What Makes a Good Teaching Activity? Best Practices in Teaching— Lessons Learned from Experience and Research on Learning David Mogk Montana State University

Wisdom from Experience   Giving students ownership of problem/data   Engaging students in experiments   Involve every student   Know their learning style, interests, experience…   One learning goal per activity   Student-centered   What should every student know, be able to do? (v. content-centered)   Faculty Role   Mentor, advisor, co-learner   Inquiry, discovery, exploration   “I don’t know, but let’s find out!”

Wisdom from Learning Science (How People Learn, NRC,1999)   Learning is additive, it builds on current understanding   Be aware of pre- and misconceptions   Understanding is actively constructed   This requires an engaged learner   Different people construct/learn most easily in different ways   Learning to learn (metacognition) is an important aspect of becoming an expert   Metacognition is context specific   Cognitive and affective domains are both important in learning   Learning can’t occur if the affective domain is not engaged (motivation to learn, anxiety, values….)

Wisdom from Curriculum Design   Goals, assessments, activities (Wiggins and McTighe, 1998)   Teaching for Understanding   “Backward Design”: Start with learning goals/outcomes, align performance assessments with goals; activities and materials all support learning goals   Scaffolding   Clear direction;   Clarifies purpose;   Keeps students on task;   Assesses progress;   Demonstrates expectations, minimizes uncertainty   Successively remove support   Guided Discovery   Provide overall structure, context, resources, examples…   …But not too much!

Principles of Design 1) Students must be engaged to learn How does the activity engage them? 2) Students must construct new knowledge incrementally as a results of experience. What experiences will they have in this activity? 3) Students must refine and connect their knowledge to be able to use it further How will the activity promote reflection on and application of the new knowledge? Edelson, 2001, Learning for Use A Framework for the Design of Technology-Supported Inquiry Activities: Journal of Research in Science Teaching, vol 38, no 3, p

Is it Good?   Will the activity lead to the desired learning?   Will I be able to tell?   Does the pedagogy promote learning?   Are the materials I provide for students complete and helpful?   Could someone else implement this from the information I provide?

Does the Pedagogy Promote Learning?   Does the activity motivate and engage students?   Does it build on what they know and address their initial beliefs?   Is it appropriate for the variety of students expected in the class?   Are students engaged in independent thinking and problem solving?   Are there opportunities for students to integrate and improve their understanding incrementally?   Is there an appropriate balance of guidance vs exploration?   Does it include opportunities for reflection, discussion, and synthesis?   Does it provide opportunities for students to assess their learning and confirm they are on the right track?

Learning Goals  Content/Concept Mastery   Skill Mastery?   Technical: use of instrument, software…   Life-long: communication, quantitative, graphic, information access and vetting, interpersonal skills   Affective Aspects   Engagement with science; Values science; Personal growth—self-confidence, Motivation? Ownership? Responsibility  Motivation  Need (for personal/societal application  Curiosity (this is so cool I have to learn more)…

Geoscience Expertise  What defines a “master” geoscientist?  How can we help students (novices) become masters?  How can we bridge the gap?  Thinking about your own learning  Self-monitoring  Self-regulation  Critical thinking  What am I doing? Why? Is this purposeful? Consistent with other knowledge I have?

ASSESSMENT—What is it?  Collection of evidence to answer a question or solve a problem  Diane Ebert-May  I use “evaluation” to assign “value”—good/bad; final grade, ….  Assessments must be well-aligned with project goals  How will you know if you’ve achieved your goals?  Resources (Assessing Student Learning)  Starting Point Module on Assessment   Cutting Edge Observing and Assessing Student Learning

How Will the Assessment be Used (and by whom, and for what purpose)?   Formative—   ”road checks”, are we on course? (feedback for instructors)?   Summative—   measures of success (for project leaders, administrators, benefactors)   Longitudinal—   long term impacts (faculty, institutions, community)

What Type of Evidence “Counts”?   Approaches (multiple, independent lines of evidence—like your research!)   Self-reporting; (journals, interviews…)   External Observers (surveys, evaluation forms)   Automated (e.g. web statistics)   Quantitative; rubrics; how many…?   Narrative/anecdotal   Pre- Post- activity to measure Δ; baseline needed   Comparative   demonstrating changes pre- and post-project   Outcomes-based   demonstration of quality of products/results

Hard-Earned Advice   Make sure that the expectations of all parties are aligned!   Your standards are clearly articulated   Students know what to expect (uncertainty is the great killer of these types of projects)   What will the product look like, how it will be evaluated? Provide examples!   No Surprises!   Assessments   Must be built into the plan from the beginning, not an afterthought   Can be embedded, and can be done continuously through the life cycle of the project;   Intervene early if things go awry!

Collaborative/Cooperative Learning  Increasingly students must work in diverse groups  Equitable participation is different than equal participation  Play to students’ strengths  Consider using profiles of student learning preferences  VARK  Using Cooperative Learning to Teach Mineralogy (and other courses too!), Srogi and Baloche  Starting Point Module on Cooperative Learning  Preparing Students for Collaborative Case Studies

Charge for the Weekend  Continue to work on your own activity development  Post topics for group input via threaded discussions  Where do you need help, advice, resources, …  Work in your small groups  Schedule conference times  Use the web workspace  Post your completed activity by 9:00 AM Central