New Techniques in Writing and Multimodal Composing: Helping Students Integrate Learning

1. New Techniques in Writing and Multimodal Composing: Helping Students Integrate Learning John Yoder, Plant Sciences Annaliese Franz, Chemistry Chris Thaiss, University Writing Program and Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning All of us are involved in initiatives of the CETL and Academic Technology Services. ats.ucdavis.edu cetl.ucdavis.edu

2. Biotechnology 1For beginning entrepreneurs John Yoder Plant Sciences, UCD

3. BIT001: Introduction to Biotechnology • Teach every spring quarter since 2008 • Roughly 150 undergraduates • Students learn the fundamentals of gene, genome and organism manipulation, and how to apply these processes to address big problems in human health, food security, energy production and environmental quality.

4. BIT001, a range of student experiences Class roughly equally mixed between Freshmen, Sophomores and Juniors with several Seniors “Last biology course taken” equally mixed between high school bio, lower and upper division biology Exploit student diversity when reasonable (mixed teams using upper classman as tutors) and normalize diversity when necessary (online remedial exercises)

5. Some advice from alums and thebiotech industry • Scientific background of UCD students great • Need teamwork skills • Need communication skills • Writing • Oral presenations

6. Three components to the class • Lecture (knowledge) • Knowledge of biotechnology principles and products • Case study products (diabetes, flavrsavr tomato, algal biofuels) • Pre-class homework assignments • Demonstrations (detergent enzymes, 23andMe) • Bioinformatics homework (comprehension/application) • Search genome databases for biotechnologically interesting genes and use bioinformatic tools to characterize and manipulate • Discussion sessions (application) • Students work in teams to prepare business plans for novel biotechnology products • Teams make presentation pitches for venture capital funding. Product pitches recorded and judged by biotech venture capitalist in SF (http://webcast.ucdavis.edu/llnd/45d6332d) • High frequency, low stakes assessments

7. Uses of peer review • Reviews of writing assignments • Critiques of oral presentations • Intra team assessments

8. Goals of student peer reviews • Student reviewers learn to distinguish different qualities of work • Student writers get additional feedback • Students learn the processes and significance of peer review • Faculty outsource grading responsibilities

9. Polls and peer reviews using Google Forms

10. How much grade weighting to give student reviews? • If no grade significance to peer reviews, reviewer’s don’t take seriously • If too much significance to peer reviews, students feel they are not being graded by the instructor • Goldilock’s solution- 15-20% of grade from peer reviews

11. Business plans • Democratic rubric development • Progressive writing assignments • Review articles • Primary literature • Intellectual property (patent searches) • Regulatory issues (FDA, EPA, USDA) • Peer review calibration using previous year’s • Peer and instructor graded

12. Cyanotech • Producing Oxygen From Carbon • Monoxide through Transgenic Cyanobacteria • “Stop worrying, we make the air clean for you”

13. Rhodopower cell Figure 2: A single Rhodoferax ferrireducens bacterium

14. Probtutech, a male contraceptive

15. Elevator pitch • 8 minutes to convince venture capitalist for startup funding • 6-8 presentations in four different discussion sections • Peer (and instructor) reviewed • 4-6 finalists make presentation in lecture period • Product pitches recorded and judged by VC at Burrill and company (SF) • Winning team gets a bump up in grade

16. Personalizing Student Learning, Writing and Multimodal Composing in Large Science Classes: YouTube Writing, Peer-review and Videos Prof. Annaliese K. Franz Department of Chemistry University of California, Davis AAC&U Conference November 1, 2013

17. Chem 8: Brief Organic Chemistry for Non-majors(225-450 students in each class, per quarter) Note: using quizzes to provide frequent and useful feedback Chem 8A (2 units) NO MIDTERMS for the course Quizzes: Every other week = 45% Writing assignment = 15% Final exam = 40% Chem 8B (4 units) NO MIDTERMS for the course Quizzes: Every Wednesday = 40% Laboratory Sections: each week = 15% Writing assignment = 10% Final exam = 35% Both include Case studies, Demonstrations and Chemistry in the News: Case Studies, News Articles and Video clips Problem-solving Workshops: each week before the quiz Smartsite: scanned lecture notes, podcasts, virtual office hours (on chatroom)

18. Why Writing Assignments for a Large Lecture Class? 1) Students personalize their learning experience by picking a topic or concept that is related to their career or daily life 2) Method to promote students to retain concepts and connections from class >6 months and hopefully >6 years from now 3) Promote science communication and the ability to explain a concept to someone else (peer-explanation strategies) 4) Integrate writing into Chemistry classes: Quizzes and Final exam always feature short answer questions requiring that they write an explanation (in addition to structure and mechanism-based questions).

