What should students be learning in our geochemistry classrooms?

1. What should students be learning in our geochemistry classrooms? Dexter Perkins, Univ. North Dakota

2. Before we start . . . • Are you satisfied with the performance of students in your classes? 1 . . . . .2 . . . . . 3 . . . . . 4 . . . . . 5 No . . . . . . . Maybe . . . . . . . . Yes

3. In the past . . . • Job of the teacher was straightforward • We present information • Students learn it • We test them and give grades • That reflect how well they learned

4. We present information • But there are many ways to do this • Different instructional strategies may be appropriate at different times, in different settings, with different students, etc. • Many choices – never clear what is best

5. Students learn it • Maybe • Some do, some don’t • Depends, in part, on definition of learn • I bet we all have been bothered by the shallowness of some student learning • The experts contrast surface learning vs deep learning

6. Surface and deep learning

7. 1. How do your students rate? 1 . . . . .2 . . . . . 3 . . . . . 4 . . . . . 5

8. We test them to see if they have learned • 2. Do your tests and other metrics do an adequate job of measuring shallow learning (basic knowledge, etc.)? • 3. Do your tests and other metrics do an adequate job of measuring deep learning? • Easy to find out if students have memorized things • Unless we are very clever we have a very hard time evaluating deep learning 1 . . . . .2 . . . . . 3 . . . . . 4 . . . . . 5 No . . . . . . . Maybe . . . . . . . . Yes 1 . . . . .2 . . . . . 3 . . . . . 4 . . . . . 5 No . . . . . . . Maybe . . . . . . . . Yes

9. We give gradesWhat do they mean? • 4. Do grades reflect learning? • 5. Do grades reflect intelligence? • 6. Do grades reflect potential for success in future classes? • 7. Do grades reflect potential after college? 1 . . . . .2 . . . . . 3 . . . . . 4 . . . . . 5 No . . . . . . . Maybe . . . . . . . . Yes 1 . . . . .2 . . . . . 3 . . . . . 4 . . . . . 5 No . . . . . . . Maybe . . . . . . . . Yes 1 . . . . .2 . . . . . 3 . . . . . 4 . . . . . 5 No . . . . . . . Maybe . . . . . . . . Yes 1 . . . . .2 . . . . . 3 . . . . . 4 . . . . . 5 No . . . . . . . Maybe . . . . . . . . Yes

10. A starting point • To figure out what students should be learning • And therefore what we should be teaching • It is useful to answer this question: What is learning ?

11. Bloom’s Taxonomy

12. Bloom’s Taxonomy

13. 8. What should students learnin your classroom ?

14. 9. How much of your class time isspent having students . . .

15. Instructional alignment • Learning goals • Pedagogy • Assessment “Here we use the Socratic method: I call on you; I ask you a question; you answer it. Why don't I just give you a lecture? Because through my questions you learn to teach yourselves. By this method of questioning-answering, questioning-answering, we seek to develop in you the ability to analyze that vast complex of facts that constitutes the relationships of members within a given society.” • Professor Kingsfield (in the Paper Chase, 1973)

16. Our class is one in many . . .

17. So . . . step back . . . • 10. What are some more holistic goals for our geochemistry class? • i.e., What do we want students to know or be able to do that is NOT specific to geochemistry?

18. What do (college) teachers and educational experts say students should learn in college classes? • Critical thinking and problem-solving skills • Oral and written communication skills • Quantitative skills • Interpersonal and team skills • Ability and desire for lifelong learning • Personal responsibility • Learn specific stuff • Ability to act in principled, ethical fashion • Respect for people different from oneself • Ability to change • Etc. Employers want these things too But, not always these! General Education goals

19. So . . . • The experts say we should concentrate on overarching holistic skills • We say we should, too • So do potential employers • But . . . in most classrooms, the focus seems to be on knowledge transfer • And, assessment is based on knowledge retention

20. What else do the experts say? 1. Need to consider the affective domain 2. Need to specifically help students develop critical thinking and reasoning skills 3. Need to consider intellectual development 4. Need to help students become intentional learners 5. Need to help students develop metacognitive skills

21. 1. Affective Domain May be the #1 barrier to learning!

