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Enhancing Large Classes with Active and Cooperative Learning

Enhancing Large Classes with Active and Cooperative Learning. Karl A. Smith Civil Engineering University of Minnesota ksmith@umn.edu http://www.ce.umn.edu/~smith Michigan State University Active Learning and Inclusive Teaching 10 th Annual Summer Institute on

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Enhancing Large Classes with Active and Cooperative Learning

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  1. Enhancing Large Classes with Active and Cooperative Learning Karl A. Smith Civil Engineering University of Minnesota ksmith@umn.edu http://www.ce.umn.edu/~smith Michigan State University Active Learning and Inclusive Teaching 10th Annual Summer Institute on College Teaching and Learning August, 2005

  2. Session GoalsMSU Guiding Principle #2:Achieve More Active Learning • Overview of cooperative learning (CL) • Key concepts of CL • Approaches for implementing CL • Participants – Networking • Background & experience? • Goals and expectations? 2

  3. To teach is to engage students in learning; thus teaching consists of getting students involved in the active construction of knowledge. . .The aim of teaching is not only to transmit information, but also to transform students from passive recipients of other people's knowledge into active constructors of their own and others' knowledge. . .Teaching is fundamentally about creating the pedagogical, social, and ethical conditions under which students agree to take charge of their own learning, individually and collectively Education for judgment: The artistry of discussion leadership. Edited by C. Roland Christensen, David A. Garvin, and Ann Sweet. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business School, 1991.

  4. The Current Situation Classes with Over 50 students B Prevalent and Increasing; ditto for Classes with Over 100 students Classes of 50 students or more:Best National Universities (Top 50) B 1-28%, Avg = 12.4, S.D. = 6.3National Universities (Next 50) B 0.3-50%, Avg = 12.1, S.D. = 7.7U.S. News & World Report (www.usnews.com (Accessed 10/16/00)

  5. Instructional Approach Gardiner(1994) report that 73-83 percent of college instructors surveyed identified the lecture method as their usual instructional strategy

  6. Large Classes: How Well are They Working? Carbone and Greenberg (1998) indicate a general dissatisfaction with the quality of large-class learning experiences Lack of interaction with faculty members (in and out of class Lack of structure in lectures Lack of or poor discussion sections Inadequate contact with teaching assistants Inadequacy of classroom facilities and environment Lack of frequent testing or graded assignments

  7. Large Classes:How Well are They Working?Students= Comments Wulff, Nyquist & Abbott (1987):$AIt is easier to do anything you want, sleep, not attend, or lose attention@$ANo one knows I=m here@$ARude people come late, leave early, or sit and talk to their buddies@

  8. Lila M. Smith

  9. Pedago-pathologies B Lee Shulman Amnesia Fantasia Inertia Shulman, Lee S. 1999. Taking learning seriously. Change, 31 (4), 11-17.

  10. What do we do about these pathologies? – Lee Shulman Activity Reflection Collaboration Passion Combined with generative content and the creation of powerful learning communities Shulman, Lee S. 1999. Taking learning seriously. Change, 31 (4), 11-17.

  11. Lila M. Smith

  12. Cooperative Learning Task Groups Perkins, David. 2003. King Arthur's Round Table: How collaborative conversations create smart organizations. NY: Wiley.

  13. Active/Cooperative Learning, Learning Community Success Story Reflect on and Talk about your Active/Cooperative Learning, Learning Community Success(es) 1. Context? 2. Structure/Procedure? 3. Outcome?

  14. Getting Students Actively Involved Using Cooperative Learning: Principles, Strategies, and Problem-Solving What is it? How do you do it? Why bother?

  15. Cooperative Learning is instruction that involves people working in teams to accomplish a common goal, under conditions that involve both positive interdependence (all members must cooperate to complete the task) and individual and group accountability (each member is accountable for the complete final outcome). Key Concepts !Positive Interdependence !Individual and Group Accountability !Face-to-Face Promotive Interaction !Teamwork Skills !Group Processing

  16. Tracking Change - Seymour "The greatest single challenge to SMET pedagogical reform remains the problem of whether and how large classes can be infused with more active and interactive learning methods." Seymour, Elaine. 2001. Tracking the processes of change in US undergraduate education in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology. Science Education, 86, 79-105.

