SGTS Theory 4 - Alternatives to Lecture

Summer Graduate Teaching Scholars

May 16, 2013

Theory 4: Alternatives to Lecture

Key Finding 3

SGTS Theory Stream - collegeclassroom.ucsd.edu

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A “metacognitive” approach to instruction can help students learn to take control of their own learning by defining learning goals and monitoring their progress in achieving them. (How People Learn [1], p. 18)

Instructors need to provide

opportunities for students to

practice being metacognitive –

thinking about their own thinking

Key Finding 2


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To develop competence in an area, students must:

a) have a deep foundation of factual knowledge,

b) understand facts and ideas in the context of a conceptual framework, and

c) organize knowledge in ways that facilitate retrieval and application. (How People Learn [1], p. 16)

These are characteristics of

expertize (together with metacognition)

Key Finding 1


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Students come to the classroom with preconceptions about how the world works. If their initial understanding is not engaged, they may fail to grasp the new concepts and information that are taught, or they may learn them for the purposes of a test but revert to their preconceptions outside of the classroom. (How People Learn [1], p. 14)

Instructors must

draw out students’

pre-existing

understandings.

Instruction must be

student-centered.

Learning requires interaction [2]


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Alternatives to Lecture


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peer instruction with clickers

interactive demonstrations

surveys of opinions

reading quizzes

worksheets

simulations

discussions

videos

student-centered instruction

Archimedes’ Principle


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In today’s Physics class, we’re going to study buoyancy

and Archimedes’ Principle.

http://tinyurl.com/TCCdemo

(Paul Hewitt video)

(Image: Wikimedia Commons – public domain)

Videos in class


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In your opinion, the Paul Hewitt video

A) is engaging

B) is entertaining

C) is interactive

D) stimulates deep thinking

Unlike you, the students do not

select the video

check it contains key events

anticipate key events

recognize key events

interpret key events

relate key events to

class concepts

Videos in class


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instructor does this

before class

instructor does this unconsciously,

the “curse” of expertise

This is what you want to discuss

in class! Anticipate & recognize

are pre-requisites.

Videos: implications for instructors


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Coach the students how to watch the video like an

expert:

As you watch this video, try to…

watch for when the A starts to B.

count how often the C does D.

watch the needles on the scales as water drains.

Don’t “give away” the key event (Notice the buoyant

force is equal to the weight of the fluid displaced.)

That’s what the follow-up discussion is for: help the

students get prepared for that discussion.

Try it, yourself…


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Get into pairs

(“instructor”) one person with video they might show

their class

(“student”) one person to watch it

Instructor, play (critical few min of) video, thinking aloud.

Student, take notes.

Together, debrief and write your introduction to the

video where you coach your students.



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surveys of opinions

reading quizzes

worksheets

simulations

discussions

videos


In-class demonstrations 13

1. Instructor (meticulously) sets up the equipment, flicks

a switch, “Taa-daaah!

2. Students

don’t know where to look

don’t know when to look, miss “the moment”

don’t recognize the significance of the event amongst

too many distractions


Interactive Lecture Demos (ILD) [3] 14

To engage students and focus their attention on the key

event, get students to make a prediction (using clickers,

for example)


Clicker question 15

A ball is rolling around

the inside of a circular

track. The ball

leaves the track

at point P.

Which path

does the ball

follow?

P

A

B C

D

E

(Mazur) SGTS Theory Stream - collegeclassroom.ucsd.edu

Interactive Lecture Demos (ILD) [3] 16

After the prediction, each student

cares about the outcome (“Did I get it right?”)

knows where to look (can anticipate phenomenon)

knows when to look (sees phenomenon occur)

gets immediate feedback about his/her

understanding of the concept

is prepared for your explanation

(don’t be afraid to mess with their heads – inclined

table example) SGTS Theory Stream - collegeclassroom.ucsd.edu



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surveys of opinions

reading quizzes

worksheets

simulations

discussions

videos


In-class worksheets


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Before beginning an in-class worksheet, be sure the students are properly prepared:

Looking at Distant Objects

Recall that a light-year (ly) is a distance, the distance light travels in one year (about 9.5 trillion km.)

In groups of 2 or 3, work on the worksheet. Try to ensure everyone in your group agrees on the answer to each question before you write it down.

