Improving Class Interaction

Any Questions?
(Richard Felder, Chemical Engineering Education, 1994)

If I ask the whole class a question and wait for someone to volunteer an answer, the students remain silent and nervously avoid eye contact with me until one of them (usually the same one) pipes up with an answer. On the other hand, if I call on individual students with questions, I am likely to provoke more fear than thought.

No matter how kindly my manner and how many eloquent speeches I make about the value of wrong answers, most students consider being questioned in class as a setup for them to look ignorant in public—and if the questions require real thought, their fear may be justified.

I find that a better way to get the students thinking actively in class is to ask a question, have the students work in groups of two to four people to generate answers, and then call on several of the groups to share their results. I vary the procedure occasionally by having the students formulate answers individually, then work in pairs to reach consensus. For more complex problems, I might then have pairs get together to synthesize team-of-four solutions.

Following are some different things we can ask our students to do that can get them thinking in ways that "Given this fact, calculate that" never can.

Define a concept in your own words

Using terms a bright high school senior or your grandmother could understand, briefly explain the concept of vapor pressure (viscosity, heat transfer coefficient, ideal solution, etc.).

Explain familiar phenomena in terms of course concepts

Why do I feel comfortable in 65-degree still air, cool when a 65-degree wind is blowing, freezing in 65-degree water, and even colder when I step out of the water unless the relative humidity is close to 100%?

Predict system behavior before calculating it

Without using your calculator, estimate the time it will take for half of the methanol in the vessel to drain out (for all the water in the kettle to boil off, for half of the reactant to be converted).

Think about what you've calculated

Find two different ways to verify that the results you have calculated are accurate or that the formula you have chosen to solve the problem is the correct one. The computer output says that we need a tank volume of 3,657,924 cubic meters. Any problems with this solution?

Brainstorm

What are possible safety (environmental, quality control) problems we might encounter with the process unit we just designed? Once a list of problems has been generated, you might follow up by asking the students to prioritize the problems in terms of their potential impact and to suggest ways to minimize or eliminate them.

Formulate questions

Write on an index card two questions you could ask a classmate to verify that he or she read and understood the assigned material for today's class.

Envisioning Course Outcomes

One of the biggest changes to occur in contemporary teaching is a shift in planning. Previously, teachers planned their activities, and then thought about what the goals of the course would be. We now know that effective planning starts with the course outcome. That is what the students should be able to do outside the classroom with the information that they have learned. Once the outcome has been determined, the teacher then selects appropriate activities.

When thinking about planning for outcomes, you need to consider:

• The current demands of industry and any certification standards
• How you can link your course goals with the larger program goals
• How you can plan your course based on the intended outcomes
• How you can create lessons that will lead the students toward the desired outcome

If learning means engaging in a task that builds personal capacity for the rest of life, then curriculum design doesn't begin in the classroom at all. Curriculum design begins outside the classroom with one important question: "What do my students need to be able to DO 'out there' (in the rest of life) that we are responsible for in this classroom?" It's a simple question; seeing the answer is more difficult.

If I am creating a course in information technology, I begin by envisioning what my students will DO differently in the community, the workplace, or the family as a result of this course. It is only after I am able to articulate this in a few clear and agreed-upon outcome statements that I can decide what content is necessary and how competence will be assessed. (Stiehl and Lewchuk. "Envisioning Outcomes Intended and Unintended." The OUTCOMES Primer)

Effective learning outcomes can take many forms, but each must:

• Describe what the student will DO differently as a result of your course
• Describe meaningful learning
• Be measured/verified; i.e., you can measure students' ability to achieve them
• Represent high levels of thinking, rather than trivial tasks
• Be written in plain language students can understand

Here are two samples:

• Demonstrate the addition of sine waves using physical devices, instrumentation, and graphs.
• Use physical and chemical properties to determine the quality of paper samples and make recommendations based on specific requirements.

Types of Questions Which Keep a Discussion Lively (Part 1)

From Discussion as a Way of Teaching: Tools and Techniques for Democratic Classrooms, by Stephen D. Brookfield and Stephen Preskill

Questions That Ask for More Evidence

These questions are asked when participants state an opinion that seems unconnected to what's already been said or that someone else in the group thinks is erroneous, unsupported, or unjustified. The question should be asked as a simple request for more information, not as a challenge to the speaker's intelligence.

How do you know that?

What data is that claim based on?

What does the author say that supports your argument?

Where did you find that view expressed in text?

What evidence would you give to someone who doubted your interpretation?

