Tidewater oct 07

Teaching Strategies and Assessment in a Learning College

Tidewater Community College Workshop, October 25-26, 2007

Rose Mince and Bonnie Startt

Who are We?

How does this impact teaching and learning in the classroom?

Who are our Students?

Different Generations in the Classroom

The New Generation of College Students

Generations defined by shared core values

Consists of approximately a 20 year span

Reacts to the generations before themThose born on the “cusp” may have

characteristics of multiple generations

The Veterans/The Silent Generation

Defining Events…

1930sGreat DepressionElection of FDR

1940sPearl HarborD-DayDeath of FDRVE Day and VJ DayHiroshima -- Nagasaki

Core Values…

DedicationHard workConformityLaw and orderRespect for

authority

PatienceDelayed rewardDuty before

pleasureAdherence to

rulesHonor

Compared to other generations…

Economically successful but invented “midlife crisis” due to lost adolescence

Raised in large, extended families Apprenticeship businesses and farming Average 10 year old spent 4-6 hours daily with

significant adult role model Perception of world as “safe” Did not attack institutions of previous

generation – just tried to improve and refine them

Baby Boomers

Defining Events…

1950s Korean War TV in every home McCarthy HCUAA

hearings Rock ‘n Roll Salk Polio vaccine

introduced

1960s Vietnam Kennedy elected Civil Rights

Movement Kennedy / King

assassinations Moon landing Woodstock

Core Values…

OptimismTeam orientationPersonal

gratificationHealth and

wellness

Personal growthYouthWorkInvolvement

Compared to other generations…

TV generation All time divorce rate for families Families moving – GI Bill and industrialization “Nuclear” family Children spend significant time with adult role

model Mom stays home; Dad carpools Generation gap with their parents; chose not

to raise their children with same “rigidity”.

Generation X/The Lost Generation

Defining Events…

1970s Oil Embargo Nixon resigns First PCs Women’s Rights Movement

1980s Challenger explosion Fall of Berlin Wall John Lennon shot Reagan elected

Core Values…

Diversity Thinking globally Balance Technoliteracy

Fun Informality Self-reliance Pragmatism

Compared to other generations

Divorce at all time high; single parents the norm; latch-key kids

Small families; children at bottom of social priorities

Average 10 year old spent 14 ½ minutes with a significant adult role model

Perception of world as “unsafe” Children grew to be “me” oriented, pragmatic

and self sufficient and determined that there must be a better way…

Millennials/ Generation Y/ Nexters/ Net Generation/ Echo Boom

Core Values

Civic mindedOptimisticLong-term plannersHigh achieversSelf confidentSocialDiverse

Demographics…

Nearly as large, if not larger, than Baby Boomer generation

Born to parents of both Baby Boomers and Generation X

Highly educated parents with for, the first time in history, mothers with better education than fathers

Most racially and ethnically diverse generation in American history

Differences in Values…

ParentingTechnologyGamingCustomer ServiceSelf Esteem movementCommunication

Parenting

Safety improvements – increasing mortality rates for teens since 1967 (bike helmets, seat belts, etc.)

Baby boomer parents raised children differently than their “rigid” parents (raised them to question authority)

Created a generation of “negotiators” Parents are becoming over involved –

“helicopter” parents Children spend more time with parents, like

them, and share their values

Technology

Never knew a world without computers Do not live in a 9-5 world Function in an international world Expect technology in the classroom 50% of children under 6 are using computers;

100% of teens use internet, 70% use IM A technology gap exists along SES lines Not a television generation but an interactive

technologically savvy generation

Gaming…

Involves complex decision makingPlayers take in multiple sets of data and

make decisions quicklyLearning is through many trials and

errorsStudents expect learning in class to be

the same – multiple opportunities to make errors and rewrites

Customer Service…

Expect access 24/7Expect things to work as they are

supposed toThey want what they have paid for –

have students paid for a grade or for learning?

