I’ve been trying to explore these ideas using music and videos in the classroom, along with reflective writing exercises and, as I’m such a big fan of two of the videos I used recently, I thought I’d share them here.

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Photo taken while on a short walk during the retreat.

A few weeks ago I spent 3 days at Mont Fleur near Stellenbosch, on a teaching and learning retreat. Next year we’re going to be restructuring 2 of our modules as part of a curriculum review, and I’ll be studying the process as part of my PhD. That part of the project will also form a case study for an NRF-funded, inter-institutional study on the use of emerging technologies in South African higher education.

I used the workshop as an opportunity to develop some of the ideas for how the module will change (more on that in another post), and these are the notes I took during the workshop. Most of what I was writing was specific to the module I was working with, so these notes are the more generic ones that might be useful for others.

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Content determines what we teach, but not how we teach. But it should be the outcomes that determine the content?

“Planning” for learning

Teaching is intended to make learning possible / there is an intended relationship between teaching and learning

Learning = a recombination of old and new material in order to create personal meaning. Students bring their own experience from the world that we can use to create a scaffold upon which to add new knowledge

We teach what we usually believe is important for them to know

What (and how) we teach is often constrained by external factors:

• Amount of content
• Time in which to cover the content (this is not the same as “creating personal meaning”)

We think of content as a series of discrete chunks of an unspecified whole, without much thought given to the relative importance of each topic as it relates to other topics, or about the nature of the relationships between topics

How do we make choices between what to include and exclude?

• Focus on knowledge structuring
• What are the key concepts that are at the heart of the module?
• What are the relationships between the concepts?
• This marks a shift from dis-embedded facts to inter-related concepts
• This is how we organise knowledge in the discipline

Task: map the knowledge structure of your module

“Organising knowledge” in the classroom is problematic because knowledge isn’t organised in our brains in the same way that we organise it for students / on a piece of paper. We assign content to discrete categories to make it easier for students to understand / add it to their pre-existing scaffolds, but that’s not how it exists in minds.

Scientific method (our students do a basic physics course in which this method is emphasised, yet they don’t transfer this knowledge to patient assessment):

1. Observe something
2. Construct an hypothesis
3. Test the hypothesis
4. Is the outcome new knowledge / expected?

Task: create a teaching activity (try to do something different) that is aligned with a major concept in the module, and also includes graduate attributes and learning outcomes. Can I do the poetry concept? What about gaming? Learners are in control of the environment, mastering the task is a symbol of valued status within the group, a game is a demarcated learning activity with set tasks that the learner has to master in order to proceed, feedback is built in, games can be time and resource constrained

The activity should include the following points:

• Align assessment with outcomes and teaching and learning activities (SOLO taxonomy – Structured Observation of Learning Outcomes)
• Select a range of assessment tools
• Justify the choice of these tools
• Explain and defend marks and weightings
• Meet the criteria for reliability and validity
• Create appropriate rubrics

Assessment must be aligned with learning outcomes and modular content. It provides students with opportunities to show that they can do what is expected of them. Assessment currently highlights what students don’t know, rather than emphasising what they can do, and looking for ways to build on that strength to fill in the gaps.

Learning is about what the student does, not what the teacher does.

How do you create observable outcomes?

The activity / doing of the activity is important

As a teacher:

• What type of feedback do you give?
• When do you give it?
• What happens to it?
• Does it lead to improved learning?

Graduate attributes ↔ Learning outcomes ↔ Assessment criteria ↔ T&L activities ↔ Assessment tasks ↔ Assessment strategy

Assessment defines what students regard as important, how they spend their time and how they come to see themselves as individuals (Brown, 2001; in Irons, 2008: 11)

Self-assessment is potentially useful, although it should be low-stakes

Use a range of well-designed assessment tasks to address all of the Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs) for your module. This will help to provide evidence to teachers of the students competence / understanding

In general quantitative assessment uses marks while qualitative assessment uses rubrics

Checklist for a rubric:

• Do the categories reflect the major learning objectives?
• Are there distinct levels which are assigned names and mark values?
• Are the descriptions clear? Are they on a continuum and allow for student growth?
• Is the language clear and easy for students to understand?
• Is it easy for the teacher to use?
• Can the rubric be used to evaluate the work? Can it be used for assessing needs? Can students easily identify growth areas needed?

Evaluation:

• What were you evaluating and why?
• When was the evaluation conducted?
• What was positive / negative about the evaluation?
• What changes did you make as a result of the feedback you received?

