THINKING LIKE A STUDENT MAY MAKE YOU A BETTER TEACHER
Can you remember what it was like to be a student? Rod Starling went back to school and then wrote about his experience. He writes, "Most teachers start courses pretty much the same way—introduce the
content, go over the course requirements, talk about grades, and spell
out various policies. Starling was surprised by how confusing, indeed
disorienting, he found this. Every course had its own set of details and
requirements that students are supposed to immediately understand and
follow. He and his fellow classmates (they all took the same four
courses) quickly moved from learning to survival mode." Continue reading here.
WORKING TOGETHER TO BUILD BETTER WRITERS
Most educators acknowledge that literacy is important, but often the
focus is on reading because for a long time that is what achievement
tests measured. In the last few years there has been more focus on
writing in classrooms and on tests, but many students still have
difficulty expressing their ideas on paper. Often students struggle to begin writing, so some teachers have
shifted assignments to allow students to write about something they care
about, or to provide an authentic audience for written work. While
these strategies are important parts of making learning relevant to
students, they may not be enough on their own to improve the quality of
writing. Practice is important, but how can teachers ensure students are
practicing good habits? Continue reading here.
STAYING OUT OF THE BEEN THERE-DONE THAT TRAP
David Gooblar has posted an interesting essay. He writes, "I'll be the first to admit that I haven't been teaching at my best this semester. Oh, there have been some good classes. And I think I'm finally getting a handle on the one group of students who don't want to speak up in class. But in general it feels like I'm going through the motions a little bit, not fully reaching as many students as I have in the past, talking too much from the front of the room. I have a theory as to why this is happening." Continue reading here.
Tuesday, February 14, 2017
UNPACKING RELATIONSHIPS: INSTRUCTION AND STUDENT OUTCOMES
What is the relationship between instruction and student outcomes? We know that for students to persist, complete, and achieve success in college, the learning environment matters. Students need to feel integrated into academic and social culture, but integration is not enough. They must be engaged. The more engaged students are in learning environments, the more likely they are to complete, learn, and be satisfied. Further, student beliefs about their academic ability influence their success in education, and faculty interactions sit at the intersection of reinforcing or debunking student beliefs. Yet, the evidence-based practices that we know impact student outcomes and instruction, while widely documented as effective, are not widely used in practice. Read the full report here.
ANALYTICS JUST ONE OF THE TOP TECH TRENDS
Courses that educators can adapt any time based on student learning data. Hackers empowered by artificial intelligence. Augmented reality used in conjunction with campus maps. All of these technologies are on the horizon in 2017. This past year, higher education saw a boost in the use of technologies like predictive analytics, cloud, and augmented and virtual reality — and research indicates that these trends will only continue to rise. About 41 percent of higher ed IT leaders said their organizations will increase spending on tech in 2017, reports University Business in their trends and predictions report, “Outlook 2017.” You can view some of the analytics that can be used in your courses by attending the professional development session Using Analytics to Respond to Student Needs on Thursday, February 16 at 3:00 pm in the Center for Teaching+Learning Enhancement. Register now.
RUBRICS FOR CANVAS
Many of us are using rubrics in our courses to not only help us offer transparency in our assessment but to really guide a student to success. Now you can create rubrics outside of Canvas and import them into your courses. Here is a brief video explaining how to do it.
What is the relationship between instruction and student outcomes? We know that for students to persist, complete, and achieve success in college, the learning environment matters. Students need to feel integrated into academic and social culture, but integration is not enough. They must be engaged. The more engaged students are in learning environments, the more likely they are to complete, learn, and be satisfied. Further, student beliefs about their academic ability influence their success in education, and faculty interactions sit at the intersection of reinforcing or debunking student beliefs. Yet, the evidence-based practices that we know impact student outcomes and instruction, while widely documented as effective, are not widely used in practice. Read the full report here.