Questions That Ask for Clarification

Clarifying questions give speakers the chance to expand on their ideas so that they are understood by others in the group. They should be an invitation to convey one's meaning in the most complete sense possible.

Can you put that another way?

What's a good example of what you are talking about?

What do you mean by that?

Can you explain the term you just used?

Could you give a different illustration of your point?

Open Questions

Questions that are open-ended

Questions that are open-ended, particularly those beginning with how and why, are more likely to provoke the students; thinking and problem-solving abilities and make the fullest use of discussion's potential for expanding intellectual and emotional horizons. Of course, using open questions obliges the teacher to take such responses seriously and to keep the discussion genuinely unrestricted. It is neither fair nor appropriate to ask an open-ended question and then to hold students accountable for failing to furnish one's preferred response. As Van Ments (1990) says, "The experienced teacher will accept the answer given to an open questions and build on it" (p.78). That is, as we all know, easier said than done.

Sauvage says that when facing moral crises, people who agonize don't act, and people who act don't agonize. What does he mean by this? (Follow-up question: Can you think of an example that is consistent with Sauvage's maxim and another that conflicts with it?)

Racism pervaded American society throughout the twentieth century. What are some signs that things are as bad as ever? What are other signs that racism has abated significantly?

Why do you think many people devoted their lives to education despite the often low pay and poor working conditions?

Ending Courses With A Bang!

Better Endings:
What to Do in the Last Day of Class

Most Courses end for students with the final exam. (We leave it to you to determine if that is, for your students, a high note or a low one). However, an ending is not the same as closure, and teachers and students often leave courses with unanswered questions and unchecked emotions. Most of us have seen a number of tips on what to do on the first day of class, but we don't think about the importance of the last day as an opportunity for students to reflect on and fully synthesize their learning.

Here are some suggestions that might make the closing of your course as memorable as the opening:

* Use the syllabus as a tool for course review.

* Ask students to create a flow chart to graph relationships between/among concepts learned.

* Ask students to revisit the goals they set for themselves at he start of the course. This works best if, at the beginning of the semester, you have students write goals on a note card or send you a memo describing their goals.. Return the card/memo on t he last day and ask students to assess how ell they accomplished their goals, what means they used to do so, and the apparent outcome. They can discuss their accomplishments in small groups or an write their observations in a memo to you. Reflect aloud on what students may not have fully understood-explain the benefits and costs of NOT understanding something.

* Describe what YOU learned about teaching and about the subject of the course.

* Ask students to write you a letter three months hence, telling you one thing they learned that they have actually used.

* Ask students to write a letter to someone who will take the course next semester, providing a general introduction to the course, describing strategies that were worthwhile and those that caused problems, and offering advice for succeeding in the course. Seal the letters and deliver them randomly to students at the start of the next semester.

* Use a team game format (Family Feud, College Bowl, Jeopardy) as an exam review tool. Give prizes (like candy).

* Ask students to work in groups to construct a crossword puzzle using key concepts from the course. Exchange puzzles among groups for solving.

* Ask students to bring on the last day of class several magazines (that they are willing to cut up), scissors and glue. Instruct them to work in groups to create collages of pictures that summarize the ideas presented during the preceding weeks of the cou rse. Display the collages and ask each group of students to explain the one they created.

* Require the students to come to the last class prepared to present (either graphically or verbally) a metaphor for the subject of the course.

* Ask students to work in pairs or trios to write a concise and complete response to the question: What is (the name of your discipline)?

Compiled from suggestions found in:

Maier, Mark H., and Ted Panitz. 1996. "End on a High Note: Better Endings for Classes and Courses." College Teaching, Vol. 44, No. 4.

"How to End Courses With a Bang." 1995. The Teaching Professor, Vol. 9, No. 5. Source: Teaching at UNL, Vol. 19, No. 3, November 1997.

