C ourse T ransformation P roject:

1. Course Transformation Project: Making Large Classes Small 2013 Midwest First-Year ConferenceJulia Spears, Michaela Holtz, and SheelaVemu

2. Overview • Share why NIU chose CTP as its approach to undergraduate instruction (Julia Spears) • Describe how CTP works at NIU (Michaela Holtz) • Demonstrate parts of CTP courses (SheelaVemu) • Discussion & Questions

3. Perfect Storm - National Context

4. Perfect Storm • High DFWI rates • Financial factors - tuition cannot keep exceeding inflation (CPI) • Faculty Accountability • Students Today • Demographics - higher and more diverse enrollments • Multi-taskers • Higher and more diverse enrollment • A reliance on the web - danger of plagiarism • Tech-savvy

5. Perfect Storm – Knowledge of Learning Today With active learning experience – students: • engage with course content, each other, and instructor • think critically • develop cognitively. • Technology Emergence - • radical impact on higher education • delivering the foundational content effectively in large classes • different thought process

6. Students Today

7. Why Course Transformation? • Passive classes lead to passive students. • Students “lost” in large lecture classes. • Students experience disconnect; they don’t see the relevancy of the classroom experience to their own lives.

8. Goals of the NIU’s CTP • Improve SLOs in large enrollment undergraduate courses and link them to the Baccalaureate Goals • Have a university-wide impact through the establishment of a Community of Practice (20 faculty members) • Create a redesign process that is sustainableand replicable

9. Teaching and Learning at NIU Course Transformation Project @ NIU • Other courses in the department • Based on UNT’s NextGen model • Faculty teams redesign 5 - 7 courses per year • Two - year commitment • Occurs within an interdisciplinary community of practice • Senior Faculty Fellows • Retreats and monthly meetings with faculty and staff • Institution -wide forums/ workshops • End – of -pilot and project meetings • Multiple sections of each redesigned course • Redesign 5-7 courses per year

10. Steps In The CTP Redesign Process (Nextgen, 2011)

11. CTP – Blended Course (Guidelines based on Nextgen, 2011)

12. CTP Large Lectures • Presentthe critical lower level concepts to provide building blocks for higher level, more complex concepts • Synthesize, clarify and expandupon (rather than deliver) content • Createinterest and motivation • Provideassurance that what they are studying is relevant • Modelmeans of interpreting and analyzing content

13. CTP Large Lectures @ NIU • OMIS 259 (30%, 1 hour a week) - Audience response system(10 times per lecture) • ANTH 102 (30%) – assert themes from the readings and materials; cover tricky issues • PHYS 180 – lectures with 2-3 in- class performance demonstrations • HIST 171 – follow up after online quiz prior each lecture and readings assigned

14. CTP online • Acquirelower level learning • Limitcontent to overcome working memory limits • Implementlow-stakes assessments (quizzes) to boost students’ confidence • Practical and participatory ways toengagestudent with reading material

15. CTP online @ NIU • Before class quizzes • Online crossword puzzles - Learning definitions and concepts • Readings – assigned pages with built in questions • Online musical performance analysis • Lascaux Cave online treasure hunt; interactive maps • Group videos – interactive training exercise

16. CTP Experiential Learning • Introduce emotional component; Brain-based learning • Analyze and evaluate information • Present and defend newly-acquired hypotheses

17. CTP Experiential Learning @ NIU • Make and analyzing the sound of simple instruments (8-10 groups) • Debates; research and teach the class • Research ethics training – COMS 252: Students study and get trained on a research protocol, conducting a research interview using that protocol, transcribing the interview, work with their own and other students’ data to enact coding procedures, theorize from the results, and advocate a position based on their findings. • The Cemetery Project – ANTH 102: examine changing mortuary practices in DeKalb County – results in written report • Create Website - WOMS 230: Students choose a current issue relating to women and/or gender, research it, collaborate with a relevant campus or community partner, take action to address that issue, and create an original and engaging website communicating the results of the project.

18. Transformation Goals • Students think, work hard, like what they are doing, get good grades that mean something, and graduate • Doesn’t cost more and uses less space • Faculty enjoy and believe in the process

19. FACULTY PERSPECTIVE Dr. SheelaVemu

20. SAIL Cycle The Science Assessment, Instruction, and Learning (SAIL) Cycle

21. Five E Model - Engagement 1. Engagement • Are we encouraging their interest? • What is their prior experience of the topic? • Have you peaked their interest? • Personal reflection

22. Five E Model - Exploration 2. Exploration • Metacognition • Identify gaps • Close the gaps with explanations

23. Five E Model – Exploration cont. Purpose <- -> Learning Report

24. Five E Model - Explain 3. Explain • Experiential learning • POGIL method

25. In class…BIOS 109

26. Five E Model – Elaboration & Evaluation 4. Elaboration • Assignments in the new context 5. Evaluation • Quizzes & grading/ Midterm/ Final

27. NIU’s Community of Practice CTP 2012-2014 • Chuck Downing - OMIS 259 • Yasuo Ito - PHYS 180 • Eric Jones - HIST 170 • SibelKusimba - ANTH 102 • SheelaVemu - BIOS 109 • Douglas Wallace - PSYC 102 CTP - Lite 2013 • Winifred Creamer- ANTH 491 • Jason Hanna - PHIL 231 • Amanda Littauer - WOMS 230 • Anders Linner - MATH 210 • Jimmie Manning - COMS 252 • Lyle Marschand - PHYS 150/ 150A • William McCoy – LEEA 490/590 • Wendel Johnson & Meredith Ayers - UNIV 105 • CTP 2013-2015 • Laura Steele – FCCL 271 • Joseph Scudder – COMS 302 • Matthew Wittrup – PHHE 295 • Cathy Carlson – NURS 318 • Jeremy Groves – ECON 260 • Courtney Gallaher – GEOG 101

28. Questions? Thank you!