|
|
I am a tutor at a busy center in a Michigan community college. I recently
collaborated with a Biology instructor to assist the students' mastery of
several difficult concepts. I developed activities, based on Bloom's
taxonomy, that required group work--create and present their efforts in one
hour. It seems to work very well--peer teaching and combined effort and
knowledge lift the entire group to a higher level of performance. Every
student has talents that are brought forward in a group.Also, group work and
active assignments aren't often used outside of labs in the Sciences. The
results were: creative, complete and inclusive-- every student is a
presenter. We expect to continue this--the evaluations from the students
are good.
ted panitz wrote:
> Hi Listers,
>
> I have a double message for you today. Consider this a two for
> the price of one sale in the e-world of education discussions. The first
> item is free.
>
> ITEM-1-- I have been gathering information about writing across the
> curriculum approaches for many years. I use a variety of writing
> assignments in my math classes in order to encourage students to move
> away from the rote approach to doing algebra, where they repeat a
> procedure 50 times without really thinking about what they are doing, to
> one where they think critically about math concepts, rules and
> procedures. Writing in most forms accomplishes this.
>
> To complete a short story I have compiled several lists of short
> descriptions of writing assignments, which may be adapted to all
> courses. I have included the original web site and authorship so you can
> access the site. I was accumulating this information to include in a WAC
> book I have written but no one seems interested in publishing such a
> tome so I am going to make it available to you rather than having this
> material sit in a file on my PC. The compilation can be found at my web
> site at:
>
> http://www.capecod.net/~tpanitz/tedspage/ewacbook/wacapproaches.htm
>
> (note: htm is correct, there is no l as in html, for reasons that escape
> me, but that is what my computer gave me when I saved the material as a
> web page. Usually it uses the html designation, go figure???)
>
> Item 2-- is a question I would like to pose to you. One of my
> students asked me why and how I started using cooperative learning in my
> math classes. That started me reflecting about what I do and why. The
> question also sparked the thought that it would be fascinating to hear
> why and how other people started using student centered approaches to
> learning/teaching. My reflections follow below.
>
> So that is my question to you:
>
> “Why did you start using student centered learning in your courses?
>
> Please note that I shifted from the word cooperative learning, which
> may be too limiting in definition (and considered a fad by some people)
> to student centered which includes many approaches, such as
> collaborative, cooperative, pbl etc., or any approach which focuses on
> the students more than the teacher (as information giver) and has
> students working together, in and out of class, to meet the goals of the
> course.
>
> Please consider sharing your “story” with the list or e-mail me.
>
> I will compile the responses and make them available on my web site.
>
> Thanks in advance for your participation in this discussion.
>
> Regards,
> Ted
>
> [log in to unmask]
>
> (please note this is a new e-mail address for me)
>
> http://www.capecod.net/~tpanitz/tedspage
> http://www.companyofexperts.com
>
> ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
> Why I switched from lecturing to student centered learning.
>
> I used to be a very good lecturer. Being an engineering and
> mathematics teacher I was well organized and without knowing it followed
> the Advanced Organizer model of teaching. I established the day’s class
> goals, provided an overview of the concept(s) under study and then lead
> the class through a series of problems and questions which demonstrated
> the concept or mathematical procedure under study. I was actually
> humorous in my lecturing, even in math and engineering classes, which
> helped lighten things up a bit. I developed concepts by starting with
> simpler questions and then proceeding to more complex structures. It
> made a lot of sense to everyone, during the lecture. I also used a
> lecture discussion format to try to engage students and asked students
> to work individually on problems and then present their solution on the
> board for additional class discussion. I tended to be very enthusiastic
> about my subject matter and teaching and I am sure this was somewhat
> contagious for my students. My approach garnered me a good reputation
> among students. My student evaluations were high, my courses filled up
> quickly and feedback I received from students was very positive.
>
> This approach seemed to work well until we got to the tests and
> students would not perform as well as I or they had expected. When we
> talked about this phenomenon, as a whole class discussion, students
> expressed the frustration that they felt they understood the material in
> class but when they went home and tried to work the homework problems on
> their own, the material looked like Greek. Looking back, based upon the
> research I have since read I am not surprised. I was doing all the
> critical thinking by writing and explaining the concepts, strengthening
> my own brain synapses, not the students.
>
> I used the lecture discussion method for about 8 years, at which
> time (1982) I started a doctoral program in education at Boston
> University in the Community College and Adult Education Department (no
> longer so named). The basis for this program was Humanistic Psychology.
> The professors generally practiced what they preached and demonstrated
> student centered techniques ranging from cooperative to collaborative
> approaches. As an example of collaborative learning, in one class on the
> philosophy of education the professor simply walked in, told us this was
> our class and that he would be the coach/facilitator and everything else
> was up to us. That was quite a shock for us graduate students who
> expected to be told all about the philosophy of education. After some
> consternation and attempts to dissuade the instructor from such an
> approach we got down to business and developed an excellent course.
