Course and Syllabus Design Course and Classroom Management Tanya Schnieder [email protected]

Rory Flinn [email protected] June 7th , 2016

Outline 

      

Lesson Learning Goals and Outcomes Course Design – Finks’ 12 Steps Syllabus Design and Examples Course and Classroom Management – Planning for Day 1 and Impressions Course and Classroom Management – Making It Personal on Day 1 Course and Classroom Management – Setting Expectations on Day 1 Course and Classroom Management – Know your students and group dynamics Course and Classroom Management – Dealing with Fear and Difficult Students

Today’s Learning Goals and Outcomes Goals   

Comprehension of an effective approach for course design Understanding of best practices in syllabus preparation Familiarity with course and classroom management strategies, including group dynamics

Outcomes By the end of this class session you should be able to:    

Summarize Finks’ 12 steps to effective course design and utilize these steps when you design your own courses Explain what components should be present in a well prepared syllabus and apply this knowledge to the preparation of your own syllabi Discuss strategies for success in course and classroom management and use these strategies when teaching your own courses Utilize best practices when establishing and managing groups within a course

The 12 steps of Integrated Course Design. • • • • • •

INITIAL DESIGN PHASE: Build Strong Primary Components Step 1. Identify important situational factors Step 2. Identify important learning goals Step 3. Formulate appropriate feedback and assessment procedures Step 4. Select effective teaching/learning activities Step 5. Make sure the primary components are integrated

• • • •

INTERMEDIATE DESIGN PHASE: Assemble the Components into a Coherent Whole Step 6. Create a thematic structure for the course Step 7. Select or create an instructional strategy Step 8. Integrate the course structure and the instructional strategy to create an overall scheme of learning activities

• • • • •

FINAL DESIGN PHASE: Finish Important Remaining Tasks Step 9. Develop the grading system Step 10. De-Bug possible problems Step 11. Write the course syllabus Step 12. Plan an evaluation of the course and of your teaching L.D.Fink. Creating Significant Learning Experiences. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA, 2003. www.deefinkandassociates.com/​GuidetoCourseDesignAug05.pdf

The 12 steps of Integrated Course Design. • • • • • •

INITIAL DESIGN PHASE: Build Strong Primary Components Step 1. Identify important situational factors Step 2. Identify important learning goals Step 3. Formulate appropriate feedback and assessment procedures Step 4. Select effective teaching/learning activities Step 5. Make sure the primary components are integrated

• • • •

INTERMEDIATE DESIGN PHASE: Assemble the Components into a Coherent Whole Step 6. Create a thematic structure for the course Step 7. Select or create an instructional strategy Step 8. Integrate the course structure and the instructional strategy to create an overall scheme of learning activities

• • • • •

FINAL DESIGN PHASE: Finish Important Remaining Tasks Step 9. Develop the grading system Step 10. De-Bug possible problems Step 11. Write the course syllabus Step 12. Plan an evaluation of the course and of your teaching L.D.Fink. Creating Significant Learning Experiences. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA, 2003. www.deefinkandassociates.com/​GuidetoCourseDesignAug05.pdf

Initial Design Phase – Backwards Design S I T U A T I O N A L F A C T O R S

Learning Goals

Learning Outcomes

Assessment Strategy

Learning/Teaching Activities

Iterative Alignment

What is it that you want your students to know, be able to do, or understand? What do the students already know, are able to do, or understand?

What specific evidence of learning would be needed for students to demonstrate achievement of these goals? What expectations are expected of this course/session? How will you assess the degree to which students are learning? How will students assess to what degree they are learning and progressing towards the learning goals? How will you evaluate whether the learning outcomes are achieved, and at what quality? Are the approaches feasible (effort, environment, technology)? What are the teaching and learning activities that will be conducted to facilitate reaching the goals? What needs to be considered (locations, timing, actions, roles)? Will the learning outcomes actually address the goals? Will the assessment strategy allow for the learning outcomes to be assessed? Will conducting the activities produce the learning outcomes?

