First day of class activities to promote interaction and engage students in a management subject of a university Physical Education program: a case study
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v67.111381Keywords:
First day of class, engagement, interaction, management subject, physical education students, reciprocal interview activityAbstract
Introduction: This study analyzes the perceptions of students in a university physical education program after participating in a first-day activity designed to introduce a management course and encourage their engagement. Additionally, students were asked about their preferences and dislikes regarding first-session activities to enhance engagement from the beginning of the course.
Methodology: The research was conducted over two academic years and included two strategies: the reciprocal interview activity and a survey on activity preferences for the first session. The session design was based on previous experiences and studies highlighting the importance of early classroom interaction. After the session, students responded to open-ended questions about their experience, particularly regarding the reciprocal interview activity.
Results: The analysis of student responses led to the creation of a list of activity preferences and an evaluation of their perceptions of the reciprocal interview activity. The results showed a positive assessment of the activity, emphasizing its role in fostering interaction and active participation in the course.
Conclusions: The designed session helped identify key elements valued by students and proved effective in promoting engagement. These findings can contribute to the redesign of the course program, optimizing teaching strategies for future editions.
References
ABET. (2020). Criteria for Accrediting Engineering Programs, 2021 – 2022. ABET. https://www.abet.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/E001-21-22-EAC-Criteria.pdf
Allsop, J., Young, S. J., Nelson, E. J., Piatt, J., & Knapp, D. (2020). Examining the Benefits Associated with Implementing an Active Learning Classroom among Undergraduate Students. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 32(3), 418–426.
Anderson, D. M., Mcguire, F. A., & Cory, L. (2011). The first day: It happens only once. Teaching in Higher Education, 16(3), 293–303. https://doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2010.546526
Bassett, J. (2011). Students’ First Day of Class Preferences: Factor Structure and Individual Differences. North American Journal of Psychology, 13(3), 373–381.
Batez, M. (2021). ICT Skills of University Students from the Faculty of Sport and Physical Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Sustainability, 13(4), 1711. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13041711
Bengtsson, M. (2016). How to plan and perform a qualitative study using content analysis. NursingPlus Open, 2, 8–14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.npls.2016.01.001
Bruce, C. D. (2013). Beyond the syllabus: Using the first day of class in physical chemistry as an intro-duction to the development of macroscopic, molecular-level, and mathematical models. Journal of Chemical Education. https://doi.org/10.1021/ed3008445
Case, K., Bartsch, R., Mcenery, L., Hall, S., Hermann, A., & Foster, D. (2008). Establishing a Comfortable Classroom from Day One: Student Perceptions of the Reciprocal Interview. College Teaching, 56(4), 210–214. https://doi.org/10.3200/CTCH.56.4.210-214
DeLuca, J. R., & Braunstein-Minkove, J. (2016). An Evaluation of Sport Management Student Prepared-ness: Recommendations for Adapting Curriculum to Meet Industry Needs. Sport Management Education Journal, 10, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1123/SMEJ.2014-0027
Deluse, S. (2018). First Impressions: Using a Flexible First Day Activity to Enhance Student Learning and Classroom Management. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Educa-tion, 30(2), 308–321. http://www.isetl.org/ijtlhe/pdf/IJTLHE3003.pdf
Eskine, K. E., & Hammer, E. (2017). Students’ Perspectives on the First Day of Class: A Replication. In-ternational Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 11(1), Article 5. https://doi.org/10.20429/ijsotl.2017.110105
Foster, D. A., & Hermann, A. D. (2011). Linking the First Week of Class to End-of-Term Satisfaction: Using a Reciprocal Interview Activity to Create an Active and Comfortable Classroom. College Teaching, 59(3), 111–116. https://doi.org/10.1080/87567555.2011.572098
Göktaş, Z. (2012). The Attitudes of Physical Education and Sport Students towards Information and Communication Technologies. TechTrends, 56(2), 22–30. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-012-0560-x
Gómez-Barrios, V., Mediavilla-Saldaña, L., Gómez-Encinas, V., & Salinero-Martín, J. J. (2024). Efecto del modelo organizativo de la asignatura “Actividades en el Medio Natural” sobre la motivación en estudiantes universitarios. Retos, 58, 737–743. https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v58.106569
Helmy, H. E. (2016). A lottery on the first day of classes! An innovative structured steps assignment on a partially randomly selected topic. International Review of Economics Education, 21, 41–47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iree.2015.12.002
Henslee, A. M., Burgess, D. R., & Buskist, W. (2006). Student Preferences for First Day of Class Activi-ties. 33(3), 189–191. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15328023top3303_7
Hermann, A. D., & Foster, D. A. (2008). Fostering approachability and classroom participation during the first day of class: Evidence for a reciprocal interview activity. Active Learning in Higher Education, 9(2), 139–151. https://doi.org/10.1177/1469787408090840
Hernández, D., Arencibia, R., Moreira, B. A., Ordoñez, M. S., & Linares, M. (2023). Estrategias de apren-dizaje y motivación en estudiantes de carreras de deporte y perfil no deportivo de la Universi-dad Laica Eloy Alfaro de Manabí, Ecuador. Retos, 48, 689–700. https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v48.96363
Iannarelli, B. A., Bardsley, M. E., & Foote, C. J. (2010). Here’s Your Syllabus, See You Next Week: A Re-view of the First Day Practices of Outstanding Professors. Journal of Effective Teaching, 10(2), 29–41.
Jafar, A. (2021). The Lasting Impact of a First Impression: An Exercise for the First Day of Class. Teaching Sociology, 49(1), 73–84. https://doi.org/10.1177/0092055X20966709
Joshi, A., Kale, S., Chandel, S., & Pa, D. K. (2015). Likert Scale: Explored and Explained. British Journal of Applied Science & Technology, 7(4), 396–403. https://doi.org/10.9734/BJAST/2015/14975
Kreizinger, J. (2006). Critical Connections for the First Day of Class. The Teaching Professor, 20(5), 1–3.
