Volume XII, N.mb°r_c Texas Univ., Austin. - ERIC

DOCUMENT RESUME

ED 326 284 JC 910 018

AUTHOR Roueche, Susanne D., Ed.mrrnt t^ Innovation Abstracts: Volume XII, N.mb°r_c 1--4n,

1990.

INSTITUTION Texas Univ., Austin. National Inst. for Staff andOrganizational Development.

SPONS AGENCY Kellogg Foundation, Battle Creek, Mich.; Richardson(Sid W.) Foundation, Fort Worth, Tex.

REPORT NO ISSN-0199-106XPUB DATE 90

NOTE 62p.

PUB TYPE Collected Works Serials (022) Reports

Descriptive (141)JOURNAL CIT Innovation Abstracts; v12 n1-30 1n90

EDRS PRICE mFo1/Pco3 Plus Postage.DESCRIPTORS *College Faculty; *College Instruction; *Community

Colleges; Faculty Development; InstructionalDevelopment; Instructional Improvement;*Instructional Innovation; *Learning Strategies;*Teacher Effectiveness; Teaching Methods; Two YearColleges

ABSTRACTThis series of one- to two-page abstracts highlights

a variety of innovative approaches to teaching and learning in thecommunity college. Topics covered in the abstracts include: (1)

academic partnerships pairing "high-risk" students with a concernedfaculty member, counselor, or administrator; (2) teacher-to-teacher

learning partnerships; (3) writing across the curriculum; (4)

student-directed learning; (5) staff development; (6) English as a

second language; (7) sail training; (8) a teaching/learning projectutilizing writing assignments; (9) essay tests; (10) team-testing;(11) motivating students; (12) the executive control processes instudent learning; (13) motivating Adult Basic Education students todevelop reading skills; (14) biology exam preparation; (15) collegeweight loss proarams; (16) use of written evaluations of class bystudents throughout the semester; (17) student goal setting; (18)gender and racial balancing of course content; (19) speechinstruction; (20) creative strategies for algebra class; (21) student

recruitment; (22) teacher evaluation; (23) collaborative publishing;(24) faculty and staff orientation; (25) encouraging studentparticipation in learning; (26) non-aggressive martial artstechniques and Taoist philosophy in conflict resolution classes; (27)low-light classroom situations (during audio-visual instruction) andstudent participation; (28) creating enthusiasm in the classroom;(29) peer tutors; (30) developing reasoning abilities; (31)internationalizing the curriculum; (32) test feedback and thelearning process; (33) a video series on exceptional teachingtechniques; (34) ethics in accounting courses; (35) student journals;(36) building community through research projects; (37) specialproject support for distinguished teachers; (38) "breaking the ice"on the first day of class; (39) students reading aloud in class;art to accompanying textual literary excerpts; t41) writingassignments in technology courses; (42) visual and acoustic aids(music and art) in the philosophy classroom; and (43) ethics inhigher education. (GFW)

t

Innovation Abstracts: Volume XII, Numbers 1-30

1990

Suanhe D. Roueche, Editor

Published by the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development,The University of Texas at Austin with Support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation

and the Sid W. Richardson Foundation

'PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THISMATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY

S. Rouche

TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCESINFORMATION CENTER (EPIC)

U $ DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONOttre ot Education. Resaarch and Improvement

EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATIONCENTER (ERIC)

P This document has Ocin reproduced asreceived Rom the person or organization

)(originating it

Minor chanpes have been made to improvereproduction Quehty

Pottesol veiny°, opintonsststed ththtsdocurnent do not necssertly represent otfictruOE RI posthon or policy

The National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinEDB 348, Austin, Texas 78712

VOLUME XII, NUMBER I

*INNOVATION ABSTRACTS

Academic Partnership ProgramThe Academic Partnership Program is designed to

pair students identified as "high-risk"--that is, notlikely to survive even the first semester at schoolwitha concerned and knowledgeable facultymember,counselor, or administrator. These Academic Partnersmeet weekly to discuss the student's academic progressand to help the student survive the term by providingencouragement and support.

Each faculty member, counselor, or administrator isassigned 1-3 students per semester.

Assignments are based on (1) input from studentswho volunteer fc,, the program and (2) faculty membersparticipating in the program. Once assignments aremade, the faculty Academic Partner contacts thestudent and sets up the first meeting.

Meetings are informal, can be held anywhere oncampus, and follow these guidelines:1. The initial meeting serves as a welcon ing session

and get-acquainted meeting.2. The second and possibly third meetings include an

orientation by the faculty Academic Partner to theschool, encomrssing a detailed look at the servicesavailable to the student. This orientation is morethan a "here-is-what-we-got" session. It includes adescription of services available to the stuuent and alook at ways the student can make use of theseservices. This part of the program is vital and mayrequire more than one meeting. An excellent re-source is the Student Orientation Guide which eachstudent receives when he/she goes through orienta-tion. The section on "Campus Services" provides anexcellent starting point for mentoring.

3. The next two meetings afford the faculty partner achance to discuss the student's educational andoccupational goals and give him/her the opportunityto display appropriate concern and guidance regard-ing these goals.

4. Discussions during subsequent meetings can reflectthe concerns of both partners. For instance, if thestudent is having a problem with financial aid, orregistration, cr any other can .pus service, he/she isencouraged to call upon the faculty partner forassistance in resolving it. One of the most important

roles the faculty partner can play is to act as a liaisonbetween students and campus servim feducing thefrustration and confusion in dealing v.- ith the bureau-cracy (to which we may be accustomed, but which isdifficult for incoming students to appreciate).Other concerns might revolve around various

sections of the Student Orientation Guide. While thereis an abundance of useful information in this guide, apartner could work with students to identify the mostcritical information included there.

Fundamentally, the faculty partner focuses onstudent academic performance and concentrates onways to ensure that the student is succeeding in class.Therefore, discussion upon how the studentis performing in each c; 'Nat problems the studentis facing, and how these prob;ems can be alleviated,from learning better study techniques to joining studygroups to enrolling in tutoring sessions. These discus-sions might identify social, academic, or personalproblems which could be interfering with studentprogress.

The range of these discussions is virtually limitless,although they should exclude areas encompassingacademic advising, course programming, and personalcounseling. Faculty partners can refer the student toappropriate services on campus, should concerns inthese areas surface. Otherwise, the discussions areguided by the perceptions and acumen of the facultypartner.

In addition to meeting with students, faculty partnerscontact their students' instructors at appropriate timesduring the semester to determine uch student's prog-ress. This progress, or lack of it, may serve as a spring-board for corrective action.

The goal of discussions between Academic Partnersis the goal of the program itself: to make the semester asuccessful one for each student involved.

William E. Broderick, Professor, Reading

For further information, contact the author at CerritosCommunity College District, 11110 E. Alondra Boule-vard, Norwalk, CA 90650.

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)kw) Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at Austin

EDB 348, Austin, Texas 78712

Vitality in Motion: Teachers Helping Teachers

What are a computer instructor, accounting instruc-tor, and biology teacher doing in the newborn nurseryin a local hospital? Why is a history teacher sitting in ahealth careers class? Actually, they are teaching tech-niques as they watch colleagues interacting withstudents. Why? They are participating in a uniquelearning opportunity at McLennan Community Collegecalled Vitality in Motion (VIM).What is VIM?

VIM is a program whose purpose is, ultimately, toincrease student learning by increasing faculty teachingskills. It is based on the belief that the best place tolearn about teaching and learning is ir the classroomitself. Participants in the program attend each other'sclasses or the classes of other instructors each week.Using these classes as labs, they then meet once a weekin a seminar to examine common classroom situationsand share possible ideas.

Membership in the group is open to full-time andpart-time faculty and counselors. Emphasis is placedon having a heterogeneous mixture of participantsrepresenting many areas of instruction.What Are the Objectives?

To share teaching approachesTo examine the art (craft) and science ei teachingTo help faculty develop long-term multidiscipli-

nary interactions between faculty membersWhat Is Required?1. A ttend a weekly, 2- to 21/2-hour seminar.2. Attend a demonstration class each week.3. Allow participants to observe your classes, take

notes, and offer a critique.4. Prepare a presentation on some aspect of teaching to

give to participants during a weekly seminar.5. Have a short segment of your classroom teaching

videotaped for your own review..6. Participate in the evaluation of the program.7. Be committed for one full semester.

Each week, we were required to attend the class of afellow participant and evaluate the teaching techniquesand classroom management strategies. Once a week,we met for two hours in a seminar and evaluated theobservations for the previous week. These evaluationsled to discussions concerning problems that occur inthe classroom. Participants offered suggestions andstrategies that had worked for them.

Another part of the seminar included a preparedpresentation from a member of the group, followed

again by group discussinn. Topics included coursesyllabi, computer techniques, stress management, andcritical thinking and reading skills.

At some point during the semester, we were re-quired to videotape one of our classes. These tapesenabled us to see how and what our students see as weconduct our classes. We were not required to share ourtapes with the group: They were for our eyes only!Evaluation

Through participation in the VIM program, welearned some new teaching strategies, saw what otherdisciplines were doing across campus, discussedclassroom problems and methods of coping with them,and formed new friendships and reinforced old ones.Recommendations

Recommendations for future VIM groups includedeveloping a formal clas,room observation instrumentwhich each participant could use to critique each visitand then give to the observed instructor as soon afterthe visit as possible. Sometimes things said in privateand in anonymity can be both complimentary andcritical.

We also recommend that the seminars be hek: in aroom with a large table, overhead projector, andchalkboard. Refreshments should be available to helppromote a relaxed and friendly atmosphere.Conclusions

The VIM program serves an important function inthe quality of instruction on our campus. The businessworld requires rigorous quality control of its product.This program is one method of quality control. Theopen critique and the interaction of our membersbecome our best guards against mediocrity.

Here at MCC, it's perfectly natural for a historyteacher to be in a health careers class and for a com-puter whiz, an accountant, and a biologist to be in anewborn nursery. We are using the entire campus as alab to help us to put vitality into our teaching. We aretruly a vital campus in motion!

Dorothea Lanoux, Facilitator, Vitality in Motion

For further information, contact the author at McLen-nan Community College, 1400 College Drive, Waco, TX76708.

Samna D. Rancho, Editor

January 14 1990, va AA No. 1OThe Unwasny of Texas at Aussn, 1989Further duplication a permitted ty MEMBERinstitutions fur their own personnel

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS 6 a pubkabon of the Nabonal Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD),EDB 348, The University ol Texas at Aasbn, Ausbn, Texas 78712, (512) 4 71-7545. Subscnpbona are available 03 nonconsorbum 1710171befF for $40 pat yaw FInding sn pan by the W K Kellogg Foundabon and SheStd W. Richardson Fouralaton.Issued weekly when classes are in semen dunng IaN and son Wrms and once dunng the summer ISSN 0199-106X

A

VOLUME XII, NUMBER 2

,r4LINNOVATION ABSTRACTSflp

Writing Across the Curriculum: "What's In It for Me?"Pragmatists say we should evaluate deeds, not

words, and judge Ideas by how they work, rather thanby how well they look on paper.

Many sadder-but-wiser people we failed to followthis advice when considering the development of awriting-across-the-curriculum program. They learnedthe hard way what David Russel's research revealed:"Revival meeting or consciousness-raising efforts,however useful as springboards, cannot sustain interestafter founders have gone...WAC must be part of aninstitution-wide plan with realistic goals and clear stepsmarked out toward them."

So, you ask, "What's the solution7 How do we addwriting across the curriculum without becomingcomposition teachers and burying ourselves in anavalanche of paper grading?"

The simple approach is often the best. I thinkMonroe County Community College (MCCC) has de-veloped a program that works. And it works foreveryone involved: students and faculty.

MCCC had the "useful springboards"retreats,workshops, seminars. They were interesting andhelpful, but not absolutely necessary. These sessionsencouraged faculty in the disciplines to develop non-graded, writing-to-learn activities. However, we havetaken our WAC approach one important step beyondthe workshop stage. When our instructors decide totransform the expressive, exploratory writing activitiesInto transactional, graded writing, we offer themissistance. This, after all, is the part of the process thatinstructors find most frustrating---oN,aluating hastilyprepared, poorly conceived, la-rninute writing.

We have a way to improve the quality of instructionwithout placing a heavy burdm on our faculty. Wehave no panacea, but we de offer valuable assistance ata crucia! point in the writing process.

Writing Fellows ProgramMCCC has brought the Writing Fellows program

which began a few years ago at Brown Universitytoour campus. Here, very briefly, is how it works.

We have an advanced composition class open toonly a few of our best students. These students, good

writers before taking the class, spend a semester becom-ing better writers and becoming writing consultants fortheir fellow students. These writing fellows work in awriting centeravailable to all students in all courseson campusand each is also assigned to work withstudents in one class across the disciplines. For thisassigned class, our writing fellows look at the earlydrafts of students' themes. They take each paper home,prepare a written commentary, and meet with thestudent writer to discuss the first draft. After that, thestudent writer has the opportunity to revise the draftand submit both drafts and the writing fellows' com-mentary to the instructor. Everyone in the "fellowed"classes must participate.

Last semester our "fellowed" classes included:Nursing Seminar, Political Science, Geometrical Draft-ing, Engineering Physics, Organic Chemistry, Respira-tory Therapy, Logic, Western Philosophy, Basic Musicfor Classroom Teachers, General Physics, Children'sLiterature, Speech, Exploring Teaching, Poetry andDrama, Art History, Sociology, and Psychology. Theinstructors for these classes knew they were getting asecond draft that had received the attention of a capableand concerned student tutor. (Instructors for otherclasses were also encouraged to require students to takefirst drafts to the Writing Center.) At the end of theyear, we surveyed the students and faculty involvedwith the Writing Fellows Program.

Evaluation: Students With Writing FellowsMore than 97 percent of these students found their

work with the writing fellows to be helpful. When youconsider that these students were required to do morethan students might have done in past semesters (writetwo drafts of each paper and meet with their wntingfellows to discuss each), the approval rate is encouraz-ing.

Some of the comments from these surveys arereveahng: "I was pleaced to fini at MCCC the individ-ual attention given to the students." "It helps to get anunbiased opinion of one's work before the professorsees it." "It is helpful to know that I had somewhere togo to get help with questions and problems."

THE NATIc VAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)s Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at Austin


Evaluation: Faculty Working With Writing FellowsThe faculty were pleased with the work of their

writing fellows. Over 80 percent felt the papers theyme( .ved were better than those subtn!tted in compa-rable classes without a writing fellow. One facultymember summed it up: "Students are learning to focuson the complexities of the writing process. They arelearning not to be content with one draft. More reallearning is taking place."

Perhaps most noteworthy of all were the numerouscomments by faculty who said they had initiated orexpanded their use of writing solely because of theavailability of the writing fellows. For example, onefaculty member said: "Rarely have I required writingin this course. The two assignments this term werecentral to the goals of the course. I plan to make theseassignments standard from now on. Regular dailywriting will increase in all my classes."

Evaluation: Writing Fellows' ExperiencesThe writing fellows benefit the mostand they

know it. Each writing fellow spends two hours a weekin the writing center and is also assigned to work withup to 20 students in ore course. At the end of thesemester, each writing fellow receives a $200 fellow-ship grant. Frankly, if calculated on an hourly basis,the money is a small incentive. Other major incentivescome in the form of academic credentials, campusrecognition, and their own eagerness to learn and tohelp others learn. These students also enjoy workingclosely with faculty members.

In conclushn, if a faculty member or student on ourcampus wants to know "What's in it for me?" theanswer is this: "We offer something for everyone."Facul;y members are pleased that their students getkvdbacic at an Important time in the writing process,when It really mattersbefore a grade ends the proc-ess. Faculty are also delighted to know they will not bereading last-minute efforts. And, of course, studentsare wise enough to know that, even though this doesnot guarantee success, it does help them write the bestpaper they are capable of writing.

John hollad ay, Instructor, Humanities & Social Sciences

For furthor information, contact the author at MonroeCounty Community College, 1555 South RaisinvilleRoad, Monroe, MI 48161.

Celebrate!Make your plans now to attend NISOD's

twelfth annual international Conference onTeaching Excellence and Conference of Ad-ministrators, May 20-23, 1990, in Austin,Texas.

This NISOD conference will feature five pre-conference sessions and over 100 MasterTeacher workshops, highlighted by keynotepresentations. Sessions will focus on innova-tions in staff and faculty development, instruc-tional strategies, new technologies, and reten-tion.

Administrators' sessions on Monday andTuesday will focus on contemporary leadershipissues, such as managing change, partner-ships, institutional culture and climate, profes-sional development rewards and incentives,and institutional effectiveness measures.

General sessions will be held at the HyattRegency and Four Seasons hotels; the Confer-ence of Administrators will be held at the FourSeasons.

For further information, contact Dr. SuanneD. Roueche, Director, NISOD, at the addressat the bottom of this page.

vava VAVAVAVAVAVAVSVAVA

Suanne D. Roueche, EditorMIir,

January 26, 1990, Vol. XII, No. 2©The University of Texas at Austin. 1990Further duplication is permitted by MEMBERinstiaions for their own personnel

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS is a publication of the Nabonal kIstitute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD).EDB 348, The Universiry of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, (512) 471-7545 Sutecnpbons are available to nonconsorbum members for $40 per year Funding in part by The W. K. Kellogg Foundation and Ole Sid W Richardain FoundabonIssued weekly when dames are i n session dunng lab end spray terms and once dunng the summer ISSN 01981(6X

I )


* INNOVATION ABSTRACTS

Promoting Creativity for Student-Directed Learning

Faced with the opportunity of teaching a literaturesurvey course that spanned readings from the OldTestament through Shakespeare, I realized that cover-ing that material in a swiftly moving, six-week sessioncould prove to be a daunting experience for both in-structor and students. So I began mapping out a coursethat would rely heavily upon students taking charge oftheir own learning, that would be self-Intensive, andthat would allow the students some creativity options.I also realized that the course must not "burn out"studeras but, rather, must be a spur to future reading.

First I needed a broad overview; I settled on NormanStemaker and M Robert Bell's experiential taxonomy,using its sequence of steps: eyposure, participation,identification, internalization and dissemination.

The exposure as an overview, came the first daywhen I introduced the syllabus. Subsequent exposureswere enacted when I set up each of the three units;briefer exposure occurred when I set up each author.

The participation would take the form of small groupwork which allowed students to both examine an issueand to begin developing a trust and rapport with eachotheranother essential for this class.

Using critical guiddines that I introduced both earlyin the sessions and periodically throughout the read-ings, the students began to use the critical strategies toevaluate the literature and then to personalize thoseevaluations by drawing comparisons to current society.

These comparisons helped them to internalize the lit-erature and began the process of making their motiva-tion more intrinsic than extrinsic.

Finally, the process of dissemination would manifestitself in class discussims, papers, quizzes, and a craftoption The experiential taxonomy represented theoverview; now I had to develop the concrete particu-lars.

Each unit of the course was precisely laid out (al-though we later had to review the plan to accommodateextended discussions) The first unit would coversamplings of Biblical pieces, I tomer, Aeschylus, Euripi-des, Plat ), Aristotle, Virgil, Petronius, and AuguAine.The second unit would lead us through "Song ofRoland and Dante The third unit would contain

Erasmus, Castiglione, Cervantes, and Shakespeare. TheNorton Anthology of World Masterpieces, Vol. I, wouldserve as our text. I then added such details as a mid-term, a final exam, weekly quizzes, and a component inwhich each student would lead the discussion for 20minutes (discussions pertaining to the literature in thesecond half of the course).

The Critical ComponentI recognized, as well, that these students would be

excited about different readings, and I knew I needed away to "tap" into that excitement. I decided that acrafts component would be able to do that. In thesyllabus, then, each student would read a short criticalpaper, due early in the course. Instead of a secondcritical paper, due at course end, a student could opt tocreate some project. Those adept at writing might wantto dr3ft a satire or tell a s.ory using the same style as awriter we had discussed. Others might want to draw,paint, sculpt, build, knit, or videotape. Others mightwant to use music in some manner to add depth to areading. The students were free to interpret in anymedium they selected, so 'ong as they chose a readingfrom the text.

I felt the crafts component would intensify astudent's reading. Each student would become awareof the overview ef each text in the class; but each wouldthen undertake a more studied, interpretative approachto specific passagesand that more studied approachwould serve to highlight the entire text.

The interpretative component created much discus-sion out of class. Students congiTgated in the studentlounge to discuss projects, to share impressions ofpassages and entire pieces. As a result, this discussionout of class inspired the in-class discussion. Studentsbegan using the text to sapport their interpretations,which were studied not from just a reader's point oiview, but from a creator'sor at least, a re-creatoi 's.The dissemination process, spurred by a chance tocreate, evidenced itself in several areas. Class testscores rose 23%. Normally quiet students beganparticipating in all class discussions. The excitement ofthe students was carried into the halls after class.

;.-.--, THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD),t,C) Community College Leadership Program, The University a Texas at Austin

-- EDO 348, Austin, Texas 78712

7

At the final regular class meeting, each studentintroduced his or her project, explaining how thc proj-ect was conceived and brought to completion. Studenttime spent on making the projects averaged between 18and 20 hours, time which does not take into accountthe conceiving of the idea, the re-reading of passages,the additional research, and the gathering of materials.

Projects included a replica of the shield of Aeneas;an original music score combining a synthesizer,trumpet, and piano for a Biblical psalm; a cross-sti;ched banner interpreting elements of the Creation;two paintings illustrating the battle between Achilksand Hector and the death of Hector; an original poemthat underscored the importance of dreams or dream-like visions within the scope of the course; a poster de-picting and naming each piece in a full suit of armor; across-stitchery piece set within a handmade frame; anda watercolor set within a two-level matting.

These projects were then exhibited in the college'slibrary and were appropriately tagged and titled. Thelocal television station videotaped the exhibits a weeklater, using the music score as background for thereport.

EvaluationThe success of this course, focused as it was on

dissemination and creativity, was brought home to methrough a conversation I had with a student's mother.

She related that her son had never been much of areader before the course but had begun to be a vora-cious reader of both primary and secondary texts.

What I learned from those course performances andsubsequent post-course interviews was invaluable.Instructors may be surprised by the amount of intrinsicmotivation generated when a course allows studentsfreedom to research, create, and disseminate. Studentsfeel more in charge of their own learning and feelcomfortable with a format that allows them the oppor-tunity to "show off" that learning in a creative fashion.

Instructors may want to determine in what waysthey can make their classes more student-dissemina-tion-oriented rather than lecturer-based. Small groups,student-led discussions, and open-ended optionssuch as the crafts optionwill produce more studentswilling to explore and to create. Classes will move at afaster, more enlightening pace. Discussions willbecome more intensive, more reflective, and moreencompassing. As well, test scores will reflect studentsuccess. A dissemination-oriented claso also enlivensthe instructor!

Ron Reed, Instructor, English

For further information, contact the author at HazardCommunity College, Highway 15 South, One Commu-nity College Drive, Hazard, KY 41701-2402.

Dear Reader,If you're a regular reader of Innovation Abstracts, you're

probably also familiar with Linkages, another publicationproduced by the National Institute for Staff and Organiza-tional Development (NISOD).

Linkages is a quarterly newsletter, designed to show-case the accomplishments of NISOD-member colleges.Material is drawn from original written pieces, as well asfrom news releases and other publications from NISODmembers, non-member colleges and universities, andrelated organizations. Copies are sent in bulk to eachmember college; individual copias are mailed to ourspecial subscribers.

The broad coverage of topics and concise format pro-vide readers with a wealth of strategies to effectively meetthe daily demands of higher education. Past issues havefocused on such topics as articulation, business partner-ships, community outreach efforts, enabling the disabled,international issues, basic education, minority concerns,older student programs, recruitment, rural issues, staff de-

velopment, technical programs, wellness, and women'sprograms. New topics are regularly added as fresh con-cerns come to the forefront.

We invite you to send brief items of approximately 50-100 words describing the important issues on your cam-pus and ways in which your institution is responding tothose concerns. Although our format does not allowspace for extended pieces and bylinesas are publishedin Innovation Abstractswe will include the name andtelephone number of a contact following each item.

We also welcome profiles of faculty, staff, or adminis-trators who exemplify excellence on your campusboththe widely celebrated and the unsung hero.

Most of all, we want to convey the energy that sparksinnovative responses to your institution's unique chal-lenges

We look forward to hearing from you soont

Susan BurnesonAssociate Director, NISODEditor, Linkages

&ann. 0. Roueche, Editor

Febnery 2,1990, VoL Xl, No. 3eThe Lftwersey of Texas at km, 1990Further duplicahon perrnmed IN MEMBERinstitutions for bed own personnel

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS is a publication of Me Naomi Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD),ED8 348, The Urwersiy of Texas at Austin. Austin, Texas 78712, (512) 4 71-7545 Subscripbons are available b nonconsoibum members for $40 per year Fundrng w, part b y the W K Kellogg Foundabon and he &d W Richardson FoundationIssued weeky when classes ale n session dunng fall and spring terms and oncs dunng the summer. ISSN 0199-106X


)11 INNOVATION ABSTRACTS

Seeking Excellence? Ask the StaffAn Update

In an earlier Innovation Abstracts it was reported thatthe office personnel at Schoolcraft College had created aunique staff development program in which they metand shared ideas and made recommendations for theimprovement of the college. Most of the recommenda-tions were not about what others should do for thembut about what they wanted to do for themselves. Thoserecommendations included: the development of anonentation program for new clerical employees, com-plete with a buddy system; the establishment of a iobexchange program that would help them better under-s:and the interrelationships of people and responsibili-ties of various offices; the development of a recognitionsystem for clerical employees; and the development of apad of college maps, helpful for locating classrooms andoffices on campus. All of these recommendations wereimplemented at the college.

Soon afterward, a new group of staff members wereselected and met to inject new ideas into the program.The program was divided into six different issues, witha subcommittee for each. Each subcommittee was givenan animal name that identified it with its specificemphasis. For example:

Dolphin"Communication and Learning toExpress Yourself Well"

Eagle"Hints to Help Employees Soar High inJob Performance"

Each subcommittee met periodically and discussedideas relevant to its focus. The most outstanding ideaswere sec. oack to the coordinating committee, whichhad continued to provide overall planning and coordi-nation for the program. The coordinating committeethen reviewed these ideas and forwarded them to theirrespective areas of responsibility. Some of the recom-mendations that were implemented include:1. conducting workshops on telephone etiquette and

speaking before groups;2. creating special sections of computer classes for

college employees at convenient times;3. creating a "Did You Know?" tablet sent to each office

for the convenience of writing a message orannouncement;

4. creating an incentive program for perfect attendance

(Each employee is given a specific number of sickdays and personal use days. The subcommitteesuggested a reward, such as tickets to a collegedinner dance or dinner theater, for those whose dayswere kept to a minimum or not used at all.);

5. developing an office assistance program where helpcan be provided to various college offices duringpeak periods;

6. distributing information about the college's newtelephone system, including the direct dialingnumbers of the staff;

7. developing a physical fitness program that includesswimming, exercise, and a golf league.Some of the recommendations currently under

development include:1. the improvement of recorded messages on the

telephone systemto be more helpful to the publicand students who are trying to register for classes;

2. the creat'on of computer schedulingto make itpossible for secretaries to access appointments andvacations when setting up meetings.The program at our college provides opportunities

for the office staff to become involved in defining andparticipating in the improvement of their iob situations.It encourages, and even demands, open communicationbetween work groups and supervisors. It earns theemployees new respect and recognition for theircreative ideas. It has evet, helped them develop trust inthe leadership of the college, because their suggestionsare heard and implemented. As a result, the college isbenefiting by the improvement of the quality of thework performed, and the individual is working in a pbthat has become more personally satisfying and pro-vides opportunities for growth. In our quest for excel-lence, we still ask our staffour most valuable re-source.