19. Articles Describing the Value of Peer-Explanation Strategies • Smith, M. K.; Wood, W. B.; Adams, W. K.; Wieman, C.; Knight, J. K.; Guild, N.; Su, T. T. Why Peer Discussion Improves Student Performance on In-class Concept Questions. Science,2009, 323, 122. • Tanner, K. D. Talking to Learn: Why Biology Students Should be Talking in Classrooms and How to Make it Happen. CBE Life Sci. Educ., 2009, 8, 89. • Ablin, L. Student Perceptions of the Benefits of a Learner-Based Writing Assignment in Organic Chemistry, J. Chem. Educ. 2008, 85, 237. • Chi, M.T.H.; de Leeuw, N.; Chiu, M. H.; LaVancher, C. Eliciting Self Explanations Improves Understanding. Cogn. Sci.,1994, 18, 439. • Paulson, D. R. Active Learning and Cooperative Learning in the Organic Chemistry Lecture Class, J. Chem. Educ. 1999, 76, 1136. This work: Franz, A. K. Organic Chemistry Youtube Writing Assignments for Large Lecture Classes, J. Chem. Educ., 2012, 89 (4), pp 497-501.

20. Youtube Concept Writing Assignment Purpose: The purpose of the Organic Chemistry Youtube writing assignment is to help you become more familiar with an important concept in organic chemistry by thinking about how you would describe and present this concept in a visual way to other students (non-chemists) in a Youtube video. You are encouraged to pick a concept that will have examples that relate to your major, your intended career path, or another interest you have. Once you have identified your concept, you will give information about the concept, two examples of how/why it is important, and then write a script to describe how you would creatively (and accurately) convey this information in a Youtube video. Examples of common topics chosen by students: Catalysts Delocalized electrons and/or resonance Cis-trans isomerization Hydrogen-bonding forces Polymerization reactions Acidity Extra credit provided if the students actually made the Youtube video

21. Originally, set up YouTube “group” for class http://www.youtube.com/group/chem8a

22. Technology changes:Currently using Facebook to post YouTube videos

23. Common Video Themes Teaching roommate or family member Educational/Instructional video Kid’s Show, e.g. puppet show Cooking Show Clever analogy Demonstration News Report Dance or Song Cartoon/Comic Unexpected outcome: The number of students who recruited family members, room-mates and neighbors as actors or participants in the video. Family pets also included… mostly dogs, but also a guinea pig.

24. Examples of YouTube Videos(Links) Music video about base and organic chemistry: • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0yhGuQqtLU Enantiomers • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-eMr1kxorc Gummy bear animation about substitution reactions: • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXCXJ7c5xbE Zombie Story about Hydrogen-bonding: • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-T3lYYs7usc Catalysts: • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nCKuafgbT8 • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTTTW72YxKs • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PgzerHd3fXU • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SBng_7Tbkw Organic bonding: • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lXIxGWjBhKY antioxidants and organic chemistry • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5DZCy20p08 "Davis Detectives" and synthesis • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J6fK_11oYy0

25. Evolution of the Assignment How the assignment evolved: • In the first year, writing assignment was required but video was extra credit to see how the assigment would work, to establish grading rubric. • Using Facebook instead of Youtube “group” • Technology complications (editing, loading on YouTube.com, etc) were identified and easily anticipated after the 1st year • After the first year, examples of video projects are available, can also be shown in class or watched before class to complement lecture material • Written assignment and video due earlier in the quarter • Incorporated peer-review component of the videos so that students could watch, learn, and identify potential errors • “Academy Awards” for best videos: awards based on student favorites, TA favorites, most “views” on Youtube, and my favorite. • Working in groups, encouraged groups based on lab partners/sections

26. Examples of Student Comments “The YouTube video added a creative and fun element to the traditionally "boring and dry" subject of organic chemistry. I felt like I know my topic inside and out. I think working in a group was extremely beneficial and watching other student's videos are both informative and interesting.” “I learn better by teaching difficult concepts to others and this assignment was pretty much a way for us to ‘teach’ a particular concept to ourselves by pretending to teach it to someone else.” “I know that i will always remember delocalized electrons (my topic) and how they work and how they can be applied in real life situations.” “Having to think about making a video forced me to think about chemistry outside the box, as it's a great deal harder to have to teach someone through a five minute video. Actually doing the video helped enforce that we knew the material as we had to perform it!” “The project and the research was very enjoyable because it actually applied to our life and our health and things we were interested in.It allowed us to understand a concept on our own terms.”

