A Dickens for the 21st Century

Can old things be made new again within the context of 21st century cultural norms? A paper by Megan Witzleben with Hilbert College suggests just that. She writes, "Today, we may not teach Dickensian prose as superior. However, we do seek to empower students through verbal and cultural literacy to connect them with influential stories of the past and present. This paper demonstrates how teaching a little-known Dickens detective story, “Hunted Down,” in its original serialized context, and then performing a dramatic reading of that story to a community partner, helps students understand Dickens in his own time and in ours." What she is suggesting is another way to incorporate active learning into our classes. She even suggests some service learning opportunities around the work of Dickens. I encourage you to view the student's personal journals towards the end of the article.

Would you want to spend a day learning in your class? I love this question presented recently in a post by George Couros. He writes, "This is not to say that students should have no personal responsibility for their learning. But you can’t force someone to learn.  As an educator, the thing you have the most control over is not your students, but the experience you create for those learners." So what does that look like in our face-to-face and eLearning classes? How do we engage and inspire our students? What types of questions do we ask our students. I look back on my time in higher education (and even high school) as a student for a point of reference. When did I become bored and check out? It was usually when an instructor droned on and on and never tried to engage in any type of conversation or feedback. It was when the topic did not interest me and the instructor didn't explain to me why it was relevant or what important point we were building towards. So I look critically at my learning experiences and begin to see how I can make them more engaging and dynamic. What would I want to hear if I was sitting in my students' places? This idea is something that I was first exposed to by the research of Dr. Stephen Brookfield. His focus on critical self reflection has helped me to continuously remain vigilant about growing. He also inspired me to journal  in order to use the data to improve my teaching. So I return where we began. Would you want to spend a day, week, or semester in your class?

FINDING GOLD IN JERSEY
I am very excited to be one of the select few that will be heading to New Jersey to participate in Ken Bain's last Best Teachers Summer Institute later this week. Judging by the pre-conference homework (Dr. Bain's version of flipping), this promises to be an exceptional learning event. I wanted to share just a small sliver of what we are working on before coming together as a group. Dr. Bain has asked us to do some critical self-reflection (one of my favorite topics) and to specifically look at how we construct our syllabi. He asks, "how can a colleague develop a sense of you as a scholar by examining the various features of your course?" I hope that you do what I did when I saw that question and that is, quickly pull up one of your syllabi and begin to deconstruct it to determine the answer to this brilliant question. If our syllabi are truly the guiding documents for our partnerships with our students, shouldn't they reflect our teaching philosophy, our passion for the subject matter, and what we think is most important for student learning? In the same way, the assessment instruments we indicate on our syllabi are also telling an interesting story. I hope to bring back much more of this type of faculty development from the conference and am sure that our programming for the 2014-15 academic year will be shaped by what happens this week.

CRITICAL THINKING IN AN ONLINE ENVIRONMENT
Drs. S. Michael Putman, Karen Ford, and Susan Tancock have written an interesting article about enhancing critical thinking abilities using discussion boards in online classes. They write, "The asynchronous online discussion (AOD) is a communicative tool that has been observed to promote “a level of reflective interaction often lacking in a face-to-face, teacher-centered classroom.” Inherent within successful AODs is the use of meaningful discourse to facilitate critical engagement with the content that is the focus of the experience. Numerous studies have shown that effective AODS produce an increased level of cognitive thinking and knowledge construction within participants. Potential for these outcomes were maximized when learning objectives were linked to real-life experiences within moderately complex tasks. Participants in the AODs were more effectively able to understand the applicability of the content within the greater context of learning. Knowledge development increased as participants shared information regarding their beliefs and experiences. Critically engaging with and reflecting on content prior to sharing was theorized to account for differences." They encourage the use of "facilitative Prompts" to fully realize the effects of online discussion.

