Seminar VI Organizing a Class – II Board Notes

1. Seminar VI Organizing a Class – II Board Notes Norm Dennis

2. Seminar XII Syllabi and Testing Norm Dennis

3. Why do I make up a syllabus for my course? Prepare a Focused List Group Activity

4. A Plan What is a Syllabus Where you are going • Course goals & objectives • Focus on educating and facilitating vs. covering the content • Strategies to accomplish • Textbooks & other resources • Teaching methods • Schedule How you are going to get there “Many students believe their primary task is to guess what their professors want to them to know, and if they guess wrong….” Felder and Brent, 1997

5. What is a Syllabus • A Contract • Pre-requisites & restrictions • Rules and policies of the course • Procedures for determining course grades “A large part of the students’ motivation in the classroom is directed toward the grades they hope to get from the course.” McKeachie, 1999

6. Syllabus Scholarship • How does your course begin? • Why does is start where it does? • What will you do during the course • Lecture • Lead discussions • What will your students do? • Assignments • Evaluations • How will the course end?

7. More Syllabus Questions • How does your course connect to others? • What is new? • What is old? • What is Fascinating about this course?

8. Example Syllabus

9. Content of a Syllabus • General Information • Instructor(s) • Contact information • Prerequisites • Office Hours • Texts and References • Course Objectives • Action Verbs • Measurable • Outcomes

10. Content of a Syllabus • Evaluation Criteria • Exams, Quizzes • Homework • Group work (Peer Review) • Grade plan • Course Policies • Classroom Practices/Attendance • Late work • Academic Honesty

11. Content of a Syllabus • Schedule • Topics • Assignments • Major Submissions • Exams • Use the syllabus and schedule often

12. Testing 3 Dennisisms • Fair testing practices motivate students • Unfair testing practices promote aggressive behavior • Creation of good testing instruments requires careful thought

13. Testing Principles • Testing causes stress • Integrate testing with other course evaluation activities . • Base tests on learning objectives. • Pay attention to Bloom’s Taxonomy. More are better

14. For the Cognitive Domain Evaluation Synthesis Analysis Application Comprehension Knowledge Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives judge, critique, justify, verify, assess, recommend create, construct, design, improve, produce, propose compare, contrast, classify, categorize, derive, model calculate, solve, determine, apply explain, paraphrase list, recite

15. Bloom’s Taxonomy • List the Assumptions Rankine made in developing his theory of lateral earth pressure. • List and discuss the assumptions Rankine made in developing his theory of lateral earth pressure. • List five principal assumptions Rankine made in developing his lateral earth pressure theory and describe the influence of these assumptions on the values of earth pressure one obtains from the theory.

16. Testing Principles • Testing causes stress • Integrate testing with other course evaluation activities. • Base tests on learning objectives. • Pay attention to Bloom’s Taxonomy. • Remember why you are testing. More are better

17. A Framework for Teaching & Learning • Provide an orientation: • Why is this important? • How does it relate to prior knowledge? • Provide learning objectives. • Provide information. • Stimulate critical thinking about the subject. • Provide models. • Provide opportunities to apply the knowledge: • In a familiar context. • In new and unfamiliar contexts. • Assess the learners’ performance and provide feedback. • Provide opportunities for self-assessment.

18. Testing Principles • Testing causes stress • Integrate testing with other course activities. • Base tests on learning objectives. • Pay attention to Bloom’s Taxonomy. • Remember why you are testing • Set students up for success on the first test. More are better

19. Types of Questions • Multiple Choice/True False • Short Answer • Discussion • Objective/Problem Oriented

20. Multiple Choice • Hard to prepare, easy to grade. • TIPS • Avoid negatives like, not, in the root. • Rarely use “all of the above” or ….. • Avoid “always” and “never” • Distractors • same case • same length • same complexity • Provide space for student comments

21. Short Answer/Discussion • Easy to prepare, hard to grade • Easier to climb up Bloom’s • Tips • Limit space for responses • Decide on what constitutes a satisfactory response • Plan on a 3 to 7 minute response • Make constructive comments while grading

22. Problem Oriented Tests • Best to evaluate the problem solving process. • Can be hard to grade. • TIPS • Provide all necessary information • Include distracters • Use an illustration • Make the problem scenario based • Create a “cut scale” or grading rubric

26. Student Preparation • Talk about exam • Discuss the types of questions • Refer them to lesson objectives • Number of questions • Closed Book – Open Book – Crib Sheet • Provide old exams

27. Test Preparation Tips • Put one problem (number type) per page. • Provide blank paper. • Make 10% extra exams. • Take the test for time. • Create the answer sheet before exam time. • Create a grading rubric before the exam. 3 to 1 Time Rule

28. Exam Administration • Come early • Provide written instructions • Avoid interruptions • Post time remaining • End on time.

29. Post Exam Behavior • Norm based vs. criterion referenced grading • When to hand them back • Post solution • Cover grade distribution • Discuss global problem areas

30. References • Felder, R. and Brent, R. 1997. Objectively Speaking. Chemical Engineering Education, 31(3), 178-179. • McKeachie, W.J. 1999. Teaching Tips, 10th Ed. Houghton Mifflin Co. • Grunert, Judith, 1997, “The Course Syllabus: A Learning-centered Approach”, Anker Publishing Company, Inc. • Wankat, P.C. and F.S. Oreovicz, 1993, Teaching Engineering, McGraw Hill, Inc. • Eble, K.E., 1988 The Craft of Teaching, Jossey-Bass Publishers.