Everything comes with a toll-free number and a web address

Self Esteem Movement…

9,068 books written about self esteem in late 80s and 90s

Focus on self esteem was not able to eliminate adolescent angst, concern over purpose of existence, need to feel important and valued

Communication…

Expect to stay in communication 24/7Email is becoming outdatedCell phones are a lifestyle management

tool and essentialCell phones are for safety as well as

casual communication

Teaching Implications…

Provide clear objectives and details of expectations

Allow students input into educational processes

Allow for meaningful activities such as learning communities and service learning

Be flexible, sensitive, and enthusiastic Don’t be surprised by how easily they are

demoralized – they have high expectations and are high achievers

Last thoughts…

A gender gap is emerging…Highly programmed lives have resulted

in multi-taskersPrediction is that they change careers

multiple times in their livesThey want value – not the hard work,

stressed-out, fall asleep at the dinner table lives of their parents.

Did You Know?

Understanding the diversity of our students and the changing world

5 Minute Break!

Think, Pair, Share

Reflect on the information and ideas presented so far.

List 3-5 specific implications for teaching your students in your classes.

Share your ideas with a partner.Share 1 idea with the group.

What Students AreWhat Teachers DoWhat Students Do

Teaching Teaching and Understanding Understanding

Brain-Based Learning

Activity: “What and How you Learned”

What you said…

Natural Learning Process Stages

Stage 1: MOTIVATION: Responding to stimulus. Not knowing how to do it or how it works, just trying it.

Stage 2: BEGINNING PRACTICE: Doing it (“practice, practice, practice”), learning from one’s own mistakes. Starting to get the feel for it.

Stage 3: ADVANCED PRACTICE: Increase of skill and confidence through more practice, more trial & error, getting comfortable.

Natural Learning Process Stages

Stage 4: SKILLFULNESS: More practice, doing it one’s own way, deviating from the norm, taking risks, creativity, branching out.

Stage 5: REFINEMENT: Automization or becoming second nature, creativity, learning new methods, strong satisfaction.

Stage 6: MASTERY: Increased creativity, broader application, teaching it, continuing improvement, expert (or dropping the activity).

Physical Processes of Learning

When we are learning a particular skill or concept: Learning occurs through the growing and

constructing of physical structures in the brain Learning, thinking, and remembering are the brain’s

natural physical, electrical and chemical processes. We construct physical structures in the brain every

time we connect new information to previous knowledge.

Neural networks need time to grow.

Our brains are “plastic”!

The Natural Learning Organ

Has a natural learning processHas an innate logicIs a natural problem-solverIs a natural pattern-seekerIs internally motivatedFeels pleasure when learning

Principles and Implications

Principles Learning and growing

brain structures are the same thing

New brain structures grow with practice – a lot of practice.

Brain structures grow exclusively for what is practiced

Implications Teaching is like

gardening – we need to help students grow.

We learn by making and correcting mistakes and trying again.

Students need authentic practice with the target knowledge.

Principles and Implications

Principles Each person has

his/her own unique pattern of structures that grow off what they already have.

Students need to construct basic pathways first before they can develop the pathways for higher order/creative neural structures.

Implications The first step is to make

a personal connection between the students and the new thing to learn.

Expect students with prior experience to have an advantage to move to higher levels sooner.

Principles and Implications

Principles Brain structures grow

when learners are active.

Emotions affect growth. DNA can affect how

quickly brain structures grow for different things.

Implications Keep activity levels high. Provide a learning

environment that is positive and supportive and believe in your students.

Recognize difference in aptitudes.

5 Rules of How the Brain Learns

1. Dendrites, synapses, and neural networks grow off what is already there.

Like twigs on a tree. Can’t grow off of nothing. Learning starts by making a connection to

prior knowledge or experience. To learn something new we must start with

something familiar.

5 Rules of How the Brain Learns

2. Neural networks grow from what is actively, personally, and specifically experienced and practiced

New networks are constructed for each new concept or skill.

As people practice, they build better structures for that particular skill or knowledge.

Practice means making mistakes, learning from them, correcting and starting over.

Making mistakes is a natural part of learning.

5 Rules of How the Brain Learns

3. Neural networks grow from stimulating experiences.

The chemical electrical process needs to be stimulated.

Stimulating experiences activate the brain.

5 Rules of How the Brain Learns

4. Use it or lose it Neural networks will be lost if you don’t

use them.Pruning occurs naturally if skills or ideas

are not used or practiced.

5 Rules of How the Brain Learns

5. Emotions affect learning. Emotions can have a major impact on learning

and remembering. Negative emotions can help students forget or not connect new information.