ANALYTICS JUST ONE OF THE TOP TECH TRENDS
Courses that educators can adapt any time based on student learning data. Hackers empowered by artificial intelligence. Augmented reality used in conjunction with campus maps. All of these technologies are on the horizon in 2017. This past year, higher education saw a boost in the use of technologies like predictive analytics, cloud, and augmented and virtual reality — and research indicates that these trends will only continue to rise. About 41 percent of higher ed IT leaders said their organizations will increase spending on tech in 2017, reports University Business in their trends and predictions report, “Outlook 2017.” You can view some of the analytics that can be used in your courses by attending the professional development session Using Analytics to Respond to Student Needs on Thursday, February 16 at 3:00 pm in the Center for Teaching+Learning Enhancement. Register now.
RUBRICS FOR CANVAS
Many of us are using rubrics in our courses to not only help us offer transparency in our assessment but to really guide a student to success. Now you can create rubrics outside of Canvas and import them into your courses. Here is a brief video explaining how to do it.
Wednesday, February 8, 2017
WHAT DOES CRITICAL THINKING MEAN TO YOU?
Here is how Dr. Rob Jenkins starts his classes each semester. "These days, the term “critical thinking” has been overused to the point where it has almost ceased to mean anything in particular. It has become more of a popular educational catchphrase, so that even the people who use it often don’t know exactly what they mean by it. None of that means, however, that critical thinking is not a real thing. It is — and it’s vital for you to understand what critical thinking is and how to do it. The extent of your success in college — not to mention life — ultimately depends on it." Continue reading here.
CLASSROOM DISCUSSION MEANS EVERYONE PARTICIPATES
Are you looking for ways to improve your classroom discussions. Dr. Jennifer Gonzalez has recorded a podcast and written a post about just that. She writes, "I’ve separated the strategies into three groups. The first batch contains the higher-prep strategies, formats that require teachers to do some planning or gathering of materials ahead of time. Next come the low-prep strategies, which can be used on the fly when you have a few extra minutes or just want your students to get more active. Note that these are not strict categories; it’s certainly possible to simplify or add more meat to any of these structures and still make them work. The last group is the ongoing strategies. These are smaller techniques that can be integrated with other instructional strategies and don’t really stand alone."
HOW IS YOUR CLASSROOM ALIGNMENT?
Read how Michigan State developed their Learning Design Strategy. Dr. Danielle DeVoss writes, "A Learning Design Strategy is crucial at this particular scholarly, public, technological, and cultural moment. We can’t rest on our digital laurels, congratulating ourselves for hosting phenomenal MOOCs; patting ourselves on the back for being a home for innovative minors and learner opportunities; or thinking we’ve done what we need to do to create an ecosystem of sustainable, robust digital learning. What we need to do now–as a university and as a community devoted to learning and learners, at all phases of their personal and professional lives–is strive to articulate the long-standing values we hold dear as an institution and make sure those align with the ways in which we engage learning on a daily basis."
Here is how Dr. Rob Jenkins starts his classes each semester. "These days, the term “critical thinking” has been overused to the point where it has almost ceased to mean anything in particular. It has become more of a popular educational catchphrase, so that even the people who use it often don’t know exactly what they mean by it. None of that means, however, that critical thinking is not a real thing. It is — and it’s vital for you to understand what critical thinking is and how to do it. The extent of your success in college — not to mention life — ultimately depends on it." Continue reading here.
CLASSROOM DISCUSSION MEANS EVERYONE PARTICIPATES
Are you looking for ways to improve your classroom discussions. Dr. Jennifer Gonzalez has recorded a podcast and written a post about just that. She writes, "I’ve separated the strategies into three groups. The first batch contains the higher-prep strategies, formats that require teachers to do some planning or gathering of materials ahead of time. Next come the low-prep strategies, which can be used on the fly when you have a few extra minutes or just want your students to get more active. Note that these are not strict categories; it’s certainly possible to simplify or add more meat to any of these structures and still make them work. The last group is the ongoing strategies. These are smaller techniques that can be integrated with other instructional strategies and don’t really stand alone."
HOW IS YOUR CLASSROOM ALIGNMENT?