Richard W. McDowell, PresidentDebbie iiarju, Chairperson, Coordinating Committee

For further information, contact the authors atSchoolcraft College, 18600 Haggerty Road, Livonia, MI48152-26%.

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (IVISOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinEDB 348, Austin, Texas 78712

9

Making Sense of Babel

Striking epithets like "Dumbbell English" and"Bonehead English" indicate in a colorful, even eupho-nious way some our students' preconceptions aboutour first-level developmental English course, English101. They also prepare those of us who teach it toexpect from some students an occasional measure ofsullenness, if not actual resistance or hostility. How-ever, they don't prepare us for all the student attitudeswe discover in this course, which, perhaps to a greaterextent than any other on our campus, attracts a largemix of linguistic heritages.

Non-native speakers, especially in an English class,often feel a kind ot academic isolation, an isolationcommonly manifested in their natural tendency to sitor' with others of like background. This academicisoLation is not surprising, nor are its causes elusive;however, effective methods of mitigating this isolationare elusive.

Because of several years of graduate work in lingu,s-tics, I have identified a way of making these non-nativespeakers feel more at home in my classes. These days Ican conjure up bits and pieces, oddments and orts,from just about any language. Armed with theselinguistic scraps, I set out to legitimize the nativelanguages of those in my class who are tackling Englishas their second, third, ...nth language.

Because Spanish is always well represented in anEnglish 101 class, I make use of many contrastiveexamples right away. For instance, when I deal withsubject/verb agreement problems, 1 contrast the simpleEnglish choices of speak and speaks with the morechallenging and interesting Spanish choices: habla,hablas, habla, hablamas, hablais, hablan. The Spanishspeakers in the class eagerly volunteer to provide theSpanish versions. They are both surprised and pleasedto realize that in this case, at least, they have mastereda paradigm far more complex then the English examplepresents.

All this has a salutary effect on the native speakers.Most have the impression that Spanish is an easylanguage (compare the number of Spanish classes weoffer to those in French, German, and Latin). I pur-posely choose data that will counter-exemplify thisnotion so that Spanish will become a more "worthy"langeage in their linguistically naive minds.

If many English speakers think of Spanish as an easylanguage, just as many think of Vietnamese as animpossibly difficult one. Interestingly, Vietnamese

students are more eager than Hispanics to see theirlanguage writtcn on the board to illustrate a pointabout English; they usually want to take the chalk frommy hand to add the correct diacritics to my scrawl. Ilet them. Here is one example I use:

Toi gap nhan-acI see villain

Toi da gap nhan-ac1 saw villain

Toi se gap nhan-acI will sm villain

The result for native English speakers is that Viet-namese is demystified a little bit and becomes areal language.

When my native English speakers complain aboutconfusing plurals, I'll ask an Arabic speaker to show ushow plural infixes work in her language: kitab, book;kutub, books. As she proudly goes on to give examplesot the complex system of articles in Arabic, the Englishspeakers sigh with relief and with new respect forArabic.

My Japanese students will show us how the verbalways comes last in their sentences, prompting morethan one native English speaker to scratch his head andmutter, "But that doesn't make any sense." A fewyears ago I had a Native American student who knew a

few words of Luiseño, enough to show the rest of ushow a whole bunch of participles are piled up ontoLuiseho verbs. And just this semester a young womanfrom Kenya showed us how the verb in Swahili mustcarry semantic class agreement markers for all theprimary nouns in the sentence.

Exploring these other languages in an academicsetting in the dominant culture validates them andtheir speakers, as well. They are pleased to be includedin this intimate way, for language-sharing is indeedintimacy. The English speakers profit just as much,maybe more; they learn not only that English isn't thathard, but that it isn't even that special.

As for me, I suppose I did not have to study linguis-tics in order to do this stuff. It just worked out thatway. I have more fun teaching now, and I do it better!

I, too, enjoy the intimacy.

Jack Quintero, Instructor, English

For further information, contact the author at PalomarCollege, 1140 West Mission Road, San Marcos, CA92069-1487.

Suanne D. Rouache, Editor

February 9,1990, Vol. XI, No. 4OThe University of Texas at Austin, 1990Further duplication is permitted by MEMBERinstitutions tor their own personnel

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS is a publocabon of the Nabonal Institute fa Staff and Organizational Developmem (NISOD),ED8 348, The Un:versity of Texas at 4usbn, Ausbn, Texas 78712, (512) 471.7545 Subscnptions are available to nonconsor-bum members kite° per year Funding in part by the W K Kellogg Foundabon and the Sid W Richardson FoundationIssued weekly when classes are in session dunng faN and spring terms and once dunng the summer ISSN 0199-106X

t)


INNOVATION ABSTRACTSPLaiSHED BY 7-E A.,17--)A,4,_ AST TE L'a EL ,_-)0,fi_Nr, Tk.,±7 ,

TH SUPPORT FROM Ti-E W E..LLOGC.; i-,',VHARL'SON,FOLADATIL)Ni

4"4

Sail Training at North Shore Community College

Sail Training is the utilization of the sea and sailboatto enhance the learning of specific content. Sail Train-ing has been used for centuries to help build characterand leadership skills. In Europe, especially GreatBritain, Sail Training has been built into corporations asa national aspect of management training. Taking acontent course out of a classroom and putting it on thewater adds a dimension of personal integration andperformance-based learning to the course content. Sai'Training demands that students participate in theirlearning with both their minds and their bodies withinthe sea-bound environment

In the United States we have utilized sailing vesselsfor educational school experiences lasting from threeweeks to one semester to one year. At North ShoreCommunity College our major objective has been self-development through the use of sail and curriculacontent. Landman( School presently teaches literacyskills to its students. There is a semester-aboardprogram sponsored by a consortium of universitieswhich allows students to take 15 credits. There is also avessel operated out of Connecticut, Vision Quest,specifically for juvenile offenders; It has an 80% successrecord. Major universities have taught history, litera-ture and music while on a sailing vessel.

The Europeans use sail vessel training differentlythan do Americans. In Europe, especially England, SailTraining is a part of management training programs.Most European business executives spend a week ormore aboard a sailing vessel as trainee apprentices. TheBritish have built a new vessel, The Lord Nelson, which isspecifically equipped for handicapped participants.

"Although the shipboard setting is an uncommon'classroom,' Sail Training holds to the common purposeof all education, to develop knowledge, skills, andattitudes Sail Training enhances general education,fosters manne education, and reinforces learning fromthe sea experience.

"In Sail Training, the ends and the means are inextri-cably bound together and require participation in'

the interdependence of shipboard living,instruction and practical experience in sailing,---on-the-water experience with the world of water."

The North Shore of Massachusetts is rich in marineheritage, and the College's Lynn Campus is ideallysituated with access to the sea. In 1986, North ShoreCommunity College was offered the unique opportu-nity to develop educational programming utilizing thesixty-foot ketch, Pride of Lyn, which is managed by alocal non-profit foundation. The vessel has a full-timecaptain and crew, state-of-the-art navigational equip-ment, and complete audio and video recording systems.The boat's large, enclosable center cockpit, spaciousdecks, and comfortable main salon offer a variety ofsettings for small group meetings, as well as amplespace for individuals to be by themselves. There aresleeping accommodations for six to eight passengers inthree private cabins, in addition to separate quarters forthe crew.

One of North Shore Community College's efforts toutilize this unique resource has been the presentation offour one-credit courses offercd through the College'sDivision of Human Services in conjunction with theCollege Counseling Center. The courses have beenconducted over weekends in September, 1987 and 1988,with crew, Instructor, and four to six students sharing alive-aboard experience from Friday evening throughSunday. Each course has addressed one of severalpersonal growth content areas: stress management,deasion-making, and assertiveness training.

Enrollment in the courses has been open to thegeneral student body although, interestingly, nearly allof the students participating have had very little or noprior boating or sailing experience.

The actual coursework has been conducted withvarying degrees of structure, depending upon theinstructor, the student group, and, of course, theweather. In genera', most Instruction periods have beenheld at anchor in the mornings and evenings, theafternoons being reserved for sailing. But, in fact, classis always "in session." This has been cspecially appar-ent on Saturday evenings at anchor off a local uninhab-ited island. After 24 hours aboard the boat, most of thestudents appreciate th- chance to go ashore. On landthe students initially react to the open space and to thesense of freedom it allows. The group stays together,

"THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATICNAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinEDB 348, Austin, i exas 78712

11

however, as it explores the island. Conversations tendto focus on the events of the past day. The walk on theisland becomes a means of providing perspective forthe experiences shared aboard the boat, and the senseof "group" is strengthened.

The group affiliation which develops in the courseshas been a dramatic asset. In conjunction with theenvironmental challenges encountered by each stu-dent, instructors have been able to take a very activeapproach to students' learning. All aspects of thecourse experience can be maximized, both in thepresentation of subject matter and in the facilitation ofpersonal growth and increased self-awareness in eachparticipant.

The courses were conceived and designed as totalliving/learning experiences. Decisions ranging fromchoosing cabin mates to scheduling formal classmeetings weie made by the group, with the crew asactive participants in most aspects of on-board life,including some class sessions. As such, actual coursecontent was expanded to address much more than thespecific subject area. Each participant found himself orherself challenged by an unfamiliar, and sometimesuncomfortable, environmentwhere one's usualcoping and problem-solving skills often did notapplyshared in very close proximity with a group ofstrangers, with limited privacy and no easy means ofescape. This environment makes necessary the coop-eration, understanding, and establishment of sharedgoals and values. It requires that a group of strangersquickly develop communica6on skills, trust in oneanother, and gain knowledge of members' individualstrengths and limitations.

We have been fortunate to work with a captain andcrew who believe in the value of such an educationalexperience. They have been eager to participate andare skillful in helping students adapt to the manydifferences in space, time, and motion inherent in dailyliving aboard a boat. They have been readily availableto answer questions and introduce students to sailing.

Tom Gerecke, CounselorTom Wisbey, Chair, Human ServiaN

For further information, contact the authors at NorthShore Community College, 3 Essex Street, Beverly, MA01915.

4. 4. 4. + 4.

Editor's Note to All InnovationAbstracts Readers:

Consider writing an Innovation Abstracts!Descriptions of program $ and teaching/learn-ing strategies are welcome at the NISOD office.

If you have an idea for an article and wish todiscuss it prior to submission, just give me acall. But I encourage all potential authors tosubmit their practices in either a 3-4 pageformat (for a one-page Innovation Abstracts) or7-8 page format (for a double-sided InnovationAbstracts).

Past issues of Innovation Abstracts are yourbest models. Diversity and practicality are ourmost important criteria ror selecting and pub-lishing articles as Innovation Abstracts.

Send articles to me at the address includedat the bottom of this page We are proud of ourpublicationwritten by practitionersfor prac-titioners. Please seriously consider a submis-sion now!

4- 4. 4. 4. 1.

&Janne D. Roueche, Editor

Fbruary 16, 1990, vol. 4 No. 5©The University of Texas at Ausbn, 1990Further duplication is permined ty MEMBERinstitutions for their own personnel

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS a a puhlicaeon of the National Institute kx Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD),EDB 348, The Urwqrstry of Texas at Austin, Ausbn, Texas 78712, (512) 471-7545 Subscnpbors are amiable to nonconsorbum members for $40 pe r yea. Funding in pan by the W K Kellogg Foundabon and he Sic I W. Rchardson FoundationIssued weekly when classes we in wawa during MI and scam tem and once dunng the summer ISSN 0199-1 CoX

1 2

lERVOLUME XII NUM

terst INNOVATION ABSTRACTS

iTeaching Learning Project--Fun for Student and Educator!

Integration of writing skills, cntical thinking, concep-tual learning, and concurrent theory and practice are ofparamount concern across our campuses. As a collegeprofessor, I have witnessed a steady decline in theability of my students to think critically, write expres-sively, and learn conceptually. This is a corLern sharedby our curriculum theorists. as well as by the research-ers who suggest that writing is a critical component inall disciplines.

Of equal importance is keeping our sanity as profes-sors and not inundating ourselves with mountains ofpaperwork. When we have classes of over 30 studentseach, multiple ::hoice exams are espect ily attractive.

But we wanted to encourage more writing. There-,ore, we developed a teaching/12arning project thatrequired more writing, but that limited writing assign-ments to one page each!

The teaching/learning project model presented hereis for nursing students in a smior medical/surgicalcourse, but It can be adapted to any discipline.

Criteria for Teaching/Learning Proje1 Content Accuracy (30%)

It is imperative that ttw information the student isdisseminating to clients or professionals be accurate.The content should 'oe relevant to the subject matterof the course. For example, in the senior medical/surgical course, the student can pick self-breastexam, testicular exam, colostomy care, or a specificmedication related to the course content for his/herwriting assignment.

2. Content Clarity and Appropnateness forClient Readirgi Level (20%)The atudent must design the project ' a specificaudience. If the student is preparing a teaching/learning project for a client, terminology should be inlay terms. If the project is designed for others in thefield, professional terminology is more appropnate.

3. Appearance (15%)Included in this category is neatness, spelling,grammar, and sentence structure. If students in anydiscipline want to be seen as professionals, they mustbe able to communicate with dieir clients and other

professionals. Also included is the one-page limit.While initially this may seem like an easy task forstudents, they soon discover it is very difficult toeffectively communicate in a one-page format.

4. Creativity (10%): encourage students to be creative and "do theirthing." Students have designed pamphlets andboard games, and they have demonstrated tremen-dous artistic ability. Several of my students havesent their projects to professional journals for publi-cation.

5. Evaluation of Teactikgi (15%)Students should understand that because they havebeen taught does not mean that they have learned!They must, therefore, know how to evaluate theeffectr..eness cf their own teaching. On a separatesheet of paper they are to include:a) Teacher goal statement (i.e., to teach a client to do

a self-breast examination)b) Resource materials used (i.e., AV material, printed

handouts, models, pamphlets)c) Techniques utilized in teaching (i.e., demonstra-

tion/return demonstration, lecture, discussion,role-playing, question-answer period)

d) Evaluation of teaching (i.e., client outcomes,specific and written in measuraole terms)

6. Bibliography (10%)Students must learn to seek information from avariety of sources. They are to include, on a separatesheet of paper, a bibliography of no less than threesources which they have consulted (from the projecttextbooks or professional journals). Bibliographiesshould follow an approved reference style.The teaching/learning project fosters creativity anci

puts fun into learning. It alco allows instructors to bethemselves, as well!

Claire Ligeikis, Associate Professor, Nursing

For further information, contact the author at BroomeCommunity College, Box 1017, Binghamton, NY 13902

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinEDB 348, Austin, Texas 78712

13

Essay Tests II

Because we wanted to enhance stucl,mts' potentialfor success in writing across the curriculum, we de-signed an outline that described how to write essaytests (see Innovation Abstracts, Vol. IX, No. 25). Stu-dents struggling with the writing experience convincedus that they should be more involved in selectingcontent about which they were required to write.

While the students were able to define, describe, andgive eamples from text and lecture material, theoN,erwhelming evidence was that students havedifficulty integrating, synthesizing, or developingunique ideas about the concepts. As the result ot in-depth irterviews with students and developmentaleducation faculty in English and speech, it was deter-mined that students have difficulty expressing them-selves without "ownership" of the material. STU-DENTS WRITE AND SPEAK BETTER WHEN THEYWRITE AND SPEAK ABOUT SOMETHING THEYREALLY KNOW.

Thus, a variety of approaches a student test-takinghas been initiated, with the express purpose of givingstudents more control over the material. The use andrelative Juccess of each method appear to be dependentupon several factors:

I the relative writing ability as determined froma wnting sample, collected at the beginning ofthe quarter;

2 the relative complexity of the concepts; and3 the synergy of the class members' interaction.

All questions are distributed to the students at leasta week before the test. Depending upon the content,the questions may be distributed at the beginning ofthe learning unit as "study guides." The methods ofessay testing which appear to provide ownershipinclude:

I students selecting questions at test time from apre-selected list,

2 students selecting questions 1:efore the testingdate from a pre-selected list of questions,

3. individual students generating their own pes-tions,

4. groups generating their own questions,5. some combination of #3 and #4,6. students weighing value of questions/anwers

(each student decides how much of his/her

test grade he/she wants particular questions toaffect).

With each of these methods, I have adopted avariety of "open note" testing procedures. Again, theapproach depends upon writing alYiity, complexity ofconcepts, and synergy of the class. These include:

1. a 3x5 card for all questions,2. a 3x5 card for each question,3. a one-page note sheet for all (selected) ques-

tions.

The notes that students bring with them to the testfurther enhance their sense of control, and the simpleprocess of mducing content to notes appears to helpmost students write better.

Different combinations are worth a try, and (perishthe thought) students might even be asked to select themethod(s) they feel helps them learn best.

Jerry Clavner, Professor, Social Scienct

For further information, contact the author at Cuya-hoga Community College, 9 250 Richmond Road,Warrensville Township, OF 44122-6195.

Susanne D. Roues* Editor

February 13,19K Vol. )04 No.©The univweity Tees at Austin, 1990Further duple:than pffeetted IN MEMBERwtsteueons for tsew on parwnnel

INVOVATOON ABSTRACIS s a pubkation ell the Naomi Imbue kw Staff and Organizatoa Development (NISOD),EDB 34 The amyl* ol Teta at Ausbn, Ausbn, Texas 78712, (512) 471-7545 Subscriptions we wadable k) nonconsa-bum manbers kw $40 pet year. Reding n pan by the W. K Moo Foundation and he Sid W. Richardson FoundatonIssued weekk when dosses we mansion dunng tat and swing terms and once dunng the stoma ISSN 0199-106X

14


tt INNOVATION ABSTRACTS4 ' ,)%4.

. r4z1 P 06,-; r .,

Why Not Team-Testing?

The current wave of management theory in businessis built around the team concept. Not just any oldteamwork concept, not just participative management,not just quality circles, but teamwork in the very broad-est sensemuch like the Japanese view of total teamorientation.

Contrary to popular belief, the Japanese approach toteamwork is not a cultural or inherent one. It is not, asmany people think, an original notion of the Japanese.It is an adaptation of an American ideathat's light,American. The man who gets the credit in Japan is Dr.W Edwards Deming. It was he who, just after WorldWar II, got the Japanese system started down the roadto the standard they now enjoy.

The Deming process employs quality as the drivingforce behind everything in business/Industry. The ideaof quality permeates the team effort; the team effortincludes all persons associated with the businessi.e.,management, engineenng, production, support staff,vendors, and customers.

One of the most obvious examples of the results ofthis type of teamwork in American industry today is theMotorola Company, a rianufacturer of electronicproducts and components. Everyone who can beInvolved to any degree in the production of theirproducts is Involved. The result, according to Motorola,is that by 1992 they will have only 3.4 defects per1,()00,000 products or customer servicesin otherwords, insignificant degects. They are serious aboutqualityquality in the Deming sense of the word.

What does this have to do with education? Thepurpose of testing has long been to measure results ofstudent mrning. Testing also serves as additional time-on-task and is, therefore, a learning tool. In this regard,It is not unlike other learning tools such as visual aids,class d issions, or outside reading assignments. Thetesting method discussed here helps to reduce testanxiety, stimulates cooperation and teamwork, andincreases students' sense of responsibility.

At our college, in the business management program,we have started to integrate the teamwork concept. Theprocess is creatir g dr.matic results.

It all started about two years ago with an idea fromour curriculum development specialist. In a coffee1-,reak conversation one day, the inspiration tumbled outof his mouth in the form of questionse.g., 'ThisDeming approach may have some implications for us.How could we install it? What could we do to get thestudents to work in more of a teamwork setting?" Thenit hit us. Why not let the students work ,eams whiletaking tests? Simple!

Whoa! Radical idea! What would other ins torssay? What would the students say? How would we setIt up? What sort of results would we expf Is itworth trying? Too radical? Who knows?

What followed in the ensuing semesters is having adefinite effect. It works! Not only that, it works in away that the students take to like "ducks to water." It'sa motivator. It's a go-getter. It's whatever you want tocall an idea that increases understanding, improvesretention, and raises test scores.

The process is simple r,o simple that it's been over-looked these many years. It goes like this:

At the beginning of each semester, the students areencouraged to form study teamsnot a new idea.About a week before a major examination, the studentstudy-teams are given study questions to reviewnot :2new idea. Then, on test day, the students are allowed totake the examination in teamsNEW IDEA (at least atour college)!

The most noticeable aspect of the process at thispoint is what happens when we (the iitstructors) walkinto the classroom on test day. There is a dull rearcoming down the hallway. We enter the room to findthe chairs rearrangcd into small circles, study questionsare being "cussed" and discussed, negotiations betweenmembers of teams are taking place, teams are negotiat-ing with other teams, highlighted book citations andnotes are rampant, and electric excitement fills the air.They can't wait to get at itlike hungry lions about tobe fed. (We've considered just throwing the test intothe room and then running away.)

On the serious side, having been a teacher for almostthree decades, it is fascinating to see the students in thisstate of mind when they are about to "get it socked to'ern" with a major examination.

Then we hand out the test. Each student gets a copy,


1 5

but only one from each g:oup will be turned in forgrading. That one copy must have on it the names ofall persons on the team. The same score will be givento all members. [It should be nointed out that studentsmay choose to take the exami:lation alone. This, infact, has happened, but for differing reasons. In onecase, the student felt as though he hadn't prepared wellenough and did not want to let the other members ofthe team down. In another case, the team did not havetime to get together prior to test time and did not feelthat it would be fair to team-test. Morals? Scruples?You bet!)

The results? No cheatingnot even an attempt.Why would you cheat when all you have to do is askanother ntember of the team what he or she thinks?Leadership comes forth. The democratic process setsin. Arbitration and decision-making run amuck.Consensus abounds. Problem solving is seen in its bestlight. The team members assume more responsibilityfor the material and are willing to "instruct" othermembers: in other words, teamwork.

We have not discovered any type of test item thatcannot be used on a team test. Average time spent ontesting increasesstudents spend more time andmake fewer carele errors.

When tests are returned and results are known,students are not willing to accept at face value theincorrect answers. They have reasons (sometimes verygood reasons) for answering questions in a certainmanner. They want to explain their reasoning, andthey want to understand why these reasons are incor-rect. They take ownership of the material and becomeinvolved with it to the end. This allows re-teaching totake place when the students are the most receptive toIt.

We have found that the process spills over to othercoursework in our department and to other depart-ments, as well. For example, this semec_;ter there :s agroup that meets every Monday, Wednesday, andFriday morning at 7:00 a.m. They have breakfasttogether and review for a variety of classes, dependingupon the group's needs for the day. The courses forwhich they prepare together include subjects outsidebtisiness management where team-tcsting is ni t used.They have discovered the benefit of teamwnrk.

But the best result is that student und.:rstanding andcomprehension improve; on the aveTagc, the testresults increase from 20 to 22 percent! The best sideeffects are that the students find out for themselves thatteamwork pays off, that every member of the teammust contribute to the effort, that the chances of

beating the odds go up, that camaraderie has a definiteplace in the educational system, and that studying isn'tso bad when you have someone to suffer with.

What's next? We don't know for sure, but we'retoying with the idea of team-projects--i.e., researchpapers, case studies, etc. We're also looking at a team-oriented approach to redesigning the structure of entireclasses, maybe even the Business Management pro-gram. Who knows? We may be onto something bighere. But, all in all, we feel reladvely sure that ourbusiness community will look at us from a differentperspective once the word gets uut.

Julia Briggs, Instructor, Business Management ProgramTilinnas 0. Harris, Instructor, Business ManagetaentProgram

For further information, contact the authors at Depart-ment of Business Technology, St. Philip's College, 2111Nevada, San Antonio, TX 78203.

Celebrate!A V LV LV A A Vt V A

NISOD invites you to its twelfth annual interna-tional Conference on Teaching Excellence andConference of Administrators, to be held inAustin on May 20-23, 1990.Major keynote speakers have been selected forthe broad range of experiences that they will bringto our participanis. They include:

K. Patricia Cross, Professor, University ofCalifornia at Berkeley, Califorr!a

Ronald J. Horvath, President, Jefferson Com-munity College, Kentucky

Robert H. McCabe, President, Miami-DadeCommunity Coliege, Florida

Special events at the conference will include:Mexican Buffet and Dancing to Texas Fever/

Monday, May 21San Antonio Trip/Tuesday, May 22

SEE YOU THERE!

/1\ AVX/A\ A A A A A A A AVI:\i/A\i":\AA

Susnne D. Rowels, Editor

March 2,1990, Vol. XII, No. 7OThe University of Texas at Austin. 1990Further duplication is permitted by MEMBERinst,tutions for their own personnel

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS is a publicabon of the National biota) for Staff and Organizational Develoyn int (WOO),EDB 348, The Univers :y exas at Ausbn, Austin, Texas 78712, (512) 4717545. Sutscnplions are avaiable to nonconsorbum members for $40 per year Funding in pan by the W K Kellogg Foundabon and he Sod W. Richardson Foundation.Issued weekly when dasses are in session dunng fall and spring terms and once dunng the summer ISSN 0199-106X

1


INNOVATION ABSTRACTS

Motivating the Unmotivated

Over the years, I've watched them collapse, fallinghard into the vinyl seats of the faculty lounge, heardthem grunt the "Oh, hell" and "damn" that came fromthe experience of working with students who wouldn'tlearn. I've listened to the long sighs of frustration andthen the discussic of the "fact" that students arelargely "unmotivated," unwilling slugs taking up theirtime and best performance.

And though I, too, have fallen into this occasional"locker room talk" about students, I find myself nowregretting my ignorance. Over the past few years, Ihave tried to take time to get to know my studentstotalk honestly with them about who they are and whatthey want from me, the institutions where I haveencountered them, and their education. They havetaught me a great deal. I no longer believe that theirmotivation is the real issue regarding the ways many ofthem perform or fail to perform in my classrooms.

