Significant learning and its association with teaching quality and previous knowledge in engineering students

摘要

The present investigation analyzed the statistical significance among the variables: significant learning, teaching quality and previous knowledge in engineering students of the University of the Guajira. The instruments used to measure significant learning were the scale of strategic and self-regulatory learning of Weinstein and Mayer (1986) while the teaching quality and previous knowledge were evaluated by survey. These instruments yielded Cronbach's alpha values of 0.94, 0.85 and 0.84, which means that they have high internal consistency. The relationship analysis was obtained by crossing the independent variables teaching quality and previous knowledge with the dependent variable significant learning and constructing the bar diagrams and contingency tables 2x2. The degree of statistical significance was obtained by means of the Chi-square test indicating statistical significance (p <0.05) between significant learning and teaching quality (p = 0.008) and prior knowledge (p = 0.005) with a confidence level of 95%. These results allowed us to conclude that the word used by the teacher is the main means that allows students to build and develop significant learning with quality. In the same way, prior knowledge is the pillar on which engineering students build their later knowledge.