A new approach to the Classroom

Ralf BeckerEconomics, School of Social Sciences

The University of Manchester

Class Contact - Outline

• What is a classroom?• Disruptive New Technology• Lectures• Tutorials• Departmental Role

Classroom

• Think about all the ways through which students and staff contact each other– Big Classes (Lectures)– Small Classes (Tutorials)– Tiny Classes (Office Hours)– Email– Online Discussion Boards

Very structured, Lecturer designed, Material Intro, Comprehensive

Lecture

Tutorial

Office Hour

Lecturer initiated, ideally students do the talking/discussing/workingPractice/ discussion questionsDeepening of understanding

Student initiated and centered

Disruptive Technology

• Precursor: BBC Open University Programmes– Expensive to produce– Not feasible as local solutions

Disruptive Technology

• Online Clips (easy to produce)

Search in YouTube for “Ralf Becker Manchester” for plenty of examples

Disruptive Technology

• Online Clips (easy to produce)• One of the first radical uses: Khanacademy.org• Today you will find educational YouTube clips to

almost any topic• They are at the core of MOOCs

• How should this change our teaching and student’s learning approach?

• How should it change the classroom?

Technological Requirements

• Producer– Tablet computer / tablet input device

(e.g. Wacom Intuos M, £170) – Screencapture Software (e.g. Camtasia Studio, £125, or BB

FlashBack Express, free)• University

– Place to publish/host videos (e.g. YouTube)– VLE, to present weblinks of videos and integrate into course

delivery• Students

– Access to online clips (from home with good internet connection – and low data cost, university computer labs)

Many things can be done better via online clips

Lecture

Tutorial

Office Hour

Make class contact really count

May largely stay the same

What should change?

Big Classes - Lectures

Current Practice

• Basically unchanged• Should it change? (Record shop or Hairdresser?)• Lecture introduces topics– Topic motivation– Technical/Formal things– Limitations– Some examples

• Students are given additional readings• Followed up-by tutorials

Mostly used as first contact with new material. (Just as textbooks are written with that in mind).

The Student’s View• Why do student’s come to Lectures?• Responses from 143 Year 1 and 209 Year 2 Students of Statistics

and Econometrics, The University of Manchester

Meet other Students

Test Understanding

Gives week a structure

Material not covered elsewhere

Lecturer exlains well

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%

% of respondents (multiple answers possible)

Year 1Year 2

Online Clips• I think that much of what we currently do in Lectures can be

better delivered/explained through Online Clips• Online clips are great for

– explaining complicated/formal matters– allowing students to slow down and speed up– being available all across the term– Incorporating software work/demos– Incorporated MC Questions

• But considerable up-front investment• Requires clear understanding by students that online delivery

is integral to course and needs to be consumed weekly

What to do in lectures?

• Very much depends on your course unit and your students• Activities that are interactive

– Perhaps slow walk through example– Discussion of empirical applications– Link from theory to reality– Clicker Sessions– Classroom experiments

• Focus on intuition, not technicalities• And more than anything else, BE ENTHUSIASTIC, motivate

students to want to learn more• BUT, prior student work required!

Small Classes - Tutorials

Typical tutorial scenario• Students are given, in advance, practice

questions (statistics, econometrics)• Students tend to come unprepared• Students expect tutor to run the show and

tend to consumeResult• GTA solves problems on the Board • Only few questions• Waste of Class Contact

Worked examples as online clips

• Even if you have great GTAs you may be able to deliver a better working through examples

• It will be consistent for all students• Can be recalled at any

time• Replaces old style tutorial

classes almost 1:1

Click on picture for example

How to use the class time?