Instructional Style

Your instructional style

It is important to remember that everyone tends to teach in the style in which they learn best. An instructor who has studied with a great lecturer may feel lecturing is the only way to teach. However, this might not be the best instructional style for all of your students. Be aware that individuals vary greatly in their learning styles, and your goal is to take them from wherever they are to the next level of development. Learn to teach the students you have rather than the students you want to have. All students can succeed when their learning needs are addressed. The following differences represent a continua along which different people have learning preferences. Some people:

*think symbolically, in words and numbers, while others are spatial, thinking in pictures and images

*are analytic, preferring to focus on details, while others are synthetic, preferring the “big picture”

*are intra-personal, preferring to work alone while others are interpersonal, preferring to collaborate

*are reflective, preferring to think about new information, while others are active, preferring to do something

There is no one “best way” to learn, no one right or wrong preference on the continua. Try to include activities that allow students to learn in a variety of modes. The more active involvement students have in the learning process (through discussions, question and answer sessions, group projects, problem sets, presentations, etc.), the more information they will retain and the more enjoyable they will find their learning experience in your course. Using an interactive teaching style may result in the following benefits for students:

-students become active rather than passive participants in the learning process

-students retain information longer

-interactive techniques are democratic processes and thereby give students experience in collaborating and cooperating with others

-problem-solving and critical-thinking skills are enhanced in discussion settings

-some students may learn better in a group situation

-self-esteem is enhanced by class participation

-students are given the opportunity to clarify their beliefs and values

-student motivation for future learning is increased

In general, considerable evidence indicates that teaching techniques that maximize interaction between students and teachers (and among students themselves) tend to emphasize cognitive tasks at the higher levels of Bloom’s taxonomy of learning objectives. In selecting an instructional style for your lecture, discussion, lab, or course, keep in mind what it is you think is most important for your students to learn. The ways in which your objectives are carried out will either facilitate or hinder what you are trying to accomplish with students. This is why it is important to “fit” your teaching style to both your course objectives and to your students’ varied learning styles.

The following are some interactive teaching techniques to help do this:

-have students write a question on a 3 X 5 card (or send an email) and turn it in for you to answer in a “press conference” format

-put students into pairs to quiz each other about the subject matter

-have students apply subject matter by solving real problems together in class as well as doing homework

-give students red, yellow, and green cards (made of poster board) and periodically call for a vote on an issue by asking for a simultaneous showing of cards. With larger classes consider using a personal response system (Contact Media Services for more info on this (6-3091)

-roam the aisles of large classrooms and carry on running conversations with students as they work on problems (a portable microphone helps in a large hall)

-ask a question directed to one student and wait for an answer (at least 7 seconds or more)

-do oral, show-of-hands, multiple-choice tests for summary, review, and instant feedback

-grade quizzes and exercises in class as a learning tool

-give students plenty of opportunity for practice before a major test

-give a quiz or test early in the semester, grade it, and return it at the next class meeting. Students need to clearly understand your assessment format and the level of knowledge you expect in their responses.

-have students write questions, collect them, and answer them at the beginning of the next class period or via e-mail

-allow students to work collaborative to understand new material

-assign written paraphrases and summaries of difficult reading

-have students write something

-have students keep three-week, three-times-a-week journals in which they comment, ask questions about or respond to course topics

-invite students to critique each other’s essays or short answers on tests for readability and content

-give students a take-home problem relating to the day’s lecture

- From the University of Oregon’s Teaching Effectiveness Program

The art of creating auditory content

As podcasting becomes a more wide-spread distribution method for e-learning content, attention to the quality of auditory delivery becomes more important. I found this article offers tips that are helpful to instructors delivering live lectures as well as those who are considering the production of online multimedia presentations:

Excerpted from "Scripting for E-Learning"
by Laura Steinhart

Most e-learning content-- from simple PowerPoint slide shows to customized screens with text and images--is designed for reading. Some content also includes voice-overs, such as user instructions or character voices in a scenario. Occasionally, narration tightly integrated with animation creates engaging explanations of complex processes.

In e-learning that is heavily pictorial rather than textual, the learner’s attention focuses on the visual content and the voice-overs are secondary. This does not mean that the voice-overs or words on screen are less important to the instructional designer. You would typically storyboard all content at the same time. But, it does mean that you need a clear plan for the visuals with the voice-overs in supporting roles, much as you would create a comic strip or animated film.

Storyboarding

The multi-media storyboard typically has three sections: Visual sketches, production notes, and voice scripts. A producer integrates and times the voice-overs or narrations with the visual stills and animations.

Writing for the ear

Writing for the ear, rather than the eye, is fundamentally different and is a much less forgiving task. The ear notices and cringes at awkward shifts, pretentiousness, repetitiveness, and--in technical material--long strings of nouns used as qualifiers.

The beauty of auditory content is that it speaks directly to the mind. As infants, we hear and understand spoken language years before we learn to read. Our ears are perceptive to nuance. We naturally distinguish speech styles as sharply different as TV infomercial patter, voice mail instructions, and corporate promotions.

