What is it?
Facts/Questions/Response is a literacy strategy used to encourage students to think actively about information that they read by applying the thinking processes I’ve written about before: Readers are more engaged and successful in learning when:
A three-column chart is used to record the Facts, Questions, and Responses. Students determine importance as they retell or summarize textual information in the Facts column using jot notes. They reflect about the textual information by recording questions asked in the Questions column. They make connections, make inferences, and visualize as they record their relating and reflecting responses to the textual information in the Response column. The FQR strategy helps those students who
How to use it:
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Last week I had the pleasure of attending a two-day SoTL “hackathon” in Saskatoon. It was a rich couple of days with sessions on ideation, ethics, indigenization and decolonization, student partnerships, and research design. Attendees were mostly from Alberta and Saskatchewan, but there were a couple from Ontario.
What I especially appreciated was the number of instructors/professors who attended. These people were very interested in shifting their research from studying their discipline to studying the teaching of their discipline. For instance, instead of looking at effective practices in veterinary science, examining the way in which students learn veterinary practices best - through lecture, scenarios, problem solving or hands-on work with animals. Could students learn through the use of VR and AR? Such SoTL work is really an extension of the work many of our instructors already do. SoTL really just takes thoughtful inquiry and reflective practice and firms it up by putting a research frame on it to provide focus and generate data and artifacts that can be analyzed. I might argue, that SoTL work is very powerful in post-secondary teaching as it allows us to better understand the impact of our teaching and gives us a way to share promising practices with colleagues inside and outside our institution. The only issue is, it is easy to access funding and support for applied, discipline-based research (the what), but much harder to secure funding for inquiries related to teaching and learning (the how and why). Some post-secondaries have established SoTL funding frameworks, but many have not. Often funding is tied to institutional priorities and individual instructors engage in SoTL inquiries because they can’t help themselves. They just have to know! And they’ll give up weekends and weeknights to find out! Some of the SoTL inquiry questions that Caylee Kreller and I took to the SoTL Summit/Hackathon included:
Obviously, these questions were of a more institutional or departmental level. Many of the participants at the summit had more course specific inquiries. For instance, one business instructor was interested in bringing more indigenous perspective into his course by inviting indigenous leaders to provide perspectives on management that may differ from the typical textbook examples traditionally studied in his courses. Would guest speakers, field trips and shared discussions bring about a greater awareness and understanding of alternative models? Polling Polling can be a valuable tool for instructors to engage with their students, assess student understanding, and tailor their teaching approach accordingly. It can be used both in online and in-person settings to gauge student interest, evaluate the effectiveness of lessons, prepare students for upcoming topics, and encourage active participation. Let's explore how a college instructor teaching an environmental studies course could utilize polling for these purposes:
Online Polls In an online setting, instructors can utilize polling features within video conferencing platforms or employ dedicated polling tools (like Mentimeter, Quizlet, Polly or Poll Everywhere). They can pose questions related to the course material and ask students to respond in real-time. The results can be shared with the class, enabling students to compare their answers and discuss the reasoning behind their choices in a chat or discussion forum. Snowball Polls
In a classroom setting, students can be polled by a simple raising of hands or thumbs up/thumbs down activity. However, if you need to preserve anonymity, you might think of using a snowball war poll. A snowball war poll activity is an interactive and engaging polling exercise that involves students or participants in a playful manner. It is typically used to gather opinions, preferences, or votes on a specific topic or set of options. The activity gets its name from the concept of a snowball fight, where participants throw snowballs at each other. In a snowball war poll activity, the process involves several steps:
The snowball war poll activity encourages active participation, stimulates discussion, and provides a sense of anonymity, allowing participants to express their opinions freely. It adds an element of surprise and unpredictability, as participants are not aware of whose response they have picked up until they share it. This activity can be particularly useful when exploring subjective topics, gathering diverse opinions, or encouraging collaborative learning and critical thinking. By incorporating polling into their teaching strategies, college instructors can gain valuable insights into student interests, comprehension levels, and opinions. This information allows them to adjust their teaching methods, create engaging lessons, and foster active participation among students, ultimately enhancing the learning experience in an environmental studies course. The Jigsaw teaching strategy is a cooperative learning approach that involves sub-dividing home groups into expert groups to work on different aspects of a larger topic or project. Each expert group is responsible for mastering a particular subtopic or component, and then individual members teach their findings to their home group. This method is designed to encourage participation, collaboration, and critical thinking, while also promoting a deeper understanding of the subject matter. Here's an example of how the Jigsaw strategy could be applied in a college-level business program:
For example, let's say the topic is "Marketing Strategies for Small Businesses." The expert group topics could be:
Each group would research their specific subtopic and create a presentation that explains the basics, best practices, and examples of their marketing strategy. Then, the groups would present their findings to their home groups, who could ask questions and engage in discussions. Finally, the class would wrap up with a discussion on how all these marketing strategies could be combined to create a comprehensive marketing plan for a small business. Need more ideas? Check out these links:
Jigsaw Strategy Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence https://www.schreyerinstitute.psu.edu/pdf/alex/jigsaw.pdf Jigsaw Collaborative Discussion Method - Inclusive Teaching University of Michigan https://sites.lsa.umich.edu/inclusive-teaching/jigsaw-collaborative-discussion-method/ 4 Things You Don’t Know About the Jigsaw Method https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/jigsaw-teaching-strategy/ An icebreaker is an activity or exercise designed to help a group of people get to know each other and feel more comfortable working together. Icebreakers are used in many different settings, including classrooms, meetings, workshops, and team-building events.
