ASKED AND ANSWERED
Elizabeth Barkley's book Student Engagement Techniques: A handbook for college faculty, is quickly becoming a classic in the student engagement arena. Noticing that a gap existed in the BRCC Library's collection, the T+LC asked that this book be purchased. We are excited to tell you that it is now available for circulation (LB 2342.92 B34). Special thanks to Associate Dean Jacqueline Jones who facilitated the purchase. Barkley's book is full of terrific ideas that you can implement in your course immediately. It should quickly join Ken Bain's book, which is frequently referenced on this blog, as one of the most circulated resources from the faculty development section.
EMBRACE THE RUBRIC MATRIX
A rubric is a scoring tool that explicitly represents the instructor's performance expectations for an assignment or a piece of work. A rubric divides the assigned work into component parts and provides clear descriptions of different levels of quality associated with each component. Rubrics can be used for a wide array of assignments: papers, projects, oral presentations, artistic performances, group projects, and so on. Rubrics can be used as scoring or grading guides, and to provide formative feedback to support and guide ongoing learning efforts. Using a rubric provides several advantages to both instructors and students. Grading according to an explicit and descriptive set of criteria helps to ensure that the instructor's grading standards remain consistent across a given assignment. Rubrics can be constructed by the instructor or even have input from the students. The key for full effectiveness is to distribute the rubric to your students when you make the assignment. There are a number of good websites that can get you started building a strong rubric including one from Blackboard and the University of Colorado-Denver.
COLLEGE 101
While you are visiting the Library, you might want to pick up a copy of Upcraft, Gardner and Barefoot's book Challenging and Supporting the First-Year Student: A handbook for improving the first year of college (LB 2343.3 U63). The chapter entitled Inside the First-Year Classroom offers some sage advice for those looking to improve student learning. "What once appeared as the most effective and efficient way to teach and learn--the research university model of faculty who create knowledge and deliver it to students through lectures--falters under today's learning demands and with today's students. While practically it may be too cost-effective an instructional method to abandon totally, the diversity of students in background and learning style, their developmental position, and what we know about human learning all argue for using classroom strategies that actively involve students." They go on to list a number of active learning methods you can use in place of strictly lecturing to your students.
ADDING RUNGS TO THE LADDER
"The certificate is the odd man out in the debate over college
completion. But the rarely discussed and little-understood certificate
is the fastest-growing form of college credential, and a key component
of work force development and the completion agenda." Paul Fain shared that and other bits of information in a column he wrote earlier this year about a report by the Georgetown University Center on Education and the
Workforce, that found that certificates make up 22 percent of all
college awards, up from 6 percent in 1980. Certificates are earned through seat time in a classroom, the study
notes, with more than half taking less than a year to complete.
Industry-based certifications, which are often confused with
certificates, are typically awarded based on tests.
Friday, October 26, 2012
ORGANIZING FOR STUDENT SUCCESS
Josh Wyner writes in an editorial for The Chronicle of Higher Education that community colleges should be organized for the students they have rather than those who attend four-year residential colleges. He says that the re-envisioned version of community college would offer far greater numbers of block-scheduled programs. "Most students should be directed to enter comprehensive programs built around specific degree goals and schedules. Re-envisioned, community colleges would focus their hiring, professional development, and tenure systems on a single goal: improved teaching and learning," he concludes.
WORKING HAPPY
A lot of folks start out at a community college thinking they might try to "move up" at some point, but then they find themselves liking the work, liking their students and colleagues, and liking the lifestyle. And so they end up staying. For 30 or 40 years. So says Rob Jenkins in a piece he wrote for Inside Higher Ed earlier this year. He goes on to respond to the question what's it like working at a community college? by saying "I take that to be a lifestyle question, and all I can say is: I wouldn't trade careers with anybody. I enjoy the work that I do, I like my students and colleagues, I believe that I've been able to make a difference in people's lives, I've found it relatively easy to maintain an acceptable balance between work and life, and I've been able to make a decent living. What more can anyone ask from a career?"