Writing for e-learning voice-overs also encompasses different styles. You can distinguish characters in a scenario by their speech as much as their appearance. The omniscient voice may give warm, encouraging user instructions or explain how things work in spare, neutral sentences.

Playback and timing

The single most important technique in scripting for e-learning is to record and play back a voice reading the material. If you close your eyes, you will notice abrupt shifts, omissions, repetitions, and other areas needing improvement.

Tips

Pay attention to flow. When scripting narrated explanations, unfold each fact or concept sequentially and naturally into the next with no backtracking and no jumping ahead. Explanations should describe processes stage by stage rather than define terms. The name of a concept may, in fact, follow its description.

Be aware of the strong emotional power of heard speech. The narrator can vary the same text to convey very different messages. Use this to strengthen the motivational effect of your material. Specify the narration purpose, style, and emphasis in the storyboard’s production notes or by adopting typographic standards in the script. For example, all caps might indicate a louder voice and ellipses might indicate a pause.

Unless e-learning chunks are segmented for modularity, transitions can be very helpful. Students appreciate, “In the previous section, you learned . . . In THIS section, we learn . . . Next, . . . ”

Use rhetorical questions, such as, “How does the body break down carbohydrates into sugar?”

Technical material often includes long strings of nouns used as qualifiers. When possible, try to avoid this in both print materials and scripts. Keep sentences simple and declarative. Except for necessary technical terms, use basic language.

Scripting is a very satisfying task. It involves the basic composition skills used for print or online writing, but extends those skills to develop our innate auditory awareness. One integrates the auditory and the visual for a single, powerful message and better retention of learning.

Laura Steinhart (laura@mla.mv.com) is a consultant specializing in the design and development of e-learning materials.

Making Connections with Students in a Large Class

Connection
Michael Palmer, TRC Faculty Consultant, Chemistry
Excerpted from Little Things Matter in Large Course Instruction.

Research indicates that the single biggest complaint by students and faculty about large enrollment courses is the impersonal nature of the teacher-learner interaction (Stanley, 2002; Weimer, 1987). The scene is this: anonymous students hide in a sea of faces, hoping to absorb all of the day’s material; the exposed professor stands before the students hoping they will learn the day’s material. Allowing the scene to play out as scripted leaves both parties unsatisfied; however, taking time to connect with your students in and out of class can turn the sea of faces into individual students and, ultimately, everyone’s hopes of learning into actuality. Why? Research has shown that students who make personal connections with the instructor are more likely to take an interest in the material, become actively engaged in discussions, and take greater responsibility for their own learning (Weimer, 1987). Here are a few suggestions for fostering meaningful connections with your students:

•Learn as many student names as possible and use their names every chance you get. A number of suggestions for name-learning strategies can be found on the TRC website.

•Come to class a few minutes early and talk to your students—about the weather, baseball, or the assignments. Be sure to linger a few minutes after class as well.

•Invite students to meet with you one-on-one to talk about how the course is unfolding from their perspective and how you can help them better learn the subject matter. Your invitations may go unanswered but they won’t go unnoticed.

•Encourage attendance during your office hours and review sessions and consider accommodating special requests for extra help. Make appointments with those students who are struggling with the material to identify reasons for their difficulties and devise a strategy to rectify the situation. Point out additional resources which may be of value, such as tutoring options and University centers (e.g., the Writing Center) that help students with a variety of learning skills.


•Become a participant in small-group activities. Spend a few minutes with each group, not as a teacher but as an active learner.

•Listen to the class, not just with your ears but with your eyes and with that little feeling in your stomach which says something isn’t quite right. In most cases, you can easily adjust to correct a misunderstanding or clear up confusing material. If you can’t put your finger on the problem, though, ask a few students. You might be surprised at the candid, precise feedback you get. Just as important, the students will appreciate your concern for their learning.

Careful planning, prudent communication management, and meaningful student-instructor connections can go a long way toward lowering your stress levels and toward helping the students learn what you are teaching.

References:

Carbone, Elisa. Teaching Large Classes: Tools and Strategies. Thousand Oaks,
CA: Sage Publications, 1998.

McKeachie, Wilbert J. Teaching Tips: Strategies, Research, and Theory for College
and University Teachers, 11th Ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2002.

Stanley, Christina A. and M. Erin Porter. Engaging Large Classes: Strategies
and Techniques for College Faculty. Boston: Anker Publishing, 2002. Weimer,

Maryellen Gleason. Teaching Large Classes Well. San Francisco:
Jossey-Bass, 1987

Lecture Preparation

Preparation

http://teaching.berkeley.edu/tenways.html

You probably can't cover everything you want to in a lecture.

