2. Origins of Interteaching
Multi-component method of instruction
(Anderson and Krathwohl 22)
Roots in B. F. Skinner’s operant
psychology theories on overt behavior
(acting) and covert behavior (thinking
and feeling) (Boyce and Hineline 216)
3. Goals of Interteaching
Reorient classroom practices with an
eye towards affecting how students
act, think, and feel (Arntzen and
Hoium 156)
Position students at the center of the
learning process as a practice of
active learning (Boyce and Hineline
215)
4. Interteaching Face-toFace
For Fridays, students prepare responses to 6-10
questions on the reading
In class, student group or instructor presents
biographical information on author and
background on text
Students discuss answers in small groups that
change weekly
Instructor visits groups, answers questions,
guides discussions
5. Interteaching Face-toFace
Students record changes to answers in
a different color
If questions pose problems for students
or new questions emerge, discuss in
larger group
Students submit revised responses by
Monday, 7pm for content/writing
assessment
6. Interteaching Online
Students submit answers to reading
guide by Wednesday, 7pm
In online discussion groups of 10,
students discuss responses by Saturday,
7pm
Students record changes in a different
color font and submit revised responses
for content/writing assessment by Sunday,
7pm
7. Sample Interteaching
Questions
Who are Olaudah Equiano and Gustavus Vassa? Why
is each name significant?
What different forms of slavery are described in the
story? How is slavery in Africa different from slavery in
the Americas?
What role does religion play in Equiano’s narrative?
How does Christianity influence his life as a slave and
life while free?
According to recent evidence, Equiano may not have
been born in West Africa. Records suggest he may
have been born in South Carolina. How does this
information change the way we read Equiano’s story?
8. Face-to-Face Assessment
5% Homework: 5 points for bringing
completed questions to class, 0 points
for no questions or absence
5% Participation in discussions
40% Interteaching Questions: 20 points
possible for each assignment, covering
content, examples, explanations,
grammar and style
9. Online Interteaching
Assessment
5% Homework: 5 points for completion
by Wednesday, 7pm
15% Discussion: 5 points for
participation in discussion by Saturday,
7pm
40% Revised Interteaching Questions:
20 points possible, covering content,
examples, explanations, grammar and
style
11. F2F Student, Week 1
“In African American Literature I would Imagine African
American writers signifying in the following ways. one
example of signifying I would expect to see in African
American Literature is innuendoes and parodies in
order to subtly address critical issues without drawing
much attention to the author or the piece of literature.
Another example of signifying that I would expect to see
in African American Literature is a sense of competition
towards white people. Stating basically that anything
you can do we can do better or just as well.”
12. Same Student, Week 12
““Lift Every Voice and Sing” is similar to the gospel song, “Take My Hand,
Precious Lord” as they convey a similar message about the importance of
faith for African Americans. “Take My Hand, Precious Lord” is a plea for
God to rescue the weary soul of an unfortunate slave who is tired of
fighting and lead them to heaven. This is evident from the line, “Through
the storm, through the night lead me on to the light, take my hand,
precious lord, lead me home,” (23) which pleads with God for guidance. In
“Lift Every Voice and Sing,” Johnson uses a very similar phrase in the
fourth verse when he says, “Thou who hast brought us thus far on the way;
thou who hast by Thy might, led us into the light, keep us forever in the
path, we pray” (794). Johnson is essentially saying that God has brought
African Americans a long way since slavery and that they aspire to stay on
the path in which he has brought them to. Both of these readings show
how enduring African Americans had to be during these times and
sometimes it was extremely difficult not to give up, but their faith in God
kept them optimistic.”
13. Online Student Response,
Week 1
“In Wheatley’s poems she seems to be explaining
how the slaves are taken from their native land and
taken into a foreign land where they no longer hear
familiar words or see familiar places and sites. As
horrible as it is to even say this, some slaves I’m
sure would much rather have died than be forced
into slavery and oppression. Coming to a
completely new land, they didn’t know what to
expect, especially considering they’ve never seen a
land other than their own. Wheatley’s poems are a
testament to the fact the slaves might rather die
than be forced into slavery.”
14. Same Student, Week 12
“Olunde both challenges and confirms Jane’s assumptions that all the Yoruba people are savage in
that they embrace ritual suicide within their culture. Upon seeing Olunde for the first time in years,
Jane says, “What a fine young man you’ve become” (Soyinka 40). Here, Mrs. Pilkings gives the
impression that because Olunde had left his home in order to study medicine, he is more of a man,
or perhaps even more of a human. Considering that he left his native land for a more culturally
modern society to study medicine seems to challenge Jane’s assumptions that all Yoruban people
are savages. Later in the conversation, Olunde tells Jane, “You forget that I have now spent four
years among your people. I discovered that you have no respect for what you do no understand”
(Soyinka 41). Here, Olunde calls Jane out for wearing the ancestral mask in a blasphemous fashion
and further points out her, and Mr. Pilkings lack of respect toward a culture they do not understand.
He even attempts to explain the importance of the ritual to Jane, who says, “However you try to put
it, it is still a barbaric custom” (Soyinka 43). Just because they do not understand the culture, Mr.
and Mrs. Pilkings show a lack of respect for something they consider barbaric. When Olunde notices
the difference in the beating drum, he exclaims, “Yes, Mrs. Pilkings, my father is dead. His will-power
has always been enormous; I know he is dead” (Soyinka 45). He doesn’t appear to show any grief,
which appears to confirm Jane’s assumptions as she says, “You announce your father’s own death
like a surgeon looking down on some strange… stranger’s body! You’re just savage like all the rest”
(Soyinka 45). Because Olunde doesn’t mourn over the loss of Elesin, Jane uses this as a
confirmation for her assumptions that all Yoruba people are savage. Despite her comments earlier,
Jane views Olunde as a barbarian, as well, through his embrace of the culture.”
15. Challenges of
Interteaching
Students unable to meet attendance and
participation requirements easily fail
Front-loads instructor workload (guide
prep, thorough responses to student
writing)
Students may not expect to take on
significant roles in the classroom
16. Benefits of Interteaching
Promotes active learning, attendance,
and student engagement
Requires students to take ownership of
the classroom and their learning
Provides students with strong
background for summative assessment
on midterm and final exams
17. Possible Changes Next
Semester
Develop student self-assessment questionnaire to
submit with revised responses
Add comments to sample response indicating
required components (quotations, explanations)
Remove first round of question submission from
online course; students will submit initial responses
directly into discussion by offering formal response
to one question and responding to all other formal
responses
18. Works Cited
Anderson, Lorin and David Krathwohl. A Taxonomy for
Learning, Teaching, and Assessing: A Revision of
Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. NY:
Longman, 2001.
Arntzen, Erik and Kari Hoium. “On the Effectiveness of
Interteaching.” The Behavior Analyst Today 11 (2010):
155-9.
Boyce, Thomas and Philip Hineline. “Interteaching: A
Strategy for Enhancing the User-Friendliness of
Behavioral Arrangements in the College Classroom.” The
Behavior Analyst 25 (2002): 215-26.