Students have made it clear to me that they embodymany sources of frustration regarding the learningprocess before ever encounter them, frustrations thatarc difficult to set aside for 50 or 60 minutes at a time.And they carry in many problematic attitudes about thenature of learning. They come from diverse back-grounds. Some arrive immediately after graduationfrom high school, but many others come to mc afteryears of involvement in the work force.

In general, today's students are likely to be olderthan the stereotypical 18- or 19-year-old. They arehkely to be apprehensive about traditional classroomspaper and pencil work and "book learning"and theyare likely to perceive themselves as being outsiderswhen they consider the teacher's worldmy world.They are often uncomfortable with formality. They areoften lacking study skills. And they are often strug-gling to work iobs, raise families, deal with financialresponsibilities and limited funds, all while trying tobetter themselves by going to college.

If all that isn't enough, coming to college challengestheir social identity and shakes their confidence; manyof them come from worlds different from mine andhave been shaped by experiences far different from

what they face in college. When I think about all that isgoing on with them socially, psychologically, and eco-nomically, it is no surprise that many students do notsee my classes as the pivotal point of their existence.

Even knowing all the problems they carry with them,I always wanted to believe that my classes should besomething they cherished and to which they wouldgive themselves over. I wanted the best from students.If I could have had my way, they would have come tome as active learners, seeking assistance and insight atevery opportunity. They would have thrived onacademic challenge, and they would have challengedme to teach better than I have ever taught before. Theywould have questioned every aspect of their educationand sought an understanding of the "how's" and"why's" of the factors that touch their curious minds.

Oh, what a wonderful experience that wouldbe...but, let's face it, that's not what most students do.What a disappointment! How easy it is to blame them!And how easy it is to get frustrated...and how easy it isto fall into the belief that they are passive, uninvolved,apolitical airheads. How easy it is to assert that theysklun responsibility, that they never question anythingthat relieves them of responsibility, and that they oftendrag other students down with them by using theirsocial networks in the classroom to undermine thevalue of the lessons being presented to the potentially"good" students. How foolish I was to think I wouldnot have to teach them how to learn!

The fact isas I had to learn the hard wayclass-rooms don't have to be deadly, and students who seemunmotivated don't have to remain in be unmotiva .edstage for very long. Making a change required a greatdeal of soul-searching and rethinking on my part. And,most difficult to accept, it required that I accept some ofthe blame for what Ias a representative of the teach-ing professionhave been given in my students'responses to me.

I've learned that many of them don't know that theyhave the right to ask for anything other than what theyare given. For the most part, they are the products ofyears of experience in schools where they were essen-tially told to sit down, shut up, listen, and learnanexperience that taught them that the teacher is thesource of all knowledge and that learning is something

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinEDS 348, Austin, Texas 78712

1 7

magically injected into them at some point withouttheir awareness. Thcy rejmted that voodoo educaSonthen, and, I've learned, they will reject it again if I pushit, even though they struggle with the internal desire to"make it this time" in college.

Contrary to the occasional lounge talk I've heardand been part of, students are in college spending theirtime and money because they want to learn andbecause they want a better life for themselves.Granted, they often don't know how to acquire whatthey want or how to make themselves learn what ispresented to them. But, when asked for their opinions(often a new experience for many of them), theyexpress that there are instructional areas that they havestrong opinions about.

TWWWW

One of the most prominent comments fromstudents regarding what they want from thecollege experience involves individualizedinstruction. They all want to have their individ-ual needs met. They want to feel like they aremore than part of a crowd, that their individualtalents and abilities are respected and deemedworthy.

They want teachers who are real people, whorecognize them as human beingsteachers whocare about themnot just their test performance.

They want to be challenged, not decimated.

Thq want caretakers who check on them regu-larly, who support their individual learning, whoinform them individually of their progress, andwho assign a variety of tasks that give them theopportunity to learn in modes that fit theirindividual styles and that are designed to meettheir level of learning.

They like teachers who talk at their level, who canjoke and take a joke, and who let them talk andlearn with other students.

They like clear, complete explanations and con-crete examples, thorough (but brief) explanationsof difficult concepts, and opportunities to havetheir questions answered.

When I think about what students want, I know thatclasses that deliver the same old message of "sit down,shut up, and listen so that you can memorize facts todump onto a test sheet" probably are not going tomotivate them. It seems dear that stthients are notnecessarily unmotivated or unwilling learners; they aresimply uninvolved in the depersonalization of thetraditional classioom. They am willing to learn; theysimply may not be able to endure the way they aretaught. I now know that if I really want to see motiva-tion in my students, I have tn be motivated to rethinkwhat it is I am doing to them.

R-^ald W. Luce, Instructor, Communications

For further information, contact the author at HockingTechnical College, 3301 Hocking Parkway, Nelsonville,OH 45764-9704.

Celebrate!4 4A &.A A 40.A A A A A.

The final program for NISOD's interna-tional Conference on TeachingExcellence and Conference of Adminis-trators is complete.

Preliminary programstitles for individualsessions and major addresseswill bemailed this week.

Plan to attetid the celebration on May 20-23 in Austin!

A A ./MA\SI/MV ilo/\

&Ann D. Rancho, Editor

March 9,1990, Vol. fl No. aIDThe University of Tem at Austin, 1990Further duplication permitted by MEMBERinstitutions for twir own personnel.

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS s a publication of the Natonal Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (WOO),EDB 344 The Univers* of Texas at Austin, Amin, Tuas 78712 (512)471.7545. Subscriptions we available to noncom"-bum members fa $40 p e ryes. Funding in pen by the W. K Kellogg Foundation and theSid W. Thchardson Foundation.Issued weekly when classes are in season dunng fall and spring tams and once during the sunvner ssNolagra

I s


INNOVATION ABSTRACTSPUBLISHED BY THE NATIONAL INS7 /7 OTE FOR STA F E AND ORGAVAilTIONA1 DEW LOPMt NT, THE UNI14 I I Y Of. TEXAS AI .AusTrN

WITH SUPPORT FROM THE W. k KELLOGG FO7NDA HON AND THE SID W HICHARDSON FOUNDATION

Strategic Learning: The Role of Executive Control Processes

There has been a surge of interest in the acquisitionand use of learning strategies in the past decade. Ingeneral, learning strategies are any thoughts or behav-iors that facilitate studying and learning. Educationalpsychologists have learned a great deal about how tohelp students acquire these strategies but only now areinstructional models being developed that help stu-dents to develop a systematic approach to studying andlearning. A systematic approach to studying andlearning gives students the ability to initiate, imple-ment, and monitor their own learning in a strategicmanner. Strategic learners are able to act as problemsolvers who can custom-tailor their approach to fit withtheir own learning goals, the tasks' demands, thelearning context, their relevant prior knowledge, andtheir level of expertise.Executive Control

Executive control plays a key role in strategic learn--1g. It involves planning how to approach a learning

task or problem, selecting the strategies and methodsthat will be used, implementing the plan of action,monitoring its progress and success, and, if necessary,modifying the plan to more closely reach the goal.

The steps involved in executive control are not linear.Each step results from and feeds back into the othersteps. Consider, for example, a student who monitorsthe success of using a method such as underlining keypoints as she reads to acquire information from atechnical manual. After trying it for a while, sherealizes that underlining is not the most effectivemethod to use for information-dense text. This newawareness might lead her to reevaluate what she needs,or wants, to learn from reading the manual. She mayrealize that the purposes for reading a technical manualare not the same as for reading an introductory text-book. At this point, she could begin to explore otherstrategies that might help her.Components of Executive Control

Planning. The planning component involves usingstudy and learning goals as guides to determining theoverall approach that will be used to achieve thelearning objectives. The planning component also helps

students to determine both the personal and the sup-porting resources that they may need. Effective plan-ning requires that students think about a number ofvariables, such as: the nature of the learning task, thelevel of final performance they want to achieve, theirinterest in jy..rforming the task, their prior experiencewith similar tasks, the learning and study skills thatcould help with this type of task, etc.

SdectiLgi . Whereas planning helps students identifythe range of potential activities and resources that theycould use to reach their learning objectives, selecting isthe process by which students identify specific ap-proaches and methods that will be used. Selectiondecisions are constrained by the learner's goals and thelearning context. Selecting often involves making trade-offs and compromises in an attempt to develop a. _alistic solution. How important is this assignment?How much time is available? How good am I at thissubject? What is an acceptable performance level?

Implementing. Once students develop a plan thatincludes specific tactics for reaching the learning goals,they are ready to implement it. Critical variables forimplementation include: the learner's knowledge ofstudying and learning techniques, the karner's experi-ence with similar tasks, the learner's level of interestand motivation for reaching the learning goals, thelearner's attitude toward the learning task, and theamount of effort that the learner is willing to expend toachieve each goal. Implementing is not simply a matterof knowing what to do; learners must also want to do It.

Monitorkgi . Monitoring involves checking theimplementation on an ongoing, as well as a summative,basis to compare the outcomes of efforts to goals.Monitoring is the quality-control function in executivecontrol. When students monitor their implementationon an ongoing basis, they can determine if the methodsthey are using appear to be helping them reach theirgoals for a specific learning task. By using benchmarksalong the way, students can identify potential problemswhile still implementing their plans. Summativemonitcring at the end of a learning activity helpsstudents to determine if the appropriate overall level of


19

performance has been achieved.Modifying. Sometimes it is appropriate for students

to rnoclify their approach to a learning task. Modifica-tion can occur on an ongoing basis or after a summa-tive evaluation. Students usually become aware of theneed to modify their approach when they experiencesome triggering event. For example, a student mayhave difficulty paraphrasing a section of text, oranswering a review question for a test, or organizingthe information in his lecture notes. Each of theseevents is a signal that he has a studying or learningproblem. Whenever a problem is identified, modifyingalso involves analyzing the other components ofexecutive control to identify the component, or compo-nent:, that may need to be redefined.Instructional Applications

Increasing Academic Awareness. One way toencourage the development of executive control is byincreasing studens' awareness o, the factors thatinfluence academic performance. For example, at thebeginning of the semester instructors can explain theirteaching philosophy, their instructional approach, andthe nature of the tasks students will be expected toperform. Knowing about the instructor's expectationsand understanding the nature of the academic tasks ina course helps students to create a useful study plan.

In addition, instructors can help students by askingthem to be more explicit about their learning goals andincreasing their awareness of how their personalcharacteristics as students iinpact their academicperformance. Getting students to set specific goals fora course affects their motivation (they have somethingtangible for which to strive), persistence (they have anend point which marks completion), and effort (theyhave a measure of performance against which they cangauge their work).

Increasing Students' Understanding of AcademicTasks. Another way to foster the development ofexecutive control is to explicitly explain the characteris-tics of specific academic tasks and what is required toachieve them. Increased awareness of task characteris-tics enables students to set more specific and measur-able goals. The more information students have aboutthe objectives of the course, as well as the criteria onwhich they will be evaluated, the more they wifl beable to regulate their learning successfully. In addition,knowledge about academic tasks 13 needed to helpselect appropriate study and learning strategies. Forexample, instructors can help students prepare effec-tively for an exam by providing information about thespecific material that will be covered on the exam, the

Suanne D. Rowell*, Edkor

March 23, 1990, Vol X11, Po. 9eThe University of Texas tr. Auson, 1990Further &Oat= is permitted by MEMBERinstitutions for ihew own personnei

format of the exam, the type of questions that will beasked, and how much time students will have tocomplete it.

Increasing Students' Understanding of How ThsyLearn and Think. Another approach to helping stu-dents develop executive control is to focus on thevariety of strategies needed to be a successful learner.However, simple knowledge of which strategies areuseful is not enough. Students need to know how toimplement the strategies as well as when to implementthem. Therefore, instructors need to: 1) help studentsdevelop a repertoire of learning and thinking strate-gies; 2) instruct students in how to implement thesestrategies in the context of the students' personalcharacteristics (strengths and weaknesses) as learners,as well as the demands of the task; 3) provide opportu-nities for students to practice and receive feedbackabout their use of this knowledge; and 4) provideopportunities for students to practice and receivefeedback on when it is most appropriate to apply aparticular strategy. Finally, students need to beencouraged to give rationales for why they selected aparticular strategy, and weigh their choices againsttask requirements, their individual approaches, as wellas their learning and performance goals in the course.Enhancing Students' Executive Control

Effective executive control requires awareness ofacademic and personal characteristics, a knowledge ofwhat is required to successfully complete a variety ofacademic tasks, and a repertoire of learning andthinking strategies that can be used to accomplish ouracademic goals. Individual faculty members can helptheir students become strategic life-long learners byenhancing their knowledge and skills in each of theseareas through direct instruction and modelling. Inaddition, the development of a strategic approach tolearning and thinking requires extensive opportunitiesfor practice and feedback in a variety of academic andapplied content areas. Helping students to becomestrategic learners is not the responsibility of oneInstructor...it is one of the goals of a post-secondaryeducation, and it is a responsibility all of us must share.

Claire E. Weinstein, Professor, Educational PsychologyDebra K. Meyer, Gretchen Van Mater Stone, GraduateStudents, Educational Psychology

For further information, contact Dr. Weinstein at TheUniversity of Texas at Austin, EDB 352, Austin, TX78712.

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS is a publication of the Nabonal Insbtute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD),EDB 348, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, (512) 471-7545 Subscnottons are available to nonconsor-vum members kr $40 per year. Funding in part by the W K Kellogg Foundabon and be Sid W Richardson Foundako45sued weekly when classes are in sescion dunng 14CW spring terms and once during the summer ISSN 0199-1=

)

VOLUME XI, NUMBER 10


A Scrapbook of Relevance

Motivating Adult Basic Education (ABE) students toread on a regular basis and to develop skill in readingare constant challenges for instructors interested in thepromotion of functional literacy. One key to positivemotivation is the selection of instructional materialswntten at appropriate reading lEvels, with sufficientinterest to hold student attention and special relevanceto issues and challenges that students face daily.

Alberta Vocational Centre implemented a ten-weekprogram in which relevance of subject matter forwriting and reading would be given highest priority. Itwas designed to motivate students to read, to developvocabulary and word attack skills, and to increasegeneral knowledge.

The program followed the model of IndividualPro6ram Prescnption (IPP), used t. accessfully in specialeducation and gifted programs. Students were assignedthe task of selecting and developing a topic in whichthey would become expert. Each week the studentsgathered two or three pieces of information on theirtopic. They shared this information with the class,thereby increasing everyone's general knowledge.Ultimately, the goal was for each student to produce ascrapbook as a finished product.

Initially, the instructor helped students select a topic:tl) they were cautioned against choosing topics thatwere too broad or too narrow; (2) they were coachedabout ;nforrnation sources and information types; (3)they were provided with an orientation to the library;(4) they were encouraged to consider using specifically-named community resourcese.g., various governmentdepartments, newspaper morgues, police departments,and even travel agencu:, and (5) they were encouragedto be creative and divergent in their thinking. Xeroxingan article from an encyclopedia, taking clippings frommagazines and newspapers, paraphrasing longertechnical tracts, and writing drafts of stnictured inter-views were all considered fair game. The objective wasto gather information that could be organized andillustrated in scrapbook form.

Students were encouraged to collect informationduring the first three weeks of the program. Once anadequate amount of material had been collected,

students were instructed on appropriate organizingprinciples that they might use to structure their proj-ectse.g., chronological (historical), ca ,se (effect), leastto most, and general to specific. At this time studentsalso were advised of the criteria that would be used toevaluate their projectse.g., quantity of material,organization, and overall appearance.

Students researched a wide range of topics: AIDS,impaired drivers, Nepal, child abuse, the NationalHockey League, motor vehicle accidents, tornadoes,parent-finding, clothes design, phenomena in space,history of Hong Kong, Rottweiler dogs, and nativecultural ceremonies.

They used a broad range of research skills to com-plete their projects. One student discovered that theCity of Edmonton had a Rottweiler on the dog squad.As a result of her inquiry and expression of interest, shewas interviewed and photographed; these records ofher work were significant additions to her scrapbook.Another student used the word processor to assemblethe history of the National Hockey League, includingteam composition on a year-by-year basis. Still anotherstudent conducted structured interviews with adultswho had been sexually abused as children. (Some ofthese adults had volunteered their stories after theschool grapevine had indicated that she was workingon the topic.) One student researched the topic of"impaired driving." Having lost members of her familyin a motor vehicle accident caused by an impaireddriver, she was initially intolerant of the drivers.However, her project exposed her to information aboutalcohol and Alcoholics Anonymous; she came tounderstand that the issue was complex, involvingpreventative treatment and education.

Students reported that they were sharing information(networking), meeting new people, and talking aboutnew issues and topics over coffee.

Relevance is a critical issue in Adult Basic Education.It is prudent for us to listen and respond to the custom-ers of our servicethe students in our classrooms.

William Green, Research Officer

For further information, contact the author at AlbertaVocational Centre, Room 224, 10215 108 Street, Ed-monton, Alberta T5J 1L6, CANADA


21

Preparing for Biology Exams

Several of my former students have shared with mehow they successfully prepared for their exams Ishare these successful study methods, at the beginningof each semester, with my newest students.

I hope that you have already established a successfulmethod of study hi your previous classes. I also hopevou will quickly establish a new method of preparationif you have been dissatisfied with your performance ina science class or feel you will need a new method forthis class. [Note: If you have a method to add to thislist, please feel free to inform your instructor.]

1. Read over your class notes on a regular basis. Oncea day, seven days a week, spend time reading allnotes taken to date. [Variations: once a day, fivedays or three days a week]

2. Copy over your class notes on a regular basis. Aftereach class or before the next class, copy your classnotes. Make corrections on the notes and add anyinformation previously omitted. Recopy again asneeded.

3. Borrow the class notes from a classmate on aregular basis. Copy these notes and make compari-sons with your own. Make a new set of notes thatcombines the two. Recopy again as needed.

4. Record the lecture and play back the tape as ameans of review. Replay as needed. Make acomplete transcript of the taped lecture by which tostudy.

5. Read the textbook chapter(s) that cover(s) thelecture(s) before the material is presented in nelecture. Or read the textbook chapter(s) thatcover(s) the lecture topic(s) after the material ispresented in the lecture. Or read both before andafter the lecture.

6. Transfer your lecture notes to 3" x 5" cards. Eachcard represents a single topic or concept. Read overthe cards on a regular basisperhaps once a day.

7. Read the lecture notes aloud.

8. Explain the material to someone else.

9. Have som )ne read aloud the important words thatmust be defined and check your responses (defini-tion and example).

10. Make physical models that represent the conceptse.g., a model of an atom, compound, or cell. Make adrawing to represent the concepts.

11. Take the test objectives and check to make certainthe review material covers the test objectives.

While the methods varied, they all involved aregular time commitment outside of class and the reali-zation that course material should be understood, notjust memorized.

Lloyd L. Willis, Associate Professor, Biology

For further information, contact the a athor at PiedmontVirginia Community College, Route 6, Box 1-A,Charlottesville, VA 22901-8714.

Sumo a Roseate, Editor

March 24, 1N11, VoL XI, No. 10OP* University of Texas at Austin, 1989Further duplication i permitted by MEMBERinstitutions br thew own personnel

INNOVATION ABSTRA;TS s a pubhcabon of The National Institute tor Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD),EDB 348, The Univers* of Texas at Austin, Aunt), Texas 78712, (512) 471 7545 Subscnptions are available b nonconsorburn members kir po pm yew Funding sr, p w tby Ve W K Kellogg Foundabon and Me Si d W Rchardson FoundationIssued weekly when dams are in session dunng fall and spring terms and once dunng the summer ISSN 0199-106X

CN



Dumping the Plump

The 1989 "Dump Your Plump" contest, sponsored byLake Michigan College, featured teachers and studentsexercising to low-impact aerobic videotapes, teachersdoing daily 30-minute walks with their students, teamswalking the school hallways, teams doing aqua exer-cises or aerobic dance, teachers bringing healthy foodtreats to the teachers' lounge, teams posting theirexercise and weight loss progress, teams sendingdonuts )r chocolates to other teams before their weeklyweigh-ins, and team members sending their secret palsnotes of support or bouquets of flowers.

"Dump Your Plump," developed by thc physicaleducation department in 1986, is both a weight lossprogram and a wellness contest. Participants have theirblood chemistry analyzed, take a Health Risk Appraisal,have their body fat tested, have their diet analyzed bycomputer, attend a nutrition and cooking demonstra-tion, attend a lecture on exercise, and participate in awalking clinic.

In the 1989 contest (January 13-March 23), partici-pants Included 455 teachers, administrators, secretaries,and bus drivers, on 54 teams from 17 school districts.Of the 455 participants, 453 completed, and 263 (58%)exercised at least 45 out of the 50 days. All participantsweighed in on a weekly basis and attempted to incorpo-rate exercise into their lifestyles.

Participants receive an 80-page manual that providesinformation on the contest rules, weight goal guide-lines, nutrition information, and exercise guidelines. Ithelps participants chart their weight loss and aerobicactivity, learn how to set realistic weigH goals, eatnutritiously, and set up an exercise program.

A weekly newsletter is sent to each participant; sevento eight pages in length, it provides infor._ .ation on nu-trition and exercise (information from newspapers andhealth letters) and displays the current team standings.Captains conduct their weigh-ins on Fndays and thenprepare the newsletter for distribution.

This contest differs from most workplace weight losscontests: (1) because the contest is based upon promot-ing safe and gradual weight loss of one to two poundsper week, the individual can select a 0-20 pound goal(for 10 weeks) but cannot receive credit for losing more

than the weight goal; (2) because exercise is an essentialcomponent of weight loss, each individual must exer-cise aerobically for 30 minutes, five times per weekacritical component of the weight loss plan.

In the 1989 contest, the nine members of the HealthHounds and the seven members of the Fat WieniescoMbined to lose 313.5 pounds, each achieving a perfectscore of 6500 points (3,000 for exercise, 3,000 for weightloss, and 500 for submission of weekly weigh-ins); itwas the second year they tied for the championship.They were closely followed by the Central Slenderettes,Waist Management I and Waist Management II, SlenderGender B, Gutless Gages, and the Skinny Dippers. Thecaptain of the Fat Wienies attributed his team's successto the "team support and peer pressure" that developedduring the contest. The team held frequent meetingsand met on Fridays to remind each othet to "be goodover the weekend." The Fat Wienies are coaches orformer coaches, and are, admittedly, goal-oriented.

In addition to the satisfaction of losing weight andgetting in shape, the members of the two winning teamsin the 1989 contest received a two-month membershipat a local health club. Certificates of Accomplishmentand t-shirts were also awarded to all who achieved theirweight and exercise goals.

Asked what they liked best about the program,contestants made some of the following comments:"...(the program) brought together co-workers, helpingone another with their goals." "This was the first timethat our staff really pulled together and worked hard toencourage each other daily." "The support and encour-agement that the team members provided for eachother, along with the exercise, provided us time to getto know each other." "I liked the idea that 'we' as aschool worked together." "A group contest provides thediscipline and the desire to exercise and lose pounds."

As a result of the "Dump Your Plump" ! ;ogram,Lake Michigan College is earning a reputation forleadership in the promotion of wellness.

Don Alsbro, Instructor, Health and Physical Education

For further information, contact the author at LakeMichigan College, 2755 E. Napier, Benton Harbor, MI49022.

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAcF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)Community College Leadership Progre n, The University of Texas at AustinEDB 348, Austin, Texas 78712 2 3

How Are Things Going?

When do we leal a about how things am going forour students during the academic year? Usually welearn when we see the results of exams, homework,papers, and quizzes. We have discussions in class, andwe visit with students in the halls and in our officesgathering additional information about how things aregoing. At tie end of the year, we learn about howthings went when we read the student evaluations ofour courses.

While all this is very useful information, I decidedthat I wanted more student reactions and wanted thernon a regular basis. I was encouraged to try a newmethod of gathering this inforrnation when I heard ateacher say that she never knew how many of herstudents felt about the course until the final studentevaluations were submitted.

My first try at getting more information was verysimple: I asked. After the students had completed onefull week of classes, I asked each student to write twoor three sentences on how things had gone during thefirst week of classes at Piedrnont Virginia CommunityCollege (PVCC) and to sign his/her name to thecomrnents. This task was to be completed in a maxi-rnum of five rninutes, papers folded and passed to thefront of the roorn.

The directions given, I waited nervously for the first"Why are we doing this?" The question never came inany of my classes that day. The fact that I seemedinterested in knowing about their first week wasenough at this point.

Immediately after each class, I read the notes, whichtotaled about 100 by the end of the day and another 50by the time all classes had rnet. I was very happy toread the reactions to PVCC teachers and the college.Students were very positive about their first week ofexperiences. They talked about how they felt abouttheir classes and their teachers. They were eager toshare their experiences in writing, and several added"Thank you for asking" to their comments.

I asked again a week later, "How did your secondweek go at PVCC?" Aga;n they wrote positively, andrnany added an occasional question for rne concerningthe class. I answered the general questions at thebeginning of the next class and answered sorne forindividual students as I saw them outside of class. Thisprocedure was repeated with, "How did your thirdweek go at PVCC?" and then about every three or fourweeks with the general question, "How are things

going?" Sometime later I did get the "Why are youdoing this?" question (response: I arn interested")and the "Do you read all those notes?" question (re-sponse: "I always read the notes").

What did I learn? Most students did have q,lestionsabout the school, the lecture, the tests, and so on thatthey felt freer to ask in the privacy of a note. Moststudents had opinions about the school, the lecture, thetests, themselves, and so on that they felt freer toexpress in this way. Most students were willing toshare both the good news and bad news of college life.

At the end of the term on the evaluation form, Iasked the students to comrnent on this writing activ-itythe "How are things goingr notes that they wroteduring the academic year. Again, they were willing tocornment. Sorne cornments were:

"The notes were one of the nicest things about thecourse. They allowed rne to express frustrahonand share accomplishments with an instructorwho truly cares about his students.""The notes helped rne because he (the instructor)was aware of where I was in rny life.""I like the notes. They make rne think about rnyemotional outlook and even let me vent sornefrustration.""The notes were a new experience. I guess heread them all. I like the idea very rnuch.""The notes are nice; they show you care and areinterested."In surnrnary, the "How Are Things Going?"

notes, requested on a regular basis, have providedthe additional information I was seeking concern-ing student reactions to their college exper;cnces. Iencourage you to give this rnethod a try; then writeme about "H3w Things Are Going."

Lloyd L. Willis, Associate Professor, Biology

For further Information, contact the author atPiedmont Virginia Community College, Route 6,Box 1-A, Charlottesville, VA 22901-8714.

