The College Classroom (Wi14) Week 9: Alternatives to Lecture

What do you notice? What do you wonder?
(16th Century carving
Wikimedia Commons)collegeclassroom.ucsd.edu #tccucsd
1

The College Classroom
March 4 and 6, 2014
Week 9:
Alternatives to Lecture
Unless otherwise noted, this work is licensed
under a Creative Commons Attribution-
NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License.

Key Finding 1
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Students come to the classroom with preconceptions about
how the world works. If their initial understanding is not
engaged, they may fail to grasp the new concepts and
information that are taught, or they may learn them for
the purposes of a test but revert to their preconceptions
outside of the classroom. (How People Learn [1], p. 14)
Instructors must
draw out students’
pre-existing
understandings.
Instruction must be
student-centered.

Key Finding 2
4
To develop competence in an area, students must:
a) have a deep foundation of factual knowledge,
b) understand facts and ideas in the context of a
conceptual framework, and
c) organize knowledge in ways that facilitate
retrieval and application. (How People Learn [1], p. 16)
These are
characteristics of
expertize
Instructors need to
give students
opportunities to be
more expert-like.

Key Finding 3
5
A “metacognitive” approach to instruction can help
students learn to take control of their own learning by
defining learning goals and monitoring their progress in
achieving them. (How People Learn [1], p. 18)
Instructors need to
provide opportunities
for students to practice
being metacognitive
Metacognition: that
voice in your head
that checks your
understanding

Constructivist theory of learning
6
Students need to construct their own understanding of
the concepts, where
 each student assimilates new material into his/her
own framework of initial understanding and
preconception
 each student confronts his/her (mis)understanding of
the concepts
A traditional, one-way lecture doesn’t give students an
opportunity to construct their own knowledge, practice a
skill, or receive timely, formative feedback.

 before class
 3-4 pg reading
 online reading quiz
 in class
 mix of peer instruction,
instructor feedback,
worksheets,
demonstrations
 before class
 3-4 pg reading
 in class
 PPT slides
 0–5 summative clicker
questions (not peer
instruction)
Experimental SectionControl Section
0 4 8 12 16 20 24 28 32 36 40 44 48
Improved Learning in a Large-Enrollment Physics Class [2]
trad’l lecture
peer instruction
instructor feedback
worksheets
demonstration

Improved Learning in a Large-
Enrollment Physics Class [2]
8
Remember: Experimental section instructors LD and ES had no
teaching experience but significant pedagogical content
knowledge – knowledge about how people learn physics.
average
41±1%
average
74±1%

9
student-centered instructiontraditional lecture

10
What do you notice/wonder?
peer instruction with clickers
interactive demonstrations
surveys of opinions
reading quizzes
whiteboards
worksheets
discussions
videos student-centered instruction

What do you notice? What do you wonder?
Archimedes Bath
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Start teaching before the bell rings
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Students arrive, ready to engage with you, your content:
 Project a picture related to today’s lesson
 Add prompts:
“What do you notice? What do you wonder?” [3]
 Spend first few minutes leading a discussion:
 every student can contribute because everyone can
wonder
 you learn their pre-existing knowledge
 activates concepts in their memories
 Don’t let their enthusiasm slip away!

13
surveys of opinions
reading quizzes
whiteboards
worksheets
discussions

14
Chemistry Day 4 by pennstatenews on flickr CC-BY-NC

In-class demonstrations
15
1. Instructor (meticulously) sets up the equipment, flicks
a switch, “Taa-daaah!
2. Students
 don’t know where to look
 don’t know when to look, miss “the moment”
 don’t recognize the significance of the event amongst
too many distractions
To engage students and focus their attention on the key
event, get students to make a prediction (using clickers,
for example.)

Clicker question
16
A ball is rolling around
the inside of a circular
track. The ball
leaves the track
at point P.
Which path
does the ball
follow?
P
A
B
C
D
E
(Mazur)collegeclassroom.ucsd.edu #tccucsd

In-class demonstrations
17
After the prediction, each student
 cares about the outcome (“Did I get it right?”)
 knows where to look (can anticipate phenomenon)
 knows when to look (sees phenomenon occur)
 gets immediate feedback about his/her
understanding of the concept
 is prepared for your explanation
 More about Interactive Lecture Demos (ILDs)[4] and
using demonstrations to teach, not entertain [5]

18
surveys of opinions
reading quizzes
whiteboards
worksheets
discussions

What do you see?
19
A) old lady
B) young woman
 If you’re studying human
behavior, let your students
generate authentic data
 For sensitive issues, clickers
can be set to “anonymous”

20
surveys of opinions
reading quizzes
whiteboards
worksheets
discussions

Flipped class model
21
students prepare
at home
reading quiz
(online or in class to
check knowledge
and reward effort)
in class, students are
prepared to engage
in natural, critical,
learning tasks [10]

22
surveys of opinions
reading quizzes
whiteboards
worksheets
discussions

Whiteboards = practice
23
Use whiteboards to give your students practice
analyzing summarizing deriving illustrating
computing drafting brainstorming presenting
Tips:
 groups of 3-4 with 1 pen per person
 encourage students to show their thinking, not just the
final analysis
 train students to listen to each other’s presentations
 see [6, 7] for resources

24
surveys of opinions
reading quizzes
whiteboards
worksheets
discussions

Gen-Ed astronomy class
25
Before beginning an in-class worksheet, be sure
the students are properly prepared:
The Speed of Light
 light travels through space at a very fast (300,000
km/s) but finite speed
 a light-year (abbreviated “ly”) is how far light
travels in one year
Please complete the worksheet in groups. Work
together. Try to reach consensus on each answer.

