Below you will find an impressive variey of discussions about cooperative learning and other teaching related subjects. Each discussion was generated by a question I posed to a variety of internet lists preceded by an example based upon my experiences in his classes. Responses were compiled from contributers from throughout the world, and quite possibly the universe.
What do I need this course for? Substitute any subject here and we get the eternal question posed by students who would rather be any place else but your course. The following responses also addressed the question "Why is learning math so hard?". WHY SHOULD ANYONE TAKE YOUR COURSE???
What do you like best about teaching? This discussion was initiated at the beginning of the Spring 2002 semester. As I sat through several faculty development workshops on outcomes assessment I started to wonder what attracted me to teaching and what exactly kept it so exciting and interesting. There are a number of great responses form list members that I hope you will enjoy as much as I did. WHAT IS THE OUTCOME OF YOUR TEACHING?
The
latest discussion centered around a revisitation of the questions:
1. What are your new students like and how have
they changed over the past five years?
2. What are you doing to deal with the changes
your see in new students?
3. Why do you think the changes cited
above are occurring?
A similar discussion was completed several years
ago so I i thought it would be interesting to check back and see if things
have changed. Feedback I have received compliments my observations that
students today are less motivated than five years ago, have poorer reading
and study skills and essentially want to get a degree to make more money.
I AM NOT DISCOURAGED HOWEVER, I JUST KEEP ADJUSTING MY TEACHING STYLE TO
HELP STUDENTS FOCUS ON THEIR RESPONSIBILITIES IN LEARNING AND ITS INJERENT
VALUE.
“What
would it take to convince or encourage you to try cooperative/collaborative
teaching/learning techniques in your classes?
This discussion did not receive very
many responses directly answering the question, however it did take some
interesting twists and turns, as often happens with internet discussions.
I have included all the responses for your reading plesaure because all
the responses were thoughtful, even if a little off the main point. I WONDER
WHY PEOPLE DID NOT RESPOND TO THIS QUESTION???
How
do you use unique or alternative assessment methods to get to know your
students better?
Many if not all of us
are familiar with Cross and Angelo’s work on using alternative assessment
techniques before during and at the end of classes in order to obtain information
from and about our students. Some questions they address, in the One Minute
Paper for example, are what the students think they have learned during
a class and what questions students may have after a class is completed.
I see these as being more content driven. What I am looking for here are
approaches that are more personal and/or give you a better understanding
of the nature of your students, their approach to learning, learning style,
level of motivation, etc. WHAT THE HECK ARE YOUR STUDENTS REALLY
LIKE? HOW DO YOU KNOW?????
How have you overcome obstacles to coop learning? I thought it would be interesting to hear from people who have had to overcome problems when you initially implemented student centered learning approaches such as cooperative or collaborative learning, problem or project based learning, inquiry based learning, etc. Have you had problems with students, administrators, other teachers, evaluations, etc?????? We have discussed reasons why cooperative learning is resisted by administrators, students, other teachers, and parents (K-12). FEEL FREE TO VENT SOME OF YOUR FRUSTRATIONS WITH STARTING CL RIGHT HERE!!!
When
is cooperative learning inappropriate to use? This discussion
was prompted by responses to a question I raised about what topics would
be good for a column on CL. The above question came from a number of people
and generated interesting responses from a number of list members.
WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THE USE OF CL?
IS IT ALWAYS APPROPRIATE?
Why did you chose cooperative learning/student-centered as a teaching method?This discussion was initiated after a student in one of my classes asked me this very question. It started me reflecting on just how and why I changed my teaching methodology from lecture/discussion to 100% cooperative learning in all my classes. Send me an e-mail and tell me why you chose any form of student-centered learning and read why other teachers have chosen to make the change. If you haven't changed, WHY THE HECK NOT???!!!
How to end a course/class. This discussion revolves around the idea that class ending or course ending practices enable us to communicate with our students and vice versa. Many ideas are presented which give students an excellent opportunity to give us feedback about themselves, the course sttucture and procedures and out teaching styles. IF YOU DARE TO ASK!!
How do you communicate with your students. I surprise my students prior to the beginning of each semester by sending them a letter asking them to write their math autobiography for me and to have it ready for the first class. This exercise establishes immediately that I will be using writing throughout my courses and that I wish to start getting to know my students right away. I have them interview a partner during the first class and then introduce their new buddy to the class. The autobiography helps them prepare for this activity. I used this to introduce the question of "How teachers communicate with theior students and vice-versa". I think you wll enjoy the responses and perhaps find a few GREAT IDEAS!