SummallouftheJaor

April 6, 1990, Vol. ri, No. 11

CM* University of Texas at Austin, 1990Further duphcation is permitted by MEMBERinstittaions for thew own personnel

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS 6 a pubbcalon of the National Institute for Staff and Organizabonal Development (WOO,EDB 348, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, (512)471-7545. Subscnpbons ate evadable to noncanswbum members for $40 per year. Funding In pan by the W K Kellogg Foundabon and he Ski W. Richardson FoundationIssued weekly when Glasses we in session during fat and spring terms and once during the summer ISSN 0199-106X



The ABCs of Student Goal Setting

Frequently, students have asked me to help themconstruct a career plan or even serve as a career mentor:.I am aware that career planning requires students to setclear, measurable, achievable goals; and foi manystudents, this would be a new experience. Hence, thetime required to provide this help could pose a majorlogistical problem.

With the amount of material to cover in classes thesedays, periods do not allow much creative time fordeveloping individual career plans. Class periods oradvisement time, 'if an hour or less, limit the amount oftime to complete a task as definitively creative andtypically unique as designing a set of career goals for astudent or even a class full el freshman businessstudentswhere career planning fits appropriately. (Itworks in other courses, too!)

Furthermore, the creative task of career planning caninduce paralysis on the part of a student who fearstailure or lacks self confidence. The less one knowsabout the future, the more one fears the goal settingactivity; the deeper the fear, the stronger the reluctanceto set goals. It's what I call Quentin's Condition. It canbe overcome by allowing everybody in the class to getinvolved!

While the idea of getting everyone involved simulta-neously appears unwieldy, I have found that applyingthe technique of ABC goal setting makes the activitypossible, even with an overcrowded schedule. Thoughthe process sounds euphemistically as simple as ABC, itrequires some preparation on the part of the instructorprior to class in case the Ciolfi Syndrome developsthat's where everybody in the class contracts Quentin'sCondition, and the instructor must initiate the ABCprocess by priming the pump with suggested careeralternatives.The Process

Usually a short discussion about job : in today'sexplosive service sector will serve as a catalyst to drivethe ABC pre,:ess. First, you might list a few service in-dustries and ask students to volunteer names/titles of"known" jobs. For instance, hospitality services,business and financial services, health services, social orgovernmental services, amusement and recreation

services, communication, transportation, and publicutilities arz areas where job growth exists. Havestudents avoid the Mc Job services. Those jobs custom-arily pay low at entry-level, and you want students tothink about a college education moving them beyondlow-paying, entry-level jobs. The students should nothave too much difficulty thinking of jobs, but comeprepared with the U.S. Department of Labor Dictionaryof Occupational Titles, just in case.

Next, ask the students to provide you with (1) ashort-range, two-year goal, and (2) a long-range, 10-year goal linked, preferably, but not necessarily, todeveloping a career. IThe goal statements should be..tade anonymously; more students are likely to re-spond.]

If you have tremble getting students to think of careergoals that appeal to them, try using career anchors or self-

concepts that guide people's careers and that providemeaningful, personal standards for career success.Edgar Schein (1978) specifies five career anchors: techni-cal competence, manager:al skills Tequiring analysisand interpersonal relations, long-term job security,autonomy or independence on a job, and creativeaccomplishment and self-expression through entrepre-neurial ownership. Using self-concepts gets students tothink in terms of their lives: family and personal goals,business and job goals, or self-improvement goals.Using goals included in the course syllabus is effective,as well. Most students can link themselves to a careeranchor, background experience, and/or a course goal.

Next, list all of the short-range goals on one side ofthe board and the long-range goals on the other. Havestudents recommend three or more measurable objec-tives for, or clearly identifiable paths to, each goal: e.g.,get A's in chemistry and algebra, work in a drugstore,get a 3.5 overall CPA to get into pharmacy school.Another set of measurable objectives for the goal of, forexample, Assistant Store Manager, might include workexperience, two years of college, respectable references,interview skills, leadership training, and a good resumé.Each of these objectives could have objectives of theirown. For example, the last objective might include: nojob-hopping, decumented self-employment, or contrac-

------ THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinED8 348, Austin, Texas 78712

25

tual work for periods in the career that show norelevant employment.

Then have the stueonis rank each objective, usingthe following criteria: "A"absolutely vital to the at-tainment of the goal; "B"better than nothing; or"C"--could do without the objective in order toachieve the goal. (The students usually have to startwith the A's or C's prior to determining the B-levelobjectives.)

Have al! the students he:y: with the ranking process.In this way, the anonymous author of the goal receivesthe benefits of others' viewpoints about the career path.

A conscientiously created set of objectives offers thestudent the opportunity to see how information fromthe course may contribute to personal goal achieve-ment. Career planning also reduces ambiguitywhichoffsets anxiety or Quentin's Condition, clarifies courseexpectations, and strengthens student commitment.

Even with limited instructional or advisement time,goal setting is a management process that can beaccomplished in one class time. It worka especiallywell for students at the beginning of the term whenyou discuss class policy and communicate coursegoals. It also fills the time on the first day with some-thing that most students find mteresting and persorll.Effective goal setting in a class full of studcnts lustingfor the right direction in life can be accomplished asquickly as ABC.

Reference: Schein, W. (1978). Career Dynamics. Read-ing, MA: Addison-Wesley.

Quentin P. Ciolfi, Assistant Professor, Business Admini-stration Celebrate!For further information, contact the author at Brevard A A A a, A A A A IA a, A A /A A

Community College, U.S. 1 North, Titusville, FL 32796.

Preliminary programs for NISOD's Inter-national Conference on TeachingExcellence and Conference of Adminis-trators are available and can be obtained bywriting or calling the NISOD office.

Plan to attend the celebration on May 20-23 in Austin!

I w

SWIM* a Rambo, Editor

Apd113, 1991; Vol. Xl No. 12OD* University of Texas at Austin, 1990Further duplication a permitted tw MEMBERinstitutions for their ow personnel.

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS 6 a publcabon of the Naomi institute lot Staff and Organizadonal Nvelopment (WOO),EDS 348, The limas* of Texas at Amon, Austn, Tem 78712, (512) 471-7. 5 Subwnpbor amiable W nonconsortun members for 840 paw Fundevn pen by die W. K Kellogg Foundaton and he Sd V/ Alardson FoundelonIssued weekly when doses we in session dun f end spnng Inis and once dont) the summer. ISSN 0199-106X



The Maryland Community College Project

"li was like having my brain washed with Windex,"said a student whose instructor is a participant in theTowson State University/Maryland CommunityColleges Project to integrate the recent Scholarship onWomen. This colorful expression of the eye-openingeffect of a balanced co Arse epitomizes the experiences ofmany students at the five community colleges in theproject sponsored by the Fund for the Improvement ofPost-Secondary Education (FIPSE).

There is a "ripple effect," too. Since students havestarted to challenge professors whose courses are notgender- and race-balanced, the "FIPSE faculty" knowthey are making an impression. Faculty efforts tobalance courses have energized and empoweredstudents by introducing them to the idea that thecontributions of women and people of color count.

Balancing the college curriculum to enstne that allcourses, not just special courses, include the experiencesof women and men of all races and classes is the goal ofthe current "second phase" of Women's Studies and ofthis FIPSE project. The need for an organized andextended effort to balance the community collegecurriculum is particularly acute for several reasons.

To start, more than one-third of all undergraduatesattend community colleges, and the majority ot thestudent population is female and, frequently, minority.Ever, so, relatively few community colleges offerWomen's Studics courses, and most of their traditionalcourses are not gender- and race-balanced.

If they are to make sweeping changes, all facultyneed opportunities to catch up with the explosion inwomen's studies scholarship and time to study andabsorb the complex pedagogical issues it poses. Facultydevelopment projects aimed at addressing curriculumtransformation have taken place at about 100 four-yearcolleges and universities around the nation. In contrast,at community colleges, where the typical teaching loadis 15 hours, faculty have received little or no releasetime and few sabbaticals to begin the process of "Inte-grating the curriculum."

After a three-year cumculum transformation grantproject involving 70 faculty at their own university,Towson State Univcrsity project directors received a

second FIPSE grant to support a two-year curriculumtransformation project at five Maryland comfit initycoliegesAnne Arundel, the Community College ofBaltimore, Catonsville, Montgomery, and PrinceGeorge's. The Towson/Community College Project hasthree co-directors. The community colleges are contrib-uting relPase time for the 45 participating faculty.

This is one of the few multi-college integrationprojects dedicated solely to community colleges. It isalso the first multi-college curriculum integrationcollaboration betwecn community colleges and a four-year college. As a model project, it exemplifies theadvantages of bringing together a multiplicity ofexperiences and perspectives.

The enrollment patterns at these particular commu-nity colleges make curriculum integration essential.Nationwide, approximately 56 percent of all under-graduates -re women; but 60 percent of the approxi-mately 60,000 credit students at the five colleges partici-pating in the F1PSE project are female, and 63 percent ofdegree recipients are women. Significant numbers ofminorities, especially blacks, Asians, and Hispanics, areenrolled in most of the colleges; and at the predomi-nantly black colleges, 72 percent of the students arewomen.

The purpose of the project is to help faculty find,evaluate, and then incorporate the recent scholarship onwomen and minorities into their courses. The structurewas established to provide an effective learning contextand a high degree of support for participants. Since.Spring 1988, faculty have responded to consultants'discussions of gender and racial bias in the curriculum.Faculty have also been meeting regularly and fre-quently in discipline-based workshops (Literature andComposition; History and Philosophy; Fine Arts,Sociology and Psychology; Biology and Allied Health)to read and analyze feminist pedagogy and the scholar-shir on women and minorities; and to discuss strategiesfor updating their courses, revising their assignments,and teAng out the changes in their classrooms. Sinceeach workshop is composed of faculty from an fivecolleges, participants have opportunities to exchangeideas with a variety of colleagues.


27

While the immediate purpose is to transformparticular courses, the ultimate goal is to transform theentire curriculum. FIPSE faculty are currently sharingtheir experiences and insights with ellleagues on theirown campuses, and some have been delivering paperson their work at regional and national academicconferences. A statewide meeting of communitycollege faculty this spring will e- nose the project to abroader audience and distribute a monograph that willinclude summaries of the workshops, sample courseoutlines and assignments, and bibliographies.

The Integration Project directors, who read -1:iejournals that faculty keep about their experiences in theproject, report that the participants have expressedexcitement about re-learning the content of their fields,

re-thinking their courses from a feminist perspective,and teaching newly transformed courses. Faculty alsoexpress their enthusiasm for working with peers fromtheir own and other colleges.

Gail Forman, Professor, English

This article includes ,nformation from "Rethinking theBIG Question: A Multi-College Community CollegeIntegration Project," an unpublished article by MyrnaGo'. 'enberg and Shirley Parry.

For further information, contact Gail Forman or MyrnaGoldenberg at the Department of English, MontgomeryCollege, 51 Mannakee Street, Rockville, ML) 20850.

Trif'ilfril'Facilitator-Assisted Learning

When 90% of all college students consider the fear ofspeaking before an audience to be a serious handicap,why is it that Speech 101 (a non-required course) is oneof the most popular courses at Mt. San Jacinto College?One of the reasons for our success may be the use ofstudent facilitators. Another may be the overall designof the program.

In each section, four students from previous classesare selected by the instructor to facilitate a small groupof 12 to 15 students. In addition to having completedSpeech 101 in a previous semester, each facilitator willhave completed four weekend workshops that enhancetheir skills in small group leadership.

All Speech 101 courses are taught in three-hourblocks, once a week (two day sections and one eveningsection). Each class is taught in a lecture hall with fouradiacent small rooms. Each room is furnished with alectern, a clock, and a VHS camcorder.

During a semester, a student completes 20 to 24exercises, which some call "speeches. Ten io 12 ofthese activities are videotaped on the student's ownvideocassette. Students then self-evaluate, either athome or in the college library, according to guideFnesprovided in the textbook (written to implement thisprogram).

A typical class session begins with a 10- to 15-minute lecture in the large group: reinforcing skills tobe worked on that day, evaluation techniques, andfeedback activities. The next two hours are spent insmall groups, where students complete assignments,are provided feedback and evaluahon by group

members, and receive guidance from the facilitator.The last 45 minutes are held in o large group, wheresome of the students are given the opportunity to"show off" their talents. The instructor also explainsand illustrates the next week's assignment(s).

The facilitator's role is enhanced and strengthenedbecause he/she is a student who has successfullycompleted the course. In addition to serving as aninterpreter of the instructor's guidelines, the facilitatorsencourage, guide, coach, assess progre5s, and keeprecords on each student in their group. Each week, thepoints that lead to grades are recorded. Students earnpoints for: attendance, evidence of preparation, pres-entations, and self-evaluation. The student, along withthe facilitator, keeps a record of his/her own progress.

Rich week the facilitator meets with the instructorfor 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after class:building an agenda, problem solving, assessing studentprogress, and providing the instructor with names ofstudents who may need special assistance. This timealso provides the instructor with up-to-date feedbackto learn what works and what needs adjustment.

Most students report an increase in self-confidence,and they can detail the skills they have gained andthose they plan to use in the future. The best evalu-ation of this program's success in the consistently highretention rateabove 90%and the number of refer-rals by students to their friends.

Del Barnett, Instructor, Speech

For further information, contact the author at Mt. SanJacinto College, 1499 N. State Street, San Jacinto, CA92383.

Wpm Et Rowdy', Editor

4rI120,1990, Vol. XII, No. 13°The University of Texas al Aussn. 1990Futter duplication a planned by MEMBERinstiuttax for flew own personnel

( , ti... 3

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS is a pubhcabon oi the Naomi Institute for Staff and Organizational Development !NISOD),EDB 348, The Unrversiry of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, (512)471.7545 Subscnptions are available to nonconsorbum members for $40 per year Funding i n part ty the W. I( Kellogg Foundation and tie $id W Richardson FoundationIssued weekly when classes we i n session durrng fall and wog terms and once during the summer ISSN 0199- i 06X


* INNOVATION ABSTRACTS";,,t ',1"

, Ti'lL 14 1 h: %, 7,0ev .S;' 0, '.', '4

The Algebra Cup

A few semesters ago, confronted with the appallingnumbers of student withdrawals from mathematicsclasses, I was challenged to provide a rationale bywhich the numbers could be justified. I lamely offeredthe national scope of the situation: People the countryover seemed to experience math anxiety; entire bookshad been written about it. This was not a problempeculiar to our college! For some reason, this explana-tion did not seem to appease the challenger. He felt thatsurely those of us in mathematics could do somethingto correct this situation. I said I would take it underserious consideration, although I was wondering what Icould possibly do witnou t sacrificing the sacred sylla-bus and even come close to "getting the job done."

During pre-regisuation for the spring semester,students had filled my College Algebra class. Now, Icould flatter myself and say that this occurred becausethe word had finally gotten outthe student body atlast had heard of the high quality of my instruction.That would be coloring the picture! The truth is theword was out that I permitted the use of organizednotes on notecards as an acceptable resource on all testsand quizzes, except on the course competency exam.Also, word had gotten out about the famous 'Partner-ship Exam" allowed in my classestwo students couldput their brains together, along with both sets of notes,to take the exams. Of course, the word had not gottenout that students could fail even with these wonderfulresources. But the anxiety was removed.

I requested that my College Algebra class be re-openedI wanted as many students as would sign up.I wanted to demonstrate that I could teach a large classin mathematics and could retain the students. (I wasnot exactly sure how, but I was ready to try.) Mycourse began with 55 students and ended with 51. I

wish to share what happened in the interim.First, I conferred with a calculus teaching colleague.

We decided upon the five most important topics withwhich a student must be proficient in order to assuresuccess in the study of calculus. When I first met withthe class, I announced to the students that the classwould not be taught in the traditional fashionthat wewould be covering, in great detail, only those five

topics. If anyone felt he was going to receive insuffi-cient instruction, he was advised to dmp the courseimmediately. However, if he chose to stay, he was toconsider it his responsibility not to drop at ail. Onestudent chose to withdraw.

The class was divided into five groupsone for eachof the five topics. Each group chose a team name, aleader, a truant officer, and a recordlreeper. Therecordkeeper was to keep attendance; and when, in hisjudgment, some team member had too many absences,he/she was to notify the team truant officerwho wasto contact the offender. The leader was to return papersto team members, to coordinate study meetings, and toorganize her team's preparation of a study sheet.

I chose to record the students alphabetically by team.All papers had to be identified by student name andteam name; stacks of team papers were the standardmethod for submitting assignments.

Team spirit developed right away: team memberschose to sit in the same area of the room; the class"booed" the second person who came in with a drorslip. (The third student to withdraw came by the office,rather than the classroom.) But the real spirit of theclass developed in quite an unplanned way. During therace for the Americus Cup, I was grading quizzes. Re-turning the papers at the next class meeting, I wrote"The Algebra Cup" on the board, followed by eachteam's name and its score. The idea caught onteamspirit ran high the remainder of the course.

When I realized the class would end with about a 7%withdrawal, I asked the director for a real Algebra Cup.Today in the college trophy case is that cup, with thenames of "The Factoring Fools," who finished first,inscribed!

Of those students who pursued calculus and with'horn I was able to maintain contact, none made lower

than an average grade from any institution. There issomething to be said for cooperative effort in thepur lit of knowledge!

Barbara Walters, Associate Professor, Mathematics

For further information, contact the author at AshlandCommunity College, 1400 College Drive, Ashland, KY41101.

ltsC),


29

Competition:A Recruitment Strategy

As many of our schools suffer from declining enroll-ments, we are forced to look at ways to encouragestudents to register in our programs. Some people mayfool themselves into thinking that this is a task for themarketing department. But I believe marketing to bethe domain of each faculty member, working in con-junction with the marketing department. After all,who better than faculty for telling rtudents what theirprograms are about?

Our faculty agreed that we would accept marketingas one of our responsibilities. The problem was gettingthe high schools to invite us to tell their students aboutour college and what we had to offer. We needed areason for them to want us there, and we created onea typing contest! Because our main target audiencewas anyone who had typing/keyboarding skills, wewere able to include all grade levels and speak toanyone who would listen to us about our contest andabout our Office Administration program. ( We real-ized that once we were in the school, students wouldhave questions about other programs; someone fromthe college's marketing or admissions office joined ourOffice Administration group.'

One advantage of the contest was having the oppor-tunity to work with the high school teachers directly:They work with the students on a daily basis; and themore they know about the Office Administrationprograms, the better.

We contacted a major supplier of college equipment,Olympia International, and asked that it sponsor thecontest. Olympia agreed to support our effort andprovided us with the first prizean electronic portabletypewriter. Second and third prizes cash and/orgiftsw.2re offered, as well.

FormatThe format of the contest was simple. We had four

categories for participants: grade 9, grade 10, grade 11-13, aii,4 general public. While our contest was aimedprimarily at high school students, we acknowledgedthat, with so many adults returning to college, it wasimportant to include the general public. (This is a very"safe" way for some hesitant adults to return to school.Once there, they can receive information on otheravailable studies.)

Because high school students enjoy competitivesports and work hard on team spirit, our contest was

well received. We awarded the winning school abeautiful trophy, which they kept for the next year. Inaddition, we awarded a Spirit Award to the schoolhaving the most participants.

AdvertisingThe amount of advertising will depend, of course,

on the budget. Sault College decided to involve themedia by having a separate contest for them. The onlyprize awarded was a trophy for the best speed, but itserved our purpose and earned us some media cover-age, also.

EvaluationI shared this idea with a colleague from another

college, and she conducted her first contest this year.Recently, she informed me that applications to theirOffice Administration program have increased by 29%.Our program, too, has experienced a significantincrease.

Should you decide to hold your own contest, beprepared for a lot of involvement, hard work, and fun!

Rose Caicco, Co-ordinator, Office AdministrationPrograms

For further information, contact the author at SaultCollege, P.O. Box 60, 443 Northern Avenue, Sault Ste.Marie, Ontario, CANADA P6A 5L3.

Stoma Lt Roux* &Ma

Apr 1127, 1990, Val. 134 Na 14 INNOVATKW ABSTRACTS 6 a publKabon of The National InstituW la Staff and Onganaabonal Development (WOO),ON UPotersgy of Texas at AuW, 1990 EDB 348, The thvirsny of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, (512) 47/ 7545 Subscnpeons we available b nonconsorFurther clucbcebon e permitted by MEMBER bum membea la $40 per yew Fundinf it n part bi The W K Kellogg Foundation aid kr Sid W Thchardson Foundasoninsolubons for kw ow personnel Issued weekly when dassas ist e in session claw fall and spring terms and once dun em summer ISSN 0199-106X


INNOVATION ABSTRACTS". ,n

Vv,'1 Sc. n n: , nv:;,1 N 4%t THE

A Teacher Evaluation Plan

BackgroundThirty-three years ago in a comparative anatomy

class at St. Lawrence University, Robert Crowell askedme to create an animal that would survive the rigors ofchange and evolve by learning to swim in the sea. I feltenergized by his challenge. My mood in the cla3sroomchanged from apathy to the excitement and joy associ-ated with active learning. The heavy feeling I had so,fien experienced as I walked to school lifted as I

discovered that learning can be fun, something tocelebrate rather than something to dread. I began acolorful journey back to the sea. I began creating aunique animalme.

Doug Michell teaches classes in death and dying, thepsychology of aging, and love and the human conditionat California State University, Sacramento. He believesthat he does not teach his students anything, thatstudents teach themselves, and that students learn moreunder certain kinds of conditions. He provides a caringand supportive environment in which to learn, and hisstudents are asked to be responsible for their ownlearning.

At the beginning of each semester, Doug asks eachstudent to make his/her own learning plan. He offerssuggestions and provides informationsuch as,reading lists, kinds of community projects, and groupdiscussions; however, almost anything related to thecourse sutject that has the potential of benefitting thestudent or society is acceptable. I learned more andprobabiy did more work in Doug's classes than i did inclasses where I had been given specific assignments,because I had the opportunity t.) choose projects inwhich I had a strong interest. At the end of the semes-ter, Doug asks each student to evaluate what he/shehas learned during the semester and to assign himself/herself a theoretical grade.

Dean Moore is head of the mathematics departmentat I Junior High School and teaches evening andsummer session mathematics and statistics at YubaCollege in Woodland, California. He is also involved inPh.D. studies in mathematics at the University ofCalifornia at Davis.

31

Dean noticed that one of the students in his summersession Algebra H class was motivated, did his home-work assignments regularly, seemed knowledgeable ofthe subject as evidenced by his classroom participation,but did poorly on tests. When the student wanted todrop the class, Dean made him a proposal whichwould be beneficial to each of them; he wanted to usethe student in an experiment as part of his dissertation.He started working with the student, giving him oralrather than written tests, at first. Gradually, the stu-dent, with extended time in which to complete the testsand a quiet place where he could verbalize the ques-tions and the answers, became confident and proficientenough to do B work on the tests.

Jim Lawson teaches speech and English at YubaCollege. In his beginning speech class, Jim addressesthe issue of anxiety in publk speaking. His premise is:The more we do it, the easier and betio- i t gets. Astudent's grade depends on the number of times he/sheattends class (one point) and the number of times he/she speaks (two points for speaking one to five minutes,and one extra point if the student has researd - a

topic). The maximum number of points per classsession is four. Everyone who wants to speak gets achance to do so each class period. Those who want towork simply sign in on the board when they arrive.Not only do Jim's students learn to speak, they learn tolisten. People have a marvelous array of tales to tell andtalents to share. Jim writes sensitive feedback on 3 x 5index cards which he gives at the end of each classsession to those who have presented that day. Most ofus looked forward to those cards conta;ning the "patson the back" that we rarely give ourselves. Gradually,the students build confidence; and their speeches getmore interesting, informative, humorous, and open.

Jim's approach in his advanced composition andcritical thinking class shares some of the elements ofDoug Michell's teaching philosophy. He creates acomfortable, caring environment, while asking us towork. We write! Like Doug, Jim suggests topics orareas of writing for assignments. There is room forindividual choice within the boundaries of the sug-gested topics and for the expression of original opinionsand styles of writing. Jim focuses on strategies ofwriting and the process of writing, as well as finished

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (CSOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinWEI 348, Austin, Texas 78712

products. I feel creative and alive in this class.What have Robert Crowell, Doug Michell, Dean

Moore, and Jim Lawson learned from their teachingexperiences? Only they can say! And I think they should!

An Evaluation PlanA realistic criterion for evaluating teachers is that

teachers have learned something significant from the actof teaching. Teachers need to evaluaie themselves, andI suggest that each teacher be required to write anessay entitled: "What I Have Learned From Teaching(course name and number) During (semester andyear)."

In writing this essay, the teacher must focus onhimself/herself, he/she will discover that the qualityand style of th, essay will say much about him/her,and the specific teaching experiences will become themajor foci of the evaluation.

By focusing on, observing, and writing aboutthemselves, teachers may learn to attet d to detailswhich they may not ordinarily notice or think impor-tant, see more clearly what does and does not work,and be more sensitive to such things as the level ofenthusiasm in the classroom. They may become awareof problem areas and think of ways of solving theseproblems.

The quality and style of a teacher's essay will berevealing. Does he care about teaching; does she careabout students? The essay itself provides the evaluatorwith information about this teacher's commitment toteaching, enthusiasm for the job, organizational skills,and style of expression.

What teachers learn from teaching a course will beas varied as the classroom experiences. Writing theevaluation essay will give both new and experiencedteachers feedback about where they are and provideinsights into new directions for their teaching. I believethat a good teacher, beginning or experienced, needs tobe interested in teaching as an ongoing process of learn-ing.

By whom would the teacher essays be evaluated? Idon't have a good answer, but I think that somehowteachers need to evaluate themselves and each other. I

think that self-evaluation, honesty, and the sharing ofthese essays would be a valuable learning experiencefor teachers and ould generate some exciting newa p pr o a ch es to teaching.

The ideas in my teacher evaluation plan originatedfrom my disenchantment with traditional education.They grew out of the pain, fear, and anger I have felt atgobbling and regurgitating information. They grew

out of the joy of experiencing real learning, of creat-ingthe kind of learning I have exnerienced byworking with Robert, Doug, Dean, and Jim.

Evelyn Audioun Wegienka, Student, Yuba College

4r1 4,,

Stumm D. Rased*, Editor

May 4, 1990, Vol. X14 No.15CPIs Unwerstty of Tem et Austin, 1993Further duphcation permitted by MEMBERinstausons frx thew own personnel.

INNOV4PON ABSTRACTS e a publicabon of the Nabonal hstituie for Staff and Organizational Developmnt (NLSOD),EDB 348, The (*messy of Texas at Ausbn, Ausbn, Texas 78712, (512) 471-7545 SubscnpLons are available b nonconsorbum members for $40 itv yea/ Funding n pa r1 L y the W K Kato Foundation and tie Sod W Richardson Foundabon.Assued wee* when doses are n swan dunng to and sprog terms and once during the summer ISSN 0199-106X

VOLUME XII, NUMBEH 16

* INNOVATION ABSTRACTS\ 4

SL,'V,ir tiOM t

A Story of Collaborative Publishing

When Jane Roberts Wood, instructor of English atBrookha ven College in the Dallas County CommunityCollege District (DCCCD), asked her friend FrancesVick, Director of the Press at the University of NorthTexas (UNT), how to go about getting a book of shortstones she had edited in print, a joint venture was bornthat has proved highly successful and fulfilling to all theparticipants, as well as the institutions they represent.