MAKING CLASS MEANINGFUL AND PURPOSEFUL
A research project by Trudy Hanson, Kristina Drumheller, Jessica Mallard, Connie McKee, and Paula Schlegel determined that although students want to make academics a priority, they have a difficult time balancing their school life with their need for financial and social support. Sleep was often sacrificed as students frequently mentioned pulling all-nighters for completing projects. They also note that growing up with instant gratification might result in Millennials facing difficulty planning for long-term projects. Their survey sample expressed confidence in their abilities, those in the focus group acknowledged that they take short cuts because of their time demands. Students who feel they have to learn the material in class choose which assignments should be given higher priority based on rewards and consequences, and they determine which classes are most important to attend and pay attention to which assignments and classes can be sacrificed. Going to class is a higher priority than doing homework or studying because it is the only time students have set aside in their day to accomplish the learning of course content. For instructors, this means class time needs to be more meaningful and purposeful, because it might be the only time a student spends with the course material.
WHAT IS MISSING
James M. Lang is his book On Course, writes about the situation that is created when faculty are saddled with the "Coverage Model." This model asks the question, what do I need to cover during this semester? "The problem with the coverage model, Lang says, it that it only considers two elements in teaching: the teacher and the course material. The missing element is the student in the teaching-learning triad." He notes that this model constructs teaching as a performative act that involves pulling material out of your head and throwing it on the desks of your students. Their job is then to figure out the best way to lap it up and hold it down.
Josh Wyner writes in an editorial for The Chronicle of Higher Education that community colleges should be organized for the students they have rather than those who attend four-year residential colleges. He says that the re-envisioned version of community college would offer far greater numbers of block-scheduled programs. "Most students should be directed to enter comprehensive programs built around specific degree goals and schedules. Re-envisioned, community colleges would focus their hiring, professional development, and tenure systems on a single goal: improved teaching and learning," he concludes.
WORKING HAPPY
A lot of folks start out at a community college thinking they might try to "move up" at some point, but then they find themselves liking the work, liking their students and colleagues, and liking the lifestyle. And so they end up staying. For 30 or 40 years. So says Rob Jenkins in a piece he wrote for Inside Higher Ed earlier this year. He goes on to respond to the question what's it like working at a community college? by saying "I take that to be a lifestyle question, and all I can say is: I wouldn't trade careers with anybody. I enjoy the work that I do, I like my students and colleagues, I believe that I've been able to make a difference in people's lives, I've found it relatively easy to maintain an acceptable balance between work and life, and I've been able to make a decent living. What more can anyone ask from a career?"
MAKING CLASS MEANINGFUL AND PURPOSEFUL
A research project by Trudy Hanson, Kristina Drumheller, Jessica Mallard, Connie McKee, and Paula Schlegel determined that although students want to make academics a priority, they have a difficult time balancing their school life with their need for financial and social support. Sleep was often sacrificed as students frequently mentioned pulling all-nighters for completing projects. They also note that growing up with instant gratification might result in Millennials facing difficulty planning for long-term projects. Their survey sample expressed confidence in their abilities, those in the focus group acknowledged that they take short cuts because of their time demands. Students who feel they have to learn the material in class choose which assignments should be given higher priority based on rewards and consequences, and they determine which classes are most important to attend and pay attention to which assignments and classes can be sacrificed. Going to class is a higher priority than doing homework or studying because it is the only time students have set aside in their day to accomplish the learning of course content. For instructors, this means class time needs to be more meaningful and purposeful, because it might be the only time a student spends with the course material.
WHAT IS MISSING
James M. Lang is his book On Course, writes about the situation that is created when faculty are saddled with the "Coverage Model." This model asks the question, what do I need to cover during this semester? "The problem with the coverage model, Lang says, it that it only considers two elements in teaching: the teacher and the course material. The missing element is the student in the teaching-learning triad." He notes that this model constructs teaching as a performative act that involves pulling material out of your head and throwing it on the desks of your students. Their job is then to figure out the best way to lap it up and hold it down.
Monday, October 22, 2012
LEARNING LIKE A VIKING
EDUCAUSE has an interesting article on the future of higher education. Here is an excerpt: The basic model of higher education that exists today was created in the 11th century, operates on a 19th-century calendar, yet is supposed to prepare students for life in the 21st century. Far too often, students are the passive recipients of content delivered by experts who lecture, a practice used since the 11th century but increasingly inappropriate today. School calendars, created two centuries ago, apparently remain resistant to change. And schools that are supposed to prepare a generation to confront today's challenges far too often fail at that task: only 63.2 percent of students who began college in 2003 earned a bachelor's degree by 2009.