Evaluation is an objective process in which data is collected, collated and analysed to produce information or judgements on which decisions for practice change can be based

Course evaluation can be:

• Teacher focused – for improvement of teaching practice
• Learner focused – determine whether the course outcomes were achieved

Evaluation be conducted at any time, depending on the purpose:

• At the beginning to establish prior knowledge (diagnostic)
• In the middle to check understanding (formative) e.g. think-pair-share, clickers, minute paper, blogs, reflective writing
• At the end to determine the effectiveness of the course / to determine whether outcomes have been achieved (summative) e.g. questionnaires, interviews, debriefing sessions, tests

Obtaining information:

• Feedback from students
• Peer review of teaching
• Self-evaluation

References

• Knight (n.d.). A briefing on key concepts: Formative and summative, criterion and norm-referenced assessment
• Morgan (2008). The Course Improvement Flowchart: A description of a tool and process for the evaluation of university teaching

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“All life is problem solving” – Karl Popper

How do we get students to think like professionals in the field?
How do we foster group interaction in online spaces?
How do I assess learning in online spaces?

PBL addresses the content issue, as well as enhancing critical thinking through the collaborative solving of authentic, real-world problems

Mismatch:

• PBL → solving problems is the tool, learning is the goal
• Traditional → content is the tool, problem solving is the goal

PBL is all unstructured (but it can be scaffolded), and there’s not necessarily a right/wrong answer

Six steps to problem solving (IDEALS):

• Identify the problem (What is the real question we are facing?)
• Define the context (What are the facts that frame this problem?)
• Enumerate the choices (What are the plausible actions?)
• Analyse the options (What is the best course of action?)
• List reasons explicitly (why is this the best course of action?)
• Self-correct (What did we miss?)

The problem should be authentic and appealing (a mystery to solve)
Clearly outline expectations for each step of the process

Why move from face-to-face to online?

• In F2F, you can only move forward at the speed of the slowest learner
• Significant time requirements for F2F
• Identify…can be anonymous online → fewer preconceived biases among students

Challenges:

• How do you transition F2F to online
• What tools are appropriate / feasible / viable / affordable?
• How do you do collaborative work when everyone is online at different times?

Format:

• Cases are presented in multiple formats / media
• Introductory week to familiarise students with online environment. In addition to learning the content and critical thinking, students also have to learn about PBL
• Scenarios are released in 2 stages over a 2 week period
• Scenarios are accompanied by a set of probing questions to stimulate discussion
• Teacher provides support during the discussions
• Students must also design their own case
• Assessment is based on content and depth
• Wiki used for question / answer. Each student must answer each of the questions, each answer must be different i.e. must add to what has already been added (this means that the question can’t just be a knowledge question)
• Discussion boards are used for students to dissect the cases (All and Group)
• Each group assesses their own knowledge base, and define what the gaps are, and therefore what they need to find out (who provides the links to the resources, or can students use any resources?)
• At least 3 posts per student, including: Summarise and question one citation; Answer another students’ question; Follow up any discussion on their own posts
• Reading assignment: written, critial appraisal of a published article relevant to the case study. This summary must be posted online.

Important for students to learn how to share information in supportive environments

Assessment:

• What parts of the process need to be assessed?
• What parts can be graded as a group?
• What needs to be submitted for individual assessment?
• What are the time constraints for the grading?
• How do you balance grading workload with the need to externally motivate student performance?
• There is also a syllabus quiz to ensure the students actually know the content

Design:

• Make the problem compelling
• Outline expectations
• The problem analysis should relate to the professoinal field
• As student proficiency develops, withdraw support
• Use learning issues to encourage EBP
• Ensure that solution development is based on critical appraisal

Resources

• Barrows, HS (1996). Problem based learning in medicine and beyond: a brief overview. New directions for teaching and learning
• Barrows HS & Tamblyn, RM (1980). Problem based learning: an approach to medicla education. New York, Springer Pub. Co.
• Hmelo-Silver, C (2004). Problem based learning: what and how do students learn? Educational Psychology Review, 16(3)
• www.criticalthinking.org

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First of all, we don’t allow clinicians to sit in on the formal assessment (i.e. examinations) of our students, for reasons of objectivity. We feel that in the past, the nature of personal relationships between students and clinicians has either positively or negatively affected assessment outcomes for the students. In fact, one clinician was bemoaning the fact that a student had passed an exam, even though the same student had performed poorly throughout the block. Not that having university staff completely removes bias but we feel that we’re more able to view the assessment without letting personal feelings impact the outcome. In addition, having not seen the student during the course of the placement, we can’t know how the student has performed over the previous month or so and since the exam is purely an indication of performance on the day, we are better able to make unbiased decisions.