27. Weblinks and References: Faculty Spotlight on “The Wheel” Blog at UC Davis: http://wheel.ucdavis.edu/2012/12/faculty-spotlight-annaliese-franz/ Link to J. Chem. Educ., 2012, 89 (4), pp 497-501: http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/ed100589h Several Youtube video links posted online for UC Davis workshop: http://wheel.ucdavis.edu/sitt-2013-schedule/innovative-teaching/

28. Writing in Science: Reaching Wider Audiences through Rhetoric and Multiple Media Chris Thaiss University Writing Program Transforming STEM Education AAC&U and PKAL San Diego November 1, 2013

29. Course: Writing in the Professions: Science • One of 20 courses that meet the upper-division writing requirement at UC Davis for undergraduates • Offered by the University Writing Program • Taken in multiple 25-person sections by 3rd and 4th year science majors from many departments • Pre-professional emphasis (grad school, publication, careers, civic engagement) • Students receive instructor and peer review of research-based writing for specialist research audiences and for wider publics

30. Assignment:Popular Science Project • Individual projects mostly based on topics chosen for Team Research Reviews (TRR) • Among TRR topics in latest iteration (Summer 13): • How, why, and where black holes are created • Honeybee colony collapse disorder • Radioembolization in treatment of liver cancer • Pre- and probiotics and fecal transplants for gut health • HIV as transport in gene therapy • Exercise regimen for mitochondrial growth • Stem cells for in vitro meat production

31. Popular Science Project • Task: Each student chooses a focus/subject, a major purpose, a primary audience, appropriate language and graphics, and an appropriate genre/medium/venue • Successdepends on understanding and using classical and contemporary rhetorical theory (e.g., Aristotle, Burke, Miller, Turkle, Perrault)

32. Popular Science Project: Rhetorical Schema • Earlier assignments and exercises teach students to analyze research journals and journalistic science texts for writers’… • purposes • audiences • types of evidence • order of information • tone/style • and graphic presentation. • Students use this learned rhetorical schema to create and explain their essays, websites, phone apps, posters, brochures, videos, powerpoints, etc.

33. A Few Sample Projects… • T.F. (neurobiology/physiology/behavior major) creates a pamphlet and slide show to help parents of children in UCD autism study understand the goals and methods—and long-term value—of the multi-year research. • T.C. (microbiology major) creates website, including video narrative clips, to help sufferers from GI infections accept the idea of fecal transplants as a treatment option. • J.L. and H.D. (aerospace engineering majors) create posters to teach museum goers, from teenagers to adults, basic principles of dark matter and black hole formation.--------->

34. Sample Projects…

35. A Few More… • A.R. (biochemistry major, pre-med) writes a personal essay about his care of his immigrant grandfather dying of cancer, and what he learns about diagnosis and doctor-patient relations. He bases his style on that of AtulGawandi and wants to publish in our annual magazine of undergrad scientific essays. • B.L (environmental toxicology major), whose team is studying colony collapse disorder, writes an essay for a journal of alternative medicine to promote the varying therapeutic benefits of honeys from diverse plants.

36. K.H. (animal biology major) rekindles her love of art and blends it with her love of science to create a children’s book on the prognosis for cultured stem-cell meat and its environmental advantages.

37. Popular Science Project: Impacts onTransfer/Transformation of Learning • Changes students’ attitudes to the relationship of writing and science—expands appreciation, definitions, and possibilities • Rhetorical focus pushes students to think of effects of science beyond school, into the future • Links learning and scholarly expression with multimedia tools of social networking and community building

38. For further investigation… • The Wheel: UC Davis Teaching with Technology Blog http://wheel.ucdavis.edu(Faculty Spotlight, http://wheel.ucdavis.edu/2012/10/faculty-spotlight-chris-thaiss) • University Writing Program http://writing.ucdavis.edu • Aristotle, Rhetoric (c. 330 BCE), trans. Kennedy (1991) • Kenneth Burke, A Grammar of Motives (1945) • Carolyn Miller and Dawn Shepherd, “Blogging as Social Action,” in Gurak et al., Into the Blogosphere (2004) • Sarah Perrault, Communicating Popular Science (2013) • Sherry Turkle, Alone Together (2011)