Decide what is essential, what is important, and what is helpful (what would be nice).

• Cover the first; try to cover the second; forget about the third.

• Release a little control over the material and rely on the textbook or a list of supplementary readings for the nonessentials.

Set objectives.

• What do you want to have accomplished at the end of the lecture?

• What do you want the students to know at the end of the lecture?

Plan a lecture to cover less than the entire period.

• It takes some time to get going.

• Questions always take up more time than you expect.

Divide the lecture into discrete segments and follow the standard speech structure.

• Divide it both in terms of time and in terms of material.

• Try for ten or fifteen minute blocks, each one of a topic.

• Briefly summarize the previous lecture; introduce the topic(s) for the day; present the material; summarize briefly; preview any homework and the next lecture.

Lecture from notes or an outline, rather than a complete text.

• It's too tempting to simply read, rather than lecture, from a complete text.

• Reading also creates a barrier between lecturer and audience.

• Writing up an entire lecture is very time consuming.

• A written lecture often becomes a fossil that never gets updated.

From: Ten Ways to Make Your Teaching More Effective

Office of Educational Development, Division of Undergraduate Education

University of California-Berkeley

The Challenge of Coverage

These tips may help you to plan and manage class time so that students can more easily follow, actively process, and understand the material:

Prioritize 2-3 main points that you want students to leave the room remembering.

If you try to cover much more, the key points can get lost in a flood of details.
In prioritizing, be sure that you can explain why learning each main topic is important.
When you can identify up front why students should learn about a topic, students are often better able to follow the goals, structure, and flow of the class.

Plan classes to complement the textbook, not replace it.
It is useful to check with colleagues in your discipline to see how they connect readings with in-class learning.

Focus more on teaching skills and processes, less on summarizing facts.
You can most help your students by using class time to work on central learning, reasoning, and problem-solving processes.

Design classes in 10-15 minute "chunks" to help you manage your time.
Each chunk should address a single main point and may include relevant examples or explanations. Generally, each should end with a brief summary and transition to the next section to provide cohesiveness and reinforce the logical structure of the material.

Remember how and why students take notes.
The most effective visual aids should indicate emphasis and organization, not provide every detail. Profuse boardwork or detailed transparencies can dilute your key messages. Be selective in providing detail so that students are not overly concerned about copying and so that opportunities for questions and interaction are maintained.

Source: Teaching Tips, Wilbert McKeachie and Tools for Teaching, B.G. Davis
From: Enhancing Teaching @ Carnegie Mellon/Teaching Tips

The Syllabus as a Tool, Not a List

From Inside Higher Ed, 2005

The Syllabus as a Tool, Not a List

When he started teaching, said Todd Estes, he was a minimalist about his syllabus, seeing it as a place to list assignments, schedules, etc. But Estes, a professor of history at Oakland University, in Michigan, said that his thinking - and his syllabuses - have evolved. Currently, he has an 11-page syllabus for his introductory American history course.

In a paper for a panel at the AHA meeting, Estes said that his primary goal for his students is to have them act and think like historians, not like students in a history class. In a class of 55 - many of them "skeptical or even hostile to the notion that history has value" - how can you do this? Estes argued that one way is through the syllabus, which isn't just a list, but provides context about the course, so that students are confronted with ideas, not just information, every time they look at the document.

Many students are uncomfortable with the idea that there is not a "single definitive answer" for some historical question. So Estes drives home a point about history, using the syllabus. A section of the syllabus is called "Why Historians Argue All the Time - And Why YOU Will Be, Too, This Semester." In that section, Estes said, students are told why this is the case, and also that they will be required in papers to identify conflicting arguments in historians' writings.

Each book that is read isn't just listed on the syllabus, but is annotated - again with the idea of showing students that there is a broader context to history and to the work of historians, not just a list of correct answers and assignments.

The syllabus also contains the usual information about assignments, work expectations, and plagiarism. Together with the context, Estes said, it tells students not only what they will do, but the kind of thinking they will be asked to try.

Blending stories into a study of history turns the past into a dynamic place.

Seven Reasons I Teach With Historical Fiction

by Tarry Lindquist, National Elementary Teacher of the Year as selected by the National Council for the Social Studies. Tarry is a fifth grade teacher at Mercer Island, Washington.