DO IT YOURSELF CHEMISTRY
A study in Colorado has found little difference in the learning of students in online or in-person introductory science courses. The study tracked community college students who took science courses online and in traditional classes, and who then went on to four-year universities in the state. Upon transferring, the students in the two groups performed equally well. Some science faculty members have expressed skepticism about the ability of online students in science, due to the lack of group laboratory opportunities, but the programs in Colorado work with companies to provide home kits so that online students can have a lab experience.
WHAT ARE YOU TESTING
Testing your students is an essential part of the process to determine if they are indeed learning anything. Constructing a test is a learned behavior that needs practice and can usually benefit from assistance. In fact, creating good tests has become such a valuable skill that it has grown into a career for some folks. The test researchers note that true/false tests are the least effective for assessing learning and determining if you are indeed teaching your students. True/false tests are typically easy and you need a large number of items for high reliability. In addition, your students have a 50-50 chance of guessing the right answer and it is difficult to discriminate between students that know the material and students who don't. If you are looking for some assistance with test construction, contact the Teaching+Learning Center at 8534.
HIDDEN PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE
Samuel Arbesman, author of The Half-Life of Facts: Why Everything We Know Has an Expiration Date, writes that "since scientific knowledge is still growing by a factor of ten every 50 years, it should not be surprising that lots of facts people learned in school and universities have been overturned and are now out of date." Arbesman, a senior scholar at the Kaufmann Foundation and an expert in scientometrics, looks at how facts are made and remade in the modern world. And since fact-making is speeding up, he worries that most of us don’t keep up to date and base our decisions on facts we dimly remember from school and university classes that turn out to be wrong.
EDUCAUSE has an interesting article on the future of higher education. Here is an excerpt: The basic model of higher education that exists today was created in the 11th century, operates on a 19th-century calendar, yet is supposed to prepare students for life in the 21st century. Far too often, students are the passive recipients of content delivered by experts who lecture, a practice used since the 11th century but increasingly inappropriate today. School calendars, created two centuries ago, apparently remain resistant to change. And schools that are supposed to prepare a generation to confront today's challenges far too often fail at that task: only 63.2 percent of students who began college in 2003 earned a bachelor's degree by 2009.
DO IT YOURSELF CHEMISTRY
A study in Colorado has found little difference in the learning of students in online or in-person introductory science courses. The study tracked community college students who took science courses online and in traditional classes, and who then went on to four-year universities in the state. Upon transferring, the students in the two groups performed equally well. Some science faculty members have expressed skepticism about the ability of online students in science, due to the lack of group laboratory opportunities, but the programs in Colorado work with companies to provide home kits so that online students can have a lab experience.
WHAT ARE YOU TESTING
Testing your students is an essential part of the process to determine if they are indeed learning anything. Constructing a test is a learned behavior that needs practice and can usually benefit from assistance. In fact, creating good tests has become such a valuable skill that it has grown into a career for some folks. The test researchers note that true/false tests are the least effective for assessing learning and determining if you are indeed teaching your students. True/false tests are typically easy and you need a large number of items for high reliability. In addition, your students have a 50-50 chance of guessing the right answer and it is difficult to discriminate between students that know the material and students who don't. If you are looking for some assistance with test construction, contact the Teaching+Learning Center at 8534.
HIDDEN PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE
Samuel Arbesman, author of The Half-Life of Facts: Why Everything We Know Has an Expiration Date, writes that "since scientific knowledge is still growing by a factor of ten every 50 years, it should not be surprising that lots of facts people learned in school and universities have been overturned and are now out of date." Arbesman, a senior scholar at the Kaufmann Foundation and an expert in scientometrics, looks at how facts are made and remade in the modern world. And since fact-making is speeding up, he worries that most of us don’t keep up to date and base our decisions on facts we dimly remember from school and university classes that turn out to be wrong.
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
MY PROFESSOR HATES US
Jean Twenge's research has uncovered that "Millennials want to think for themselves rather than accepting, without reflection, what authority figures tell them." This presents a unique challenge for us as we try to teach a class full of Millennials. But there are a number of solutions that can help you create a safe environment that encourages discussion and produces higher rates of learning and retention. Join us on Thursday, November 1 at 3:00 PM in the Teaching+Learning Center (311 Magnolia Building) for "Engaging Millennial Learners." You can register now for this faculty development seminar.
