Peer Instruction: A Way for In-Class Interactions

1. Peer Instruction: A Way for In-Class Interactions by Adham Ramadan Department of Chemistry

2. What is Peer Instruction? • Learning from peers: student-student interactions leading to learning. • Examples widely include student discussions, group work, group projects, etc... • In-class interaction method developed in 1991 by Eric Mazur, Harvard, for introductory Physics courses.

3. Why Peer Instruction? • Students who have just acquired an understanding of a concept are better aware of the challenges in understanding it, and are therefore better equipped to explain it. • Explaining a concept improves its understanding it.

4. How is it carried out? In-class interactions Concept Tests Student – student discussion Concept question Time for individual thinking & answer Answer again Record answer + level of confidence Record answer + level of confidence

5. Personal experience with CTs • Chem 106: a General Chemistry course covering fundamentals of Physical Chemistry, for science majors. • Sci 150L: a General Science laboratory covering various basic concepts in Chemistry and Physics, for non-science/engineering majors.

6. G PS PS G Actual Effectiveness I PS G NQS G PS PS NQS NQS NQS NQS PS NQS NQS PS G G G G G NQS NQS NQS PS PS PS NQS NQS PS NQS PS PS PS Are Concept Tests Effective? • No. of correct answers: • Increase in no. of correct answers after student-student discussions • Level of confidence: • Improvement in level of confidence BEFORE Perceived Effectiveness II AFTER CTs identified by students as helping them learn in class, more so than other learning tools.

7. Peer Instruction Promoting Active Learning • Reading assignments • Reading quizzes • Concept tests

8. Commonly-Cited Challenges • This takes too much class time. • This takes too much time for preparation and marking. • Students would not be confident enough to do it. • It cannot be used for non-science courses. • Analysis of results.

9. 2 1 3 5 4 7 6 2 1 3 4 7 6 5 8 9 Concept Test: an Example Two bodies are moving from left to right. Snapshots are taken of their positions at 2 second intervals, and are numbered sequentially: Which of the following statements is/are correct: • They are both moving with the same speed • The red body is moving with a constant speed • After 10 seconds the two bodies have covered the same distance • The white body is moving with a constant speed

10. 2 1 3 5 4 7 6 2 1 3 4 7 6 5 8 9 Concept Test: an ExampleTwo bodies are moving from left to right. Snapshots are taken of their positions at 2 second intervals, and are numbered sequentially. Which of the following statements is/are correct: • They are both moving with the same speed • The red body is moving with a constant speed • After 10 seconds the two bodies have covered the same distance • The white body is moving with a constant speed