Read how Michigan State developed their Learning Design Strategy. Dr. Danielle DeVoss writes, "A Learning Design Strategy is crucial at this particular scholarly, public, technological, and cultural moment. We can’t rest on our digital laurels, congratulating ourselves for hosting phenomenal MOOCs; patting ourselves on the back for being a home for innovative minors and learner opportunities; or thinking we’ve done what we need to do to create an ecosystem of sustainable, robust digital learning. What we need to do now–as a university and as a community devoted to learning and learners, at all phases of their personal and professional lives–is strive to articulate the long-standing values we hold dear as an institution and make sure those align with the ways in which we engage learning on a daily basis."
Wednesday, February 1, 2017
ADD THE TRIPLE FLIP TO YOUR TOOLKIT
Many of us are attempting to add more writing assignments in our non-composition courses. With that comes some anxiety about the time it may take for us to properly assess the work. Zeina Hojeij and Zoe Hurley suggest you use the triple flip approach. Their paper discusses "how mobile learning and the use of a range of apps can foster peer and self-editing, aid noticing, and enhance ownership of the writing process. It is argued that flipping corrective feedback helps students to notice their errors and spend more time developing their writing."
USING SOCIAL MEDIA TO ENHANCE STUDENT LEARNING
If you have ever thought about including a project in your courses that would be best served using an eportfolio, you might want to take a look at this article. The faculty give a very detailed account of what they did and how they used various social media (like Facebook, Twitter, and blogs) to help their students complete the project. The closing remarks in the article note, "We are sharing our success story, so others might be inspired and structure similar interdisciplinary, immersive, inquire-based learning environments that bridge the classroom with life outside of it and in the process transform not only their student learning, but also the students."
INFLATED CONFIDENCE LEADS TO POOR ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE
Rich Lewine and Alison A. Sommers have an interesting article aimed at having students reflect on their learning more. They note, "Although the ability to evaluate one’s own knowledge and performance is critical to learning, the correlation between students’ self-evaluation and actual performance measures is modest at best. In this study we examine the effect of offering extra credit for students’ accurate prediction (self-accuracy) of their performance on four exams in two semester-long classes on Personality. Inaccurately inflated confidence was related to poorer academic performance. A small minority of students improved in accuracy and exam performance over the each of the courses, offering a potentially useful source of comparison for addressing unrealistic optimism. We discuss the findings as reflecting the powerful influence of protecting self-esteem and suggest the need for realistic self-appraisal as a factor in academic success."
Many of us are attempting to add more writing assignments in our non-composition courses. With that comes some anxiety about the time it may take for us to properly assess the work. Zeina Hojeij and Zoe Hurley suggest you use the triple flip approach. Their paper discusses "how mobile learning and the use of a range of apps can foster peer and self-editing, aid noticing, and enhance ownership of the writing process. It is argued that flipping corrective feedback helps students to notice their errors and spend more time developing their writing."
USING SOCIAL MEDIA TO ENHANCE STUDENT LEARNING
If you have ever thought about including a project in your courses that would be best served using an eportfolio, you might want to take a look at this article. The faculty give a very detailed account of what they did and how they used various social media (like Facebook, Twitter, and blogs) to help their students complete the project. The closing remarks in the article note, "We are sharing our success story, so others might be inspired and structure similar interdisciplinary, immersive, inquire-based learning environments that bridge the classroom with life outside of it and in the process transform not only their student learning, but also the students."
INFLATED CONFIDENCE LEADS TO POOR ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE
Rich Lewine and Alison A. Sommers have an interesting article aimed at having students reflect on their learning more. They note, "Although the ability to evaluate one’s own knowledge and performance is critical to learning, the correlation between students’ self-evaluation and actual performance measures is modest at best. In this study we examine the effect of offering extra credit for students’ accurate prediction (self-accuracy) of their performance on four exams in two semester-long classes on Personality. Inaccurately inflated confidence was related to poorer academic performance. A small minority of students improved in accuracy and exam performance over the each of the courses, offering a potentially useful source of comparison for addressing unrealistic optimism. We discuss the findings as reflecting the powerful influence of protecting self-esteem and suggest the need for realistic self-appraisal as a factor in academic success."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)