Like all good stories, this one begins with an idea.Jane Roberts Wood, a published novelist herself (TheTrain to Estelline), knew there are many talented writersin the DCCCD, and she saw the need for a vehicle toshowcase flieir talents. She became committed to theidea that iaculty and staff of the DCCCD would benefitfrom having their writing efforts recognized by theircolleagues and the community in which they lived, andthat students would benefit from knowing that theirinstructors were actively engaged in the creativeprocess. Thus, the idea of publishing a juried book ofshort stories was born.

The faculty and staff of DCCCD were notified andgiven a four-month period in which to submit theirstories. Sixty-three stories were sohmitted by thefaculty, staff, and administratcrs from all seven cam-puses. Jane asked Sally Schrup, an instructor in art atEastfield, and Donna Gormly, an instructor in Englishat Eastfield, to assist her in working on the project.Together they met with Carol Slipak, Vice President ofthe DCCCD Foundation, Inc., and asked for funds withwhich to publish the collection. They believed theproject would cost approximately $7,000. Ms. Slipakoffered them a challenge grant of $3,500 from theChancellor's Fund of the DCCCD Foundation; so withsome money in hand, t'ie editors set about to brain-storm ways to raise the remaining $3,500. Feelingcertain they would raise the rest of the money some-how, Jane was determined to pull the collection to-gether.

First, judges were needed to select the stories to bepublished. Wanting to be as impartial as possible, theeditors asked two writers who were not a part of thedistrict to act as judges. Pete A. Y. Gunter, philosophy

33

professor at the UNT and a published author, and CeliaMorris of Washington, D.C., whose book had won theTexas Institute of Letters Carr P. Collins Award forDistinguished Nonfiction, were asked to read and selectthe stories. As Jane describes the process in the intro-duction to the book: "Over a period of weeks they readeach str--y several times and, finally, compiled a list of'best' stories. The lists, not surprisingly, were notidentical. Then phone calls between the two began,followed by more reading. Letters passed back andforth, f illowed by still more reading until, finally, on acold day in March, I came home from BrookhavenCollege and found these 14 stories in my mailbox."

With the stories now chosen for the publication, thetask of editing the stories began. The three editors readand edited, when necessary, each of the 14 stories,meeting over a period of two months to collaborate onthe editing. Jane met with each of the writers at leastonce, and sometimes on several occasions, to fine-tunethe final product. When the editors and the writerswere finally satisfied with the result of the editing andrewriting, Jane set out to discover how to get the bookpublished with the $3,500 the foundation had provided.

Enter Fran Vick. As Fran tells it, "I try never to missgatherings of writers and publishers. Those are mypeoplethe ones who share the same interests and theones whose causes I support in whatever way I can.And, selfishly, one never knows what project or idea orinteresting people one may run across. At such agathering, my good friend Jane Roberts Wood said sheneeded to come talk to me about how to go aboutgetting a book published. I knew Jane meant publish inthe sense of how to go about putting a book together.

I was somewhat daunted by the task of explainingabout trade paperbacks, hardbacks, signatures, typefonts, ppi of paper stock, grade A, B, & C cloth, 2-3-4color covers, C1S cover stock, perfect binding, head-bands and end sheets, designing, cataloging-in-publica-tion, ISBNs, Advance Book Informationall that anddozens more of the small details that go into putting abook together after the initial editing, footnoting, andindexing is done. And, thc difficult task of distribution

c)THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinEDB 348, Austin, Texas 78712

and marketing in today's competitive book world hadnot yet been broached.

I had just recently become part of the newly formedpress at the University of North Texas. Without anybooks actually in production at the time, we werelooking for some fresh manuscripts and fresh faceswith which to make our mark on the university presspublishing world. It occurred to me that co-publicationbetween the DCCCD and UNT Press would solve somemajor problems on both of our parts, and it would alsofree me from having to teach Jane how to publish abook! Besides, I wanted her writing, not publishing."

A bonus for UNT and the DCCCD would be that theco-publishing venture would open another avenuewhere both institutions could be cooperative. UNTalready values the DCCCD as an excellent source ofstudents who wish to continue past the associatedegree, and this cooperative publishing effort would beanother point of contact for the two. It provided afocus for a number of faculty, staff, and administratorsto work together on a project that both enjoyed, andprovided a happy occasion for the two chancellors tomeet and fete the accomplishments of the project.

"The real treat for us at the Press," according toFran, "was to rcceive the stories and start readingthem. We loved the stories, and we loved what Janehad to say in the Introduction about the stories: Shehad written of her delight at the variety of voices sheheard in the collection. We used that in the promo-tional material about the book."

The design of the book was placed in the hands ofRick Sale, professor of English and editor of Texas Booksin Review at UNT. UNT P nembers and theDCCCD editors met se. Ties to discuss theprogress of the design iok and the title. Bynow the thought was gru.....g about the book being"out of Dallas," in the sense of the writers beingemployed by the county's community college system(although the stones are set all over the world), so thenatural place to look for cover art was the area's artists.The paintings of Dallas artist Donald Vogel, founder ofthe Valley House Gallery in Dallas and one who hasenjoyed a long and distinguished career as an artistand gallery owner in Dallas, were sought. Teel Sale,Rick's wife and an artist herself, helped choose theappropriate painting for the cover, "Shaded Walk."Mr. Vogel generously gave permission to use thepainting for the cover and provided the color slide forthe four-color separation.

The book was produced as a trade paperback, withthe list price of $12.95, in the hopes that creative

writing teachers and teachers of short stories woulduse the book as a text. The two institutions hope turealize enough profit from the sale of Out of Dallas: 14Stories to finance other co-publishing ventures, such aspoetry and essays.

To promote the book, the two chancellors, Dr. AlfredF. Hurley of the University of North Texas and Dr.Lawrence Tyree of the Dallas County CommunityCollege District, hosted an announcement party tointroduce the book to the media and to interestedpatrons of both institutions. The party itself was co-hosted, with complete cooperation between the twogroups on decisions ranging from invitations to deco-rations and food. The event was held in the City Club,on the 69th floor of the NCNB Plaza, appropriatelyoverlooking the city of Dallas. The wine and cheesereception honoring the editors, writers, and the artist,included author signings and was a successful launch-ing of the book.

Publishing Out of Dallas has been an enrichingexperience for those who worked together to get thebook into the hands of students and members of bothcommunities. As many as 30 to 40 people voluntarilycontributed their talents and time to brinr about thepublication of the collection, and in the r Tess eachhas come to know and value the other more fully. lf, asDr. Tyree says, it is true that a comprehensive commu-nity college worth its salt is in constant conversationwith its various communities, both among colleagueswithin the institutions and among the neighborhoodsand constituencies beyond, then DCCCD fulfilled thesecriteria in this joint publication. The opening of stillanother path between the two schools has been ahappy and profitable creative venture. The cooperativeeffr rt on this first venture will encourage them to seekfurther publishing projects and, doubtless, will encour-age further joint ventures between the two groups inother areas, as well.

Jane Roberts Wood, Instructor, Brookhaven CollegeFrances B Vick, Director, University of North Texas Press

For further information, contact the University ofNorth Texas Press, P.O. Box 13856, Denton, TX 76203-3856.

Out of Dallas: 14 Stories is available from UniversityDistribution, Drawer C, College Station, TX 77843-4354, 1-800-326-8911.

3 4

Suanne D. Rambo, Edkor

August 24, 1990, Vol. XII, No. 16IDThe University of Texas at Ausxn, 1990Further duphcahon s permitted by MEMBER=Mons fa thew win personnel

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS a publicabon of the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD),EDB 348, The Univers* of Texas at Austin, Ausbn, Texas 78712, (512) 4 71-7545 Subscnpbons we available to nonconsorbum members for $40 p r year Funding in pw tty the W K &Avg Foundabon and the Sid W Richardson FoundabonIssued weekly when classes are in sesson dunng faN and sprog terns and once dunng the summer ISSN 0199-106X

VOLUME X11, NUMBER 17


Hunting for Orientation Ideas

To liven up City College's orientation program fornew faculty and staff, the college's orientation commit-tee decided to add a playful activitya scavenger hunt.Until last year, City College had no organized orienta-tion program for new personnel. Most new hires had tofend for themselves. An energetic new administrativestaff, combined with proactive faculty and staff, organ-ized an orientation program modeled on the onedesigned at Riverside Community College and pub-lished in Innovation Abstracts (Volume XI, Number 1).

Each City College seminar contained several Lompo-nents which ranged from ice-breaking activities, such asone in which the participants talked about somethhignice that happened to them that week, to heavier-dutysessions dealing with individual risktaking and teach-ing techniques.

As a lagniappe, for the last session, the President'sOrientation Committee for Professional Staff (POPS)decided to create a scavenger hunt which would serveas a preliminary warm-up activity to a party hosted bythe president. It, therefore, came as a surprise when theparticipants ranked the scavenger hunt as one of themost important onentation activities. Several of theparticipants stated that they saw areas of the campusthey had never known existed, and, more important,they experienced the genuine friendliness of the veteranstaff.

To actuate the scavenger hunt, the POPS committeeformed a sub-committee of three of its memberstwostaff supervisors and a faculty person. This sub-committee was charged with designing a scavengerhunt which would cover the entire campus site (ap-proximately 34 acres) and all the key campus facilities.The hunt had to be both playful and educational. Thetime from start to finish had to be 75 minutes or less.

The committee divided its task into five parts:1) Select the target locations and facilities.2) Chart the route of the hunt and decide on the treas-

ures that the hunters would have to scavenge at eachlocation.

3) Contact a key person at each location both to suggestappropriate "treasures" and to appoint someone as ahost for the duration of the hunt.

4) Generate the flyers, reminders, handouts, and clues.5) Manage the actual hunt.

The first thing that the sub-committee did was toselect the facilities which would comprise the targets ofthe scavenger hunt. Selection was based on the follow-ing criteria:

Importance of site to hunterssecurity offices, dupli-cation services, etc.Importance of site for campus geographical orienta-tionmost northern and western points of campus,etc.Importance of site for studentsstudent healthservice, counseling, computer centers, etc.so thatnew faculty could send students to correct locations.Once the sites were selected, the committee members

mapped out a route and walked it to determine whetherit would be feasible to complete in the allocated time.Also, while walking the route, members spoke to keypersonnel at each site, asking for suggestions regardingitems that the hunters might be asked to scavenge.

The hunt committee decided that to maintain theplayful nature of the scavenger hunt, the "treasures"should range from useful to silly. Therefore, along withthings such as requisition forms, parking rule forms,and application forms, the hunters had to return withhelium-filled balloons, information on the number ofliving plants in a room, the name of the store acrossfrom the theater, and "artificial dollars" with the collegepresident's portrait instead of George Washington's.(We called these Jeanny Bucks after Jeanne Atherton,the college president.)

Once the ro:ite was determined and the treasuresassigned, the committee wrote a mem to a key personin each area. The memo, which was sent out threeweeks prior to the event, explained the reasons for thescavenger hunt, told the time and place of the hunt, andrequested that a person be assigned to greet the hunterswarmly and give them the "treasure" that was re-quested. A reminder memo was sent out three daysbefore the actual event.

After sending out the first memos, the committeewrote the clues, designed flyers and phony dollars withthe president's picture, and arranged to have heliumand balloons at one of the treasure sites.

The committee decided, for the sake of efficiency,that each of the hunters be provided with a map which

35THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at Austin


highlighted the 16 treasure sites. The committee feltthat walking the route in 75 minutes would providesufficient challenge for the hunters. To make the huntamusing, the clues were made deliberately obtuse.

Two weeks before the scavenger hunt, the commit-tee sent the hunters an invitation designating the timeand place of the event.

When the time arrived, the scavengers were greetedin a festive manner and clustered randomly intogroups of five. One member of each group wasdesignated informally as a group leader and given amap and a list of scavenger hunt clues. The group IP:isinstructed to return in 70 minutes with as manytreasures as they could scavenge.

Scavenger Hunt Clues1. Bring back the brochure "7 Steps to Admissions for

City College."2. Bring back a copy of City's parking regulations.3. Bring back the signature of the City College person

you call when you're too sick to come to school.4. Bring back a buck from the place you pick up your

check.5. Bring back the signature of the screening counselor.6. Bring back the name of a store that faces the theater

box office.7. Bring back an Infotrac printout on pollution or

toxic waste.8. Bring back an athletic event schedule from the

place where the women coaches make their plansto coach the women.

9. Bring back a form that allows you to reproduce.10. Bring back the room numbers next to the room

where the handicapped students are counseled.11. Bring back a completed form for ordering an AV

film, tape, or other aid.12. Pick up a flyer in the root,. with all the Apples and

Macintoshes.13. Bring back any health service brochure.14. Get an authlrization to post the flyer you picked

up, and bring it back.15. Bring tack a 5alloon from the pe where we learn

to care abolAt children.16. Bring back the number ot living plants in Tutorial

Services.

EvaluationThe hunters all returned within the time allotted for

the search. Most returned laughing. Several peopleremarked that they never realized that the college hadso many facilities. Others said that they really enjoyed

working with the other members of their group. Justabout everybody said that they wished that the scaven-ger hunt had come earlier in the orientation program.There were no negative comments.

As a result of these actions, the POPS committeedecided to move the hunt from the last activity to thesecond. The first activity will be an introduction to theorientation sessions and to the philosophy and visionof the college. The committee is planning no majorchanges to the format or structure of the hunt itself.

The entire POPS committee was taken by surprise atthe participants' reactions. When the idea for thesravenger hunt was first suggested, the POPS commit-tee members felt that, at best, it would serve to lightena fairly heavy-duty orientation program. One or two ofthe commitee members even expressed concern thatthe hunt night seem too childish and cause resent-ment. None of the POPS committee thought that thereaction Ivould be as enthusiastic as it was. One of thenew teachers summed up the effect of the scavengerhunt very nicely when he remarked that it made thecollege "lc:ss concrete and more heart."

Sid Forman, r_tarning Resource Specialist and Instructor,English

For further information, contact the author at SanDiego City College, 1313 12th Avenue, San Diego, CA92101.

Sum* D. Raw*, MotAtcWSI, MO, VoL Xfi, No.17 MO/OVATION ABSTRACTS a a pailthiston of the Nalonal thstitute for Staff rod Otgantzabonal Development (NISOD),ON University of Tons or Austin, 1990 EDB 34 The linnets* ol Texas at &atm, Austin, Texas 7871Z (512) 4714545 Subscrthbons we available o -onconsorFurther duplabon pormoted by MEMBER hum members for 540 per yew Fundng m part by the W. K Kellogg Foundation and tie $id W Rtchwdson Foundatonablutions for tow ow personnel. irsued wordy ithen classes we m session thong tall ondgang Mons and once durog U. summer ISSN 0159106X



Moving Students Toward The Role Of"Active Participant" In Their Educational Experience

How can we as teachers create an environment inwhich a stue,mt recognizes the necessity of becomingan active participant in his or her own education? Mostof us who teach have arrived at the same frustratingconclusions. It is not possible to motivate someone. Itis not possible to "inject" a student with a sense ofresponsibility. These are truths that we encounter daily.

We have been teaching our "student success" coursefor one year and have experimented with many meth-ods to create a classroom environment in which thequdent will recognize the hecessity of becoming anactive participant in his 'Jr her own education. Studentsfrequently attribute failure in a course to events outsidetheir control. The emphasis in our Master Studentclasses is that grades measure an expenditure of timeand energy. When we use this definition, issues such asgoal setting and values (priorities), time management,and effective as well as efficient study skills are alladdressed. Metacognitive issues such as how thestudent learns and how to motivate himself or herselfare emphasized, as well. We pre- and post-test eachstudent with the Learning and Study Strategies Inven-Lory (LASSI) and feel it is an extremely useful diagnos-tic and prescriptive tool.

Ask a roomful of students to "assume the studentposition" and they immediately and intuitively sit backin their desks, cross one leg over the other, lift theirchins, let their eyelids drop to half-closed, and lay onerelaxed arm across their notes and textbook. This is awaiting posturewaiting for the teacher to do some-thing that will gwe them the information they need,waiting for the teacher to do something that will"educate" them, waiting for the teacher to do the work.

Anything involving "work"the expenditure ofenergy and effortseems to be disassociated withcollege. Traditionally, "work" has involved diggingditches, washing dishes, scrubbing floors, and othertypes of physical iabor requiring energy and effort. Acollege degree is supposed to provide a way out of thistrap. Whc- students have difficulty with a course, theyusually explain this difficulty as events beyond their

a7

control; i e., just not smart enough; genetically incapableof doing math (or whatever); the teacher can't teach; etc.OR, perhaps the worst (or the best) excusethis is toohard, this is work.

These beliefs are expressed in pervasive and subtlewayswork is bad, work is hard; college is good,college is easy; college is a way to spend time withouthaving to work; college is the alternative to work.Students frequently attend college because if they werenot in school, their parents would insist that they "go towont .

Many of our students spend 40 or more hours eachweek at a job. Many of these same students blithelyannounce they will be taking 12 or 15 credit hours, aswell as working, because of their beliefs that school isnot work; school is something you can do in your sparetime and still have time left over. As the drop date ap-proaches and their grades are poor, they report that theteac' :r made it too hard; the teacher wanted too muchwork. As an advisor, I have been told more than once,"that teacher acted like I didn't have anything else todo."

Many students say they want a college education butare unwilling to change a lifestyle that requires substan-tial amounts of money and/or leisure time. Theyconsistently find themselves trapped by conflictingdemandsthey "have to" leave town for two weeksbecause of their job but get angry when the teacher isunwilling to reschedule an exam or excuse the absences.

I have not ever met a student who consciously anddeliberately started college with the intention of drop-ping out or flunking out. A small percentage of stu-dents are looking for a way tc, put off growing up andthe responsibilities of being grown up. However, formost, poor and failing grades come as a surprise. Foranother large group, those grades are proof of aninadequacy that they had tor; suspected and feared.

It is important for instructors to communicate thatmaking good grades is not a result of having goodgenes and a high IQ. Good grades are not the result ofluck or easy teachers; and (the biggest surprise and

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at Austin


greatest relief of all) that making good grades issomething that anyone can learn how to do.

A college degree is a measure of motivation andendurance/persistence; and grades measure an expen-diture of time and energy. This is the foundation for abelief system that will allow a student to acquire whatmost of them say they wanta college education.Going to college is not a way of putting off growing upor taking on responsibility. Going to college is not away of getting out of work. On the contrary, going tocollege is taking on a full-time job.

Learning requires energy. Learning cannot be pas-siveit -must be active. Most students intend to dowell in college. They do not know, however, that theywill have to do something in order o succeed.

As an introduction to the discussion about howmuch energy it takes to learn, I write on the board:"Everything has a price tag." "You can't get somethingfor nothing." "There's no such thing as a free lunch."We spend classtime talking about how much energy ittakes to learn new things. For many students, this is anentirely new concept.

Not only does learning something new require anexpenditure of energy, but it requires a focus of thatenergy. Learning will use so much energy a studentmay not have a lot left over to "party." This surprisesmany. They didn't know that the energy was finiteorthey knew at some intuitive level because theysaved what they had and used it for something besidesstudying / learning.

Quite simply, learning has a price tag. It is thatfocus and expenditure of concentrated energy. Learn-ing can be hard work. Difficulties in college are morethan a time-management problem. They are, instead,results of a belief system that says: "College shouldn'ttake much time or energy. It is only a matter of sittingin class and reading a few books." Again, how hardcould it actually be? You're "sitting,' not working.

The real messagethe one to be emphasized overand over againis that different amounts of time willbe needed for practicing/learning/using or perfectinga skill for different people. Not everything comeseasily to everyone. On the other hand, not ,2verythingis difficult for everyone. Some subjects (and unfortu-natelyit is that subject that I hate the most) areabsolutely going to require more time to learn thanothers. And "time in" is the keynot IQ.A Strategy

I have my students bring three tennis balls to theclassroom each day. The course objectives include"some degree of skill in juggling." I start class withmusic and five to ten minutes of juggling practice.

Some students "forget" to bring their tennis balls toclass; and some students do bring the tennis balls andpractice during the time I provide in class but neverpractice at home. Some students stand and hold thetennis balls and talk to one another. They tell me theywill juggle in front of everyone else after they havelearnee tow to do so in the privacy of their own home.Some Lolks acquire the skill of juggling fairly quickly.However, the majority realize quickly that this skill isgoing to take some hours of practice and is definitelyan expenditure of energy and effort .;you have to bendover a lot and pick things up). It becomes apparentthat learning something new requires time, energy,effort, and a willingness to appear unskilled, inade-quate, silly, or foolish; and that learning is a lot morefun if you approach it in a joyful manner.

And, of course, there are always some students whojust get better and better. Each class day, they are alittle more skilled than they were the time before.When asked, they tell a how many hours they stoodand practiced, and how they got into a competitionwith their kids, and how they thought they could neverdo it, and how delighted they are with themselves thatthey actually learned how. And I (of course) get achance to talk about studying and how some subjectsseem to take forever to learn; butit really is likemagicif you put in the time and the effort and theenergy, "all of a sudden," one day, you can do it. Theamount of time spent in learning to juggle provides aconcrete example of the kind of energy it takes to learnsomething new. Juggling also provides a welcome"right-brain" relief to the intensity of studying forhours at a time. It becomes a skill that is relaxing,enjoyed, and enjoyable.

must work to create a classroom environmentwhere students can experience a world in whichlearning is a joyful process. Hospitals are full of peoplewho expended time, energy, and effort but who didnot feel joyful while doing so or feel pleasure with theresults.

Teaching our "study skills/student success" coursehas become an enjoyable experience for the inst,uctorsand has provided useful tools for our students, and acan of tennis halls has become a trademark on ourcampus.

Linda Hartmann, Counseling Associate

For funher information, contact the author at RichlandCollege, 12800 Abrams Road, Dallas, TX 75243-2199.

3b&Anna 0. Rouecha, Edltat

*ember 7, 1990,Vol. X14 No. 11 HO/OVATION ABSTRACTS is a publicstion cil the Natrona' histitule lot Staff and Organizational Development (NEM,0The University of Texas al Austin, 1990 EDB 348, The awes* ol Texas at Ausbn, Austin, Texas 78712, (512) 471-7545 Sutscriptions are evadable nonconsorFurther duplication is permitted by MEMBER bum members kw $40 per yew Funding p a i ty the W K Kellogg Foundation and Pe Sx 1 W Richardson Foundabon,institutions for thew min personnel Issued mkly whcrl classes Me in session during fall and spring terms and once during the summer ISSN 0199 106X



"Push Hands" :The Quintessential Hands-on Learning Opportunity

This acti-ity is good for warming up a group and forintroduction or debriefing a session on conflict. Theactivity has two phases: cooperative and competitive.Some lazy, sedentary types may need prodding. Do notrush. This activity requires at least 45 minutes.

The Game: "Push Hands" is a game used as atraining technique for practitioners of Tai Chi Chuan, aChinese martial art. "Push Hands" players learn bal-ance, anticipation, and coordination. They learn torelax while in physical contact with other people. Theybecome more aware of posture, areas of bodily tension,and concentration. The best players yield to force, asthe supple tree bends with the stornt winds.

Begin: Two people face each other, step forwardwith their right feet, place the feet side by side about sixinches apart, with their insteps facing each other. Theystand in a relaxed manner, with straight backs and bentknees. From this point on, all players will attempt toavoid moving their feet. The feet stick to the ground,psychologically rooted and immobile. The playersplace the backs of their right w-ists together andimagine themselves glued together; so when A moves,B must move with A, in any direction, at exactly thesame speed.

Phase one: Initially, the two players simply shifttheir weight back and forth slowly. After becomingcomfortable with this, it is time to begin trying to movethe hands in a horizontal circle. Again shifting theweight back and forth slowly, the players should turntheir hips and shoulders in unison. A relaxed, pleasant,and cooperative experience usually follows. Theplayers should continue for five or ten minutes. Playersmay switch to the left hands and feet, as well. This is agood time for several partner changes. Players willlearn how other people move, whether they can bothrelax, and how to maintain balance when pushed. Theywill learn about yielding and attacking.

Phase two: Now, some competition enters the game.Without using the unglued hand, players can attempt tocause their opponent to move a foot, while trying to

keep their own feet fixed to the ground. This canbecome quite strenuous and competitive. The mostrelaxed peoplethe ones who yield to force, neutraliz-ing the force by turning to the side and sinking into thegt_urid, and do not resistwill be most successful.Various strategies will emerge.

It is certainly worth repeating that the secret tosuccess at this game is the ability to relax and sink theweight into the ground, while neutralizing the force ofthe attacker by turning to the side exactly as the attackerapplies force. Remain glued at thc wrist, and you win.

Discussion: TAke a break and discuss what is goingon. Who is winning and who is losing? How do theplayers feel? What have they learned about conflict?Which strategies and styles were the most and leastsuccessful? How do conflict and cooperation differ?

Conflict management styles: Now ask players fortheir observations on some conflict management styles:(1) Wimping Out, (2) Fighting Back, and (3) Neutraliz-ing Force. Give examples from social situations.Discuss conflicts which have escalated into wars.Discuss the stratification and cultural implications ofdifferent styles of managing conflict.

If you are familiar with Taoist philosophy, discussthe difference between Yin (yielding, soft) and Yang(attacking, hard). Discuss the Taoist philosopher LaoTse's concepts from the classic Tao Teh Ching, such assoft overcoming hard, and virtues of patience andhumility.

Switch partners: Again, with new partners (switchpartners often so the players will get to experienceconsiderable diversity) start from the beginning. Thistime reinforce the idea that relaxation and softness win.Prompt players to try to entice the forceful attackersinto losing their balance, then gently guide them offtheir clumsy feet. A skilled player can frustrate aforceful attacker almost every time. Many women willexcel at this.

After everyone is exhausted, have players discuss orwrite about conflicts they have experienced or they

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AO ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)Community Coiiege Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinEDB 348, Austin, Texas 78712

33

know about. Have them express how these conflictswould have turned out using each of the three strate-gies. Discuss the Oriental versus Western Philoso-phies. Explore the diaerencts between conflict man-agement and conflict resolution.

Follow up: Play the game again later in the semes-ter. See if anyone learned anything new about conflict.

Jack Matthews, Director, Student Support ServicesProgram

For further information, contact the author at JeffersonCommunity College, 109 E. Broadway, Louisville, KY40202.

"Since Dark Is What BringsOut Your Light..."