1. It piques kids' curiosity. Although I sometimes begin units with chapter books, more often I start with picture books because they're engaging and full of information. Before I read aloud, we make a class list of what students already know about the topic, and then I say: "When I finish reading, I'd like each of you to ask a question related to the story. The only rule is, no question can be asked twice." Afterward, I launch investigations, saying, "Now that we've looked at what happened to one pioneer family, let's find out if their experience was typical or unusual."

2. It levels the playing field. Some kids come to class with a deep background knowledge to draw upon, while others have just shallow reservoirs. Reading historical fiction promotes academic equity because comparing books from one unit to the next provides kids with equal opportunities to develop historical analogies. I ask, "How is the story we read for this unit similar to and different from the one we read last month?"

3. It hammers home everyday details. Picture books today provide visual and contextual clues to how people lived, what their speech was like, how they dressed, and so on. When accurately portrayed, these details are like a savings account that students can draw on and supplement — each deposit of information provides a richer understanding of the period.

4. It puts people back into history. Social studies texts are often devoted to coverage rather than depth. Too often, individuals — no matter how famous or important — are reduced to a few sentences. Children have difficulty converting these cryptic descriptions and snapshots into complex individuals who often had difficult choices to make, so myths and stereotypes flourish. Good historical fiction presents individuals as they are, neither all good nor all bad.

5. It presents the complexity of issues. If you were to draw a topographical map of an issue, there would be hills and valleys, because most issues are multifaceted. Yet traditionally, historical issues have been presented to children as flat, one-dimensional, or single-sided. Historical fiction restores the landscape of history, warts and all, so children can discover that dilemmas are age-old. My kids often make lists of the costs and benefits of historical decisions. For example, they draw two posters — one encouraging American colonists to join the Patriots, the other urging them to stay loyal to King George. They also write 35- to 45-second infomercials for each side.

6. It promotes multiple perspectives. It's important for students to share their perspectives, while respecting the opinions of others. Historical fiction introduces children to characters who have different points of view and offers examples of how people deal differently with problems. It also informs students about the interpretive nature of history, showing how authors and illustrators deal with an issue in different ways.

7. It connects social studies learning to the rest of our school day. Historical fiction, while enhancing understanding of the past, can help you integrate social studies across the curriculum.

Tips for Choosing Good Historical Fiction
There's an abundance of historical fiction in libraries, catalogs, and bookstores. To help select the best, use the following criteria and check out the resources listed below.

Criteria
The historical fiction you choose should:

* present a well-told story that doesn't conflict with historical records,
* ortray characters realistically,
* present authentic settings,
* artfully fold in historical facts,
* provide accurate information through illustrations, and
* avoid stereotypes and myths.

Reliable Resources

* Notable Children's Trade Books in the Field of Social Studies, compiled annually since 1972 by the Children's Book Council in cooperation with the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS). This is the most reliable list I've found. Careful attention is paid to authenticity and historical accuracy. Single copies cost $2. Send a check and a self-addressed, stamped (3 oz.) 6-by-9-inch envelope to the Children's Book Council, 568 Broadway, Suite 404, New York, NY 10012.
* Social Studies and the Young Learner, a quarterly magazine published by NCSS, features a regular column on books appropriate for elementary social studies and suggestions for use. To subscribe ($15/year), contact the National Council for the Social Studies, 3501 Newark St. NW, Washington, DC 20016; (202) 966-7840.
* An Annotated Bibliography of Historical Fiction for the Social Studies, Grades 5–12, by Fran Silverblank, published by Kendall/Hunt for the National Council for the Social Studies, $14.95; (800) 228-0810.

Grading Essays

How do I grade papers/essays?

When grading papers/essays, use the following four-step process:
When the assignment is given:
-Figure out what the purpose of the assignment is, and generate grading criteria based upon that purpose.
-Share the criteria you decide upon with your students: hand it out in class, and post it on your door.
-Provide models of your grading criteria to your students.
When the assignments are turned in:
-Quickly overview a percentage of the papers to get an overall sense of how the group did on the assignment.
-Skim some papers that you feel are representative of the range of quality in the student work.
-Use these papers to start four piles: High, Medium High, Medium Low, and Low.
Digging into the grading:
-Always use a pencil on your first run through: as you develop your sense of how the students did, you will probably go back and fine-tune the papers you graded first!
-Having separated the papers into piles (high, medium, low : not letter grades yet), do an initial read through and assign a preliminary, holistic grade based upon a general impression of the work. Don't get bogged down in details yet, short of marking a plus (+) or minus (-) in the margins next to issues that strike you.
-Now re-read each paper for how it addresses the criteria you identified for the assignment. Two papers may address the same criteria differently. Focus first on what the paper does, before you get to what it doesn't. After a sympathetic read, give it a critical read, marking up the paper to the level that you feel comfortable with.
Marking up the papers:
-Interactive grading poses questions and presents problems the student needs to resolve. For example: "Is this (x) what you mean? How does this connect to your main point?"