  17. Retention Research Talking about leaving: Why undergraduates leave the sciences by Elaine Seymour & Nancy M. Hewitt Westview, 430 pages, 1997. Leaving college: Rethinking the causes and cures of student attrition (Second edition) by Vincent Tinto University of Chicago Press, 1993, 296 pages. The Chilly Classroom Climate: A Guide to Improve the Education of Women by Bernice Sandler, Lisa A. Silverberg & Roberta M. Hall National Association for Women in Education, 125 pages, 1996.

  18. Talking about leaving: • Why undergraduates leave the sciences • "Field switching is only the tip of an iceberg: The same set of problems that prompt some science, mathematics, and engineering undergraduates to leave make persistence difficult for those who stay." (Cover jacket). • "Contrary to the common assumption that most switching is caused by personal inadequacy in the face of academic challenge, one strong finding is the high proportion of factors cited as significant in switching decisions which arise either from structural or cultural sources within institutions, or from students' concerns about their career prospects (p. 32)." The four most commonly cited concerns leading to switching decisions (also cited by between 31 and 74 percent of the non-switchers) were: • Lack or loss of interest in science • Belief that a non-S.M.E. major holds more interest, or offers a better education • Poor teaching by S.M.E. faculty • Feeling overwhelmed by the pace and load of curriculum demands.

  19. Students' voices: I do work hard, and my average load over these four years--even when I was transferring out--has been 17, 18 hours a semester, plus a couple of night classes sometimes. It doesn't really bother me to work that hard. But when it's a concept I don't understand and I go to get help from faculty and they just don't give it, that's discouraging. (Male white engineering switcher) What bothers me is the number of people who know what engineering is about, and really have the capability to do well and be good in the field, but end up going a different way for reasons other than the lack of ability. (Female white engineering non-switcher). You get people that would probably do well if they were given half a chance, but there's so much competition, and not a heck of a lot of help. (Female black engineering senior). The first two years in physics are so dull. I mean, they have absolutely nothing to do with what you'll be doing later. I'm afraid that's why you might be losing good students from engineering that are really qualified and have the intelligence. . .There are ways to make the introductory material interesting so that it doesn't drive away good people through boredom. (Male white engineering non-switcher).

  20. Shaping the Future: New Expectations for Undergraduate Education in Science, Mathematics, Engineering and Technology Goal BAll students have access to supportive, excellent undergraduate education in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology, and all students learn these subjects by direct experience with the methods and processes of inquiry. Recommend that SME&T faculty: Believe and affirm that every student can learn, and model good practices that increase learning; starting with the student's experience, but have high expectations within a supportive climate; and build inquiry, a sense of wonder and the excitement of discovery, plus communication and teamwork, critical thinking, and life-long learning skills into learning experiences.

  21. http://clte.asu.edu/active

  22. Book Ends on a Class Session

  23. Book Ends on A Class Session • 1.Advance Organizer • 2.Formulate-Share-Listen-Create (Turn-to-your- neighbor) B repeated every 10-12 minutes • 3.Session Summary (Minute Paper) • 1.What was the most useful or meaningful thing you learned during this session? • 2.What question(s) remain uppermost in your mind as we end this session? • 3.What was the Amuddiest@ point in this session?

  24. Advance Organizer AThe most important single factor influencing learning is what the learner already knows. Ascertain this and teach him accordingly.@ David Ausubel - Educational psychology: A cognitive approach, 1968.

  25. Quick Thinks PReorder the steps PParaphrase the idea PCorrect the error PSupport a statement PSelect the response Johnston, S. & Cooper,J. 1997. Quick thinks: Active- thinking in lecture classes and televised instruction. Cooperative learning and college teaching, 8(1), 2-7.

  26. Formulate-Share-Listen-Create Informal Cooperative Learning Group Introductory Pair Discussion of a FOCUS QUESTION 1.Formulate your response to the question individually 2.Share your answer with a partner 3.Listen carefully to your partner's answer 4.Work together to Create a new answer through discussion

  27. What was the most useful or meaningful thing you learned during this session? What question(s) remain uppermost in your mind as we end this session? What was the “muddiest” point in this session? Give an example or application Explain in your own words . . . Angelo, T.A. & Cross, K.P. 1993. Classroom assessment techniques: A handbook for college teachers. San Francisco: Jossey Bass. Minute Paper

  28. Informal CL (Book Ends on a Lecture) with Concept Tests Physics Peer Instruction Eric Mazur - Harvard B http://galileo.harvard.edu Peer Instruction www.prenhall.com Richard Hake Chemistry Chemistry ConcepTests - UW Madison B www.chem.wisc.edu/~concept Video: Making Lectures Interactive with ConcepTests ModularChem Consortium B http://mc2.cchem.berkeley.edu/ STEMTEC Video: How Change Happens: Breaking the ATeach as You Were Taught@ Cycle B Films for the Humanities & Sciences B www.films.com Thinking Together video: Derek Bok Center B www.fas.harvard.edu/~bok_cen/