BOREDOM BLOCKERS
Boredom is one of the most common complaints among university students, with studies suggesting its link to poor grades, drop out, and behavioral problems according to an article by Drs. Steven J. Kass, Stephen J. Vodanovich, and Jasmine Y. Khosrav. They note that "Boredom proneness was found to be significantly and negatively related to course grade and measures of satisfaction." They conclude that "students need and desire the opportunity to use the variety of skills learned in class. Putting these skills into practice allows students to see the connection between what they learned and the context within which it is applied , thus increasing satisfaction and internal motivation which they may demonstrate through greater class attendance and engagement. Students may also benefit by allowing them to make their own decisions and develop individualized approaches (i.e., autonomy) to completing coursework. Consistent with many different theories on training and learning, students must be provided with in formative feedback to help direct efforts toward accomplishing their goals." Certainly another reason to look at experiential learning and the use of problem-based situations in our courses.

TAKE TIME FOR YOURSELF
We are already in the second week of class for the summer term and the campus is alive with teaching and learning. We are also seeing a good number of students who will begin their academic careers in the fall and their excitement level is very contagious. For those teaching during the summer (and the rest of us on break), I want to encourage you to journal throughout the semester. Critical self-reflection is crucial to any attempt to improve your teaching and add to your toolkit. The academic support staff is hard at work in the Division of Innovative Learning and Academic Support and we stand ready to assist you with your teaching and learning needs. If you are looking for some summer reading, I want to recommend Ken Bain's classic What The Best College Teachers Do. Remember to keep calm and be engaged.

THE EFFECT OF FAIRNESS
There was an interesting research study published in the April 30 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience about how the brain responds to fairness. Using MRI scanners, Dr. Ryuta Akoi's team found that when people are offered the sames choices, they report being happier and their bran scans showed increased activity in the area called ventromedial prefrontal cortex. So how would you apply these findings in your classroom? I immediately thought of the awkward situation when students ask for extra credit work. It was validating to see that the explanation I always use related to the fairness of extra credit work is a good choice. By explaining to your students that your strategy to treat everyone fairly and equally will actually work to your advantage and leaves the student feeling satisfied.

DO YOU KNOW YOUR TEACHING STYLE
Reading a recent column by Dr. Neil Haave about teaching philosophies and how they are usually developed made me think about learning styles. Although there is not a consensus on the matter of learning styles, most educationalists agree that students do use different methods to learn. Dr. Haave pointed out that many of us also teach using the method that we find most useful to our own learning. So it begs the question, do you know your own learning style preference? Have you ever taken one of the many online tests to determine your bias? I encourage you to take that step, especially if you are asking your students to determine how they learn best (and you should be). Learning about learning (or metacognition) should be a learning outcome for everyone's class. Let me know what you discover about yourself.

FINALS WEEK ADVICE
It is officially finals week at BRCC. Where did our semester go? Hopefully this will be a time for achievement and affirmation. Pledge to create a testing atmosphere that allows your students to perform at their best. Remind them to study, rest, and eat so that they are ready for the challenges of assessment. This is also a great time to begin to reflect on your work this semester. If you journaled, like I did, you can take a look at the entries once more. I am amazed at where we (the students and me) began this journey and where we are now. I have seen tremendous growth from most of my students. I have witnessed grit and persistence. I have seen success. I always learn so much about teaching and learning over the course of a semester and this one proved to be filled with lessons. I have also taken another look at all of my assessment instruments I used over the semester and tried to incorporate what worked best, based on the scores achieved by my students, into my final assessment. The proof will be in the final grades although I can tell you that all of my students have learned. They are better equipped to handle the pressures of college and they have changed their ideas about what learning is and how to do it. Today is a good day. Keep calm and be engaged!

KEEPING CALM AND BEING ENGAGED
Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs Monique Cross and I gathered with the Engaged Scholars on Friday to celebrate their success and acknowledge their efforts. Teachers who come each day to make a difference give us so much inspiration. Many of the "engagement specialists" shared stories of what happened in their classrooms and online and the recollections were filled with good news and accomplishments. Capital One was the corporate sponsor for the event held at Bistro Byronz. Patrick Olinde, district manager, and Mary Pourciau, manager of the Broadmoor branch, represented Capital One and were so excited to hear about BRCC's accomplishments. Engaged Scholars recognized for 2013-14 included Mrs. Catherine Doyle (Nursing), Dr. Sandra Guzman (Science), Mr. Paul Guidry (Criminal Justice), Mr. Wes Harris (English), Dr. Mary Miller (Science), and Mrs. Amy Pinero (Criminal Justice). If you are looking to improve your interaction skills or learn a few engagement strategies, please contact the Teaching+Learning Center to discuss creating a personal plan of action.