Teaching Effectiveness Program
University of Oregon

The Messages We Send (To Our Teaching Assistants)

• Developing Assignments. Some professors prefer to write their own exams and/or paper assignments, whereas others like to collaborate with their TAs in crafting questions. No matter how the assignments are developed, professors should explain the rationale to their TAs. Is the central goal having students use primary documents? Is it to assess their command of the readings? Is it to see how well they apply particular theories to problem sets? Is it to test their knowledge of particular facts? If so, which ones? Why? This kind of information is helpful for TAs developing their own teaching practice and trying to assist students in their sections.

• Assessment. Teaching Assistants are expected to do the vast majority of grading, but professors can provide invaluable assistance by helping establish grading standards and supporting TAs in cases of appeal. Some professors provide TAs with an answer key or a detailed grading rubric to help ease the grading burden, whereas others prefer to meet with their TAs over pizza and grade some exams together. Not only do TAs feel more supported by their professor in these situations, but they can be more confident that their messages to undergraduates reflect the messages the professor wants sent.

From The Messages We Send, Sarah Manekin, University of Pennsylvania

Asking the Right Questions in Class

ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTIONS IN CLASS

Teachers should be liberal in their use of questions while teaching.

Numerous research studies have found a correlation between questioning and student learning. Questions serve a variety of purposes:

* They can be used to discover what students already know

* They can be used to determine what students have learned

* They can be used to gain attention

* They provide variation while teaching

* They can be directed at problem students to get them back on task

* They cause students to think

Levels of Questions: Questions are typically divided into two levels: Higher Order and Lower Order. The higher order questions call for responses from students that require synthesis, analysis and evaluation. Lower order questions require students to provide answers that demonstrate basic knowledge and comprehension (see Unit 1 Developing Higher-Order Thinking Skills for a review of the levels of the cognitive domain). It is desirable to ask both higher order and lower order questions. Research finds professors tend to ask only lower order questions.

Types of Questions: There are several systems for classifying questions. One system classifies questions as convergent or divergent. Convergent questions have a single or limited number of correct answers. Convergent questions typically involve the recall of facts or application of knowledge to a specific situation. Examples of convergent questions are:

What is the chemical formula for photosynthesis?

What are signs of nitrogen deficiency in plants?

Which breeds of livestock would be best adapted for South Texas?

In some classification schemes, convergent questions are called closed

questions.

Divergent questions have many correct answers or even unknown answers. They are often used to get students to think or solve problems. Examples of Divergent questions are:

What do you think will happen to family farms over the next ten years If you were the Secretary of Agriculture, what three things would you do first?

For an agribusiness to be successful, what business principles must be

followed?

Teachers typically asked convergent questions five times more often than

they ask divergent questions. Both types of questions are valuable in the

classroom. In some classification schemes, divergent questions are called

open questions.

A probing question is one in which the teacher asks the student to provide additional information, clarify a response or justify an answer. Teachers should get into the practice of asking probing questions as this causes students to develop higher order thinking skills. Even if a student response to a question is correct, it is appropriate to follow-up with a probing question.

One teaching skill not discussed in Module A of this lesson is cueing. When a student is asked a question and cannot respond, it is ok to provide a hint or clue to help the student. This is called cueing.

Steps in Asking Questions

There is a correct way and incorrect way to ask a question. A novice teacher may throw out a question or two to the class, get no response, and then decide not to use questioning as a part of the teaching repertoire. The problem was in the way the question was asked. In using questions the following sequence is recommended:

1.Ask the question. The question should be clearly stated and correctly

phrased. If all you get are blank looks after asking a question, it may be

because the question is poorly worded. When teachers come up with questions on the spur of the moment, they may not be the greatest example of precise wording. It isn't a bad idea to write down 2-3 questions you might want to ask and place those in your lecture notes.

2.Pause. After the question is asked, the teacher should pause for several

seconds. This allows time for students to formulate a response. The longer the pause, the better the response will be. Research shows the average pause time after a question is asked is eight-tenths of a second. This is inadequate. Research shows the quality of the response is improved if more time is allowed for students to think.