  29. Richard Hake (Interactive engagement vs traditional methods) http://www.physics.indiana.edu/~hake/ Traditional (lecture) Interactive (active/cooperative) <g> = Concept Inventory Gain/Total

  30. Informal Cooperative Learning Groups Can be used at any time Can be short term and ad hoc May be used to break up a long lecture Provides an opportunity for students to process material they have been listening to (Cognitive Rehearsal) Are especially effective in large lectures Include "book ends" procedure Are not as effective as Formal Cooperative Learning or Cooperative Base Groups

  31. Strategies for Energizing Large Classes: From Small Groups to Learning Communities: Jean MacGregor, James Cooper, Karl Smith, Pamela Robinson New Directions for Teaching and Learning, No. 81, 2000. Jossey- Bass

  32. From Small Groups to Learning Communities: Energizing Large Classes 1.The argument for making large classes seem small 2.Getting started: Informal small-group strategies in large classes 3.Going deeper: Formal small-group learning in large classes 4.Restructuring large classes to create communities of learners 5.Implementing small-group learning: Insights from successful practitioners 6.Making small-group learning and learning communities a widespread reality

  33. Theoretical and Empirical Rationale for Using Small Groups Promoting Cognitive Elaboration Enhancing Critical Thinking Providing Feedback Promoting Social and Emotional Development Appreciating Diversity Reducing Student Attrition

  34. Getting Started: Informal Small- Group Strategies in Large Classes Launching the Class in Discussion Applications of Small-Group Approaches Breaking Up the Lecture for Comprehension Checks Closing Class with Small-Group Conversation Reviewing for Exams Debriefing Exams Deepening Audiovisual Presentations Predicting Processes and Outcomes of Demonstrations

  35. Cooperative Learning Research Support Johnson, D.W., Johnson, R.T. & Smith, K.A. 1998. Cooperative learning returns to college: What evidence is there that it works? Change, 30 (4), 26-35. !Over 300 Experimental Studies !First study conducted in 1924 !High Generalizability !Multiple Outcomes Outcomes 1.Achievement and retention 2.Critical thinking and higher-level reasoning 3.Differentiated views of others 4.Accurate understanding of others' perspectives 5.Liking for classmates and teacher 6.Liking for subject areas 7.Teamwork skills

  36. Small-Group Learning: Meta- analysis Springer, L., Stanne, M. E., & Donovan, S. 1999. Effects of small-group learning on undergraduates in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology: A meta-analysis. Review of Educational Research, 69(1), 21-52. Small-group (predominantly cooperative) learning in postsecondary science, mathematics, engineering, and technology (SMET). 383 reports from 1980 or later, 39 of which met the rigorous inclusion criteria for meta-analysis. The main effect of small-group learning on achievement, persistence, and attitudes among undergraduates in SMET was significant and positive. Mean effect sizes for achievement, persistence, and attitudes were 0.51, 0.46, and 0.55, respectively.

  37. The Harvard Assessment SeminarsB Richard J. Light All the specific findings point to, and illustrate, one main idea. It is that students who get the most out of college, who grow the most academically, and who are the happiest, organize their time to include interpersonal activities with faculty members, or with fellow students, built around substantive, academic work. Environmental Factors That Enhance Students= Academic and Personal Development and Satisfaction Alexander Astin in What matters in college: Four critical years revisited. Jossey-Bass, 1993. Student-student interaction Student-faculty interaction A faculty that is very student-oriented Discussing racial/ethnic issues with other students Hours devoted to studying B Time on task Tutoring other students Socializing with students of different race/ethnicity A student body that has high socioeconomic status An institutional emphasis on diversity A faculty that is positive about the general education program A student body that values altruism and social activism

  38. Making the Most of College Richard J. Light Harvard University Press (2001) 1. Meet the faculty 2. Take a mix of courses 3. Study in groups 4. Write, write, write 5. Speak another language 6. Consider time 7. Hold the drum

  39. Session Summary • (Minute Paper) • Reflect on the session: • What were the most important points for you? • What is one thing you would be willing to try? • What questions do you have? • Discuss with a partner: • 1.Points that were useful, meaningful, interesting, applicable, etc. • 2.Questions that you have.

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