COMPETENCY-BASED EDUCATION
Sally Johnstone and Thad Nodine have written an article for Inside Higher Ed about competency-based education (CBE). Although available to students for several decades, CBE has seen a jump in interest over the past year. Politicians at the national level are encouraging innovation in new delivery models. Federal agencies and foundations are weighing in with studies and grants. And think tanks and higher education associations are organizing convenings and webinars. Meanwhile, more colleges and universities are beginning to offer competency-based education (CBE) programs and many others are considering them. There has been plenty of attention, at the 30,000-foot level, concerning the potential benefits and risks of CBE, but little has been shared about what the programs entail on the ground, particularly for traditional institutions. One critical characteristic that distinguishes CBE from other courses is that students can progress at their own pace. They progress toward course objectives and toward a certificate or degree, based on demonstrating the knowledge and skills required at each level. That is, learning becomes the constant -- and is demonstrated through mastery of learning objectives, or competencies -- and time becomes the variable.

DEEP LEARNING AND THE BRAIN
Skip Downing, creator of the massively successful On Course student success course, notes that there are three principles of deep learning. The first is prior learning. That is why it is important for us as teachers to relate new information for our students to previously learned information. Brain research reveals that when you connect what you are learning now to previously stored information, you learn the new information or skill faster and more deeply.The second, quality of processing, refers to using numerous and varied deep-processing strategies. Much of what we teach in college is too complex for mere memorization and calls for deep processing. The third is quantity of processing. This requires using frequent practice sessions of sufficient length distributed over time because the quality of learning is significantly affected by how often and how long someone engages in varied deep processing. You can learn more by visiting Downing's website.

ASSESSING THE ASSESSMENT

The Association for the Assessment of Learning in Higher Education (AALHE) is now accepting proposals for presentations at its third annual conference. The AALHE 2013 conference theme is “Juggling Conflicting Priorities: Rethinking What We Thought." How we can deal with existing and emerging challenges while seizing new opportunities to create more meaningful systems of assessment focused on improving learning is the central theme of the conference, which will be held in Lexington, KY, on June 3-5, 2013. In AALHE’s continuing effort to provide a robust and transformative experience for conference attendees, they are offering a wide variety of session formats this year. From standard concurrent sessions to one-on-one consultations with assessment experts, assessment practitioners attending the conference will have diverse opportunities to will allow us to develop skills and strategies for improving assessment at BRCC. Proposals are due by February 8, 2013. Visit the AALHE website for more information.

GETTING WHAT YOU PAY FOR

Aaron Bady has written an interesting blog post about the value of MOOCs. He asks, "Why have we stopped aspiring to provide the real thing for everyone?" And adds, "MOOCs are only better than nothing and speculation that this will someday change is worth pursuing, but for now, remains just that, speculation. It should be no surprise that venture capital is interested in speculation. And it should be no surprise that when academics look at the actual track record, when we try to evaluate the evidence rather than the hope, we discover a great deal to be pessimistic about."

CRITICAL SELF-REFLECTION IMPROVES TEACHING

Coming to the end of a semester always conjures up the inevitable wondering about having accomplished what you described in your learning objectives. Not simply "getting through the material" but really having your students learn. Lyons, Kysilka, and Pawlas (in their book The Adjunct Professor's Guide to Success LB1778.2.L96) tell us, "The instructor who regularly engages in systematic self-evaluation will unquestionably derive greater reward from the formal methods of evaluation commonly employed by colleges. Regular self-evaluation is especially important early in your career as you seek to develop insights and skills that will form habits you can incorporate into your continually evolving teaching style." It is just as important for those who have taught for a number years as it will help you uncover habits that are causing you problems in the classroom. I always recommend that you keep a journal for each class. This will allow you to reflect on your teaching experiences. Regularly investing 10-15 introspective minutes following each class meeting, noting what worked and what did not, will help you tremendously. Focus especially on the strategies and events in class that you feel could be improved. Jot down any breakthroughs, milestones, and disasters that occur over the course of the semester. Then commit to reading the comments before you begin to teach the same class again. This is especially useful if you are beginning a course redesign. 

