Perceptions of Classroom Environment and Instructors' Reflections

Book excerpt: This study reports the development of an instrument to assess classroom environment in universities. Using a sample of 665 students from 11 departments of the University of Seville (Spain), an instrument called the Evaluation of University Teaching Activities Questionnaire (E.U.T.A.Q.) was field-tested. The E.U.T.A.Q. consists of 25 items assigned to ten scales: Clarification, Student Autonomy, Instructor Scaffolding, Student Prior Knowledge, Connections, Interrogation/Discussion, Explorations Based on New Technologies, Collaboration and Negotiation, Motivation, and Evaluation. Data showed that the E.U.T.A.Q. has sound structural characteristics, thus suggesting that it should prove to be an important research tool for classroom teaching and curriculum innovations aimed at improving learning environment perceptions. Also, instructors' reflections lead to engagement and proactivity in pedagogical knowledge, thus building an analytical approach which is fundamental to the development of university professional practice. An appendix presents: Assessment of University Teaching Activities Questionnaire (A.U.T.A.Q.). (Contains 1 figure and 2 tables.).