The 12 steps of Integrated Course Design. • • • • • •

INITIAL DESIGN PHASE: Build Strong Primary Components Step 1. Identify important situational factors Step 2. Identify important learning goals Step 3. Formulate appropriate feedback and assessment procedures Step 4. Select effective teaching/learning activities Step 5. Make sure the primary components are integrated

• • • •

INTERMEDIATE DESIGN PHASE: Assemble the Components into a Coherent Whole Step 6. Create a thematic structure for the course Step 7. Select or create an instructional strategy Step 8. Integrate the course structure and the instructional strategy to create an overall scheme of learning activities

• • • • •

FINAL DESIGN PHASE: Finish Important Remaining Tasks Step 9. Develop the grading system Step 10. De-Bug possible problems Step 11. Write the course syllabus Step 12. Plan an evaluation of the course and of your teaching L.D.Fink. Creating Significant Learning Experiences. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA, 2003. www.deefinkandassociates.com/​GuidetoCourseDesignAug05.pdf

Intermediate Design Phase – Course Structure i) Divide course into segments that focus on key concepts, issues, or topics ii) Arrange segments into a logical sequence and consider projects/assessments

iii) Allocate amount of time (# of class sessions) for each segment

L.D.Fink. Creating Significant Learning Experiences. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA, 2003.

Intermediate Design Phase – Instructional Strategy i) Arrange learning activities within a segment in a strategic sequence so that learning is compounded a) Each step in sequence should prepare students for later work b) Each learning activity should serve as formative assessment ii) Ensure course structure and instructional strategy are synergistic, reconfigure if needed

L.D.Fink. Creating Significant Learning Experiences. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA, 2003.

The 12 steps of Integrated Course Design. • • • • • •

INITIAL DESIGN PHASE: Build Strong Primary Components Step 1. Identify important situational factors Step 2. Identify important learning goals Step 3. Formulate appropriate feedback and assessment procedures Step 4. Select effective teaching/learning activities Step 5. Make sure the primary components are integrated

• • • •

INTERMEDIATE DESIGN PHASE: Assemble the Components into a Coherent Whole Step 6. Create a thematic structure for the course Step 7. Select or create an instructional strategy Step 8. Integrate the course structure and the instructional strategy to create an overall scheme of learning activities

• • • • •

FINAL DESIGN PHASE: Finish Important Remaining Tasks Step 9. Develop the grading system Step 10. De-Bug possible problems Step 11. Write the course syllabus Step 12. Plan an evaluation of the course and of your teaching L.D.Fink. Creating Significant Learning Experiences. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA, 2003. www.deefinkandassociates.com/​GuidetoCourseDesignAug05.pdf

Final Design Phase – Grading System i)

Rank and weight learning goals/outcomes

ii)

Align rankings/weights with activities/assessments

iii) Ensure point distribution matches level of effort to be expended on assessments iv) Ensure point distribution is not clustered too heavily at end of semester v)

If not pre-established, assign letter grades to point ranges

vi) Develop rubrics for assessments - See course website ‘Assessment’ module for added resources on rubrics

L.D.Fink. Creating Significant Learning Experiences. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA, 2003.

Final Design Phase – Evaluation and Debugging i)

Develop evaluation strategy of the course and your instruction

ii)

Evaluations should include both formative and summative evaluations

iii) Formative evaluations might entail in class observations (self or peer), end of class session reflections, and/or mid-term anonymous evaluations iv) Summative evaluations come at end of semester and typically established by school/department – can also add to these with your own separate evaluation v)

Debug during course design and after run course

vi) After initial course design ‘test the system’: timing, resources, other pitfalls vii) Following course, use evaluation data to aid in debugging course for next iteration

L.D.Fink. Creating Significant Learning Experiences. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA, 2003.

Making a Course Syllabus: The Easy Part, Course/Instructor Information: • Course title • Course number • Credit hours • Prerequisites • Permission from instructor required? • Classroom location • Lab/recitation location • Meeting days • Class hours • Lab/recitation hours • Department location • Web page

• Full name • Title • Office location • Office phone number • Office hours • E-mail address • Department phone number • Home phone number • Teaching Assistant(s) • TA name(s) • TA office location(s) • TA phone number(s)

Making A Course Syllabus: The Harder Part, Course Description, Goals, Outcomes, Assessments, Philosophy: • • • • •

Catalog description (Why?) General course goals and outcomes (What? – big picture) Specific lesson goals and outcomes (What? – bite sized) Assessments, both formative and summative (How?) Teaching philosophy and Instructional methods (How?)