The amazing thing about our changing technology isnot the technology itself, but the impact it makes onour lives and the irreversible things that it does to ourculture. Automated teller machines have not onlymade banking easier, but they have changed the waythat we do banking. Home computers have not onlychanged the way we do our income taxes and im-proved the legibility of our written correspondence,but they have changed the after-school habits ofadolescents and tied up our telephone lines with theirendless hunger for modem communication. Thegasoline engine made it possible for Henry Ford tomake millions; it also allowed the kind of mobility thatenabled American mothers to enter the workforce inlarge numbers. And, the impact is not always what wethink it will be. Who would have guessed that theintroduction of microwave technology would lead tothe break-up of AT&T? This is all by way of sayingthat I should not have been surprised when my at-tempt at applying some new technology to my teach-ing methodology had some unexpected results.

My academic department decided to reintroduce acourse not recently offered, "Introduction to Business."This was a course aimed at non-business majors andprimarily taken by developmental students who werenot ready to choose a major or nc t yet academicallyprepared for their chosen field. Being the least seniorfaculty member in my department, I was assigned thecourse and set out to make it as interesting for myselfand my students as possible.

Knowing in advance that the majority of my stu-dents would also be taking developmental English andreading courses, one of my first objectives was tosupplement reading material with clear, conciserepresentations of the important concepts. Standaraaudiovisual techniques did not seem to be adequate;however, I was lucky enough to be involved with theIBM CIM program and had access to a laboratory withan overhead projection system connected to the CIMA5/400, a PS2, and an inexpensive VCR. I chose a textwhich came with a library of video case studies (whichcould be shown on the large screen through the3verhead system) and decided to do my lecturesthrough the PS2, preparing "slides"with the help ofHarvard Graphics, a large library of clip art, all pro-jected in color through the overhead projection system.It worked well; the frequent changes from discussion tocomputer-illustrated lecture to large screen video casestudies kept everyone's attention. In all of this, therewas one surprise!

I encourage discussion and keep track of participa-tion levels. Therefore, I am aware when students areinvohed. I began to notice that every time I turned outthe lights to use the projection system, faceless voicescame to me out of the blackness oi the rows andcolumns. These voices floated up asking questions,stating opinions, contributing miscellaneous facts orexamples relating to the subject at hand. The lack oflight seemed to bring with it a lack of self-conscious-ness and a kind of openness. I do not know if there isa way to simulate this without the darkness, but I amgetting more thought and communication from devel-opmental students on a regular basis than I thoughtpossible.

What is the lesson here? We academics tend tominimize the effect that a classroom has on those whodo not find it easy, those who have not been in a class-room for many years, or those for whom it was never agoor.. experience. I am reminded of Robert Frost'sponderings on the subject of illumination coming outof the dark (hence, my title). My own experiences inthe dark have taught me to at least think about the waymy students feel in class and encouraged me to tryways other than turning out the lights to free mystucIP-ts from fear of ridicule or failure.

Cheryl G. Baraldi, Associate Professor, Business Admin-istration

For further information, contact the author at Spring-field Technical Community College, Armory Square,Springfield, MA 01105.

Spann* D. Roueche, Editor

4 No.19latOSTIVirniversrly

14,199of Tem at Austm, 1990

Further duphoeten permitted teg MEMBERinstibtons br bee own personnel.

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS a a pubkabon of the Nations, InsblI49 lOf Stie and Orgaraaeonal Development(WONEDB 348, The University of Texas at Austin Ausbn, Texas 78712, (S121 4 71-7545 Subscnpeons are available to noneonsorburn members for $40 per year Funding in per t t3 the W K Kellogg Foundation and heSti W Richardson Foundabonissued weekly when classes are I n session &gang tall and speng terms and once dumg the summer ISSN 0199-106X

VOL E XII, NUMBER 20


Creating Enthusiasm In The Classroom

At a convention I attended several years ago, aspeaker tried to convey to an audience of mathematicsteachers that they must be actors in their classrooms. Ifell prey to that piece of advice and have not regretted itin my many years of teaching; when I tried it, I sawImmediate positive results. Hence, students see manysides of me, especially when I jovially concoct all typesof mathematics examples pertinent to the topic underdiscussion. So we talk about shopping for bargains(sale discounts), lottery tickets, salary increari s, travel-ing by car to New York, traveling by plane s ii, andagainst the wind when going on vacation, tras.eling byboat with and against the current on the river, andinvesting money to become financially independent.

This technique is deliberate. (1) Many students findmathematics boring; and if students can relate mathe-matics taught in the classroom with real life experi-ences, tnen there exists a great possibility that thesubject matter might become more meaningful andlasting. (2) After teaching for several years, the teacherneeds to create excitement in the classroom for himself/herselt to combat the feelings of burn-out.

My reason, however, for writing this artick toshare a new experience with readers

Some of us teach the same courses semester aftersemester; and having done so for several years, we canattend classes and give lectures, with little or no prepa-ration. Teaching should be challenging both to thestudents and to ourselves; when it becomes moreLhallenging to us, the lectures become more stimulahngand interesting to the students. As a result, often weneed to try new methods, various teaching/learningtechniques.

I lecided to teach a cc,urse which I had not taught forseveral years; this meant that I world be forced out ofthe complacency which comes with teaching the samecourses all the time. But what I discovered was that thestudents were i,ot getting the same "high" as I antici-pated. They participated, but not satisfactorily. So Idecided to try something newnew to my style ofteaching. At the end of a class session, I announcedwhat would be covered during the next class period. I

divided this section of the text among the students andasked each one to read the entire section and prepare apresentation to be made to the class.

At the next class session, after answering questionsabout the day's activities, I sat with the students whilethey gave presentations. Each presentation was cri-tiqued by me and/or the other students in a very posi-tive manner, 7 -:ying attention o omissions of importantitems. I filled in those areas for which there were nostudents to report (two students were absent).

Some students tended to read directly from the text,while others were more thorough in their preparationand delivery. At the end of the students' presentations,I gave a quick overall summary and some a:Ivice as tohow they could better prepare their assignHomework assignmentF were then made based ontopics discussed in cla,s.

At the next class session everyone wa, 'resent, and Irepeated the technique, assigning each student an areaof study to report on in class. The students came muchbetter prepared; they used the chalkboard, illustratedproblems, drew graphs, and made excellent presenta-tion -. [Whereas I might have given a C to a first at-tempt, the second attempt would have received an Aminus.] The students appeared confident in their pres-entations and were very convincing in their arguments.Some of them literally took on the "air of a professor atthe board.

The presentations were valuaHe and enjoyableteaching successes. I began to award a maximum of tenpoints for the presentations, and there was a marked in-crease in enthusiasm among the students. They got toknow each other better, and the "stronger" helped the"weaker" whenever they had to work on problems inclass.

Following are some students' opinions of this method-ology:

Class presentations are good educationaltools. You are forced to learn and under-stand the material you must present.

et) THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (N1SOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinEDB 348, Austin, Texas 78712

4 i

I believe that as a student it is sometimeseasier to translate and transfer informationto other students. Therefore, I gained fromhaving fellow students present differenttopics in mathematics to me.

When you are assigned to do problems onyour own and explain them to the class, ittests you to see whether you understand orif you are capable of doing the problems.You feel more obligated and will try to doyour best. Also you can benefit from it;

Peer Tutors

because as you explain it, students andteacher can point out to you aspects of theproblem you might not be able to see orunderstand. I think you develop a feeling ofself-confidence.

M. Inez Everest, Professor, Mathematics

For further information, contact the author at SouthCentral Community College, 60 Sargent Drive, NewHaven, CT 06511.

WWWWWWWW

A common dilemma facing bc,th two- and four-yearinstitutions is publicizing the existence of tutoringservices on campus while increasing the legitimacy ofpeer tutors for the general student population. AsTutor Coordmator and Student Support ServicesCounselor, I have recently explored some innovativemethods to meet both needs for campus tutoringservices. One of the most effective methods is the utili-zation of peer tutors as facilitators for study skills semi-nars under the sponsorship of Student Support --Tv-ices.

Initially, tutors helped with organizing materialsand publicizing the seminars through the use ofposters and memos to students and faculty. Theywould also help with the organization of group activi-ties for the seminars and evaluation process itself.

This past fall semester, several of the tutors ex-pressed an interest in presenting at the seminars, inaddition to their other responsibilities. One of thetutors had already demonstrated presentation expertiseby st aring information about the Tutoring Lab withprospective students on visitation days.

I applauded the tutors' initiative: presentationswould be opportunities to present themselves as au-thorities and role models to the general student popu-lation, and would be opportunities to better organizethe increasing numbers of students attending studyskills seminars.

I met with three of the tutors a week before theseminar to compile a "script" for the presentations.We wanted to be consistent not only with the study

skills information presented, but with procedures forstructuring group activities. Peer tutors were invitedto provide input, so that planning the seminars couldbe a democratic process.

Final copies of all materials were provided for eachtutor. Each was to be responsible for a small group(four to eight people), depending on the total numberof students attending the seminar. [In the past, whenlarge numbers of students-25 to 45attended, it wasdifficult (if not impossible) to carry out group activities.With tutors dividing the large group into smallergroups of four to eight people, then going into separateclassrooms, group activities were much better organ-ized and executed.]

The result of this plan was that more studentsbecame familiar with the work of the tutors, and thetutors were viewed both as role models and as groupfacilitators. In addition, seminar activities became thesmall group experiences that we had sought to provideinitially.

13oth the peer tutors and the Tutoring Cent& haveearned a well-deserved legitimacy in the eyes of thegeneral student population.

Mark E. Lockwood, Tutor Coordinator, Student SupportServices

For further information, contact the author at Spar-tanburg Methodist College, 1200 Textile Road, Spar-tanburg, SC 29301-0009.

Swann* D. %Ache, Ed Nor-

Septembes 21 19W, Vol. XII, No. 200 The Unrve,:.1 of Texas at Austin, 1990Funher duplicition is permitted by MEMBERInsteJbons for thee own personnel

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS a pubkabon of the Nabonal battik; tor Staff and Organszabond Development (IMOD),EDB 340 The awe's* of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, (512) 471-7545 Subscnphons we avaslable lo noncom.-bum metnbers Icy $40 p e ryas Funding sn pal ty the W.K Kellogg Foundation and the Sid W Fechardson FoundakaIssued initady when classes ze sn season dunng fall and smog terms and once dunng the summit ISSN 0199-106X



Explanation Games: If He'd Seen the Sawdust...

An explanation game is a game in which participantshave to discover an explanation for a scenario or seriesof events, supplied at the outset by the game leader.Participants ask questions which the leader may answer"yes," "no," or "irrelevant." Participants have, then, toformulate general hypotheses about the form of thehidden explanation and to reject or modify them inresponse to answers from the leader, until the correcthypothesis is reached. There is no guarantee (far fromIt!) that the correct hypothesis will be the most reason-able: the correct answer is simply the explanationwhich the game leader had in mind.

An example of an explanation game begins with theclue: "If he'd seen the sawdust, he wouldn't havedied." The answer, It turns out, is as follows: "he" wasthe shortest man in the world, in the habit of checkingthis status by me... wing himself with a wooden stick ofthe same length as his height. His rival, the secondshortest, had engineered a heart attack by shorteningthe stick, thus leading the deceased to believe that hehad grown, and that his livelihood was in jeopardy.(He makes his living from his lack of height, e.g., in acircus.)

I use these games in teaching philosophical criticalthinking at my community college. (The original ideafrom using them in this context came to me from Dr.Lawrence Resnick at S1111071 Fraser University.) Theyare suitable, however, for incorporation into a widerange of disciplines where the attempt is to encouragecritical thinking among students. Here I'll try tomotiwo^ a belief in their usefulness in teaching bothphilosophy of science and science subjects in general.

First of all, they constitute active, student-centered,and collaborative learning. Students are activelyengaged in thinking in the classroom and must draw onpreviously-gained knowledge and understanding of theworld, working collaboratively, to maximize the effi-ciency of the solution process. As a result, the gamesare fun; and the affective responses of curiosity, puzzle-ni.rit, success, and realization set the tone for otherlearning activities later in class.

Second, the games promote the development of anumber of important reasoning abilities, valuable in

academic as well as ordinary life. The kinds of reason-ing abilities these games require, and therefore develop,include: memory/recall; preci n in choice of expres-sion; attention to consistency and implication; aware-ness of assumptions behind questions (avoidance of thefallacy of "dubious assumption" or loaded question");attention to the generality and specificity of questionswith respect to their efficiency in approaching a correcthypothesis; and use of metaquestions (e.g., "Would ithelp me if I asked...?").

The games can be played with or without instructivecomment on questioning strategies; this is very usefulonce the basic idea has been assimilated by the stu-dents. Also valuable is trying to reconstruct the reason-ing processes at the end of the game. The assumption,supported by metacognition research, is that self-conscious understanding of the logical processesinvolved in the games enables students to develop thecorresponding reasoning abilities.

Third, the process of the game models the hypothet-ico-deductive picture of science described by, amongothers, Karl Popper. At some point in the term I makethis explicit, in the hope that familiarity with the gameswill add to the understanding of scientific methodwhich I wish to convey.

The hypothetico-deductive model of science can beexplained through the use of the games by developingthe following analogy: in science, hypotheses are testedby developing the logical consequences of one hypothe-sis which are not also those of another, and finding outby expenment whether these logical consequences aretrue; if so, the hypothesis receives more support, thoughthere is seldom a final "answer" to this "problem" untilone brings in extra-scientific considerations. In thegames, players test their hypothetical explanations bythinking of a logical consequence of a hypothesis theyhave in mind and asking if it's true. The instructor,who plays the role of "Nature," gives more definiteanswers than she, but the confirmation of a hypothesisis still a gradual process involving the rejection ofalternative explanations.

This analogy raises the possibility of modellingscientific reasoning in a parallel sort of game, in which

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (N1SOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinEDB 348, Austin, Texs 70712

43

both scenario and explanation are part of the coursecontent. For example, shidents could "work out" atheory by designing experiments and asking theinstructor what the results would be. Other possibleapplications might be to standardize analysis of salts(by flame-testing and other reactions), biological classi-fication by anatomical features, and the naming oforganic compounds.

In this kind of game, direct attempts to guess theanswer would have to be refused, perhaps by distin-guishing between "experimental," "hypothetical," and"metahypothetical" questions. Experimental questionsask about the result of a certain experiment, manipula-tion, or observation. Hypothetical questions areattempts to guess the answer. Metahypotheticalquestions are about not entirely relevant features of thecorrect hypothesis (e.g., "Does it begin with the letterA?").

In the initial stages of the game, only experimentalquestions would be allowed; hypothetical questionswould be considered only when a wealth of "experi-mentation" has already been carried out. Metahy-pothetical questions might be disallowed entirely,except in one circumstance: If one is impressed by thesignificance of analogy in scientific discovery, onemight accept such metahypothetical qi stions as, "Isthis case similar to the one we had in electricity lastweekr

I have not used games of this form myself, since I donot teach in the requisite scientific context, but I haveheard of games like this being developed as enhance-ments of one called Rulerisaker. Rulemaker is a mathe-matical game in which t. rti.-ipants try to formulate arule which explains so. iequence of numbers,shapes, playing cards, Nhatever. I have not heard ofits being employed in the cumulative question-and-answer mode, but I see no reason why it shouldn't.

I have a list of 13 explanation games of the generaltype which I'd be willing to share with anyone. Iwould appreciate hearing from anyone using the scien-tific versions or games like them.

John A. Black, Instructor, Arts & Humanities Department

For further information, contact the author at DouglasCollege, P.O. Box 2503, New Westminster, BritishColumbia V3L 5B2, CANADA.

The International Minute

At Calhoun Community College, we have a list ofgoals to be accomplished by the year 2000. One ofthese goals is to include an international element inevery course. In response, I implemented an activitycalled 'The International Minute" in my Developmen-tal Reading class. Three international students, onefrom India and two from Puerto Rico, were to teach myother students about their countries.

I told the three international students that we weredelighted to have them in our class, that we would liketo learn from them, and that each day I would ask oneof them to give us a one-minute lesson on his/hercountry.

At first the students appeared nervous and came toclass with books, pictures, and objects to "show andtell." I had to remind them to teach us just one fact oridea per day and to limit the presentation to oneminute. At the beginning I had to help them with theirEnglish, get them to write foreign words on the board,or ask them to speak louder. They began by teachingus their names and how to pronounce them. Theymoved on to locating their countries on the map; tellingus the names of the capitals and important leaders;describing holidays, foods, and creatures unique totheir countries; and describing beautiful vacation spotswe might enjoy visiting. They also explained theireducational systems. Toward the end of the quarterthey told us what they liked most about the U.S. andwhat they thought Americans could learn from thepeople of their country.

The American students enjoyed this activity, askingquestions, and commenting frequently. One com-mented, "If we did this in all of our classes, just thinkhow much we could learn about the rest of the worldin just one quarter." This activity also benefited theinternational students by enabling them to makefriends and feel comfortable early on and by givingthem practice speaking English in a group situation.

I berefited from the activity, as well. Too often Iforget that my students have much to teach me. Myrapport with all students improved because they sawme as someone who loves to learn.

Vicki Earnest, Instructor, English

For further information, contact the author at CalhounCommunity College, P.O. Box 2216, Decatur, AL 35609-2216.

Simms D. Route* Ed It or

S24 Mg Vol. No.21

0trZersity of Tau at Ausbn, 1290Further duplarbon i permthed by MEMBERnstitrbone for ter own personnel

A

IMVOVATION ABSTRACTS s a pubbcabon of Me National insbtute for Staff and Organizational Devebpment (NISOD),EDS 348, The Ulm's* ol Texas at Ausbn, Austin, Texas 78712, (512) 471-7545 Subscriptions we amiable b nonconsorbum members tor 840 pe r yew Funding MI pad * the W K Ke8ogg Foundabon and tie Sic W Richardson FoundalonIssued weedy when classes we s session dunng Wand *my terms and once during the summer ISSN 0199-106X



Using Test Feedback toFacilitate the Learning Process

Test feedback has been widely recognized as anessential part of the teaching and learning pmcess. Bygiving useful feedback at the appropriate time andplace, instructors have the potential to provide studentswith valuable information, as well as strategies they canuse to improve their academic performance on futuretests or other assessment measures.Levels of Feedback

In both the research and applied literatures, feedbackis described in many different ways, using manydifferent labels. The following hierarchy is designed tosynthesize these different labels into an organizationalscheme which highlights their commonalities.Level 1: Simple Knowledee of Results

At Level 1, the instructor provides Cie stu-dents with simple knowledge of results (e.g.,"yes, that is a correct answer" or "no, that isan incorrect answer"). On an essay questionthis would be equivalent to simply writing,"-0 points," or "-5 points," or "C+," with noother comments. Feedback at this levelmerely tells the students that they werecorrect, incorrect, or how far away frombeing correct they were with their answer. Itis a simple statement of where students ar .with reference to some standard. Althoughsimple knowledge of results is useful forsome evaluation functions, it is not asinformative as the other levels of feedback.

Level 2: Knowledge of Results + Identification of theError (discussion of where and/or how thestudents went wrong)At Level 2, the instructor provides thestudents with knowledge of results anddiagnostic information about their errors.For example, when discussing an essayquestion with a student, the instructor couldsay something like this: "It looks like youspent a lot of time discussing the first part ofthe question but did not adequately answerthe second part of the question which was

equally as important as the first part." AtLevel 2, the students are not only given infor-mation about whether or not they were"right," or met the standard, but also aboutwhere and/or how they went wrong.

Level 3: Knowledge of Results + Identificition of theError + Discussion of the "Besr AnswerIn addition to providing simple knowledgeof results and a discussion of where and/orhow the students went wrong, at Level 3 theinstructor also provides information aboutwhat would constitute the "besr answer,and why that particular answer is seen as the"best" answer. For example, the instnictormight say that, "Essays which received fullcredit included the following information...and the reason that information was impor-tant was because...." Thus, at Level 3, theinstructor explains not only what the "best"answer is but why it is the best.

Leiekt Knowledge of Results + Identification of theError + Discussion of the "Besr Answer +Discussion of Strategies to Avoid the Prob-iiMILLIbtka=Feedback at Level 4 would include informa-tion that was talked about in Levels 1through 3 and would go on to includestrategies that the students could use toavoid similar problems. For example, whendiscussing an essay question, some usefulstrategies for the students would be to: 1)underline key terms in the question; 2) lookfor signal words like "and" that indicate atwo-part question; and/or 3) make anoutline before writing an answer to thequestion. Thus, at Level 4, the feedbackcommunicated to the students includes theinformation given at all other levels but alsoincludes strategies that students could use tohelp themselves avoid similar problems.

When Is It Appropriate to Use Each of the Levels ofFeedback?

Ideally, giving Level 4 feedback all of the time wouldbe best. However, in the real world of post-secondaryeducation, much of the instructor's decisions must be


45

made in light of the contextual constraints. The ques-tion then becomes: "How can I as an instructor bestmatch the level of feedback I give to my students withtheir need for feedback in a particular situation, giventhe realistic constraints on my time and instructionalresources?" The question of when and what level offeedback a student or a group of students needs seemsto depend on a large number of factors. Becauseconsidering every variable that could affect thesedecisions is unreasonable, guidelines are needed tohelp make these decisions. These guidelines are basedon four factors that have a large impact on the type offeedback that is optimal in a given instructionai setting.These four factors include: 1) whether or not the stu-dents have given correct or incorrect answers; 2) thestudents' level of confidence in themselves as studentsand in the particular responses that they gave; 3) howmuch prior knowledge and/or experience the studentshave with this particular type of test or assessmentmethod; and 4) how much prior knowledge and/orexperience the students have with this particular topicarea. Using these factors as criteria, we can begin todiscuss when a particular level of feedback would bemost appropriate or useful to students.

Level 1 feedback appears to be most useful whenstudents have given a correct answer, feel confidentabout their answer, are familiar with this type of test orassessment method, and have a good background inthe particular topic area. In this situation the studentsare correct, they thought they would be correct, theyare familiar with this method of assessment, andbecause of their background knowledge they knowwhy that particular answer was correct. In that situ-ation, information about what the correct answer is andwhy it is cc,rrec t would be somewhat redundant. Inaddition, because the students' answer was correct,there is nothing to diagnose; hence, you assume thatthe strategies they used were effective.

On the other hand, if the answers were wrong, butthe students felt confident and had good prior knowl-edge of both this type of test and the content area, thestudents vould need at least Level 3 and possiblyLevel 4 feedback. Level 3 feedback would be impor-tant because it would help the students to diagnosewhere they went wrong on this particular question, ortype of question, as well as inform them of the correctanswer. Then, depending on the nature of the prob-lem, the teacher and student(s) could determine theneed for a review of the strategies or discussion andpractice with additional strategies.

If a student was not confident in her response, itwould seem that being correct or incorrect would not

negate the need for feedback beyond Level 1. Beingcorrect but not confident would indicate some questionin her mind that would necessitate at least Level 3 in-formation about what was the correct answer and why.Thus, if she was correct, Level 3 feedback would helpher to increase her confidence by giving her additionalinformation about what was the best answer and why.Whereas if she was not confident and not correct, atleast Level 2 and probably Level 4 feedback would beneeded. This would be even more important if stu-dents did not have a lot of background knowledge inthe particular topic area.

In terms of prior knowledge of assessment methodor content area, the general rule of thumb would be theless prior knowledge and exnerience the students have,the more the need for Level 4 feedback. In addition, asthe students' level of experience increases, the task ofdiagnosing problems and selecting future strategiesshould become more self-directed. Therefore, part ofthe instructor's task related to giving feedback is thetransference of control of the diagnosis of problems,and the selection of future strategies, to the studentsthemselves.Summary

Test feedback is an important part of the teachingand learning process. It involves, among other things,collecting information about students' performance,their level of confidence in their performance, theirfamiliarity with the type of test or assessment method,and their background knowledge. By taking thisinformation into consideration, the instructor candetermine what level of feedback would be most usefulfor their students on a particular test, topic, or ques-tion. This process can help the instructor to design anddeliver appropriate feedback at an appropriate timewhich provides students with information and strate-gies needed to improve their academic performance onfuture tests, or other assessment measures.

Paul A. Schutz, Assistant Professor, Educational Founda-tions

Claire E. Weinstein, Professor, Education] Psychology

For further information, contact author Paul Schutz atthe University of Arkansas, GEB 247, Fayetteville, AR72701 or Claire E. Weinstein at The University of Texasat Austin, EDB 352, Austin, TX 78712.

4 6

&Janne D. Rouechls, Editor

October S, 1190, VoL XIL No. 22 INNOVATION ABSTRACTS a a pubbca1on of th National histitute for Staff and Organizabonal Development (woo,One University of Texas a, Auson, 1990 EDB 34ft The awe's* ol Texas at Aosta; heti% Texas 78712, (512) 471 -7545 Subscnpbons are avails* nonconsorFurther dupacanon e permitted by MEMBER bum members for $40 p a leef FuncIng panb yOeWK Kellogg Foundabon and ha SIL / Rochardson FoundaIoninsthutens for tee ow personnel issued nekly when dews we sr, session dunng fall and smog terms and once during the summer. ISSN ma IOU


*. INNOVATION ABSTRACTS

I Know It Wizen I See It: Great Teaching

At Brookdale Community College we have produceda video series on teaching excellence. All of the videosincorporate actual classroom footage and an interviewwith the instructor explaining his/her techniques orstrategies. Some examples follow.

Solving World ProblemsThe demonstration performance method is used as a

key strategy in teaching students how to solve problemsin a math class The instructor demonstrates andexplains the techniques, then guides the students at thechalkboard in performing the skill. Students can beseen working and thinking through the process. Thebenefits of the demonstration method and the chalk-board as a supporting tool are featured.Doubling

Teaching students to portray feelings and emotionsare taught v ia the demonstration method. In SocioDrama, the instructor helps students to express innerfeelings of a third party. The method takes on anunusual focus of learning an affective skill."Lost on the Moon"

The students, in small group discussion, are ledthrough the simulation game "Lost on the Moon."Students are seen working in small groups in anattempt to problem solve for their survival on thern on They are giv en a list of items to prioritize, andtheir survival is based on their score. An interview withthe instructor clarifies her agenda for engaging studentsin a unique problem-solving process, as well as in thedynamics of gamingTeaching: The Art of Having Fun

This instructor allows his students to view Englishand French law via a new perspective. Situations of laware placed in a setting that forces the student to laughand smile. The style of lecturing supports the theorythat teaching ..nd learning can be fun for students andinstructor.Enthusiasm in the Classroom

The Battle of Lexington and Concord is the lessontopic in this American Civilization history class. Thestudent is given d vicarious experience of the battle viadramatization Through the use of the chalkboard,

storytelling, quotations, dramatic gestures, voicechanges, and humor, the battle comes alive. During theinterview the instructor uses the same charm andtechniques to articulate the philosophy behind hisapproach.Using Examples

The instructor is teaching Human Growth and Devel-opment; it is the first day of the semester, and the lessontopic is assimilation/accommodation. The conceptinvolves how children learn and acquire new informa-tion. The instructor uses three forms of examples(communication) to teach the concept. The first illustra-tion (enactive) is having the student physically learn anew (physical) skill. The second example (symbolic)has the student listening to how a young child reacts todifferent objects being rolled across the floor. The thirdexample (iconic) has the student examining a spoon-likeobject in an attempt to classify its use. Footage isinterspersed with comments from the instructor'sinterview: how examples are selected, their purpose,and their importance to students.Role-Playing

Charlie Russell, a Wester American artist (late1800's/early 1900's), visits the classroom. The dialogueis a mixture of Charlie's quotatiom and stories told inhis unique Western drawl. Hume. and wit of the artistare threaded throughout the visit. Charlie is inter-

iewed in costume and answers questions that reflecthis views on role-playing as a teaching technique.

