What are their perceptions of supplemental instruction? A South African study of student feedback analysis

This paper documents students’ perceptions of supplemental instruction based on feedback analysis. With the context of two South African universities occupying the central focus, the study presents the findings on how students observe supplemental instruction, thereby proposing the framework for advancing university teaching. The ontologies and epistemologies of the paradigm of pragmatism were employed in the investigation of the perceptions of supplemental instruction. Through a mixed-methods research approach, quantitative data from 6,772 randomly sampled final year students was collected. Qualitative data, on the other hand, were collected from 20 purposively sampled students. The latter methodological lens was used to collect and analyze data, which sought to address the following research question, which served as the guideline for this research endeavor: What are students’ perceptions of university supplemental instruction? The study was framed within the QUANT-QUAL explanatory sequential mixed-methods research design. The analysis of data, by SPSS and a thematic approach, was anchored on Constructivist theory. The findings identified that technology integration and supplemental student-teaching hallways lead to enhanced student engagement and active learning. The findings further underscore the critical role of supplemental instruction in assisting students to reflect on their performance in different modules. This study contributes to the growing field of technology-based teaching and learning by illustrating how supplemental instruction can be systematically integrated into the university teaching-learning context. The framework for advancing university teaching presented offers practical guidance for lecturers to implement supplemental instruction, while accommodating students’ technological needs and preferences.