• Give students tutorial questions• Let students watch the “tutorial

solutions” video first• Give students new set of questions

to solvein class

• Let them work in small groups• GTA is there to help and

provide solutions (although not worked)

Before tutorial

During tutorial

Implementation

• Two big UG course units• Two academic years 2011/12 and 2012/13• Level 1: Introductory Statistics (200-300 students)• Level 2/3: Econometrics (2nd semester) (300-350 students)• Both courses had Semester 1 equivalents that use

traditional style tutorials• End-of-course/Before-exam student questionnaires to

evaluate student’s experience• App. 35%/45% (Level 1) and 65%/47% (Level 2) response

rate, ca. 530 responses

Do they like having to work themselves in tutorials?

Strongly Agree

Agree Neither Agree nor Disagree

Disagree Strongly Disagree

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

Strongly Agree

Agree Neither Agree nor Disagree

Disagree Strongly Disagree

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

I wish the tutors would go through all the solutions on the whiteboard.

I like that the tutors ask us to work through the questions ourselves rather than presenting the answers on the board.

Overall student judgementCompared to other exercise classes/tutorials the approach in this course unit makes me learn better.

Strongly Agree Agree

NeitherDisagree

Strongly Disagree

0%5%

10%15%20%25%30%35%40%45%50%

Intro Stats

2012 2013

Strongly Agree Agree

NeitherDisagree

Strongly Disagree

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

Econometrics

2012 2013

Can we motivate reluctant students?• Level 2/3 Econometrics (2012/13)• Did you attempt questions? (35 students with bad and 122

with good lecture attendance)

No, I just watch the online clips to see the solutions.

Not yet, but I will look at them in the lead-up to the exam.

Not yet, I don't like answering tutorial questions.

Yes, after attending the tutorial class.

Yes, after watching the online video in which the questions were tackled.

Yes, before watching the online clip tackling the questions.

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%

At most occasional attendance I attend almost all lectures

Student Comments – To improve• I rather wished tutor spend

first half to give us question, then solve it on whiteboard after half. (or give out the answer at the end)

• As most groups had the same problems it would've been more efficient for the tutor to just go through it all on the whiteboard.

• Enjoyed the unseen questions, however wish that the tutor would solve it on the board after having attempted it in groups

• An answer sheet for the unseen questions so that we can check our answers at home of the questions we do not manage to complete in class.

• Nobody in reality worked in groups, and I couldn't do the questions

• Classes are too big

Student Comments – Well done• I liked that the tutor would

circulate the room and answer questions and explain items to the class which were difficult.

• I found the online clips to be very beneficial

• The questions before the tutorial and the accompanying videos were brilliant.

• Keep the current format. If some idiot doesn't watch the online clip, or try the questions at home beforehand or doesn't want to work through question in class, that is their own fault

• I think that the online clips were brilliant; they really helped me to understand the theory and practise the questions at my own pace

• the tutor is very approachable so it is fine working in groups before he gives the answer, as you can always ask him for explanations

• I have learnt and gained a lot of things through this method.

My lessons for quant tutorials

• Clear communication with students about expectations• Ensure the first tutorial questions are close to video

questions• Form groups according to whether they watched the clip or

tell prepared students that they can learn by “teaching”• Ensure all student’s leave the tutorial with (at least final)

solutions• GTAs to be more proactive in walking around and looking

over the students shoulders as they work.• GTA to understand that they need to talk to students and

motivate

How did my Department support me?

• Let me get on with my ideas• Made me feel valued by supporting and

submitting applications for teaching prizes• Provided me with the necessary support– Money– Equipment– IT support

• Disadvantage: Flip side of freedom is that you end up with variety

The Lecturer’s Perspective

• Re-thinking your delivery is hard• Producing online clips is time-consuming• Crowds-out research timeBut• Products can be hugely satisfying• So is the student’s feedback

Final Thoughts

• This technology is not a blip (MOOCs have shown how valuable it can be)

• Different subject areas will use it in different ways (and some may not at all – History? Philosophy?)

• The potential of online clips is not restricted to what was discussed here (e.g. exam prep)

• Allows to refocus on what lecturers are really good at