DESIGNING COURSES for SIGNIFICANT LEARNING

1. DESIGNING COURSES for SIGNIFICANT LEARNING SINCLAIR COMMUNITY COLLEGE NOVEMBER 8, 2008 Stewart Ross Ph. D. Director Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning Minnesota State University

2. FOUNDATION KNOWLEDGE: Basic terms and concepts APPLICATION: How to use the model of Integrated Course Design • INTEGRATION: Connect ideas from the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning (SoTL) with your own work as an educator. • HUMAN DIMENSION: • Self: Be more confident that you can do this • Other: Work with others to create more powerful designs • CARING: Identify the value of course design in teaching • LEARNING HOW TO LEARN: Know what else you want to learn about (after the workshop)

3. Ice Breaker: “A Vision of Today’s Students”

5. PARADIGM SHIFT IN COLLEGE TEACHING • From: “TEACHING” • To: “LEARNING” • What is the difference? • Leads to new questions about our work as teachers.

6. PARADIGM SHIFT IN COLLEGE TEACHING • From: “TEACHING” • To: “LEARNING” • What is the difference? • Leads to new questions about our work as teachers. • WHAT should we be doing?

7. End of course During Course/College: After College: 3 FEATURES OF A HIGH QUALITY LEARNING EXPERIENCE 3. The learning: ADDS VALUE 1. Students are: ENGAGED 2. Student effort results in: SIGNIFICANT & LASTING LEARNING

9. PARADIGM SHIFT IN COLLEGE TEACHING • From: “TEACHING” • To: “LEARNING” • What is the difference? • Leads to new questions about our work as teachers. • WHAT should we be doing? • HOW do students learn?

10. HOW DO PEOPLE LEARN? • Transmit Knowledge?

11. Transmission Of Knowledge

12. HOW DO PEOPLE LEARN? • Transmit Knowledge? • Constructivism

13. Constructivist View of Learning • We can transmit “INFORMATION.” • But people have to take that information and CONSTRUCT their own understanding of it, and figure out what they can do with it.

14. HOW DO PEOPLE LEARN? • Transmit Knowledge? • Constructivism • Social Constructivism

15. Social Constructivism: • We can construct our understanding of anything by ourselves, but... • it usually works much better to collaborate and dialogue with others

16. Five Minute University “Father Sarducci”

17. Interacting with Students Knowledge of the Subject Matter Designing Learning Experiences Managing the Course FUNDAMENTAL TASKS OF TEACHING Beginning of the Course

18. Question: What pedagogical problems do you deal with in your teaching?Share them with someone sitting next to you.Share them with the entire group.

19. Lack of Interest: “Students are bored with my class and lose interest quickly.” Poor Preparation: “Students don’t do the assigned readings before class.” Poor Retention of Learning: “Students do well on the test, but on the next test or in the next course, they seem to forget everything they learned earlier.” THREE COMMON PROBLEMS:

20. Lack of Interest: “Students are bored with my class and lose interest quickly.” Poor Preparation: “Students don’t do the assigned readings before class.” Poor Retention of Learning: “Students do well on the test, but on the next test or in the next course, they seem to forget everything they learned earlier.” THREE COMMON PROBLEMS:

21. 1. Enhance the teacher’s lecturing skills. 2. Use more material from “cutting edge” research. 3. Re-design the course to replace lecturing with more active learning. Lack of Interest

22. 1. Assign more severe penalties for not doing the readings beforehand. 2. Give students a pep talk. 3. Re-design the course to give students a reason to do the readings. Poor Student Preparation

23. 1. Make the tests better (or tougher) 2. Require students to complete a refresher course 3. Re-design the course to give students more experience with using what they have learned Poor Retention of Learning

24. Sinclair Community College Mission: “We help individuals turn dreams into achievable goals through accessible, high quality, affordable learning opportunities.”

25. FACULTY DREAMS • If you had a class that could and would learn anything and everything you wanted them to learn: • What is it that you would really like them to learn?