In the literature there seems to be no consensus onwhat constitutes an excellent teacher, but we all know agreat teacher when we see one. The dilemma is notrecognizing excellence, but identifying its specificcharacteristics.

Frank Paoni, Coordinator, Center for Educational Research

For further information, contact the author at BrookdaleCommunity College, Newman Springs Road, Lincroft,NJ 07738.

ckC21THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinEDB 348, Austin, Texas 78712

A Pound of Prevention...Integration of Ethics Into Introductory Accounting

Pick up a current copy of any major newspaper orbusiness publication and you will find articles aboutbusiness leaders who stepped into the gray areas ofethical business practices and are now accused ofmismanagement, deceit, or outright fraud. Continuedmedia exposure has raised the level of concern aboutAmerican business ethics, and colleges and universitiesare responding by adding ethics courses to their busi-ness schnnl curricula.

All instrulors can supplement and reinforce theformal cou:ses by integrating ethics into their routinecourse content. Following are three approaches thathave been effective in integrating ethics issues into myintroductory accounting courses, promoting studentInterest and active participation.

Current Events and "War Stories"I introduce ethics during the second class meeting

by asking the students where they got :he pencil or penthey have in their hands. Without fail, about 75% ofthem will admit to having taken it from work withoutpermission. This question generates a lively discussionon the degrees of right or wrong and the scope ofethical considerations. It is clear that ethics is not just aone-time, important business decision made by a high-level executive, but rather an accumulation of day-to-day, small-scale decisions made at all levels.

At the beginning of each subsequent class period,we spend five minutes discussing current businessnews articles or practices observed by students on thejob. Management expense reports are a favorite topicand ,?mphasize how difficult it is to draw the linebetween management discretion and unethical prac-tices. Financial statement disclosures, asset manage-ment, inventory control, employee relations, andleadership issues all relate to ethics.Case Studies

I allocate part of one class session per semester forcase study discussions. I divide the class into groups ofthree to five students and give each group a pre-selected case study. The small group structure encour-ages a more open discussion about values and possibleapplications in the student's own work environment. Iserve as facilitator to avoid Influencing the group'sanalysis and assessment.

I do, however, pose general questions to get the

discussion started and keep it focused. For example,one case study put the students in the role of a man-ager who found out through another employee that hisbest employee was stealing and selling bicycles forcash. I asked the groups to consider how they woulddetect or, better yet, prevent such an occurrence. I alsoasked if their decision might change if the employeehad stolen just one bicycle and had given it tu animpoverished child for Christmas.

I schedule 20 mi lutes for group discussion and 20minutes for the groups to report and defend theirconclusions. Students are encouraged to challengeother opinions.Student Reports

My final strategy is to offer students an extra-creditoption of preparing an in-depth written or oral reporton a current news topic or a topic of their own choos-ing. I ask students to consider how the issues impactthe business' relationship with its stockholders, em-ployees, vendors, and customers; what aspects of themedia coverage might have been biased and why; whatcorrective measures seem to be needed; and whoshould police the correctionthe government, theindustry, or the business itself.

Two students selected their own topics. Oneinterviewed a whistleblower and reported on hispersonal devastation and near financial ruin. The otherdesigned a 10-part ethics questionnaire for completionby her classmates. It was not a scientific study, but theresults fostered a lively discussion.

There are other ways to integrate ethics into busi-ness and non-business classes, but these methodsworked well. The students did not walk away with achecklist of right and wrong behaviors, but withreference points for recognizing possible unethical actsand compromising situations. This exposure will helpthem understand the potential consequences of thedecisions they make.

Bernadine McColium, Instructor, Accounting

For further information, contact author at ParadiseValley Community College, 18401 N. 32nd Street,Phoenix, AZ 85032.

4Suanno D. Row* Editor

October 12,1990, Vol. XII, No. 23©The University of Texas at Austin, 1990Further duplication ts permitted by MEMBERinstitutions for their own personnel

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS s a publication of the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (N1S00),EDS 348, The Universiry of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, (512) 471 7545 Subscnotions are available to nonconsorGum members for $40 per year Funding part by the W K Kellogg Foundation and the Sid W Richardson FoundabonIssued weekly when classes are in session dunng fall and spring terms and once dunng the summer ISSN 0199-106X



A Versatile and Fun Learning Experience:The Student Journal

Description and ObjectiveThe most rewarding instructional technique I have

found in a decade of community college teaching hasbeen the student journal assignment. Each studentmaintains an ongoing account of his/her learningexperiences relative to a topic or theme chosen to satisfyhis/her own interests or curiosity. The broad objectiveof the journal assignment is to involve students in avariety of learning experiences which they can relate tothose in the real world. The journals are evaluated sub-jectively for i-vcuracy, thoroughness, originality,thoughtfulness, neatness, and compliance with thegeneral ground rules. The journal expenence is espe-cially appropriate for the subjects I teach: WorldPolitics, American National Government, and State andLocal Government.

The Journal ProjectIn World Politics, each student is instructed to choose

a nation from a list I provide, follow that nation'sforeign policy experiences during the semester, andmaintain an ongoing account of those experiences. InAmerican National Government and State and LocalGovernment, students similarly choose topics that areof interest to them, that are compatible with the themesI have selected, and that are timely enough to give themample material with which to work.

Students are instructed to begin following the newsand recording information relative to their topics intheir journals immediately. They are instructed to makefrequent journal entries and to avoid long periods ofinactivity The idea is for them conhnually to monitorthe news and to record in their journals what tl-ey read,see, and hear. They should read the newspapers daily,look through the news magazines weekly, and pay con-tinuous attention to radio and television newscasts.Their journal entries should come from a variety ofsources, so they are encouraged to be on the alert foropportunities to gather information from books, schol-arly publications, government documents, films,1'cture3, public events, personal contacts, etc.

The students alone decide what goes into theirjournals. This freedom can quickly cause consternationwithin students who have been unaccustomed tothinking for themselves. They are told that an ongoingeffort is a condition for earning a good grade and thatthey should not have large time gaps between journalentries. As well, they are told that the quality of theirentries is essential to earning a good grade.

Students quickly realize that they must do more thansimply gather information. They realize th.it a journalwith a few entries of high quality wil' earn them morepoints than a journal with more entr as of superficialone-liners. They realize that they r,,ust think aboutwhat they read, see, and hear, and ,:s.arn to recognizewhat information is significant. They must make valuejudgments. They must try to make sense out of the realworld.

The students are instructed to summarize the infor-mation they decide to enter into their journals byputting it into their arm words. Simply copying materialfrom a printed source and using it as a journal entry isnot permitted. However, they may use direct quotes,charts, graphs, and photographs when there is legiti-mate need for them. All journal entries must includetF.,2 date of entry and complete source documentation.Students are given instructions for appropriatelydocumenting infcrmation.

The students are encouraged to enter their owncomments, criticisms, analyses, and conclusions. Theyare not to worry about being right or wrong. They areencouraged to record their thoughts as they developand to continue to build upon them as the semesterprogresses. They are to narrow their effort along theway and focus on a particular problem rn. situationwithin their overall topic as their personal interestsand/or real-world events lead them. This specializationwill make their journals easier to handle and willenhance their interest in the topics.

The students are encouraged to search for back-ground information that is relevant to their topics andinclude this information as journal entries. This im-


4 9

proves their general knowledge of the topics, which inturn enables them to better evaluate and assimilate themass of new information they gather. It is suggestedthat if their topic should drop out of the news for a fewdays, they should use the time to search for additionalbackground material.

Students are given a few take-home exercises duringthe semester which require them to relate textbookinformation to the characteristics and problems of theirspecific topics. These exercises become part of theirjournals, and the information learned is to be used inconjunction with the material they gather from real-world activities.

At the end of the semester, the students are in-structed to conclude their journals with a summarystatement. They are free to summarize their journalcontents; provide lessons learned; offer personalopinions, conclusions, predictions; and raise questions.

Student ProgressIt is absolutely essential that the instructor persis-

tently and relentlessly monitor each student's progressthroughout the semester. This begins by making certainthat all students clearly understand the objectives andthe ground rules of the assignment. Students need toknow what standards of performance are expected,how the journal will be evaluated, and how much itwill count toward their final grade. Students must bewarned at the beginning of the semester that theycannot "cram" this project into the last few days of thesemester, that "building" a journal at the last minute isunacceptable, and that such an attempt is easily de-tected and will result in lost points.

A few minutes of discussion during each classperiod can identify those who are keeping up with thetask. If classes are small, the journals may be collected,reviewed, and returned with comments. If classes arelarge, written surveys may be taken periodically,asking students to report how many entries they havemade, how many different sources they have used, orhow many times they have entered personal commentsto date. These surveys should then be returned to stu-dents with comments.

Another way to monitor progress is to divide thestudents into small groups and ask them to review allthe journals within their respective groups and withinthe context of questions or criteria provided by the in-structor. For example, the groups might be asked todetermine the average number of entries within theirgroup, identify the most unusual source of informa-tion, or identify the most original idea or method.Group leaders will guide each group's effort and report

each group's findings to the class. Hearing the find-ings of all groups and reviewing other students'journals will enable Each student to put his/herperformance into perspective. Those who have been"slacking off" will realize that they should do better,and they will.

Finally, it is important that the instructor frequentlyoffers to review any student's journal, one-on-one, inprivate, at a time convenient for both. Students wholack confidence or are naturally shy will often takeath.aitiage of this offer. Without an opportunity forprivate consultation, some students will let their fearsovercome them and give up. A little personal attentionwill go a long way to encourage them, motivate them,and give them the confidence to do a superb job.

RewardsWhat do the students get out of the journal assign-

ment? Those who do it properly will have a numbcr oflearning experiences: writing, research, library use,observation skills, critical thinking, creative thinking,self-confidence, general knowledge, specialized knowl-edge, motivation to learn, enjoyment, and pride ofaccomplishment. These are the experiences andrewards that students have fed back to me in theirclosing statements, course critiques, or in casualconversation.

What are the instructor's rewards? Gratificationwatching students come alive and get involved, notonly in course material but in the real world to whichthat material applies. Gratificationhearing a studentpop into the office unexpectedly and ask, "Have youheard what the East Germans did today?" Through thejournal and the personal contact that inevitably accom-panies it, the instructor realizes that each student ismore than a name, more than a number, more thananother grade. The instructor realizes that eachstudent is a thinking, creative, sensitive, unique humanbeing.

Wilbert G. Hols, Instructor, Political Science

For further information, contact the author at JeffersonCommunity College (Southwest), 1000 CommunityCollege Drive, Louisville, KY 40272.

Swum* D. Raw* Ecfitor

Octobor 19,1990, Vol. XII, No. 240The University of Texas at Austin, 1990Further duplication * permitted by MEMBERinsIoutions for their own personnel

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS s a ptiblicabon of the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD),EDB 348, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, (512) 471-7545 Sutscriptions are available b nonconsor-bum members for $40 per year Funding in part by the W K Kellogg Foundztion and fie Sid W Richardson Foundationissued weekly when classes are in session dunng fall and wing terms and once dunno the summer ISSN 0199-106X

r; 00 J



Building Community Through Research Projects

Our new interdisciplinary honors course, "Quest forWorld Community," was approved as a world litera-ture class and scheduled for launch in the fall of 1989.As the instructional team we were enthusiastic, experi-enced instructors, but none of us were experts in thevast field of global literature. That summer, after only afew brainstorming sessions to create a syllabus for thecourse, we recognized the scope of the research wefaced. Thi ough our preliminary search to develop asyllabus fcr the class, we realized that the process ofrese,:rch would afford an Invaluable experience for thestudents and result in one of the liveliest, most stimulat-ing courses any of us had ever taught.

We discovered that, when given the challenge ofworking in small research groups in order to develop areading list for the last two-thirds of the course, stu-dents accomplished a complex research assignmentwith genuine outcomes, gained first-hand experience incommunity building (the theme of the class), andInvested intellectually and emotionally in the course oftheir own creation. Motivation and performancesoared. What follows is an account of what strategy weused, along with observations of how this approachmight be adapted to any course.

Tiara'In order to build the foundation for a successful

small group research project, we decided to set asidethe first week of the semester for getting to know oneanother through name games and introductions.Students were asked to share their first thoughts,prejudices, and preconceptions about world commu-nity. We also administered the Kolb learning styleassessment, a simple instrument around which webased some small group activities and which helped usto recognize and celebrate the diversity within our ownclass. These familiarity exercises paved the way for thesecond week, during which we Introduced the researchassignment Assuming that our enrollment would bearound 20 students, we divided the globe into six ratherarbitrary geographical areas. This would ensure geo-graphical diversity, even if some areas would includeseveral major cultures. We settled on six areas so thatresearch groups would be no larger than four, and more

likely three, students, fearing that larger groups wouldpresent difficulties in coordination. Also, larger groupsmight encourage some students to slither from thelimelight of accountability. (This might be ovgrcome bymore specific accountability procedures established bythe instructor.)

At the beginning of week two, we laid out sixplacards on the floor around the room. On each placardwas the name of a continent or geographical region:Central and South America there, Africa here, Asia overin the corner, Eastern Europe there, and so on. Weissued simple instructions: "Divide yourselves intogroups of at least three and sign your names to theplacards of your choice." Then we left the room. In fiveminutes the groups were born. Two students wereunable to get their first choices, so this procedurelaunched the process of compromise and conflictresolutiontwo important community-building skills.IWe recognize that group division could have beenaccomplished with more deliberate control by instruc-tors. We might have used the Kolb instrument or theMyers-Briggs Personality Inventory. Instead, we optedfor student choice.]

Once the research groups were formed, we distrib-uted a handout that stated the objectives, ceria,strategies, and expected outcomes of the assignment.We explained that the reading for the first four weeks ofthe course was developed by the faculty team, using thesame guidelines spelled out for them on the handout.[We might mention that the faculty team was offered asa model for research groups.] Our selections werediverse, including a novel, a play, a short story, aspeech, and two filmsall addressed or related to thetheme of the course. Each was a work that offeredinsight into a particular culture by a native of thatculture. They were readily available, were of readablelength (we intentionally left this vague), and weredeemed significant works of literature by knowledge-able commentators on the art ot that culture. Weexpected their choices to reflect the same six criteria.

Each research group was responsible for offeringthree selections of literature and/or film from its chosenregion for consideration by the class. These three

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinED8 348, Austin, Texas 78712

works, along With arguments and evidence supportingtheir selections, were to be presented to the class orallyin the fifth week of the semester. We limited presenta-tions to 15 minutes each and suggested that studentsconsider their presentations as persuasive speeches. Inaddition to the oral presentation, we required eachstudent to maintain a research log: "a detailed butreadable account of how the reseFsch proceeded, whocompleted what tasks, what discoveries and frustra-tions were experienced, and how final decisions weremade." We required that it also include documenta-tion of works cited and people interviewed.

Over the next two weeks we allowed the groups afew minutes of class time to meet and organize. The`edents assumed responsibility for most of the meet-

ings on their own time outside of class. We alsoarranged two "potluck" dinners for the class onweekends in order to view films we had chosen and,more importantly, to give students a chance to relaxand get to know one another. Even these informaloccasions were used by the research groups to swapideas, discoveries, and frustrations.

At this point, we realized a hidden virtue of thiskind of research project. The students were buildingrelationships and community even as they worked on ademanding academic task. Further, the groups allfaced conflicts and frustrations, not only with theimmensity of their tasks, but with each other as well.There was a struggle and compromise. Some groupsfunctioned more smoothly than others. A couple ofgroups didn't function at all; members worked inde-pendently, perplexed by the seeming impossibility ofmeeting regularly in the face of busy lives and over-booked personal schedules. Most of these conflictsfound voice in the research logs, and we learned ofthem only after the projects were completed. Eventhen the experience of struggle became rich experien-tial compost for the community garden. But the mostexciting outcome of this research assignment was notto reveal itself until later, and it took us by pleasantsurprise.

On the day research results were presented, thestudents bristled with excitement. Fifteen minutesproved much too short to contain the information eachgroup eagerly offered the class. These were theirselections, and the students resembled dedicatedinstructors expounding the virtues and significance ,c,their selections. Supporting evidence sometimesspilled over into personal anecdotes of interestingpeople interviewed and surprises experienced. In thetwo class periods we devoted to the presentations, a

major shift occurred: The mantle of responsibility andthe authority for the class was lifted from the shouldersof the instructors and settled comfortably onto theshoulders of the students.

For the next 10 weeks this was their course, and theyknew it. Nobody said it, we didn't plan it, but there itwas. We shared the students' enthusiasm. Thanks totheir efforts, we all looked forward to a reading list thatwas fresh to us all. Our job at this point was to narrowthe readings to a manageable number and to place thereadings into some kind of sensible order, allowing forlength of selections and dates when we could obtainsome of the materials. Co-learning would be a reality.

And so it was. We read and pondered these worksalongside the students. We read works chosen by aparticular group; members of that group wouldvolunteer background information and help us overhumps in understanding. As instructors we felt thekind of investment they had in the "eadings; weexperienced it every time we walked into a classroom.For most, if not all, of the Sh dents, it was their firsttaste of really caring deeply about their academic work.

Many of the outcomes of this student-centeredresearch project, intended and otherwise, met thethematic concerns of our course by converting the classitself into a microcosmic community. The pedagogyunderlying it, however, invites adaptability to mostother courses, in short, by structuring assignments andactivities in ways which: engage students and help tobuild community in the classroom, reward students forworking collaboratively, develop in students feelingsof responsibility for and caring about the assignments,and help faculty and students become active co-learners in the classroom. We believe such an ap-proach enables students to participate genuinely in theprocess and content of their learning and offers somemeans of bringing the students' minds and spirits intoour classrooms.

Luke Barber, Professor, English/Philosophy

John Barrett, Professor, English

Jackie Claunch, Dean of Instruction

For further information, contact the authors at Rich-land College, 12800 Abrams Road, Dallas, TX 75243-2199.

Swans O. Rounds., Edit,

October 211,1190, VoL )(14No. 25OThe Unworn*/ ot Texas at Austin, 1993Further dupleabon s *netted by MEMBERwatiAlons tor bee own pwsonnel

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS a a pubficalan of Um Nalanaf SWIMS, for Staff ald Organeabonal Devokpment (WOO),EDO 34 Ms aim's* of T. al Ausa% Austin, Tam 787IZ pm 471-7545. Subscripbons re Naiad* nonconsor-mon nwnbms I $10 pa /yew Funding m pe by iho W K Kellogg Foundason and to Sid W Fidwdson Foundelonbawd weekly when classes am an swam &Ong fat Ind swig terms and ma dunng 1i sumnw ISSN 0199-106)(



Distinguished Teachers Receive Support for Special Projects

As the coordinator of faculty development at Colum-bus State Community College, I coordinate the Distin-guished Teaching Award program. We annually honoras many as four distinguished teachers, primarilystudent-nominated. They are awarded WOO, a framedcertificate, and a medallion. They are offered theopportunity of attending a teaching excellence confer-ence, such as NISOD or a Great Teacher Seminar. Inreturn, we ask them to help select the next year's awardrecipients (by performing classroom observations) andto consult with other faculty upon request. And,unique to our college, these Distinguished Teachersmay conduct a project that is of interest to them andserves the entire college.

In the past three years, DistinguiAed Teacherprojects have included training and assistance inwriting computer simulations; researching "questioningthat promotes critical thinking" and conducting afaculty workshop; observing classes to determinefactors affecting collaborative learning; developing andcoordinating a voluntary faculty mentoring program;developing a faculty advising manual; and conductingclassroom research.

In addition to the obvious benefits of such projects tothe college, the faculty who complete them hwe beenenergized and revitalized. They have made collegialcontacts that other, vise would not have been made andhave gained rr --,ew perspectives from those teach-ing in different subject areas and divisions. One 0; nurDistinguished Teachers describes her project.

Investigating Teaching StylesDetermining a focus for my Distinguished Teaching

project proved to be easier than I had expected. For along time, I had recognized a personal need to knowmore about other departments and divisions at Colum-bus State in the areas of teaching styles, effectivelearning settings, and both "old" and "new" ideas forworking with students. The college encouraged me todevelop this need (and cunosity) into a project which

allowed me to make classroom observations in everyacademic department on campus over a period of fourmonths during the spring and summer quarters, 1989.

First, the purpose and rationale for the project wascommunicated to faculty and chairpersons within the22 departments on campus. I included the followinginformation in a memo:1. The primary purpose of this project is to develop and

facilitate cross-campus awareness of teaching tech-niques among faculty. It is my perception thatfaculty in different divisions (and, to some extent,within divisions) are not sharing their teachingexpertise and experiences.

2. A second purpose is to generate a list of faculty andthe teaching technique(s) they utilize which can beused as a resource guide by others. I know that wenave excellent educators at Columbus State, but Ithink we fail to access the available in-house re-sources.

3. An additional purpose is to create a mechanism for"tooting the horn" of our faculty, who are activelytrying new ways of challenging students, continuallyupdating and refining existing skills and techniques.Everyone wants to be recognized. This project at-tempts to create an additional channel for suchrecognition and attention.In addition, I felt it important that fellow faculty

members be secure with my presence in their dass-rooms and not feel pressured by the observations.T,terefore, the memo also specified the following:1. I will consider the observations a privilege granted

by one faculty member to another. There will be noattempt to evaluate or judge any of the facultymembers observed.

2. My preference is that faculty members volunteer tobe observed and choose the class session to beobserved.

3. I am also willing to talk with other faculty abouttechniques and methods which cannot be observeddirectly. Although I would strongly prefer to seefaculty in action, I am aware that this may not be

in all cases.


r

I received responses from departments in each of thefour divisions at Columbus State, and 16 volunteerfaculty members were contacted to arrange observa-tional visits. The opportunity proved as informative asI had hoped and identified a multitude of ideas forfuture use. As expected, faculty were teaching bothtraditionally and nontraditionally, with flexibility aswell as with structure; and each brought his or her ownunique characteristics to the delivery of material.Within each classroom I was able to identify an overallatmosphere which was created in part by the teacherand in part by the response and participation of thestudents.

In one session within the Basic Science Department,I was impressed with the instructor's immediateinvolvement of the students in the learning process.After asking them about their understanding of theconcepts covered in the previous class, she followedwith questions which allowed for positive responsesand then praised them for their recall and completionof an informal homework experiment. Analogies andexamples from her own life let students visualizedifficult concepts, and I found the desaiption compar-ing molecules of water to "a bucket of BB's" helpful.Study tricks and shortcuts, such as key word associa-tions, were identified by this instructor and recom-mended to students on a regular basis. When askedwhat they liked about the instructor's teaching, stu-dents mentioned the study tricks and stated, "She'senthusiastic! She comes in and says, This is going tobe fun!' She likes what she's doing." The studentresponse mirrored the teacher's behavior.

It is a difficult task to teach students who, years ago,may have "turned off and tuned out" writing as aneffective form of communication. Within the Commu-nication Skills Department, students are given a varietyof ways to learn and demonstrate their comprehension,refinement, and sometimes relearning of the 3ubject. Inaddition to creating their own compositions in a clear

-nncise manner, students are asked to keep aiourna ifie journal topics are structured for thestudent by the instructor and relate to the student'sfeeling about writing. As the faculty member reads thejournal, he or she is able to provide individualizedinstruction to the student, based on his or her ownidentification of need. Group work is utilized duringbrainstorming half-hours in class where students worktogether to pinpoint and clarify composition topics,and through the technique of reviewing first drafts inclass and critiquing the work of fellow classmates.Once again, interest is piqued by the use of "grabbers"

on the board: How would you punctuate the sentenceused by this instructor, "That that is is that that is not isnot is it it is"?

Those of us who think that the teaching technique ofasking "What's wrong with this picture?" is only forelementary children should take another look. I visitedone classroom where using this technique brought thestudent participation to life and the discussion andinteraction between teacher and students to a higherlevel. As the Electronics Engineering Technologyfaculty member drew on the board an example of aseries-parallel circuit, he failed to design the circuitcorrectly and stepped back for a long moment to studyhis diagram. The instructor indicated to me later thatthis mistake was not intentional and that his hesitancywas real as he processed the correct response. Theunplanned reaction from students (who had beenpreviously silent, listening to a lecture) was the excitingpart. Students became actively involved in workingtogether to solve the problem. They suggested possi-bilities, gave critical feedback to one another, andclearly indicated to the teacher by their comments whatthey were knowledgeable about and what contentareas still needed work. The atmosphere created bythis event was one of respect for both student andteacher, and the partnership which is possible was veryapparent.

I have incorporated many of these ideas into myown teaching in the field of Mental Health and MentalRetardation. Though our subject matter is diverse, wehave much to teach each other. The opportunity andprivilege of exploring this subject continues to beinvaluable to me.

Marilyn PramschuferAssociate Professor

Mental Health/Mental Retardation

411111"11

Sheri Bidwell, Assistant to Vice President for AcademicAffairs

For tt..-oher information, contact the author at Colum-bus State L.nmunity Coll 1;e, 550 East Spring Street,P.O. Box 16P9, Columbus, OH 43216-1609.