In-class worksheets
26
 carefully-designed sequence of questions guide students
through the exploration of a concept
 first few questions can be trivial – checks students read
intro paragraph, gives them confidence
 give formative feedback along the way
 most effective when done collaboratively (group reaches
consensus before answering)
 strong, evidence-based history via “Washington
Tutorials” and “Lecture Tutorials for introductory
astronomy” (interactive activities in Prather et al. [8]
(“25% interactive”) is lecture-tutorials + peer instruction)

In-class worksheet assessment
27
 don’t “go over” the worksheet
 that only encourages students to
sit and wait for your solutions
 don’t post solutions later
 again, encourages non-participation
 students bring last year’s sol’ns to class
 good alternative: ask a clicker question
 if students get the question right, they can be
confident they successfully completed the worksheet
(and you know if they achieved the learning outcome
of the activity)
force students
to self-assess
their answers:
metacognition

Clicker question
28
Imagine that you simultaneously receive two pictures of two
people that live on planets orbiting two different stars. Each
image shows the people at their 21st birthday parties.
Which of the following do you think is the most plausible
interpretation?
A) Both people are the same age but at different distances
from you.
B) The people are actually different ages but at the same
distance from you.
C) The person that is closer to you is actually the older of
the two people.
D) The person that is farther from you is actually the older
of the two people.
[9]

29
surveys of opinions
reading quizzes
whiteboards
worksheets
discussions

Discussions
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 students share their understanding, opinions, ideas
 students hear other students’ ideas, viewpoints
 students practice communicating like experts
 students get timely feedback from peers and
instructor

Discussions: Implications for instructors
31
 ensure students come to class prepared to contribute
to the discussion
 pre-readings that students want to complete (marks?)
 orchestrate activity so EVERY student speaks (not just
enthusiastic volunteers)
 talking stick, whiffle balls, pass the duck, popsicle sticks,
pass around an artefact
 build in time/tasks for listening, getting feedback
from peers and instructor

32
surveys of opinions
reading quizzes
whiteboards
worksheets
discussions

Archimedes’ Principle
33
In today’s Physics class, we’re going to study buoyancy
and Archimedes’ Principle.
http://tinyurl.com/TCCdemo
(Paul Hewitt video)
(Image: Wikimedia Commons – public domain)

Opinion: Videos in class
34
In your opinion, the Paul Hewitt video
A) is engaging
B) is entertaining
C) is interactive
D) stimulates deep thinking

Unlike you, the students do not
 select the video
 check it contains key events
 anticipate key events
 recognize key events
 interpret key events
 relate key events to
class concepts
Videos in class
35
instructor does this
before class
instructor does this unconsciously,
the “curse” of expertise
This is what you want to discuss
in class! Anticipate & recognize
are pre-requisites.

Videos: implications for instructors
36
 Coach the students how to watch the video like an
expert:
As you watch this video, try to…
watch for when the A starts to B.
count how often the C does D.
watch the needles on the scales as water drains.
 Don’t “give away” the key event (Notice the buoyant
force is equal to the weight of the fluid displaced.)
That’s what the follow-up discussion is for: help the
students get prepared for that discussion.

37
Veritasium (Derek Muller)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KZb2_vcNTg
As you watch the
video, notice how
Derek talks to the
people he interviews.

Is Lecture Dead?
Alternatives to Lecture38
No! There is still a time and place for lecture. You can
lecture (for 10-15 minutes) when the students are
prepared to learn
 the alt-to-lecture activities have activated the
concepts in their memories
 they’ve tried, failed, received feedback, tried again
and are waiting for confirmation [9]
 they’re prepared to intellectually appreciate your
expertise you’re about to share with them

References
40
1. National Research Council (2000). How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School: Expanded
Edition. J.D. Bransford, A.L Brown & R.R. Cocking (Eds.),Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
2. Deslauriers, L., Schelew, E., & Wieman, C.E. (2011). Improved Learning in a Large-Enrollment Physics
Class. Science 332, 862 – 864.
3. Newbury, P. (23 Aug 2013). You don’t have to wait for the clock to strike to start teaching. Retrieved
3/3/2014 from ctd.ucsd.edu/2013/08/you-dont-have-to-wait-for-the-clock-to-strike-to-start-teaching/.
4. Get the full story of ILDs at
serc.carleton.edu/introgeo/demonstrations/index.html
5. Miller, K. (2013). Use demonstrations to teach, not just entertain. The Physics Teacher 51, 570 – 571.
6. Noschese, F. The $2 Interactive Whiteboard. Retrieved November 18, 2013, from
fnoschese.wordpress.com/2010/08/06/the-2-interactive-whiteboard/
7. Seddon, S. Biological Whiteboarding - The use of mini whiteboards in my Biology class. Retrieved
November 18, 2013 from totallylearnedas.wordpress.com/2013/11/18/biological-whiteboarding/
8. Prather, E.E., Slater, T.F., Adams, J.P., & Brissenden, G. (2007). Lecture Tutorials for Introductory Astronomy.
(2e). San Francisco, CA: Pearson Addison-Wesley.
9. Prather, E.E., Adams, J.P., Loranz, D.J., Brissenden, G., Slater, T.F., Watson, L, & Wallace, C.S. (2013).
Lecture-Tutorials for Introductor Astronomy, Instructor’s Guide. (3e). San Francisco, CA: Pearson Education
Inc.
10. Bain, K. (2004) What the best college teachers do. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

The College Classroom (Wi14) Week 9: Alternatives to Lecture

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