THE POWER OF INTROVERTS
Julie Kelleher has an interesting post about trying to get all of your students to participate in class. She cites Susan Cain's book Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking as a good resource to help undestand that sometimes students are unwilling to talk but will respond in other ways. Kelleher writes, " Managing students in the classroom can already seem like a juggling act – but the key to making sure you’re reaching the introverted student may be to make sure you’re giving them the option to engage with material in a method that best suits them."
HELICOPTER INSTRUCTORS
Beginning college students are often spacey. Because they have a lot on their minds, we have got to push them to think about their thinking. Making thinking visible for busy students who are going to school, working, and living their lives is a tough chore but has proven to be an effective retention tool. Becoming a helicopter instructors means that you are there to clarify the demands and culture of higher education for beginning students. It may also mean that you have to become more intrusive in your advising strategies. Let your students know how college is different from high school and that they will need to assume more responsibility for their academic career.
START HERE, GO ANYWHERE
The National Student Clearinghouse released a study showing just how prevalent a role two-year institutions play in providing an educational foundation for those who go on to get bachelor's degrees. The study reveals that 45 percent of all students who finished a four-year degree in 2010-11 had previously enrolled at a two-year college. Of those students, 24 percent had been enrolled at the two-year institution for just one term, 16 percent for two terms, and 19 percent for three or four terms. But a full 12 percent were enrolled for at least 10 terms, suggesting that even students who spend a significant length of time at a community college might eventually go on to a four-year college.
Jean Twenge's research has uncovered that "Millennials want to think for themselves rather than accepting, without reflection, what authority figures tell them." This presents a unique challenge for us as we try to teach a class full of Millennials. But there are a number of solutions that can help you create a safe environment that encourages discussion and produces higher rates of learning and retention. Join us on Thursday, November 1 at 3:00 PM in the Teaching+Learning Center (311 Magnolia Building) for "Engaging Millennial Learners." You can register now for this faculty development seminar.
THE POWER OF INTROVERTS
Julie Kelleher has an interesting post about trying to get all of your students to participate in class. She cites Susan Cain's book Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking as a good resource to help undestand that sometimes students are unwilling to talk but will respond in other ways. Kelleher writes, " Managing students in the classroom can already seem like a juggling act – but the key to making sure you’re reaching the introverted student may be to make sure you’re giving them the option to engage with material in a method that best suits them."
HELICOPTER INSTRUCTORS
Beginning college students are often spacey. Because they have a lot on their minds, we have got to push them to think about their thinking. Making thinking visible for busy students who are going to school, working, and living their lives is a tough chore but has proven to be an effective retention tool. Becoming a helicopter instructors means that you are there to clarify the demands and culture of higher education for beginning students. It may also mean that you have to become more intrusive in your advising strategies. Let your students know how college is different from high school and that they will need to assume more responsibility for their academic career.
START HERE, GO ANYWHERE
The National Student Clearinghouse released a study showing just how prevalent a role two-year institutions play in providing an educational foundation for those who go on to get bachelor's degrees. The study reveals that 45 percent of all students who finished a four-year degree in 2010-11 had previously enrolled at a two-year college. Of those students, 24 percent had been enrolled at the two-year institution for just one term, 16 percent for two terms, and 19 percent for three or four terms. But a full 12 percent were enrolled for at least 10 terms, suggesting that even students who spend a significant length of time at a community college might eventually go on to a four-year college.
Friday, October 12, 2012
ANOTHER REASON TO TEST
While reviewing some material for an upcoming presentation on Millennials, I found a terrific one-pager from Mary A. Pyc and Katherine A. Rawson entitled Why Testing Improves Memory: Mediator effectiveness hypothesis first published in Science (vol. 330) in 2010 (Q1 .S35 V.330). They set out to disprove the assumption that learning can only occur during study. They also wanted to see if testing could be used for something other than evaluating the state of memory. What they found was intriguing and could be incorporated in your classes as a test-restudy intervention. They noted that testing improves memory. One of the more important ideas to remember when constructing tests is to focus on what is truly important. Take a look at the course learning outcomes and make sure that you are aligning your learning experiences and assessment with those outcomes. The other important connection that this empirical research confirms is that important concepts should be included on subsequent tests and a comprehensive final may be your best opportunity to help your students retain what they have learned in your course.