EXPANDING YOUR TEACHING TOOLKIT
Active learning provides opportunities for students to talk and listen, read, write and reflect, all of which require students to apply what they are learning. Register now for the next faculty development seminar entitled Active Learning Methods Revealed to be held on November 19, at 2:00PM. Drs. Marcella Hackney and Margaret McMichael, Biology Department faculty, will present using classroom experience and information they gathered from an intensive workshop they attended this past summer. The seminar will be interactive and will be held in 311 Magnolia, also known as the Teaching+Learning Center.

 STUDENT LEARNING DRIVEN BY EXCELLENT TEACHING
For anyone who has spent time with me, you have heard me say that everything I do is focused on improving student learning. It is our core mission and everything we do as an institution should be focused on that area. Of course, that begins in the classes that we teach. The interaction between the teacher and student is paramount to improving our retention, completion and transfer rates. Just as important is having students retain what they are learning in our classes. Nothing is more frustrating to a good teacher than having students who have completed prerequisite or lower-level courses but appear not to have learned anything. I have written about that previously on the blog and what James Lang refers to as "Coverage Theory." Getting through the material in the allotted time is not the same as having your students learn. The partnership between a teacher and student is crucial and both sides must take responsibility and remain committed for the process to be successful. It is what Barr and Tagg (1995) call The Learning Paradigm. We are designing a website for the Teaching+Learning Center. In the absence of that information, let me share some of the ways I can partner with you to help you continue to develop as a teacher. The classroom observation is a good start. I am also able to complete a focus group evaluation for you. You can also do your own assessment and I can share some methods with you. It all starts with contacting me at pourciaut@mybrcc.edu or calling me at 216.8534.

DEAR DIARY
Using the word diary may conjure up all sorts of memories for you. The diary in a general sense can be a useful thing. Even more effective is for you to begin to keep a journal. You can update it on a daily or weekly basis. The more effort you put into it, the more effective it becomes for you as a tool for critical self-reflection. A journal allows you to remember when you had a really good day in class. It also allows you to document when things go really wrong. It provides you with hard data that you can use to continue to improve your teaching. As many of you teach five, six or seven classes, it is impossible to remember what occurred in each class from semester to semester. A journal provides you documentation so that when you begin to update or alter your course in any way, you can scan the entries looking for clues that can be very useful. As we look to the Spring 2013 Semester, I am gathering names of folks who would like to participate in a journal community. Send me an email (pourciaut@mybrcc.edu) if you are interested and look for email in your mailbox on this opportunity.

HOW DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOUR STUDENTS KNOW
Richard Felder and Rebecca Brent offer the following sage advice on the use of assessment in your course. Most institutions use only end-of-course student surveys to evaluate teaching quality. While student opinions are important and should be including in any assessment plan, meaningful evaluation of teaching must rely primarily on assessment of learning outcomes. Current trends in assessment reviewed by Ewell include shifting from standardized tests to performance-based assessments, from teaching-based models to learning-based models of student development, and from assessment as an add-on to more naturalistic approaches embedded in actual instructional delivery. Measures that may be used to obtain an accurate picture of students’ content knowledge and skills include tests, performances and exhibitions, project reports, learning logs and journals, metacognitive reflection, observation checklists, graphic organizers, and interviews, and conferences (Burke). A particularly effective learning assessment vehicle is the portfolio, a set of student products collected over time that provides a picture of the student’s growth and development. Panitz (1996) describes how portfolios can be used to assess an individual’s progress in a course or over an entire curriculum, to demonstrate specific competencies, or to assess the curriculum. Rogers and Williams (1999) describe a procedure to maintain portfolios on the Web. Angelo & Cross (LB2822.75.A54) outline a variety of classroom assessment techniques, all of which generate products suitable for inclusion in student portfolios. The devices they suggest include minute papers, concept maps, audiotaped and videotaped protocols (students reporting on their thinking processes as they solve problems), student-generated test questions, classroom opinion polls, course-related self-confidence surveys, interest/knowledge/skills checklists, and reactions to instruction.