> Among other benefits we discovered was that we had quite an ethnically
> diverse class. We decided it would be fascinating to try each other’s
> food and decided to hold classes in each of our homes where we would
> discuss the culture and educational approaches of our peers countries
> and also try some new cuisine. The responsibility for class materials
> and presentation was left up to us. We worked in teams to develop the
> course curriculum. I probably worked harder in that course than any
> other before it and learned more about the history and philosophies of
> American educational systems, since that was my team’s responsibility.
>
> Interestingly, I had completed a minor in business, as part of my
> Masters degree in Chemical Engineering at the Illinois Institute of
> technology, where we used group techniques in case studies and in group
> processing, trust building and group work, but because the focus was
> exclusively on building working groups in companies in never occurred to
> me to adapt these techniques to teaching. It wasn’t until I lived
> through the approaches and practiced them that I understood the
> implications for teaching. That helped convince me that hands on
> interactive learning is very important for the individual learner.
>
> This was quite an eye opener for me and started my turnaround in
> teaching philosophy from a teacher centered lecture approach to student
> centered cooperative approach. There is a lot of flexibility which I
> have learned to use rather than adopt one approach for every course. For
> example, I provide a lot of direction and materials for my math classes,
> such as work sheets and jig saws, in part because I teach developmental
> math courses where students are still learning how to study and learn
> math and how to learn together in groups. In my advanced engineering
> courses I used more of as collaborative approach because the students
> had been trained by me in earlier courses and were inclined to accept
> the responsibility for their learning. They designed a power plant
> virtually on their own.
>
> When I first started incorporating student centered techniques in my
> classes I started out slowly. I started using in class group work by
> having students work in pairs followed by whole class discussion. As I
> attended conferences I would seek out cooperative learning sessions and
> picked up new ideas each time. I also started introducing writing
> assignments into my classes. These can be found at my web site so I
> won’t describe them here:
>
> http://www.capecod.net/~tpanitz/tedspage/ewacbook/waccontents.html
>
> I would emphasize here that I added only one or two new coop
> activities each semester in response to my students performance on
> assessments or their expressed needs and interests, rather than launch
> into it totally. If students demonstrated that they were having
> particular difficulty with a concept I would devise an interactive group
> activity combined with writing to help them focus on the concept. I now
> have a substantial collection of materials to chose from and continue to
> build my coop files. I use cooperative learning virtually 100% of the
> time in all my classes. Again a complete description of my class
> procedures is on my web site. I do give whole class explanations (some
> may call these mini lectures but they are not). They are highly focused
> and generally very short, maximum five minutes, after which time
> students seem to lose interest.
>
> Does it work? You bet! We give pre and post tests in our math
> courses, using a computer placement system, and my students consistently
> show substantial improvement on the post test. The few who do not
> improve are not surprised by their results and neither am I. The
> cooperative learning approach enables me to identify problems students
> are having throughout the entire semester. Not every student responds to
> the help and encouragement they receive, but they never blame me because
> their responsibility in the process is clear. Many of these students
> take my class again, if they do not complete it the first time, which I
> consider to be quite a nice qualitative endorsement of cooperative
> learning.
>
> Finally, There are many positive intangibles for me personally,
> associated with student centered learning approaches. The classes thrill
> me every day. I enjoy every minute of teaching. Sound a little
> Polyanish? I guess it is, but that is what I feel. There are little
> victories by students who have breakthroughs in concept understanding or
> who successfully complete an assessment of their performance and are
> celebrated by their peers or who show their enjoyment of working with
> their peers, who often become their close friends. Watching students
> help each other by giving explanations, discussing each other’s
> approaches and even arguing about different approaches makes my day! My
> interactions with the students in class give me a feeling of real
> accomplishment and satisfaction as I observe their improvement, and make
> new friends myself every semester. I see the students more as peers than
> I do “my students” and my respect for them becomes mutual. I did not
> have these kinds of interactions with students and personal emotional
> responses to teaching when I lectured primarily.