TEACHING ONLINE
If you are looking for strategies for group learning activities for the online environment, take a look at this blog post by Debbie Morrison. Stephen Downes writes that the PAD (Personal Access Device) will become the dominant tool for online education, combining the function of book, notebook, and pen.
CHARACTER MATTERS
Paul Tough believes that character development may be the most important thing we can teach our students. He writes about that and may other things including the effects of poverty in his book How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character. When asked how failure can help us succeed, he responds, "That’s an idea that I think was best expressed by Dominic Randolph, the head of the Riverdale Country School, where they’re now doing some interesting experiments with teaching character. Here’s how he put it: The idea of building grit and building self-control is that you get that through failure. And in most highly academic environments in the United States, no one fails anything. That idea resonated with a lot of readers. I don’t think it’s quite true that failure itself helps us succeed. In fact, repeated failures can be quite devastating to a child’s development. What I think is important on the road to success is learning to deal with failure, to manage adversity. That’s a skill that parents can certainly help their children develop--but so can teachers and coaches and mentors and neighbors and lots of other people." He elaborates in this podcast.
While reviewing some material for an upcoming presentation on Millennials, I found a terrific one-pager from Mary A. Pyc and Katherine A. Rawson entitled Why Testing Improves Memory: Mediator effectiveness hypothesis first published in Science (vol. 330) in 2010 (Q1 .S35 V.330). They set out to disprove the assumption that learning can only occur during study. They also wanted to see if testing could be used for something other than evaluating the state of memory. What they found was intriguing and could be incorporated in your classes as a test-restudy intervention. They noted that testing improves memory. One of the more important ideas to remember when constructing tests is to focus on what is truly important. Take a look at the course learning outcomes and make sure that you are aligning your learning experiences and assessment with those outcomes. The other important connection that this empirical research confirms is that important concepts should be included on subsequent tests and a comprehensive final may be your best opportunity to help your students retain what they have learned in your course.
TEACHING ONLINE
If you are looking for strategies for group learning activities for the online environment, take a look at this blog post by Debbie Morrison. Stephen Downes writes that the PAD (Personal Access Device) will become the dominant tool for online education, combining the function of book, notebook, and pen.
CHARACTER MATTERS
Paul Tough believes that character development may be the most important thing we can teach our students. He writes about that and may other things including the effects of poverty in his book How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character. When asked how failure can help us succeed, he responds, "That’s an idea that I think was best expressed by Dominic Randolph, the head of the Riverdale Country School, where they’re now doing some interesting experiments with teaching character. Here’s how he put it: The idea of building grit and building self-control is that you get that through failure. And in most highly academic environments in the United States, no one fails anything. That idea resonated with a lot of readers. I don’t think it’s quite true that failure itself helps us succeed. In fact, repeated failures can be quite devastating to a child’s development. What I think is important on the road to success is learning to deal with failure, to manage adversity. That’s a skill that parents can certainly help their children develop--but so can teachers and coaches and mentors and neighbors and lots of other people." He elaborates in this podcast.
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
CHAMPIONS VS VICTIMS
Timothy Judge of Notre Dame has led a two-decade study that looks at how we can predict success in students. He declares that grades, test scores and pedigree can't predict success as well as the simple ability to confidently choose one course of action while abandoning others. That is why helping your students develop the ability to think critically is so important. When faced with complexity and uncertainly, many of our students lack the mental acuity to close the door on distracting activities while focusing on what will help them achieve their goals. Critical thinkers see themselves as champions who are in control of their outcomes. Others portray themselves as victims who are quick to place the blame of failure on others. This is a key component to student success. We should be encouraging our students to take responsibility for their academic progress. Your student engagement approach should always include the proposition that you are here to help but they have to meet you half-way. When the focus becomes student learning rather than about other distractions, everyone wins.
CONFERENCE OPPORTUNITY
Proposals are now being accepted for the annual SoTL Commons Conference to be held in Savannah, Georgia March 27-29, 2013. They are looking for proposals about the scholarship of teaching and learning as a focused, but expansive, evidence-based path for the improvement of teaching effectiveness and student learning outcomes.