(Wikimedia Commons CC)


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20


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In-class worksheets 22

carefully-designed sequence of questions guide students through the exploration of a concept

first few questions may be trivial – checks students read intro paragraph, gives them confidence

give formative feedback along the way

most effective when done collaboratively (group reaches consensus before answering)

long, evidence-based history via “Washington Tutorials” and “Lecture Tutorials for introductory astronomy” (interactive activities in Prather et al. [2] is primarily lecture-tutorials + peer instruction)


In-class worksheet assessment 23

don’t “go over” the worksheet

that only encourages students to

sit and wait for your solutions

don’t post solutions later

again, encourages non-participation

students bring last year’s sol’ns to class


good alternative: ask a clicker question(s)

if students get the question right, they can be

confident they successfully completed the worksheet

force students

to self-assess

their answers:

metacognition

Clicker question


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Imagine that you simultaneously receive two pictures of

two people that live on planets orbiting two different

stars. Each picture shows the people at their 21st birthday

parties. Which of the following do you think is the most

plausible interpretation?

A) Both people are the same age but at different distances from

you.

B) The people are different ages but at the same distance from you.

C) The person that is closer to you is the older of the two people.

D) The person that is farther from you is the older of the two people.

(Prather et. al [4])



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surveys of opinions

reading quizzes

worksheets

simulations

discussions

videos


Student-centered instruction takes time


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Five minutes of peer instruction every 15 minutes means

25% of class time is spent on interactive, students-

centered instruction.

Where does that time come from?

Traditional classroom


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1. Transfer: first exposure to material is in class, content

is transmitted from instructor to student

2. Assimilate: learning occurs later when student

struggles alone to complete homework, essay, project

1. learn easy

stuff together 2. learn hard

stuff alone

(Mazur [6])

Flipped classroom


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1. Transfer: student learns easy content at home:

definitions, basis skills, simple examples.

2. Assimilate: students come to class prepared to tackle

challenging concepts in class, with immediate

feedback from peers, instructor.

2. learn hard

stuff together 1. learn easy

stuff alone

(Mazur [6])

Flipped Classroom requires…


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1. Clear description of what students need to do to

prepare for class.

“Read Chapter 3”

“Read pages 107 – 116, paying attention to the roles

of A and B / the definitions of X, Y, Z. Look carefully

at Figure 2.3 and find C and D / noticing the scaling

of the axes. Work through Example 2.7. Follow

footnote [4].

Give students “guided practice” [5]

at reading the material like an expert does.

Reading Quizzes


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If you ask students to do work before class, you should

reward their effort. Reading quizzes:

questions which are answers in the pre-reading,

without requiring higher-order Bloom’s effort (that’s

what you’ll do in class) [Matthew’s red questions]

can be in-class (with clickers) or online ahead of time

(especially good if you look at results before class, to

guide your presentation: Just-in-time Teaching (JITT)

ensures students come prepared to engage: take

advantage of the precious, in-person contact



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surveys of opinions

reading quizzes

worksheets

simulations

discussions

videos


Is there a skill they need to practice?


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pro’s con’s

homework time for more in-depth practice untimely feedback

chart paper immediate, in-class practice and

feedback

students hesitant to mess up

paper with mistakes

conversation goes on before

anything is written

cost of equipment

whiteboards immediate, in-class practice and

feedback

conversation goes on while

students scribble, erase, re-write

(one pen per student)

cost of equipment

hard to scale to large classes

References


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1. National Research Council (2000). How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School: Expanded Edition. J.D. Bransford, A.L Brown & R.R. Cocking (Eds.),Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

2. Prather, E.E, Rudolph, A.L., Brissenden, G., & Schlingman, W.M. (2009). A national study assessing the teaching and learning of introductory astronomy. Part I. The effect of interactive instruction. Am. J. Phys. 77, 4, 320-330.

3. Get the full story of ILDs at serc.carleton.edu/introgeo/demonstrations/index.html

4. Prather, E.E., Slater, T.F., Adams, J.P., & Brissenden, G. (2007). Lecture Tutorials for Introductory Astronomy. (2e). San Francisco, CA: Pearson Addison-Wesley.

5. Talbert, R. (13 March 2013) Inside the inverted proofs class: Guided Practice holds it together [blog post]. Retrieved from http://chronicle.com/blognetwork/castingoutnines/2013/03/13/inside-the-inverted-proofs-class-guided-practice-holds-it-together/

SGTS Theory 4 - Alternatives to Lecture

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