What reaction do students have to CL? This discussion revolves around the nature of starting cl and how students initially react to it and how they evolve during the semester. Initially students are hesitant to work in groups for a variety of reasons. Once they discover that it is to their benefit to help other students and be helped they warm up to cl techniques AFTER A WHILE STUDENTS DEMAND THEIR CL ALONG WITH MTV
Poetry in math classes? are you crazy!? Towards the end of the semester I ask my students to write a poem about math. They may explore their feelings about math, a math topic or anything else related to mathematics. My purpose is to help students explore the affective nature of learning math. The results are always great fun to read and share with all the students and our faculty. This formed the basis for a discussion about dealing with the affective nature of courses. WRITE A POEM ABOUT THIS WEB SITE AND SEND IT TO TED.
What are teachers like who use CL? This discussion is self explanatory. The question came up at a seminar I gave on using cl extensively in college classes. One of the participants raised the question whether my personality contributed in a major way to my interest and ability to use CL. What a great question. HOW DOES YOUR PERSONALITY EFFECT YOUR TEACHING METHODS?
Using the 7 Principles of Good Undergraduate Education to encourage students to think about good learning habits and class procedures. As the title states I use the 7 Principles to focus my students' attention on their responsibilities and my reasons for using cooperative learning in my classes. We have been working cooperatively for several days, so I would like to give the students a writing assignment which calls attention to good learning principles. This also gives them a chance to communicate with me and me with them when I return their assignments. An interesting internet discussion revolved around this topic. WHAT ARE YOUR PRINCIPLES FOR GOOD UNDERGRADUATE EDUCATION?
Innovative techniques for teaching math and science. This discussion focussed upon using innovative teaching techniques in math and science courses, but there are many ideas which work across any academic area. I'm sure you will find many tidbits and bigger bits which you can use in your courses. WHAT IS INNOVATION ANYWAY??
What are your NEW students like? This question formed the basis for a college wide workshop at Cape Cod Community College which was organized by the College's Developmental Education Committee with an eye toward developing and/or publicizing student retention strategies. I facilitated the session and then put our results on the internet. The results were fascinating. IT APPEARS THAT WE ARE ALL IN THE SAME BOAT VIRTUALLY WORLDWIDE
What is your institution doing to encourage student retention? The list provided here gives suggestions for helping first semester students and others succeed in college, especially developmental, re-entry and nontraditional students. This list is the result of the second collaborative workshop which I facilitated at Cape Cod Community College. The results of the first workshop, where we identified what we perceived our students to be like, were posted above. The second workshop addressed the question "What can we do to help all our students succeed in their first semester?". A brief description of our current services is also given below to help put the suggestions in their proper context. Considering the degree of services we currently provide it may be a little surprising that the list of student characteristics was as negative as it was. This does appear to be indicative of the times, based upon the responses I received to the first post, however.
Frequently asked questions regarding cooperative learning. How do you form groups? Should you let the students chose their groups? What do you do with shirkers? (Off with their heads!!) What questions do you have about CL. Perhaps the answer will be found within these discussions.YOU WILL NEVER KNOW IF YOU NEVER ASK.
Memorable teaching experiences come in many forms. Sometimes a short note of letter from a student recalling the impact you had on them is just what it takes to "Make your day". Other times it is an interaction in the classroom either between students or with the teacher that highlights the intangibles of teaching. Come and enjoy Steve Snow's letter in our school newspaper, whch surprised me to no end. Steve captured the very essence of my teaching and life philosophy. WHAT IS YOU MOST MEMORABLE MOMENT?
Why do so few teachers use cooperative learning techniques in their classes? This discussion was initiated on several internet discussion groups. The question was divided into six topics which are outlined in the next link. Keep linking for a great set of hypotheses based upon this question and reader responses. THEN GO COOPERATE WITH SOMEONE!
John Dewey is considered the father of modern education.... yet very few teachers follow his theories and suggestions for effective teaching strategies. Why not? This discussion was precipitated by my providing several quotes from Dewey's book Democracy In Education and asking people to comment. It is clear that Dewey appreciated the need for interaction and active involvement among all participants involved in the process of learning. Learning as a passive spectator sport was not what Mr. Dewey had in mind. GET ACTIVE, SAY SOMETHING.
The Toa of teaching- I found a marvelous book which has applied the Toa of Life to teaching. It reflects the ideals of what cooperative learning should be, based upon and how people might interact with each other in life as well as the classroom. MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU!!
Definition of cooperative versus collaborative learning. After publishing my erudite analysis of the differences between cooperative and collaborative learning paradigms and those of the other experts I asked for comments on my usual list of internet discussion groups. The following is a compilation of htese discussions. WHAT THE HECK IS THE DIFFERENCE?