PUT YOUR STUDENTS IN CHARGE
Ken Bain, in his book What the Best College Teachers Do (LB2331 .B34 2004 ), says that, "human being are curious animals. People learn naturally while trying to solve problems that concern them. They develop an intrinsic interest that guides their quest for knowledge and an intrinsic interest that can diminish in the face of extrinsic rewards and punishments that appear to manipulate their focus. People are more likely to enjoy their education if they believe they are in charge of the decision to learn."
MANAGING ASSESSMENT
Because we are a learner-centered institution, we are constantly looking to improve student learning and in turn improve our graduation, completion and transfer rates. Mary J. Allen has created a list of characteristics that most learner-centered institutions share. Assessment is an essential process. Faculty ask if students master learning outcomes and staff assess their impact on students, and they are flexible and creative when developing solutions to identified deficiencies. Faculty and staff see institutional effectiveness as a goal, contribute to it, and work collegially to promote student success. Campus recognition and reward systems recognize and reward contribution to student learning. Campus policies and procedures, including program reviews and budgeting, support learning and rely on empirical evidence for decision-making. You can find the rest of her list in her book Assessing General Education Programs (LC985 .A55 2006).
Timothy Judge of Notre Dame has led a two-decade study that looks at how we can predict success in students. He declares that grades, test scores and pedigree can't predict success as well as the simple ability to confidently choose one course of action while abandoning others. That is why helping your students develop the ability to think critically is so important. When faced with complexity and uncertainly, many of our students lack the mental acuity to close the door on distracting activities while focusing on what will help them achieve their goals. Critical thinkers see themselves as champions who are in control of their outcomes. Others portray themselves as victims who are quick to place the blame of failure on others. This is a key component to student success. We should be encouraging our students to take responsibility for their academic progress. Your student engagement approach should always include the proposition that you are here to help but they have to meet you half-way. When the focus becomes student learning rather than about other distractions, everyone wins.
CONFERENCE OPPORTUNITY
Proposals are now being accepted for the annual SoTL Commons Conference to be held in Savannah, Georgia March 27-29, 2013. They are looking for proposals about the scholarship of teaching and learning as a focused, but expansive, evidence-based path for the improvement of teaching effectiveness and student learning outcomes.
PUT YOUR STUDENTS IN CHARGE
Ken Bain, in his book What the Best College Teachers Do (LB2331 .B34 2004 ), says that, "human being are curious animals. People learn naturally while trying to solve problems that concern them. They develop an intrinsic interest that guides their quest for knowledge and an intrinsic interest that can diminish in the face of extrinsic rewards and punishments that appear to manipulate their focus. People are more likely to enjoy their education if they believe they are in charge of the decision to learn."
MANAGING ASSESSMENT
Because we are a learner-centered institution, we are constantly looking to improve student learning and in turn improve our graduation, completion and transfer rates. Mary J. Allen has created a list of characteristics that most learner-centered institutions share. Assessment is an essential process. Faculty ask if students master learning outcomes and staff assess their impact on students, and they are flexible and creative when developing solutions to identified deficiencies. Faculty and staff see institutional effectiveness as a goal, contribute to it, and work collegially to promote student success. Campus recognition and reward systems recognize and reward contribution to student learning. Campus policies and procedures, including program reviews and budgeting, support learning and rely on empirical evidence for decision-making. You can find the rest of her list in her book Assessing General Education Programs (LC985 .A55 2006).
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
DISRUPTION CAN BE GOOD
The U.S. Department of Education is hosting a meeting today to talk about the "disruptive ideas" that are changing the landscape of higher education. On the agenda for discussion were the topics of massive open online courses (MOOCs), competency-based education, course redesign and prior learning assessment. The latter two topics are also trending at BRCC right now. This past Friday and Saturday, I was joined by Susan Nealy, Gail Suberbielle, and Laura Younger at a course redesign workshop. We were joined by colleagues from around the world to talk about how good course redesign can not only improve student learning but typically drive down costs as well.
LIFE EXPERIENCE FOR CREDIT
Prior Learning Assessment, awarding college credit for college-level learning from work and life experience, is becoming a standard practice at many institutions. Pat Green Smith and I have been working on developing a PLA policy that will allow us to recruit and retain more adult students. PLA has been proven to be beneficial to student success. The Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) recently conducted a study on PLA and adult student outcomes. The study examined data on 62,475 adult students at 48 colleges and universities across the country. CAEL found that graduation rates are two and a half times higher for students with PLA credit. PLA students also had higher persistence rates and a faster time to degree completion.