&ranee D. ROUX* Edior

Nov..,dw2 Im, VoL XI, Na 2$OTho Unworthy of Taus of Amin, 1990Funlw titiphcaton is permitted ty MEMBERinsathiont for lhoo ovm person*

11140VATION MSTRACTS i a manila) of lito Name/ bah* kr Stall and Ogaiizabona l Devebpment (NOD),EDS 348. The !Awry a' Terme Man, Amen, Toes 71712 (512) 471-7545. a r o avatablob noncorsof-Dum minima kw PO psi gm Fuming in pen Cy the W. K Kellogg Founflwan and Oko Sid W. Fecherdeon Fowidaionlowed weekly illkm dosses a: .1. saw.;:in dump fall end wrong Nome en dinv Ow tummy. ISSN 0190.106X


tt INNOVATION Aa3TRACTS

Creating Community in the Community College Classroom...or, It's Okay to Break the Silence

Almost eery community college instructor hasexperienced the uncomfortable sound of silence thatoccurs on opening day each semester as students enterthe class.00m and quietly, wanly take their scats,watching and wa.`,ng. As instructors we tend to standat the door and cheerfully greet each student, or calmlywait behind the podium pretending to concentrate on alast-minute paper shuffle, or enthusiastically hurry intothe cla,sroom atter all the students have found scats.Regardless ot how we begin, silence and an accompany-ing sense of di,tance persist

At this moment the "community" in communitycollege becomes a misnomer Unlike tour-year residen-tial colleges .11( :2 a sense ot community amongstudents de l. clops as a result of dorm life, social clubs,arsitv sports, or Greek organizations, rarely is tlwre ar i I, -made community for community co',.14e stu-dents unles:" the instructor takes time to create oneCreating a community within the classroom beginswhen studer ts interact with other students in such away that connections begin to form.

Ice breakers and Ivarm-up activities encourage thebuilding of a classroom community. Instructors dis-cover that ice breakers not only help students get toknow an !Ike each other, but such connections reduceattrition, involve students in their own learning, andimpro l. e classroom discussion and interaction.

What follows is a seri( s ot ice breakers that workSome are more practical for small discussion groups;others work better in large lecture settings Some can beaccomplished in three to five minutes, others requiremore time All are classroom-tested by successfulcommunity college instructorsPaired Interviews

For this ice breaker, allow five minutes total inter-view time and, depending on group size and timeconstraints, 15 to 60 seconds reporting time per person.

Pair students quickly (if one student remains, you actas his/her partner until a latecomer arrives).Ask students to interview each other. For the firsttwo minutes, one partner is the interviewer; wlk n

you call "time" after two minutes, the partnersswitch roles.The Interview can be structure!, y 01., can give sug-gestions or specific questions to ask: Name? Wheredid you grow up? What is your favorite leisure-timeactivity? Why are you taking this course?At the end of the four minutes of interview time,begin the repc sting back phase, indicating to thestudents how much time each should spend intro-ducing his or her partner. Model the activity byreporting first.Students enjoy learning about each other and abeut

you, they reveal more information about each otherthan they would if asked to introduce themselves. Thisactivity also provides an excellent way for you to beginlearning students' names. As students introduce eachother, jot down names am-4 make an impromptu,Informal seating chart. Then, for the remainder of theclass period, you can call students by name.Index CardYou Tell Me, I'll Tell You

This ice breaker takes little time and works well forany size group. It serves to help you gain rapport withstudents.

Distribute two Index cards to each person, makingcertain the cards are different (i.e., color, size, lined/unlined).Ask the students to use one card (specify which) totell you anything they want you to know about themas individuals. It can be specific to the class or just tothem. Indicate that you would like the student'sname on the card and that you consider this cardconfidential. (You will be surprised at the candorstudents exhibit. Students have written such com-ments as: "Please don't call on me to read out loud";"I've always done badly in math, and I'm afraid I'llfail this class.")Collect these cards while students are completing thesecond set.On the second set, ask students to write a questionabout you or the course. Indicate no names arenecessary and that you'll answer the quPstions.

7: THE NATICNAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)kk j) Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at Austin'tt EDB 348, Austin, Texas 78712 p. -

a ) ;)

After you collect the second set, thumb through thecards, answermg those you can on th': --ot_ Youmight take the last few minutes of cla .!-. to answerOthers.During the next few class sessions, try to answer all

the questions. Your candor will help students feelcomfortable with you and the course.Great Questions

This ice breaker works well with small or largegroups, and the time It takes is easily controlled by theinstructor.

Begin by deciding (before class) on three questionsyou'd like students to ask each other and thendiscuss as a class. They may be generic or disci-pline-specific, but should be open-ended and havethe potential of a wide variety of answers. Examplesof questions are: If you could change one thing intoday's world, what would it be? What do you likebest about (your college)? What do you want to bedoing in five years? What frustrates you mostabout...? Which president has had the greatestImpact on our country? Why do people have mathanxiety'Once you've selected three questions, put them onthe board or project them on a screen. There will betwo rounds of questions.In the first round, ask the students to move aroundthe room, find someone they don't know, ask him/her the questions, and jot down the responses.In the second round, ask students to move toanother person. Each student's responses to thequestions should be different from those givendunng the first round, forcing students to stretchtheir thinking.After a few minutes, halt the "Interview exchange"

and have students return to their seats. As a class,discuss the responses to the questions.Organized Sit-Downs

This activt.y can serve as an introduction to a topicor general theme of the course

Once students are seated, ask them to re-eat them-selves according to whatever "theme" you'vechosen. For example, a U.S. History class might beasked to seat themselves in the rough shape of theUnited States based on where they were born.Indicate general areas of the room, such as "downfront is Mexico and South America, to the nghtCalifornia and Pacific areas." But, since one of theobjectives is to get students to make contact witheach other, It is wise to let them sort out the details.Once every :-..z. has found a seat, you might followup with some appropriate questions. How many of

Bann. D. Rousche, Editor

you are native New Yorkers? Michiganders? Or, inthe case of the math class, you might talk aboutaverage height, frequency, or range.Whatever the theme of the organized sit-downs,

encourage students to Introduce themselves to eachother. Place yourself in the appropriate seat.Find a Person Who...

This simple activity is easily tailored to differentclasses and updated each semester.

Prior to the first class meeting, write 10-15 state-ments on a sheet of paper with a blank space aftereach. Make a copy for each student.Title the paper "Find a Person Who...." Sentencesvary from personal information to discipline/courseinformation, such as: Find a person who is left-handed, is on this campus for the first time, likes tosnow ski, is a native of California, jogs/walks 15miles or more each week, is working towards anA.A. degree.Distribute the papers and encourage students to millaround the room asking questions of each other. Aperson who fits the statement signs his/her name onthe appropriate blank. A person can sign only onceon each sheet ot paperWhen it appears that many have completed theexercise, call time; have students return to theirseats, and as a class discuss the responses to thequestions: "Who is left handed?" "Do we have anynative Californians here?"If you complete this exercise just prior to a break,

you'll find increased conversation between studentswhich carries over during this free time.

By breaking the silence that accompanies every firstclass, you are encouraging community. And whenstudents riskjust a little by sharing something aboutthemselvesyou are building a basis for open discus-sions later in the course. Consider using ice-breakeractivities periodically, not ju A on the first day, to helpstudents form new connectic ns awl build more diversecommunities.

Sharalee C. Jorgensen, Dean, Commui.:ty Educatwn

For further information, contact the author at Mira-Costa College, One Barnard Dnve, Oceanside, CA92056.

November 9, 1990, VoL XI, No. 27©The Unwersdy of Texas at Austin, 1990Further duplicaoon is permined by MEMBERmshtutions for their own personnel

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS is a publrcabon ot the Natrona, hstittite tor Staff and Organizational Development (N1SOD),EDB 348, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, (512)4711545 Subscnpeons are available to nonconsoruum members for $40 per year Funding, n part by the W I ( Kellogg Foundation and he Sid W Richardson FoundatIonIssued weekly when classes are i n session dunng fall and spring teems and once dunng the summer ISSN 0199 106X

5 6



Reading Aloud

Freshman composition courses abound with supple-mentary readers and essay compendiums which,ideally, are sample modes of development for neophytewriters to follow. Consequently, composition teachersadmonish their students to read more if they want tovnte better. I am no exception But no amount ofthreats, warnings, and tirades ensure that my studentswill do the reading necessary to improve their writing,especially since lecture preparation, essay production,and then grading and error review seem to take up :omuch time both in and out of class. Pop quizzes an I in-class tests never seem to succeed at getting the studentsto utilize their readings and Instead only seem to showthem how to pass the quickie tests. Furthermore, I,along with my colleagues, realize we are dealing withthe products of a quarter of a century of electronicnwdia pushers Nothing seems to get students to do thecomprehensive and thorough reading necessary tounderstand the intimate relationship between organ-ized thought and its translation onto the pnnted page.

I urgently want my students not only to get the mostout of their reading assignments, but to know how tounlock the subtleties, allusions, metaphors, and histori-cal references present in good expository writing. Outot desperation, I resorted to the old primary schoolstandbyreading aloud in class.

My tirst goal is simply to get students to read aloudsamples of then- assigned essay examples for develop-ment and style But secretly I longed for them toappreciate the aural beauty of the well-written word.Early in the term I set aside 4 to b one-hour class ses-sions in which we can thoroughly read and discuss eachessay. Fortunately, composition classes at Edison arelimited to a maximum of 20 students I divide the classInto three groups and assign each essay that can beadequately read in no more than two 50- to 55-minuteclass periods. I try to pick the most vividly exciting orinteresting selections or one that is loaded with adjec-tives or perhaps controversial issues. The essay con-tains enough material so that each group member has atleast 8 to 10 mmutes of uninterrupted performancehme I require that each group member read aloud andthat all unfamiliar vocabulary within the selection be

defined prior to presentation. I assign three short-answer summary-type questions following the selectionwhich are to be answered jointly and then presented bya d, ;ignated speaker who may or may not read theanswers.

Hesitant and shy at first, by the second session thestudents are itching to perform before their peers. Aswe progress, students start to gain confidence and stopeach other (and me) to ask for definitions and clarifica-tions. Throughout all sessions I encourage them toleave their fragile egos at the classroom door, and Iconstantly assure them that we are all learning to bebetter readers, which hopefully will continue through-out our lives. And while I will sometimes let a skippedline or mispronunciation pass unnoticed and forcemyself to bite my tongue while students struggle withsentence structure and vocabulary, I find studentsquickly correct each other and insist that the slightestmistake not pass uncorrected.

By the end of the last group's presentation, the classhas not only become more relaxed and confident witheach other, but almost all see reading in a new, morescholarly lightnot as some dreaded assigned exer-cisebut as something alive, informative, and quitepossibly fun. The in-class exercise gives me a welcomerespite from the daily grind of lecture preparation andbackground reading, but more importantly, it gives meexcellent insight into certain students' learning disabili-ties or reading problems. I can more confidently recom-mend that these students get tutors or extra lab assis-tance.

Most rewarding is the immediate effect that readingaloud has on students' essays. Their writing improvesdramatically after this class exercise, especially withregard to content and style. While reading aloud iscertainly not a cure-all for mechanical and grammaticalfaults, it certainly allows the students to practically seethat reading is indeed useful and necessary to progressin the real world.

Virginia Harper-Phaneuf, Instructor, Humarutus

For further information, contact the author at EdisonCommunity College, College Parkway, Fort Myers, FL33907.

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NISOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinEDB 34C, Austin, Texas 78712

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Literary Still LifesFor the past four years, the director of our art gallery

has been supplementing the literary learning environ-ment in our building with a series of unusual ,risualdisplays. Using freestanding showcases of varioussizes and shapes, and in one instance an entire sectionof brick wall from floor to ceiling, he combines artifactsrelevant to various literary excerpts by juxtaposing theobjects with texts printed in large type on pieces ofwhite foam-core board.

Each display features a specific author or a period ormovement in literature. They have ranged in composi-tion from the brick wall faced with barn siding towhich were attached farm implements and farmadministration photographs of rural scenes from the1930's interspersed with selections from Steinbeck'sGrapes of Wrath, to a single-pedestal, hexagonal show-case containing an old Mason jar resting on a swatch ofred satin sprinkled with a few brown leaves, and anenlarged reprint of Wallace Stevens' poem "Anecdoteot the Jar." One of the most striking of these literarystill lifes comprised an array of technical hardwaresprings, coils of wire, large bolts, a polished camshaf tstrewn over a stark landscape with excerpts from thescience fiction of Stanislaw Lem on white foam-coreplacards suspended in a staggered pattern from theceiling of the lighted, cylindrical cas,?.

An unexpectedly controversial display was a "Kenand Barbie" tableau that was intended to publicize acourse on women in literature. Surrounded by a sea oftiny doll hands thrusting up from a bed ( ' white sand,a bikinied "Barbie" rode on a surf raft towed by "Ken,"with a golden chain, harness-fashion, around his neck.In the center was a piece of mirror glass, partiallyburied, in which the viewer could catch his ownreflection as he read a copy of Sylvia Plath's poem"Mirror "

A recent effort, timed to coincide with "EarthWeek," consisted ot fossilized trilobites, sharks' teeth,nd Eocene fish on a raked surfac 2 surrounded by

copies in large type of James Dickey's "Last Wolver-in-," O.W. Holmes' "Chambered Nautilus," RobinsonJeffers' "Birds and Fishes," and Robert Lowell's "TheMouth ot the Hudson."

In addition to transforming the hallways and lobbies

of our building into some of the most visually interest-ing venues on campus, these displays have had aprofound impact on students and visitors who regu-larly stop to peruse them. In many instances, theyprovide viewers with their first contact with a poet, ornovelist, or a literary movement. In others, they sup-plement what was or is being studied in classes, pro-voking fresh insights by bringing featured works to lifewith new perspectives. It is also worth noting that uiefine arts and literature faculties in Essex have beendrawn into a greater collegiality, enriching the curric-ula in both areas.

These "payoffs" are difficult t,, measure, but theyare nonetheless real and should make the techniqueworth a try. Besides, it offers a welcome alternative todreary old bulletin boards!

W. P. Ellis, Chairman, Division of Humanities & Arts

For further information, contact the author at EssexCommunity College, 7201 Rossville Boulevard, Balti-more, MD 21237.

Suanne D. Roueche, Editor

November 76, 1990, Vol. X11, No. 28VThe University of Texas at Ausbn, 1990Futter duplication is permitted t y MEMBERinstitutions for their own personnel

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS is a publicabon ol the Natrona! Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD),ED8 348, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, (512) 471-7545 Sut6cnottons are available to nonconsor:ium members for .540 per year Funding in part by the W K Kellogg Foundabon and The Sid W Richardson FoundabonIsNed weekly when classes are in session dunng fall and spring terms and once during the summer ISSN 0199-106X

1"; ci

-VOLUME XII, NUMBER 29


A Writing Assignment for the Tech Classroom

When I first started teaching in the technologies aftermore than a decade in the humanities, I was worriedthat there would be little opportunity for writingassignments. I felt that my computer students shouldbe doing more writing than responding to the occa-sional short-answer questions on tests. Thanks to theefforts of our local WAC (Writing Across the Curricu-lum) group, I've discovered that writing assignmentscan have an important place in the technology curricu-lum. Now, I use a variety of writing activities in mytech classes.

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One simple exercise has worked particularly well. I

tell my students to read an assigned chapter and thenwrite five questions based on their reading. However,these questions must not be questions that the textanswers; rather, they should be questions that someonewho has read the chapter carefully might not be able toanswer from having completed the reading assignmentonly.

I also give the students examples of appropriate andinappropriate questions. For instance, if the chapter ison programming languages, a poor question would be:"What are the names of the major computer lan-guages?" This would be a poor question because thebook provides the answers. A better question wouldbe, "Why are there so many different programming Ian-guages?"----a topic not directly addressed by the book.

No matter how well I explain the assignment the firsttime I give it, typically over half of the initial group ofquestions are simple factual questions, and the answersare obvious from a simple reading. The students, itappears, are not accustomed to questioning what they read.But with encouragement they are soon producingquestions that are thoughtful and provocative. Somequestions students asked after reading one chapter lastsemester were: "In foreign countries do they use BASICand COBOL as we do, or do they need their own pro-

gramming languages?" "How is Apple BASIC differentfrom IBM BASIC?"

I admit I first devised this assignment out of despera-tion. Too many students were coming to class withouthaving completed the assigned reading. This exercisenot only serves as a check that students have read thematerial in ad, ,-.7e of the discussion, but it also helpsensure that th j have read it carefully. Moreover, theirquestions alert me to what might be problem areas inthe reading for the day.

I unabashedly steal as many of the students' ques-tions as I can and use them during class. As a result,discussions have become much more interesting, withmany more students participating spontaneously. Iclosed last semester by discussing for an entire hour onestudent's question: "On the whole, will computers domore harm to society or more good?" This controver-sial question led to one of the rowdiest yet mc;.4 infor-mative discussions I've ever had the pleasure to lead.

The student who wrote that question was being anactive reader; instead of passively taking for grantedeverything the text said, she talked back to the book byasking a question to which neither she nor I have theanswer.

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It's said that an educated person is one who knowswhat questions to ask. Writing Across the Curriculumhas inspired me to get my tech students to ask thetough questionsand to put them in writing.

Dennis Lynch, Chair, Electronic Data Processing Depart-ment

For further information, contact the author at ElginCommunity College, 1700 Spartan Drive, Elgin, IL,60123.

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (NIS ^D)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinEDB 348, Ausfin, Texas 78712 ar ()

Philosophy in a New Key (With Bells and Whistles)

In my Introduction to Philosophy course, I use a"problems approach," discussing such perennial issuesas ultimate reality, free will, knowledge, morality,political obligation, and the existence of God. In sodoing. I have always treated philosophers withoutregar to any historical sequence of their lives orworks. Even though I may have mentioned thatDescartes lived in the seventeenth century or thatSocrates died in 399 B.C., I found students had noconcept of what these times were like. I decided toattempt a solution to this problem.

I reproduced 12" x 17" photographs of variousphilosophers. As I discussed a particular thinker, I putthe photograph on an easel in the front of the room. Ireproduced some great paintings of philosophersChartran's Descartes in the Streets of Paris, JacqueDavid's The Death of Socrates, and Rembrandt's AristotleWith a Bust of Homer. But, more frequently, I have usedphotographs of contemporary thinkers, such as Russell,Wittgenstein, and Sartre; pictures of busts and statuesof the ancients; and photographs of paintings ofphilosophers who lived before the invention of photog-raphy.

In addi'ion, before and after the class, I play musicof the period from which that particular day's philoso-pher came. The intricate logic of Leibniz is communi-cated well by a Bach fugue; John Cage captures wellthe disjointed, absurd, God-abandoned world Sartredescribed. Mozart captures the spirit of Kantianformalism; and Strauss, in his Thus Spike Zarathustra,makes a fine musical focus for a discussion ofNietzsche. When discussing out-and-out egoistic he-donism, a picture of a bust of Aristippus is before meand a copy of Playboy magazine is in my hand, and Iplay lams Joplin's "Lord, Won't You Buy Me a Mer-cedes Benz?" Country-and-western singer GeneWatson's "14 Carat Mind" provides a fine entree to adiscussion of J. S. Mill's notion of qualitative differ-ences in pleasures.

Philosophy students, quite on their own, came to seesimilanties between the philosophy being discussedand the costumes and hair styles of the pictured phi-losopher. They commented on how similar the pic-tures of Descartes and Leibniz were and how differentthey were from the pictures of Berkeley and Hume.Thus, grouping philosophers became easier for thestudents, as they saw the similarities and differences inthe photographs. I sometimes used other sorts of

pictures. For example, students can see similaritiesbetween Cartesian philosophy and the piecisely-trimmed hedges of Versailles or between a Miro paint-ing and the philosophy, say, of Albert Camus.

The music and photographs set the tone for theday's lecture and allow the students to participate non-cognitively in the Zeitgeist. Students are very respon-sive to the pictures and music and like to speculateabout what will be said in that day's discussion andlecture. At first, I was afraid that a picture of the bustof one Greek philosopher would look to the studentsvery much like all other pictures of busts of Greek phi-losophers. But, in fact, many students were able to dis-tinguish, on their own and without invitation orprompting, pictures of the bust of Aristotle from that ofPlato and that of Socrates.

On occasion, a few minutes before class began, Iwould place the easel with the photograph outside theclassroom. With the door open and the music playing,we often drew quite a crowd of the curious. Severalstudents who were not enrolled in the class oftenwould decide to visit for that day, just to see what wasgoing on. These students added a new dimension toclass discussion, and the strategy proved to be anexcellent rexuitment device for philosophy classes

In addition to the music and photographs (a collec-tion which has grown with numerous student contri-butions), I have insisted on the immediate availabilityof maps. I find my students are quite geographicallyilliterate. When I mention Socrates' Athens or Kant'sKönigsberg or Hegel's Vienna, I point to that city on amap in a very casual and offhand way, but the pointingseemed to increase the students' geographical aware-ness.

It is my belief that philosophy may be learned otherthan through reason. It is also my belief that to gainfull appreciation of a philosophy, students must havesome sense of the time and place of its development.Through the bells and whistlesthe pictures, music,and mapsI have played my philosophic tunes in anew key this year. It was a key which, hopefully,expanded students' historical, aesthetic, geographic, aswell as philosophic, horizons.

Robert Bennett, Instructor, Philosophy

For further information, contact the author at El CentroCollege, Main and Lamar, Dallas, TX 75202.

Suomi. D. Rancho, Editor

November 30,19110, Vol. ki, No. 29oThe University of Texas at Ausbn, 1990Further duplication a permitted by MEMBERinstitutions fa thew own personnel

INNOVATION ABSTRACTS s a pubkabon of the Nowa, babble for Staff and Organzatscw,al Development (NISOD),EDB 318, The awn* oi Taws at Austin, Austin, Taos 78712, (512) 471-7545. &tscsrØons we available b nonconsofbum memben kw $40 pa year Fundme in part by U. W. K Kellogg Foundation and the Sid W. Richankon Foundationissued weekly when dosses are in mason dunng b 11 and spring hirms and once thong the summer ISSN 0i99 -106X

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Ethics in Higher Education

In many academic institutions these days, the threeare recruitment, retention, and revenue. At

Brookdale Community College we have been givingsome attention to the fourth "R," responsibility. In May1989, I was charged with organizing a series of seminarson moral concerns at the college. The process by whichthe seminars were constructed and the outcomes theygenerated are worthy of discussion.

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The first step consisted of an appeal sent to the entirecollege community asking for input regarding specificethical concerns. Individuals were invited to remainanonymous and to formulate their concerns as minicase studies in which the names and nonessentialdetails were changed to disguise the living. To mysurprise, only 19 responses were received from a total of200 appeals. However, the high quality of these re-sponses more than offset the lack of quantity. Severalrespondents sent lengthy memos; many offered mul-tiple situations for consideration.

The next step was to organize these responses and torewrite them for stylistic consistency. I arranged thesuggestions into five sets: student issues, faculty issues,issues involving learning assistants, union issues, andadministrative issues. Each set of issues contained fouror five mini case studies for discussion.

Since the first two sets seemed to be of more generalinterest, we agreed to repeat the discussion of theseIssues several times. The last three sets were scheduledonce each. Nine discussions were planned in three se-quences: one sequence for the Monday lunch hour, asecond for Tuesday evenings, and a third for Fridayafternoons.

Another bulletin was sent to the college communityadvertising the sessions under the title of "Ethics inHigher Education." Interested personnel were encour-aged to register for one sequence of three discussions,

and they could join either as participants or spectators.This time the response improved: 36 faculty, staff, andadministrators registered. Of these, 19 volunteered toparticipate; 17 preferred to simply observe. Becausethere was a strong preference for the lunch hour, theTuesday evening sessions were cancelled, and a secondsequence was scheduled for another set of Mondays.

Each of the participants was sent a copy of the"script" of case studies for his/her sequence. The basicdiscussion model was that used on the TV series "Ethicsin America," in which I took the role of a principal char-acter and the participants took other roles.

In the first discussion, for example, I played the roleof a student, and participants played various facultymembers. As Uriah Unready, I struggled with a mathcourse for which I was ill-prepared, and the facultymember was challenged to decide how far he/shewould extEnd his/her moral responkbility to remainpatient and available for extra help. Later I became JackJocce, who showed no interest in a philosophy course,only to learn toward the end of the term that he desper-ately needed the credit for an athletic scholarship.Finally, I became Linda Lovelorn and encouraged arelationship with my accounting teacher as I continuallysought extra help after my evening class.

Similar kinds of artiticialyet realsituations wereused for discussions on administrative, faculty, learningassistant, and union issues. No attempts were made tofind the "right" answers, but in many cases the partici-pants came up with a set of tentative guidelines todistinguish morally acceptable from morally unaccept-able behavior.

It is important that ethical discussion be based uponissues that are of genuine interest at any given time oncampus. It is difficult to get people to submit issuesabout which discussions could be organized, butoffering the college community the opportunity tosubmit them democratizes the process and remov( ssuspicions of a hidden administrative agenda. Had wereceived fewer responses, I was prepared to "beat thebushes" for help from my immediate colleagues.

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STAFF AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (N1SOD)Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at AustinEDB 348, Austin, Texas 78712

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The use of case studies was, in retrospect, also agood choice. Frequently, in the discussion, it becameobvious to many participants that the issue beingdiscussed hypothetically had been, or still was, anactual situation on campus. Nevertheless, personalitieswere removed by focusing on the "case" and leavingthe actual situation aside. So, even those who knew thedetails and had opinions about the latter were on equalfooting with those who did not.

My role quickly became a bit complex. In onecapacity, I functioned as leader of the discussion,keeping it on track, and moving it along to its conclu-sion. In a second, I was one of the participants as-signed a specific role, usually as a protagonist for theethically questionable position. In still a third, I wassummarizer and chief formulator of principlesa rolethat fell to me probably because of my training in ethicsand experience in classroom case study discussions.However, I found it easy to move back and forthamong these three functions, and the other participantsnever seemed to have trouble with my shifting around.

Participants, as well, found the role-playing effec-tive. It gave them the flexibility to step in and out oftheir roles, sometimes speaking their own minds andsometimes cushioning their opinions by making themcome out of their roles. In this way, participants wereable to disagree and yet not invest their true personaein the disagreement. When they left their roles, theycould resume their friendships.

After the nine discussions were completed, anevaluation form was sent to all participants andspectators. Approximately one-half responded, andtheir approval of the method and the content of theseries was unanimous.

Did anyone learn anything from the sessions? Wereopinions changed and were behaviors modified? Thepost-seminar evaluations didn't reveal arything sodramatic. But it was clear in many of the discussionsthat arguments presented in the roles that some partici-pants played were frequently refuted and isolated fromthe general principles of morality that the groupformulated at the end of each discussion period. Thatthese opinions might have represented the actualthinking of the presenters must have given theseparticipants cause to rethink their positions.

The fact that all participants thought that the discus-sions were worth the time of attendance indicates thatsome important personal thinking must have beenoccurring and that participants and spectators wereprobably relating the issues and principles to specificresponsibilities they have in the college community. Inother words, the fourth "R" got its day.

Robert B. Mellert, Professor, Philosophy

For further information, contact the author atBrookdale Community College, Newman SpringsRoad, Lincroft, NJ 07738.

SuomiaRow* Editor

December 7,1180,Vel. U Na.ON Universe! of Tens Amen, 1990Further duploceson i perrmeed 4/ MEMBERW1110101111 fort& pen personnel

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Volume XII, N.mb°r_c Texas Univ., Austin. - ERIC