Examining the impacts of delivery mode intensity on undergraduate mathematics education: A novel word cloud analysis

Abstract Previous studies have reported stronger academic outcomes, satisfaction, and perceived learning quality among undergraduate mathematics students in intensive mode delivery (IMD) compared to regular term-time offerings; this follow-up study examines how and why students experienced these delivery modes differently by analysing face-to-face interviews with 34 students who had undertaken mathematics units in an intensive summer programme between 2009 and 2016. Using grounded-theory-informed coding interpreted through a Student Approaches to Learning (SAL) lens, we identified positive and negative factors shaping students’ learning experiences and represented their frequency and relationships using a novel word cloud methodology as a rigorously constructed—and not just decorative—analytical tool. Whilst students expressed an overwhelming preference for intensive delivery, there were several nuances; cohort size emerged as the most prominent influencing factor overall, alongside teaching, instructors, focus, learning, compression, scheduling, time, support, and costs. Our findings illustrate how delivery intensity operates through interacting pedagogical and contextual conditions—rather than determining learning experiences independently. Accordingly, this work provides guidance for mathematics educators seeking to strengthen both intensive and standard delivery through intentional course design, cohort structures, learning support, and responsive teaching.