Quick Classroom Activity

Let’s look at two syllabi examples and compare and contrast a well constructed syllabus from a poorly constructed syllabus Well constructed: http://biology.web.unc.edu/files/2013/02/101-Hogan-Fall-2014.pdf Poorly constructed: file:///C:/Users/rf2531/Downloads/120%20101%20gen%20bio%20morrison%202015a.pdf (http://www.ncas.rutgers.edu/undergraduate-biology-syllabi )

Getting ready…. o Plan

ahead:

Have you ordered the books? o Put some on reserve? o Visit the room o Learn how to use the equipment o Do you have your lessons aligned with the learning objectives and assessments? o Are your PPs ready? o Set up the LMS (learning management system)? o Do you know how to use this new on-line tool you plan on incorporating in your class? o

Day 1: Make an Impression No! make an unforgettable impression

Arrive early! o Greet them with a smile and make eye contact o How should they call you? o Email etiquette: “hey Prof!...” o

o Dress o

to make the right impression: Your appearance always communicates your perception of your relationship to the class

Cha Kil-yong

Day 1: Make it personal to you o

Turn your elevator speech into a classroom introduction: o

o

your degrees, your research interests, your academic interests – create an impression of a person who is serious, knowledgeable and passionate about the field/subject

Make it personal to you! o

If it is not your favorite subject to teach, “fake” it personal – it is not about you, it is about them

Day 1: Make it personal to them o Don`t

begin by reading the syllabus o Pique the students` interest o o o o o

Fundamental problems Provocative claims Case studies, stories Start with a powerful opening statement and involve students in a discussion right away Remember “quick before it dries!” o

If you expect them to speak in class, to write in class, to engage in small group discussion, ask them to do some of these things on the first day

Write a first class speech! Leave them with a cliffhanger!

Day 1: Market your teaching strategy! o

o

Create a “need to know”: o Answer the question: Why does a student need to know this/take this class? o Outline your course learning objectives: knowledge and skills students will acquire or master Explain that you chose content and structure for the course to achieve these objectives: o Why are the readings important? o How do they connect? o Why did you choose this format for testing? o Why active learning?

Day 1: Give them a clear map o

Make it clear what they can expect from you: o

o

Office hours, email, skype?...

Make your expectations clear: o o

o

Clearly introduce “warm” and “cool” expectations “warm”: “In our class: 1) everyone is allowed to feel they can work and learn in a safe and caring environment; 2) everyone learns about, understands, appreciates, and respects varied races, classes, genders, physical and mental abilities, and sexualities; 3) everyone matters; 4) all individuals are to be respected and treated with dignity and civility; and 5) everyone shares the responsibility for making our class, and the Academy, a positive and better place to live, work, and learn.”

Day 1: Be warm, but firm! o“cool” : duties of being a student : Absences, Lateness, Exam make-ups, Cheating/plagiarism, “Petitioning” for grades, Sleeping in the classroom, Using electronic devices, …… o but not cold, i.e. authoritarian: o “You will submit three projects.” “I expect regular participation.” “You must attend class.” “Students bear sole responsibility for ensuring that papers…submitted electronically to the professor are received in a timely manner.”

Day 1: Know your students o

Foster community: o o

o

Learn their names as early as possible Ask them what skills they think they can bring to a team: interpersonal vs. technical Conduct a student diagnostic – you need to know who you are teaching o

o

My example of a first day quiz

If you plan to have team projects… o o o

Start building an effective team on day 1 Do not assume that students are just going to self-organize Effective team skills (positive interdependence, individual accountability, interpersonal and small-group skills, self-assessment) have to be deliberately taught

Designing good team assignments 

Why team work? Conduct a few activities to “prove” productive teamwork benefits everyone (see notes to this slide) Begin with simple well-defined relevant tasks that are solvable within a reasonable time frame and are intrinsically interesting. 