3.Call on a student by name. There are two things that generally happen

when a teacher asks a question, but doesn't call on a specific student to

respond.

A. No one will respond. Broadcast questions such as "Does anybody know..." or "Who knows..." rarely invoke a response; especially early in the semester. After rapport has been established, a professor may be able to

ask this type of question. A specific student should be called on to answer the question.

B. One or two students may dominate the class if no one is called on to

respond. Every time a question is posed, the same couple of students will

answer. This is not desirable.

There are some people who are reluctant to call on a student by name

because they might embarrass the student if the student doesn't answer the question correctly. As long as the professor doesn't lambaste the student for not knowing the answer and makes it a habit to call on all students in the class as a matter of course instead of singling out a few, this isn't a major problem.

The reason the questioning process starts with stating the question instead of identifying a student to answer is because this will cause all the students to have to think of the answer. If the teacher calls on a student and then asks the question, the other students tend to relax.

4.Acknowledge the answer, probe or redirect the question. The manner in

which the teacher reacts to a student response to a question depends up the time available and the goals trying to be accomplished. The simplest

response is to say "That is correct" or "That isn't quite right" or

something to that effect. The student response should beacknowledged but a master teacher will build upon the student response whether it correct or incorrect. A master teacher will probe further (Why do you believe that to be true? Are you sure? Why did you respond that way?) or redirect the question to another student (Do you agree? What do you think?). The question may be redirected to 3-4 other students. Even if the original response was correct, it is not a bad idea to bounce the same question off of several students. Probing and redirecting the question promotes a deeper level of understanding and thinking.

5.State the correct response. Before a question is left, the teacher should

emphasize the correct answer.


- University of Oregon Teaching Effectiveness Program

Checking Students' Understanding of the Material

Ask students to write a "minute paper." Davis, Wood, and Wilson (1983) describe a Berkeley physics professor who, in the late 70s , developed this technique, which can be used in any discipline. At the end of a class period, ask your students to write for a minute or two on the following two questions: "What is the most significant thing you learned today?" and "What question is uppermost in your mind at the end of today's class?" The resulting minute papers, submitted anonymously, will enable you to evaluate how well you have conveyed the material and how to structure topics for the next class meeting. Angelo (1991) and Mosteller (1989) describe a Harvard statistics professor who asks students "What was the 'muddiest point' in my lecture today?"

Ask students to list key concepts or ideas. At the conclusion of a series of lectures or readings about a particular topic, ask students to write short phrases summarizing the three to five key concepts or main ideas about the topic. You can review these lists to verify whether your students have grasped the important ideas. Students can also use their lists to review for exams. You may want to initiate a class discussion that asks students to compare and contrast their entries or define and apply the concepts. (Source: Angelo and Cross, 1988)

Ask students whether they are understanding you or not. But avoid the generic "Any questions?" Instead ask, "How many are following me?" or "How many are with me on this point?" Also refrain from posing general questions that might put students on the spot: "Who is lost?"

Have students briefly paraphrase a lecture or a reading assignment. At the beginning of the class period, you can request oral or written paraphrases and then judge whether students have understood the assigned reading or the last lecture. Or you can request paraphrases at the end of the period to check on whether students understood the material you presented.

Ask students to provide a closing summary. At the end of a class session, ask students, individually or in pairs, to write a very brief summary of the main ideas you covered in class. Have students turn in their summaries--making sure they understand this is not a quiz. Or at the beginning of class, ask students to summarize the main ideas from the previous class or the reading and to write one question they expect to be answered during class.

Encourage students to form study groups. Invite representatives of the study groups to meet with you to discuss any difficulties with the subject matter. Study groups provide students with opportunities to learn from one another, and some students may find it easier to seek assistance as a group rather than as individuals.

Have students turn in class notes as an assignment. Before a midterm or final exam, require students to turn in their lecture notes, course assignments, homework, and quizzes accompanied by a detailed table of contents. You will be able to get a sense of how well students are understanding the material and to identify who is having trouble in the class and needs help. Students will find that compiling a good set of detailed notes and a table of contents will help them study for the exam. Make sure you let your students know, early in the course, that this will be required.

Encourage graduate student instructors to give you comments about the course. If you have GSIs, they can be a valuable source of information on how the course is progressing and whether students are learning the material. Most student complaints eventually find their way to a GSI. Ask GSIs to give you brief written reports on any problems the students may be having in the course (for example, have them list the one or two things that caused students the most difficulty in class last week). (Source: Davis, 1988)