Lane, A. K., Meaders, C. L., Shuman, K. J., Stetzer, M. R., Vinson, E. L., Couch, B. A., Smith, M. K., & Stains, M. (2021). Making a First Impression: Exploring What Instructors Do and Say on the First Day of Introductory STEM Courses. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 20(1), ar7. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.20-05-0098
Likert, R. (1932). A Technique for the Measurement of Attitudes. Archives of Psychology, 22(140), 1–55.
McGinley, J. J., & Jones, B. D. (2014). A Brief Instructional Intervention to Increase Students’ Motivation on the First Day of Class. Teaching of Psychology, 41(2), 158–162. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628314530350
McGlynn, A. P. (2001). Successful Beginnings for College Teaching: Engaging Your Students from the First Day. Teaching Techniques/Strategies Series. Atwood Publishing.
McKeachie, W., & Svinicki, M. (2013). McKeachie’s teaching tips. Cengage Learning.
Ovid, D., Rice, M. M., Luna, J. V., Tabayoyong, K., Lajevardi, P., & Tanner, K. D. (2021). Investigating Student Perceptions of Instructor Talk: Alignment with Researchers’ Categorizations and Analysis of Remembered Language. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 20:ar61. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.21-06-0153
Pérez, S., Aburto, R., Poblete-Valderrama, F., & Aguayo, O. (2022). La escuela como espacio para con-vertirse en profesor: Experiencias de docentes de Educación Física en formación. Retos, 43, 27–35. https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v43i0.88345
Perlman, B., & McCann, L. I. (1999). Student perspectives on the first day of class. Teaching of Psycho-logy, 26(4), 277–279. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15328023TOP260408
Petchamé, J., Iriondo, I., Canaleta, X., Riu, D., & Necchi, S. (2021). Engaging ICT Engineering Undergra-duates in a Management Subject through First Day of Class Activities: An Empirical Study. Sus-tainability, 13, 7440. https://doi.org/10.3390/SU13137440
Petchamé, J., Iriondo, I., Mallol, R., & Solanellas, F. (2023). Promoting Students’ Interaction in Higher Education: A reciprocal Interview Activity Carried out During the First Class Session in Mana-gement Subjects. Education Sciences, 13(7), 730. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci13070730
Petchamé, J., Iriondo, I., Torné, O., & Solanellas, F. (2024). Student Perceptions of Project-Based Lear-ning When Studying ‘Information Systems’ in an ICT Engineering Program: Taking Advantage of Active Learning. Education Sciences, 14, 1148. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci14111148
Petchamé, J., Iriondo, I., Villegas, E., Fonseca, D., Yesa, S. R., & Aláez, M. (2021). A Qualitative Approach to Help Adjust the Design of Management Subjects in ICT Engineering Undergraduate Pro-grams through User Experience in a Smart Classroom Context. Sensors, 21, 4762. https://doi.org/10.3390/S21144762
Rivadeneira, J., & Inga, E. (2023). Interactive Peer Instruction Method Applied to Classroom Environ-ments Considering a Learning Engineering Approach to Innovate the Teaching–Learning Pro-cess. Education Sciences, 13, 301. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci13030301
Robinson, D. (2019). Engaging students on the first day of class: Student-generated questions promote positive course expectations. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 5(3), 183. https://doi.org/10.1037/stl0000139
Romero, L. A., Becerra, B. A., & Cortés, A. C. (2024). Relaciones entre las estrategias de aprendizaje, la motivación y el contexto personal de estudiantes universitarios colombianos: a propósito del caso de la Licenciatura en Deporte. Retos, 52, 374–383. https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v52.101806
Taber, K. S. (2018). The Use of Cronbach’s Alpha When Developing and Reporting Research Instru-ments in Science Education. Research in Science Education, 48(6), 1273–1296. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-016-9602-2
Trolian, T. L., Jach, E. A., Hanson, J. M., & Pascarella, E. T. (2016). Influencing academic motivation: The effects of student–faculty interaction. Journal of College Student Development, 57(7), 810–826. https://doi.org/10.1353/csd.2016.0080
Urra, B. (2024). Estrategias empleadas por profesores de educación física para generar vínculo peda-gógico. Retos, 54, 478–487. https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v54.101425
Vidal-Vilaplana, A., Gregori-Faus, C., Parra-Camacho, D., & González-Serrano, M. H. (2023). Analysis of sport management subjects in university Sports Sciences degrees in Spain. The International Journal of Management Education, 21, 100771. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijme.2023.100771
Wilson, J. H., & Wilson, S. B. (2007). The First Day of Class Affects Student Motivation: An Experimental Study. Teaching of Psychology, 34(4), 226–230. https://doi.org/10.1080/00986280701700151
Wolcowitz, J. (1984). The First Day of Class. In The Art and Craft of Teaching. Harvard University Press.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Josep Petchamé, Joshua Muñoz, Francesc Genovard, Odalys Torné, Francesc Solanellas
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and ensure the magazine the right to be the first publication of the work as licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of authorship of the work and the initial publication in this magazine.
- Authors can establish separate additional agreements for non-exclusive distribution of the version of the work published in the journal (eg, to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Is allowed and authors are encouraged to disseminate their work electronically (eg, in institutional repositories or on their own website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as to a subpoena more Early and more of published work (See The Effect of Open Access) (in English).
This journal provides immediate open access to its content (BOAI, http://legacy.earlham.edu/~peters/fos/boaifaq.htm#openaccess) on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge. The authors may download the papers from the journal website, or will be provided with the PDF version of the article via e-mail.