Self-doubt, fear and other negative emotions can keep you from learning and remembering.

Confidence, interests and other positive emotions help the learning and remembering process.

“All human beings are born as natural learners.”

Our brain has a natural, innate thinking and learning process.

It knows how to learn and remember and is thinking soon after birth.

Learning by the brain's natural learning process helps students become the motivated, eager, successful learners they are born to be.

Dr. Rita Smilkstein“We’re Born to Learn”

Other learning theories…

Constructivism…Learning Styles…Universal Instructional Design…

Fuzzy Question

Is there anything from today’s presentation so far that is unclear to you? If so, what is it? What type of follow-up would be helpful to you?

Assessing our Students…

Tying it all together: Teaching/Learning/Assessment

Why Grades Don’t Make the Grade

Don’t tell the whole story May not be based solely on student

learning outcomes May be subjective Are not always valid and reliable

Basic Assumptions of Assessment

• Quality of learning related to quality of teaching• Teachers need feedback on extent to which

their explicit goals and objectives are being met• Students need feedback often and early • Assessment should be faculty driven,

collaborative, and systematic• Allow teachers to become the researchers

Angelo & Cross (1993)

Classroom Assessment Techniques

Definition: An approach designed to help teachers determine what and how well students are learning in the classroom.

Characteristics:• Learner-centered• Teacher-directed• Mutually beneficial• Formative• Context specific• Ongoing• Rooted in Good Teaching Practice

Learning Outcomes AssessmentGoals and Objectives

Document improved and expanded student learning

Create continuous improvement process for learning outcomes assessment

Provide continuous curriculum improvement

Assessment Design

5 Stages of LOA Projects

1.Designing and Proposing a Project (RFP)

2.Implementing the Design and Collecting and Analyzing the Data

3.Redesigning the Course/Program to Improve Student Learning

4.Implementing Revisions and Reassessing

5.Communicating Final Analysis

Rubrics

Rubric: A definition

“…a one- or two-page document that describes varying levels of quality from excellent to poor for a specific assignment”

Heidi Goodrich Andrade

Two main components:A detailed list of criteriaGradations of quality

Rubrics

Holistic vs. AnalyticHolistic: all criteria are factored in together

to determine the final grade for that assignment (one overall or total score)

Analytic: considers and evaluates each criterion separately (sub-scores)

Grading Rubrics: Advantages

Assess student work more quickly and more efficiently

Provide a clear justification to student for the grade received

Act as a teaching tool to support student learning

Put more responsibility into the hands of the students

Grading Rubrics: Advantages

Facilitate students’ progress in completing assignment

Are easy to use and explainSupport the development of students’

skills and understandingProvide informative feedback and

detailed evaluations

Matching Objectives to Assignments and Rubrics

Bloom’s Taxonomy (www.coun.uvic.ca/learn/program/hndouts/bloom.html)

Knowledge-list, define, tell, describe, identify, show, label, collect, examine

Comprehension-summarize, describe, interpret, contrast, predict, discuss

Application-apply, demonstrate, calculate, experiment, classify, show

Matching Objectives to Assignments and Rubrics (continued)

Analysis-analyze, separate, order, explain, connect, classify, compare

Synthesis-combine, integrate, modify, plan, create, generalize, rewrite, compose, prepare

Evaluation-assess, decide, rank, grade, test, measure, recommend, convince, select, explain, support, conclude, compare

Developing a Rubric

Validate the objective/s you want students to achieve (verb). Create the assignment.

Develop the rubric:1) Identify the criteria2) Weigh the criteria3) Describe the levels of success4) Create and distribute the rubric/grid

Rubric Adjectives/Anchors

6=evidence beyond the expectations (present, and, and)

5=evidence is present; student has gone slightly beyond requirements (present, and)

4=evidence is present without any extra supporting material (present)

3=something lacking from the requirement (present, but)

2=some evidence, but something important is lacking (present, but, but)

1=very little evidence that skills have been achieved

Some Excellent Resources

Scoring Rubrics in the Classroom by Arter and McTighe (2001)

“Primary Trait Analysis: Anchoring Assessment in the Classroom” Benander, Denton, Page, and Skinner (2000). The Journal of General Education, 49, 280-302.