|
|
|
Archives |
March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011, Week 3 January 2011, Week 2 January 2011, Week 1 January 2011 December 2010, Week 5 December 2010, Week 4 December 2010, Week 3 December 2010, Week 2 December 2010, Week 1 November 2010, Week 5 November 2010, Week 4 November 2010, Week 3 November 2010, Week 2 November 2010, Week 1 October 2010, Week 5 October 2010, Week 4 October 2010, Week 3 October 2010, Week 2 October 2010, Week 1 September 2010, Week 5 September 2010, Week 4 September 2010, Week 3 September 2010, Week 2 September 2010, Week 1 August 2010, Week 5 August 2010, Week 4 August 2010, Week 3 August 2010, Week 2 August 2010, Week 1 July 2010, Week 5 July 2010, Week 4 July 2010, Week 3 July 2010, Week 2 July 2010, Week 1 June 2010, Week 5 June 2010, Week 4 June 2010, Week 3 June 2010, Week 2 June 2010, Week 1 May 2010, Week 4 May 2010, Week 3 May 2010, Week 2 May 2010, Week 1 April 2010, Week 5 April 2010, Week 4 April 2010, Week 3 April 2010, Week 2 April 2010, Week 1 March 2010, Week 5 March 2010, Week 4 March 2010, Week 3 March 2010, Week 2 March 2010, Week 1 February 2010, Week 4 February 2010, Week 3 February 2010, Week 2 February 2010, Week 1 January 2010, Week 5 January 2010, Week 4 January 2010, Week 3 January 2010, Week 2 January 2010, Week 1 December 2009, Week 5 December 2009, Week 4 December 2009, Week 3 December 2009, Week 2 December 2009, Week 1 November 2009, Week 5 November 2009, Week 4 November 2009, Week 3 November 2009, Week 2 November 2009, Week 1 October 2009, Week 5 October 2009, Week 4 October 2009, Week 3 October 2009, Week 2 October 2009, Week 1 September 2009, Week 5 September 2009, Week 4 September 2009, Week 3 September 2009, Week 2 September 2009, Week 1 August 2009, Week 5 August 2009, Week 4 August 2009, Week 3 August 2009, Week 2 August 2009, Week 1 July 2009, Week 5 July 2009, Week 4 July 2009, Week 3 July 2009, Week 2 July 2009, Week 1 June 2009, Week 5 June 2009, Week 4 June 2009, Week 3 June 2009, Week 2 June 2009, Week 1 May 2009, Week 5 May 2009, Week 4 May 2009, Week 3 May 2009, Week 2 May 2009, Week 1 April 2009, Week 5 April 2009, Week 4 April 2009, Week 3 April 2009, Week 2 April 2009, Week 1 March 2009, Week 5 March 2009, Week 4 March 2009, Week 3 March 2009, Week 2 March 2009, Week 1 February 2009, Week 4 February 2009, Week 3 February 2009, Week 2 February 2009, Week 1 January 2009, Week 5 January 2009, Week 4 January 2009, Week 3 January 2009, Week 2 January 2009, Week 1 December 2008, Week 5 December 2008, Week 4 December 2008, Week 3 December 2008, Week 2 December 2008, Week 1 November 2008, Week 5 November 2008, Week 4 November 2008, Week 3 November 2008, Week 2 November 2008, Week 1 October 2008, Week 5 October 2008, Week 4 October 2008, Week 3 October 2008, Week 2 October 2008, Week 1 September 2008, Week 5 September 2008, Week 4 September 2008, Week 3 September 2008, Week 2 September 2008, Week 1 August 2008, Week 5 August 2008, Week 4 August 2008, Week 3 August 2008, Week 2 August 2008, Week 1 July 2008, Week 5 July 2008, Week 4 July 2008, Week 3 July 2008, Week 2 July 2008, Week 1 June 2008, Week 5 June 2008, Week 4 June 2008, Week 3 June 2008, Week 2 June 2008, Week 1 May 2008, Week 5 May 2008, Week 4 May 2008, Week 3 May 2008, Week 2 May 2008, Week 1 April 2008, Week 5 April 2008, Week 4 April 2008, Week 3 April 2008, Week 2 April 2008, Week 1 March 2008, Week 5 March 2008, Week 4 March 2008, Week 3 March 2008, Week 2 March 2008, Week 1 February 2008, Week 5 February 2008, Week 4 February 2008, Week 3 February 2008, Week 2 February 2008, Week 1 January 2008, Week 5 January 2008, Week 4 January 2008, Week 3 January 2008, Week 2 January 2008, Week 1 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 September 2004 August 2004 July 2004 June 2004 May 2004 April 2004 March 2004 February 2004 January 2004 December 2003 November 2003 October 2003 September 2003 August 2003 July 2003 June 2003 May 2003 April 2003 March 2003 February 2003 January 2003 December 2002 November 2002 October 2002 September 2002 August 2002 July 2002 June 2002 May 2002 April 2002 March 2002 February 2002 January 2002 December 2001 November 2001 October 2001 September 2001 August 2001 July 2001 June 2001 May 2001 April 2001 March 2001 February 2001 January 2001 December 2000 November 2000 October 2000 September 2000 August 2000 July 2000 June 2000 May 2000 April 2000 March 2000 February 2000 January 2000 December 1999 November 1999 October 1999 September 1999 August 1999 July 1999 June 1999 May 1999 April 1999 March 1999 February 1999 January 1999 December 1998 November 1998 October 1998 September 1998 August 1998 July 1998 June 1998 May 1998 April 1998 March 1998 February 1998 January 1998 December 1997 November 1997 October 1997 September 1997 August 1997 July 1997 June 1997 May 1997 April 1997 March 1997 February 1997 January 1997 December 1996 November 1996 October 1996 September 1996 August 1996 July 1996 June 1996 May 1996 April 1996 March 1996 February 1996 January 1996 December 1995 November 1995 October 1995 September 1995 August 1995 July 1995 June 1995 May 1995 April 1995 March 1995 February 1995 January 1995
|
|