22. Some ways to improve student affect • Flexible instruction • Provide choices • Eliminate competition between students • Collaborative/cooperative learning • Use peer models • Inquiry-based activities • Establish both short and long term goals • Moderate-difficult tasks – balance the challenges • Mastery experiences • Relate learning to student interests • Timely and consistent feedback from instructor • Less emphasis on tests/exams • Eliminate rote • Student “ownership” and control • Discuss the principles of learning and thinking with students • Get students to plan on, and subsequently reflect on learning • Attitudes • Motivation • Self-confidence • Etc.

23. 2. Promoting critical thinking • Inquisitiveness • Open mindedness • Systematicity • Analyticity • Truth seeking • Self-confidence • Maturity These are all part of student affect Facione et al. (1994)

24. Promote critical thinking byQuestioning • Authentic questions • Avoid those that rate low on Bloom scale • Promote evaluation and synthesis • Socratic questioning • Provocative questions • Ambiguity • Wait 11. Do you frequently and effectively question your students (other than on exams)? 1 . . . . .2 . . . . . 3 . . . . . 4 . . . . . 5 No . . . . . . . some . . . . . . . . . Yes

25. Promote critical thinking byClassroom discussion or debates • Many ways to do this • Argue different sides • Talk through reasoning • Have students analyze each other’s arguments • Group problem solving • Current issues or Great Debates • Authentic issues 12. Do you have students engage in debate or discussion on meaningful questions/issues? 1 . . . . .2 . . . . . 3 . . . . . 4 . . . . . 5 No . . . . . . . some . . . . . . . . . Yes

26. Promote critical thinking throughWritten assignments • Short with specific goals • At least to start • Longer papers tend to be “book reports” • Focus on specific kinds of thinking • Can start with provocative lecture or article 13. Do you have students do written assignments? 1 . . . . .2 . . . . . 3 . . . . . 4 . . . . . 5 No . . . . . . . some . . . . . . . . . Yes

27. Promote critical thinking throughAuthentic research • Must be challenging • Must be doable • Should not have “correct” answers • Requires instructor support • Process is key 14. Do your students engage in authentic research? 1 . . . . .2 . . . . . 3 . . . . . 4 . . . . . 5 No . . . . . . . some . . . . . . . . . Yes

28. Promote critical thinking throughCase Studies • Topic should be interesting • Topic should be relevant • Should not have “pat” answers • May be done independent of instructor 15. Do you use case studies in your class? 1 . . . . .2 . . . . . 3 . . . . . 4 . . . . . 5 No . . . . . . . some . . . . . . . . . Yes

29. 3. Intellectual DevelopmentA major hurdle? (Perry 1970) 1. Dualism/Received KnowledgeThere are right/wrong answers, engraved on Golden Tablets in the sky, known to Authorities. 2. Multiplicity/Subjective KnowledgeThere are conflicting answers, all of which have some merit. 3. Relativism/Procedural KnowledgeThere are disciplinary reasoning methods. 4. Commitment/Constructed KnowledgeIntegration of knowledge learned from others with personal experience and reflection.

30. Intellectual Development 1. Dualism/Received KnowledgeThere are right/wrong answers, engraved on Golden Tablets in the sky, known to Authorities. 2. Multiplicity/Subjective KnowledgeThere are conflicting answers, all of which have some merit. 3. Relativism/Procedural KnowledgeThere are disciplinary reasoning methods. 4. Commitment/Constructed KnowledgeIntegration of knowledge learned from others with personal experience and reflection. • 16. Where do the students in your class rate on this scale? 1 . . . . . 2 . . . . . 3 . . . . . 4

31. If we want our students to progress to level 2 and beyond • Need to give them practice (early and often) • Need to do it in small steps • Scaffold and progress to more complexity • Modeled behavior • Best done with group support • Frequent and timely feedback is critical

32. 4. Intentional Learning • Motivation • Initiative • Self-reflection • Adaptability • Etc.