MID-SEMESTER ASSESSMENT
As we approach the middle of the term, I want to encourage you to take the temperature of your classes. Mid-semester assessments help you avoid the surprises that a once a semester student rating survey can only reveal once it is too late. You can, of course, create your own survey instruments or you can have the Teaching+Learning Center come in and help either with the creation of the tool, implementation, assessment or all of it. If you want to do it on your own, the folks at Dalhousie University have a good website that can get you started. The Field Tested Learning Assessment Guide for Science, Math, Engineering, and Technology Instructors website is another good resource and gives you a very concise explanation of what assessment should accomplish.
INTRUSIVE INSTRUCTION
Revisiting the theme of engagement, I want to encourage you to use all of the available tools to track the activities of your students. If you assign reading, then you should be testing them on that and I would encourage you to use a short online quiz via your Blackboard site. If you are asking them to watch a video, then monitor who has watched it. Taking a look at these and other analytics will alert you to problems early. Research shows that if a student waits to become engaged with the material, that is a pretty good indicator that they will struggle with the class. Being intrusive with your students indicates that you are a good teacher who cares deeply about their learning. In addition, it is important to understand what types of learners you have enrolled in your courses. The use of a Learning Style Inventory (LSI) instrument can help them understand how they learn best but it also provides them with information on what they may need to work on to become a better student. You can also use this information to better tailor your instruction to your student's needs. There are a number of free LSI surveys that provide solid feedback.
WHAT DO YOU THINK
Finally, I want to remind those who have not done so to complete the T+LC Needs Assessment survey now.
The U.S. Department of Education is hosting a meeting today to talk about the "disruptive ideas" that are changing the landscape of higher education. On the agenda for discussion were the topics of massive open online courses (MOOCs), competency-based education, course redesign and prior learning assessment. The latter two topics are also trending at BRCC right now. This past Friday and Saturday, I was joined by Susan Nealy, Gail Suberbielle, and Laura Younger at a course redesign workshop. We were joined by colleagues from around the world to talk about how good course redesign can not only improve student learning but typically drive down costs as well.
LIFE EXPERIENCE FOR CREDIT
Prior Learning Assessment, awarding college credit for college-level learning from work and life experience, is becoming a standard practice at many institutions. Pat Green Smith and I have been working on developing a PLA policy that will allow us to recruit and retain more adult students. PLA has been proven to be beneficial to student success. The Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) recently conducted a study on PLA and adult student outcomes. The study examined data on 62,475 adult students at 48 colleges and universities across the country. CAEL found that graduation rates are two and a half times higher for students with PLA credit. PLA students also had higher persistence rates and a faster time to degree completion.
MID-SEMESTER ASSESSMENT
As we approach the middle of the term, I want to encourage you to take the temperature of your classes. Mid-semester assessments help you avoid the surprises that a once a semester student rating survey can only reveal once it is too late. You can, of course, create your own survey instruments or you can have the Teaching+Learning Center come in and help either with the creation of the tool, implementation, assessment or all of it. If you want to do it on your own, the folks at Dalhousie University have a good website that can get you started. The Field Tested Learning Assessment Guide for Science, Math, Engineering, and Technology Instructors website is another good resource and gives you a very concise explanation of what assessment should accomplish.
INTRUSIVE INSTRUCTION
Revisiting the theme of engagement, I want to encourage you to use all of the available tools to track the activities of your students. If you assign reading, then you should be testing them on that and I would encourage you to use a short online quiz via your Blackboard site. If you are asking them to watch a video, then monitor who has watched it. Taking a look at these and other analytics will alert you to problems early. Research shows that if a student waits to become engaged with the material, that is a pretty good indicator that they will struggle with the class. Being intrusive with your students indicates that you are a good teacher who cares deeply about their learning. In addition, it is important to understand what types of learners you have enrolled in your courses. The use of a Learning Style Inventory (LSI) instrument can help them understand how they learn best but it also provides them with information on what they may need to work on to become a better student. You can also use this information to better tailor your instruction to your student's needs. There are a number of free LSI surveys that provide solid feedback.
WHAT DO YOU THINK
Finally, I want to remind those who have not done so to complete the T+LC Needs Assessment survey now.
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