In a college classroom, icebreakers are an important tool for building community and establishing a positive climate for learning. When students feel comfortable with one another and with the instructor, they are more likely to participate in class discussions, ask questions, and take risks in their learning. Icebreakers can be especially helpful in online classes, where students may feel more isolated and disconnected from their classmates and instructor. In an online class, icebreakers can help students feel more connected to each other and establish a sense of community despite the physical distance. Here are some examples of icebreaker activities for both online and face-to-face instruction: Face-to-face:
5 R’s Notetaking
This morning I’ve highlighted a strategy you might share with your students… How to use it:
Based on the Cornell note-taking system from Walter Pauk 5 R’s Note Taking Record – Reduce – Recite – Reflect – Review Reciprocal teaching is a collaborative learning strategy that involves students taking turns as the teacher and leading discussions about the text or subject matter. This strategy can be used in various disciplines such as nursing, business, social work, and other fields where critical thinking and analysis are necessary. In a reciprocal teaching session, the instructor would typically divide students into small groups and provide them with a passage or article to read or a short video to watch. The group members take turns leading the discussion, taking on one of the four roles: summarizing, questioning, clarifying, and predicting. (If predicting is a challenge, students might be assigned to illustrate the process or define significant terms.) In a nursing classroom, for example, students could read a case study or patient scenario, and each group member could take on a role in analyzing the information, such as summarizing the patient's condition, questioning the diagnosis, clarifying the treatment plan, and predicting the outcome. In a business classroom, students could read a case study about a company's financial performance and take on the roles of summarizing the company's financial statements, questioning the reasons for the company's success or failure, clarifying the economic factors that may have impacted the company, and predicting the company's future performance.
The instructor should consider several factors when using reciprocal teaching. Firstly, the instructor should ensure that the text or subject matter is appropriate for the students' level of understanding and knowledge. The instructor should also set clear expectations for each role and provide examples of how each role could be performed. Instructors should also encourage collaboration and active participation among group members. The instructor should monitor the group discussions to ensure that each student has a chance to participate and provide feedback to students on their performance. Overall, reciprocal teaching is an effective strategy for promoting collaboration, critical thinking, and analysis among students in a college classroom. By taking turns as the teacher, students can develop a deeper understanding of the subject matter and improve their communication skills. For more information: https://education.wm.edu/centers/ttac/resources/articles/teachtechnique/reciprocalteaching/index.php Philosophical chairs is a teaching strategy that is designed to encourage students to engage in critical thinking, discussion, and debate. It involves arranging chairs in a circle or semicircle, with one side representing a particular viewpoint or perspective, and the other side representing an opposing viewpoint. The students take turns sitting in the chairs and presenting their arguments, with the goal of persuading others to adopt their viewpoint.
To adapt Philosophical Chairs for an online class, the first step is to establish ground rules for respectful dialogue and debate. Next, choose a topic, divide the class into two groups and assign each group to a particular side of the issue. Provide preparation time for students to gather evidence and prepare arguments. You might let each group prepare for the discussion by putting them in break out rooms. During the discussion, have students take turns presenting their arguments and responding to each other, using breakout rooms for smaller group discussions. Finally, pull all the groups together, summarize the discussion and ask students to reflect on the activity and provide feedback for future discussions. The key is to provide a structured, safe, and respectful online space for dialogue and debate. The philosophical chairs strategy can be applied in various fields, including social work. For example, in a social work class, students could discuss the pros and cons of different social policies, such as those related to poverty reduction, mental health treatment, or child welfare. They could sit on one side of the chairs and present arguments in favor of a particular policy, while students on the other side of the chairs would present arguments against it. The teacher could facilitate the discussion and encourage students to ask questions, challenge assumptions, and engage in respectful debate. By using the philosophical chairs strategy, social work students can develop their critical thinking, communication, and advocacy skills. They can also gain a deeper understanding of the complexities of social issues and the various perspectives that shape social policy. Overall, this teaching strategy can help students become more effective advocates for social justice and positive change in their communities. NB: this post was done with the help of ChatGPT! Exit slips ask the students to reflect upon what they have learned that day. At the end of the period, with perhaps five or so minutes to go before the bell, the instructor will hand out a slip of paper with just one or two simple questions on it. A typical exit slip looks like this: Some instructors use a 3-2-1 format, “Tell me 3 things you learned, 2 questions you still have and one suggestion for next steps…” Other instructors have used “entry slips” to gauge readiness.
The slips are meant to be a very informal and anonymous assessment of the lesson and can give valuable information on whether the students have caught what is being taught – or not! They provide an avenue for students who may be too shy to partake in classroom discussions to have some input into the way the course is delivered. Instructors who effectively use exit slips use them periodically (every day is too often) to inform and refine their practice. Typically, the instructor would review the slips before the next class, note some of the dominant sentiments and questions and then start the next lesson by first addressing what was raised on the exit slips from the day before. This process helps prevent the teacher from pushing on into difficult concepts that some students might not be ready for, or from plodding on with material that the students find to be too little of a challenge. Online the “slips” can be collected through private chats to the instructor, using the feedback option in Moodle or through applications like Mentimeter or other polling apps. |
AuthorJeff Kuntz Ph.D. ImagesExcept where indicated, images used in the blog posts are personal photos, images from NorQuest College or images from Pixabay. Pixabay is a vibrant community of creatives, sharing copyright free images, videos and music. https://pixabay.com/ Archives
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