I also need to make a clear distinction between the role of the clinician in summative and formative assessment. Clinicians certainly have a role in formative assessment as it relates to teaching. And that’s the key for me. Because of their daily experience on wards and with patients, clinicians have an incredibly valuable role to play in students’ clinical development. I would even argue that their impact is as (if not more) valuable than the role of the academic physiotherapist, for the reasons mentioned above.

However, when it comes to summative assessment i.e. exams, I don’t think that clinicians should be involved at all and not for the reasons I presented in the second paragraph above. The reason I don’t think that clinicians have a role to play in summative assessment is that it’s the university that provides the certification. We are accountable for making the decision of students’ competence and so we should have the final say in examination proceedings. Secondly, the HPCSA sets the curriculum and to some extent, the professional learning outcomes. Clinicians are not familiar with the curriculum, modules or in most cases, the specific learning outcomes of the Clinical Practice module. This is why I don’t think that clinicians should sit in on student exams.

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Image taken from YMCA cultural diversity office

Yesterday’s CHEC session was presented by Jeff Jawitz from UCT, who looked at tools for addressing diversity in the South African university classroom. I’ve seen Jeff present before at conferences and he’s got a really relaxed way of introducing and working with often highly controversial topics, like race and gender. I was especially excited to have the opportunity to learn more from him during this session. Here are my notes.

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In what ways are students diverse? Which of these matters?

There are many different differences, and any one of these might be highly significant for one person, but insignificant for everyone else → we can’t take all of these into account when we’re working with groups. Yet, we must be aware of all of the differences nonetheless

No single aspect of diversity addresses all of the issues

What does diversity mean in a South African context?

Diversity enriches the classroom

Learning styles (e.g. Felder-Silverman) can be used to change teaching practice to take diversity into account, rather than categorising students. Bear in mind that the most aspects of diversity in education deal with the issue of cognitive diversity i.e. ways of learning, but there are others e.g. language

Language can be used to communicate effectively, but also to engage deeply with the academic discipline. These are two different things and can be developed in different ways (See Cummins, 1996)

“Every time a student sits down to write for us, he has to learn to speak our language, to speak as we do, to try on the particular ways of knowing, selecting, evaluating, reporting, concluding and arguing that define the discourse of our community. He must learn to speak our language. Or he must dare to speak it or to carry off the bluff, since speaking and writing will most certainly be required long beofre the skill is learned” – Bartholomae, 1985, 134-135

Discourses are ways of being in the world, which integrate words, acts, values, beliefs, attitudes and social identities, as well as gestures, glances, body positions and clothes…a sort of identify kit” – James Gee

Where do discourses come from (Gee, 1996, p.137)?

• Primary – acquired early in life within the socio-cultural setting of the family
• Secondary – learned / taught as part of socialisations within schools, religious communities and other local, state and national groups

How do discourses cause discomfort among others?

Socio-cultural dimensions of diversity:

• Race
• Gender
• Class (“income diversity”)
• Religion/culture

What resources do students need in order to complete a task?

How comfortable are you using race as a descriptor?

What are the problems with using race as a descriptor?

What is the value of using race as a descriptor?

“Am I a racist if I think about race in my courses? Shouldn’t I treat all my students equally?” – Milner, 2003, p.176

How does one address the significant difference in retention and graduation rates between black and white students at university in South Africa without reference to race?

When discussing diversity in the classroom, it’s as much about who we are  (i.e. teachers) in that discussion

Authority doesn’t only come from what you know, but also from what you look like. The notion of authority has huge racial overtones in South Africa

“Knowledge in the blood” – Jansen

“Race reflection” – Milner, 2003

• How might my race influence my work as a teacher?
• How might my students’ racial experiences influence their work with me? What does it mean for a young black student who has never even had a conversation with an adult white male, to be told to come and see the teacher anytime, when that teacher is an adult white male?
• How do I negotiate the power structure around race in my class to allow students to feel a sense of worth?
• Am I willing to speak about the injustice of racism in conservative spaces?

“We are a nation struggling to come out of our history”

References

• Bartholomae, D (1985). “Inventing the university”, in Rose M (ed), When a writer can’t write: studies in writer’s block and other composing precess problems.
• Cummins J (1996). Negotiating identities: education for empowerment in a diverse society
• Felder, RM (1993). Reaching the second tier – learning and teaching styles in college science education. Journal of college science teaching, 23(5):286-290
• Gee J (1996). Social linguistics and literacies: ideology in discourse
• Milner HR (2003). Teacher reflection and race in cultural contexts: history, meaning and methods of teaching. Theory into practice, 42(3):174-180

Additional resources

• Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning, tips for teachers: teaching in racially diverse college classrooms (Harvard University)
• Saunders S & Kardia, D (2009). Creating inclusive college classrooms. Centre for research on learning and teaching (University of Michigan)

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