26. Readiness Assessment Test www.epsteineducation.com

27. 3 Ways of Designing Courses: • “List of Topics” • “List of Activities” • Need a way of designing courses that is: • Systematic • Integrated • Learning-Centered

28. Integrated Course Design: OVERVIEW

29. Teaching & Learning Activities Feedback & Assessment INTEGRATED COURSE DESIGN: Key Components Learning Goals S i t u a t i o n a l F a c t o r s

30. Learning Goals Teaching and Learning Activities Feedback & Assessment Criteria of “GOOD” Course Design Significant Learning Integration Active Learning Educative Assessment S I T U A T I O N A L F A C T O R S In-Depth Situational Analysis

31. Integrated Course Design: SITUATIONAL FACTORS

32. Criteria of “GOOD” Course Design Learning Goals Teaching and Learning Activities Feedback & Assessment Significant Learning Integration Active Learning Educative Assessment S I T U A T I O N A L F A C T O R S In-Depth Situational Analysis

33. Situational Factors: • Collecting information about… • Specific Context • Expectations by people outside the course • Nature of the Subject • Nature of Students • Nature of Teacher

34. Specific Context of the Teaching/Learning Situation Number of students Level of course Time structure Delivery: Live – Hybrid – Online Expectations of Others: What expectations are placed on this course or curriculum by: Society? The University, College and/or the Department? The Profession? Situational Factors

35. Nature of the Subject Primarily theoretical, practical, or some combination? Convergent or divergent? Important changes or controversies occurring? Characteristics of the Learners Their life situation (e.g., working, family, professional goals)? Their prior knowledge, experiences, and initial feelings? Their learning goals, expectations, and preferred learning styles?

36. Characteristics of the Teacher(s) My beliefs and values about teaching and learning? My attitude toward: the subject, students? My teaching skills? My level of knowledge or familiarity with this subject?

37. SPECIAL PEDAGOGICAL CHALLENGE • Premise: • Every course has a special pedagogical challenge. • The teacher needs to do something about that challenge in the first week (maybe the first day) of class.

39. Criteria of “GOOD” Course Design Learning Goals Teaching and Learning Activities Feedback & Assessment Significant Learning Integration Active Learning Educative Assessment S I T U A T I O N A L F A C T O R S In-Depth Situational Analysis

40. Integrated Course Design: LEARNING GOALS

41. Learning Goals Teaching and Learning Activities Feedback & Assessment Criteria of “GOOD” Course Design Significant Learning Integration Active Learning Educative Assessment S I T U A T I O N A L F A C T O R S In-Depth Situational Analysis

42. Fink’s Taxonomy of Significant Learning Foundational Knowledge

43. What key information (facts, terms, formula, concepts, relationships) is important for students to understand and remember in the future? What key ideas or perspectives are important for students to understand in this course? Formulating Significant Learning Goals:Foundational Knowledge

44. Fink’s Taxonomy of Significant Learning Foundational Knowledge Application

45. What kinds of thinking are important for students to learn in this course? Critical thinking? Creative thinking? Practical thinking? What important skills do students need to learn? What complex projects do students need to learn now to manage? Formulating Significant Learning Goals:Application

46. Fink’s Taxonomy of Significant Learning Foundational Knowledge Application Integration

47. What connections (similarities and interactions) should students recognize and make --Among ideas within the course? --Between the information, ideas & perspectives in this course and those in other courses or areas? --Between material in this course and the students’ own personal, social and work life? Formulating Significant Learning Goals:Integration

48. Student Learning Communities • Helps students learn how to integrate different perspectives while focusing on connecting diverse people and disciplines • Links courses so students take a set of courses together, often with team teaching as a strategy • Overcome the isolation of students and subjects from each other

49. Fink’s Taxonomy of Significant Learning Foundational Knowledge Application Integration Human Dimension

50. What can or should students learn about themselves? What can or should students learn about understanding and interacting with others? Formulating Significant Learning Goals:Human Dimension