Scientific Teaching and Interactive Learning: Strategies to Maximize Student Understanding

1. Scientific Teaching and Interactive Learning:Strategies to Maximize Student Understanding • Diane Ebert-May • Michigan State University • ebertmay@msu.edu • http://first2.org

3. Engage

4. Question 1 Please respond on a scale of 1-5: 1=strongly agree; 2=agree; 3=neutral; 4= disagree; 5=strongly disagree • Active learning strategies enable students to learn science better than passive lectures.

6. Large Class Meeting

7. Class Meeting

9. Question 2 Please respond on a scale of 1-5: 1=strongly agree; 2=agree; 3=neutral; 4= disagree; 5=strongly disagree • Students learn science best by “doing” science.

14. Question 3 Please respond on a scale of 0-100 in increments of 10: • How important is it to use multiple kinds of assessments to determine student learning?

15. Question 4 Please respond on a scale of 0-100 (%) in increments of 10: • The proportion of assessments I use in my course that demonstrate students’ critical thinking abilities is....

16. What is critical thinking? • Connections among concepts • Organization of concepts • Visual representations • Model-based reasoning • Test models

17. Question 5 Please respond on a scale of 1-5: 1=strongly agree; 2=agree; 3=neutral; 4= disagree; 5=strongly disagree • In my department, excellence in teaching is rewarded at a level comparable to excellence in research.

19. Articles derived from journal papers

20. How People Learn Bransford et al 1999, 2004

21. Explore: Out of Thin Air

22. Brainstorm: talk to your neighbor 1. Diagnose situation - what is the learning challenge 2. Where is the missing link?...misconception? What is going on?

23. How and when do you identify student learning difficulties? • Don’t have to grade • Pre-test (e.g., diagnostic questions - identify misconceptions) • Engagement activity - brain teaser, discussion starter, ‘need to know’ questions • Surveys or polls (clickers?) • Others • May use pretest or diagnostic (clicker) question

24. Misconceptions about Photosynthesis, Respiration, and the Carbon Cycle • Photosynthesis as Energy • Biomass from Soil • Energy as Biomass • All Green • Plant Altruism • Thin Air • Respiration as ‘breathing’

25. Experimental setup: Weighed out 3 batches of radish seeds each weighing 1.5 g. Experimental treatments: 1. Seeds placed on DRY paper towels in LIGHT 2. Seeds placed on WET paper towels in LIGHT 3. Seeds placed on WET paper towels in DARK Radish Problemin Ebert-May D, Batzli J, Lim H. 2003. Bioscience 53:1221-1228.

26. After 1 week, all plant material was dried in an oven overnight (no water left) and plant biomass was measured in grams. Predict the biomass of the plant material in the various treatments. No Water, light [yellow] Water, light [pink] Water dark [green] No idea [orange] Problem (cont)

27. Results Mass of Radish Seeds/Seedlings 1.46 g 1.63 g 1.20 g Write an explanation about the results. Explain the results. Write individually on carbonless paper.

28. Midterm Assessment Hypothetical scenario: Grandma Johnson had very sentimental feelings toward Johnson Canyon, Utah, where she and her late husband had honeymooned long ago. Her feelings toward this spot were such that upon her death she requested to be buried under a creosote bush overlooking the canyon. Trace the path of a carbon atom from Grandma Johnson’s remains to where it could become part of a coyote. NOTE: the coyote will not dig up Grandma Johnson and consume any of her remains.

29. Coding Scheme

30. Cellular Respiration by Decomposers Correct Student Responses (%) Bio1/Bio2 Other/Bio2 Friedmans, p<0.01

31. Pathway of Carbon in Photosynthesis Correct Student Responses (%) Bio1/Bio2 Other/Bio2 Friedmans, p<0.05

32. Final Exam Question Deep within a remote forest of Guatemala, the remains of a spider monkey were buried under an enormous mahogany tree. Although rare, jaguars (big cats - carnivores) were spotted in this forest by local farmers. Explain how a carbon atom in carbohydrates contained within the muscle cells of the spider monkey could become part of a cell within the stomach lining of a jaguar. Note: the jaguar does not dig up the monkey and eat the remains!

33. Final Exam Q Deep within a remote forest of Guatemala, the remains of a spider monkey were buried under an enormous mahogany tree. Although rare, jaguars (big cats - carnivores) were spotted in this forest by local farmers. Explain how a carbon atom in carbohydrates contained within the muscle cells of the spider monkey could become part of a cell within the stomach lining of a jaguar. Note: the jaguar does not dig up the monkey and eat the remains!

34. Place or Organism [not listed in a specific order] Carbon Pools [form] Atmosphere Jaguar (carnivore) Mahogany tree (producer) Bacteria (decomposer) Spider Monkey (herbivore) Tapir (similar to a pig) (herbivore) CO2 gas Carbohydrate To do so... Make a clearly labeled box model of the system. Use the template on the Answer Sheet. You will not need all of the boxes. In the model, clearly label the processes (next to arrows), organisms or places, and forms (carbon pools) the carbon atom must go through to cycle within the ecosystem. Use the organisms/places and pools from the lists below.

35. Pool Pool Pool Place Place Place Reminder: format for a box model: Process Process

37. Circles identify key portions of box model. Orange circles identify difficult portions for students.

40. Explain

41. What is assessment? • Data collection with the purpose of answering questions about… • students’ understanding • students’ attitudes • students’ skills • instructional design and implementation • curricular reform (at multiple grain sizes) • Informing BOTH instructors and students about learning.

42. Assessment Gradient High Ease of Assessment Low Low Potential for Assessment of Learning High Multiple Choice, T/F Diagrams, Concept maps, Quantitative response Short answer Essay, Research papers/ reports Oral Interview Theoretical Framework • Ausubel 1968; meaningful learning • Novak 1998; visual representations • King and Kitchner 1994; reflective judgment • National Research Council 1999; theoretical frameworks for assessment

43. What level of learning do we ask of our students? Bloom (1956) Cognitive Domain of Educational Objectives 6 categories - Knowledge Comprehension Application Analysis Synthesis Evaluation

44. How am I going to grade all this stuff??

45. Assessment and Feedback Approaches • Subsample= You don’t need to grade everything!! • Classroom Assessment Techniques (Angelo & Cross 1993); Muddiest Point, Minute papers etc.. • Pyramid Exams- Individual 75% + Group 25% • Diagnostic Questions & Clickers • Rubrics

46. Backward Design Like This? Learning Objective Identify desired results Learning Outcome Determine acceptable evidence Assessments Data collected & Feedback given Instructional Design & Activities Planned learning experiences and instruction Adapted from Wiggins and McTighe 1998, 2005

47. Backward Design

48. Learning Outcome Learning Outcome Students will demonstrate understanding of evolution and natural selection by designing and testing a research question, explaining the results.

49. •Changes in a population occur through a gradual change in individual members of a population. •New traits in species are developed in response to need. •All members of a population are genetically equivalent, variation and fitness are not considered. •Traits acquired during an individual’s lifetime will be inherited by offspring. Alternative Conceptions: Natural Selection

50. Write a scenario that explains the phenotypic changes in the trees and animals. Use your understanding of evolution by natural selection.