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Design a project that is done in stages and check progress at every stage: 

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Idea Project development Project outcomes

Develop assignments that require interdependence. So, plan these in advance = before the class starts.

Designing good teams 

Instructors should form teams rather than allowing students to self-select 

This helps to avoid:    

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Weak students reinforcing misconceptions Strong students adopting a divide and conquer policy Cheating, b/c self-selected members are more likely to share similar mindsets Cover-ups by friends within the same team

Criteria for team formation   

Form teams of students that are diverse in their ability and who have common blocks of time and live close to each other - Getting to Know You also see notes to this slide In the first two years of a curriculum, avoid isolating female and minority students on teams Size: 3-5 depending on the complexity of the task  

Don’t want to have a dominant person if you have only 2 people working together Don’t want to have “hitchhikers” if the task is not very demanding and the group is large Turning student groups into effective teams B Oakley, RM Felder, R Brent, I Elhajj Journal of Student Centered Learning 2 (1), 9-34

Teaching teamwork skills 

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Project management Time management Conflict resolution Communications skills

Teaching teamwork skills ≠ groupwork 

Establish expectations – 

Team Policies Statement (created by an instructor and handed out on day 1) :  A guide on effective team functioning  Outlines different team roles (should rotate throughout the semester): checker, coordinator, monitor, recorder or if it is a lab, for example, experiment designer, equipment calibrator, data recorder and processor, interpreter of the results, etc…

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Team Expectations Agreement (created by the team and returned

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to the instructor as a binding contract one week after the 1st class) Team name? Turning student groups into effective teams B Oakley, RM Felder, R Brent, I Elhajj Journal of Student Centered Learning 2 (1), 9-34

Teaching teamwork skills 

Give a few pointers on Day 1, emphasizing that it is important to   



Stick to and rotate assigned roles among the team members to help build various skills Know all parts of the assignment ≠ divide and conquer as you will be tested on everything In quantitative assignments, solve all problems individually first

Dealing with difficult team members: aka hitchhikers, domineering, resistant team members:    

Present teams with scenarios (for example, Difficult team members scenarios) and ask the teams to come up with solutions Discuss their solutions Emphasize that it is ok to confront a difficult member, not put their name on the submission, and “fire” him/her If the problem arises in real life, arrange for meeting with the team and the miscreant Turning student groups into effective teams B Oakley, RM Felder, R Brent, I Elhajj Journal of Student Centered Learning 2 (1), 9-34

Assessing teamwork 

Hand out Evaluation of Progress Form where students can reflect on the functionality of their teamwork    

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Do not sweep the problems under the rug Put the problem student on notice Brainstorm solutions Apply active listening

Peer ratings: 

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After the first two weeks of class, ask students to (honestly) fill out Team Member Evaluation Form (including themselves to promote self-reflection) and discuss it with other team members This or similar form will be completed again in the end of the semester and submitted to the instructor to determine each student`s individual rating: Rating System Turning student groups into effective teams B Oakley, RM Felder, R Brent, I Elhajj Journal of Student Centered Learning 2 (1), 9-34

Fears: o

Acknowledge your accent - be honest, but do not focus on your inexperience

o

You don’t have to be hilarious or extraverted to be a good teacher

o

But you have to be committed to their learning

o

Rehearse! Mastery comes with practice

o

Be prepared - overplan

o

Think in terms of communication rather than performance o Use many examples o Tell stories o Use language that applies to senses o Make eye contact o Try to smile o Lecture to people in the back row o “Telegraph” the importance of a topic by saying, “ I am about to tell you the most important element of this problem. If you take anything home today, I want it to be this.”

? no teaching experience stage fright

English is not your first language

Difficult Students o

o o o o o o o o

o

Express empathy Avoid Argumentation Stay calm Listen Self-reflect Direct the student to the rules Have a face-to-face talk Develop Discrepancy Support Self-Efficacy Be consistent and firm Recommended reading “What if students revolt?” - Considering Student Resistance: Origins, Options, and Opportunities for Investigation by Shannon B. Seidel and Kimberly D. Tanner in CBE – Life Science Education