33. Greater Expectations: A New Vision for Learning as a Nation Goes to College “To prepare students for “emerging challenges in the workplace, in a diverse democracy, and in an interconnected world” . . . colleges and universities should place new emphasis on educating students to be “intentional learners” AACU (2002)

34. The Role of Higher Education is… “to help college students become Intentional Learners who can adapt to new environments, integrate knowledge from different sources, and continue learning throughout their lives.” Greater Expectations (2002 AAC&U Report)

35. Intentional Learners • “developing self-awareness about the reason for study, the learning process itself, and how education is used.” • “see connections in seemingly disparate information” • “take the initiative to diagnose their learning needs, formulate learning goals, identify resources for learning, select an implement learning strategies, and evaluate learning outcomes”

36. Good intentional learners • Are essentially expert learners • Who are self-regulated learners • Involves a cycle • Planning • Performance • Self-reflection

37. 5. Metacognition • Metacognition refers to one’s knowledge concerning one’s own cognitive processes or anything related to them, e.g., the learning-relevant properties of information or data. For example, I am engaging in metacognition if I notice that I am having more trouble learning A than B; if it strikes me that I should double check C before accepting it as fact. A key part of self-regulated learning! Seminal work of J.H. Flavell (1976)

38. Expert Learners Metacognitive Control (self-regulation) Metacognitive Knowledge Personal Resources Prior Knowledge Available Strategies Task Requirements Type of Learning Appropriate Strategies Plan Reflection Reflection Goals Beliefs Attitudes Motivation Evaluate Monitor Reflection Reflection Ertmer and Newby (1996), Butler (1997), Winne and Hadwin (1998), Pintrich (2000), Lovett (2008)

39. How do we promote intentional learning, expert learning skills, self-regulation, metacognition, etc.? • We can teach the standard ways and hope students figure these things out for themselves • Or we can design instruction that specifically targets these goals • Because it is clear that instructional strategies affect learning outcomes • And, we can specifically discuss the value of reflection, self-regulation, etc. with our students and have them practice these things

40. Contrast two kinds of instruction

41. Contrast • Didactic education • Most often based on lecturing • Lecturing is often equated with college teaching. This is rapidly changing, however, as university instructors have begun to recognize that not all students benefit from lecture, nor is lecture the most efficient way to disseminate information. • Originally the “lecturer” read to an audience because access to written material was limited, and many of the learners were illiterate. The printing process, digitalized information, and general literacy have dramatically changed the lecturer’s function.

42. Contrast • Didactic education • Most often based on lecturing • Lecturing still has its rightful place among dozens of other teaching techniques, but the question one has to ask is, “Which technique will do most to help students learn?” Some topics lend themselves much more naturally to lecturing than others. • The lecture is valid for these reasons: to provide structure and organization to scattered material; to help pace student learning; to reinforce assigned reading by providing an alternative perspective or source of information; and to use the public speaking opportunity to motivate students.

43. Contrast • Experiential learning • Involves active engagement • Does a much better job promoting higher order learning • Does a much better job promoting deep learning • Does a much better job promoting the holistic goals we value

44. Many roadblocks • We are asking our students to do something new • We are asking us to do something new • If we do new things, we cannot do all the old things • There is a huge time commitment • There are lots of “failures” • For most impact, needs to involve more than one class • And it is absolutely essential that we share resources

45. Holistic goals • Critical thinking and problem-solving skills • Oral and written communication skills • Interpersonal and team skills • Ability and desire for lifelong learning • Personal responsibility • Improve student affect • Help students develop intellectually • Help students become intentional and self-regulated learners

46. Holistic goals • Critical thinking and problem-solving skills • Oral and written communication skills • Interpersonal and team skills • Ability and desire for lifelong learning • Personal responsibility • Improve student affect • Help students develop intellectually • Help students become intentional and self-regulated learners In the process of learning these things, students learn more of the specific “stuff” we want them to know and, they retain it longer after our class is over

47. Postscript: a co-curriculum to help studentsdevelop metacognitive skills and to become self-regulated learners • Specific instruction aimed at this goal • Specific activities aimed at this goal • Key is to get students engaged is self-reflection • And for them to realize how important it is • There are many approaches, but all require time specifically devoted to this task • Learning portfolios • Self-reflective essays • Exam wrappers • Knowledge surveys • Etc. And, all students say these things are very valuable and they learn a lot from them Many question why they are not done in all their courses