“Oral Presentations in Math Classes” (grading using a rubric) in Innovation Abstracts, (2002), XXIV, 23

www2.acs.ncsu.edu/UPA/assmt/resource.htm

Common Graded Assignments

Common – similar format, varied content; applied in more than one class to allow comparison

Graded -- required by the instructor so that students put effort into the assignment; faculty provide feedback to the student

Assignment -- evaluation of the “routine” ongoing work of the students

Sample CGAs

CritiquesLab ReportsArticle Reviews: Comparison/ContrastProjects (individual or group)Research PapersCase StudiesEssay QuestionsThe list goes on…

Steps to Creating a Rubric Look at several models of anonymous student

work from previous classes. Identify the characteristics that make the good ones good and the bad ones bad.

List the evaluation criteria. Determine the gradation of quality for the selected

evaluation criteria. Begin by describing the best and worst levels of quality and then fill in the middle levels based on your knowledge of common problems. ( Use the "yes, yes but, no but, no" system!)

Have students evaluate the models from step 1. Allow students to ask clarification questions and make comments.

Use students' feedback to revise the rubrics.

Activity: Create Your Own Rubric!

Critical Thinking

Engaging Ideas by John C.Bean

Using Writing to Promote Thinking

Writing in the Disciplines/Across Communities Understanding Connections Between Thinking

and Writing Designing Problem-Based Assignment Coaching Students as Learners, Thinkers, and

Writers Reading, Commenting On, and Grading

Student Writing

From Passive to Active Learners

The learner’s engagement depends on the type of problems/assignments the learner is asked to think about and act upon.

Key teaching tasks: Design interesting problems for students to think

about. Develop strategies for giving critical thinking

problems to students. Create a course atmosphere that encourages

inquiry, exploration, discussion, and debate while valuing the dignity and worth of each student.

Key Teaching Tasks (continued)

Be a mentor and a coach.Develop a range of strategies for

modeling critical thinking, critiquing student performances, and guiding students toward the habits of inquiry and argument valued in their disciplines.

Link Between Writing and Critical Thinking

The most intensive and demanding tool for eliciting sustained critical thought is a well-designed writing assignment on a subject matter problem.

Writing is closely linked with thinking and in presenting students with significant problems to think about—and in creating an environment that demands their best writing, faculty can promote cognitive and intellectual growth.

Using Writing to Promote Thinking

Teachers who successfully integrate writing and critical thinking often report a satisfying increase in their teaching pleasure: class discussions are richer, students are more fully engaged, and the quality of their performance improves

Teachers must plan for writing/thinking activities and foster them throughout the course.

Central Activities of Critical Thinking

Identifying and challenging assumptions Exploring alternative ways of thinking

and actingBrookfield (1987)

Critical thinkers are engaged with life.

Writing as a Process vs. a Skill

Writing is more than a communication skill. It is a process and product of critical thought. We want to have more than clear, accurate writing. We want interesting writing:

Active engagement with a problem; writing that brings something new to the reader; writing that makes and supports an argument

Make the course assignment-centered versus text or lecture-centered

Require multiple drafts/steps in the writing process

Some ways to give tasks to students

Problems presented as formal writing assignments

Problems presented as thought-provokers for exploratory writing

Problems presented as tasks for small group problem solving

Problems presented as starters for inquiry-based class discussions

Some ways to give tasks to students (continued)

Problems presented as think-on-your-feet questions for in-class “cold calling”

Problems presented as focusing questions for in-class debates, panel discussions, cases, or fishbowls

Problems presented as practice exam questions

Practical Suggestions

Avoid “and then” assignments (example, student gives you a summary when you want an argument)

Avoid “all about” writing (do the subtopics add up to an argument or an encyclopedia?)

Ask students to consider multiple points of view, to confront clashing values, and to imagine, analyze, and evaluate alternative solutions to problems

Encourage revisions

Practical Suggestions (continued)

Require a series of short essays instead of a term paper

Use write-to-learn assignments (apply what has been taught)

Give students clear, written directions Have a colleague fine-tune your assignments Begin assignments in class so that students can

ask questions Incorporate reflection papers Use grading rubrics

Presenters’ Information

Rose Mince: rmince@ccbcmd.edu

Bonnie Startt: tcstart@tcc.edu