Thank you to all those who attended our second TeachT@lk Webinar! For our second TeachT@lk webinar, held on Tuesday, Oct. 7, 3-4pm, we turned our attention to Peer Learning. In addition to supporting student learning outcomes, peer learning can develop crucial skills such as problem solving, communication, teamwork, and critical thinking. During the webinar, we discussed best practices, research, and reviewed strategies and tools on how to engage students. Additionally, we highlighted the need to get student buy-in and establish protocols/guidelines to for successful outcomes (e.g., RISE model by Emily Wray) Below are some of the resources mentioned during the webinar, along with the slides and recording.  If you have questions, or are interested in integrating peer learning in your class, please contact Amy Pate (amy.pate@asu.edu).Webinar Recording & Slides(58 min.):https://connect.asu.edu/p2v5fri1pb9/ presentation slides Helpful Resources: RISE Model, Emily WrayEric Mazur: Peer Instruction for Active Learning Scott Berkum: How to give and receive criticism Anne Friedman: The Disapproval Matrix Kurt Ralske: The Crit (Art School) Kagan Cooperative Learning Emily Wray: Rise Model, Five Minutes of Fame (Youtube)Drs. Tinapple & Olson: CritvizAs always, feel free to make comments to this post, and share your experiences! (Also SHARE the blog, and help us get the word out!)

This week our "Guest Blogger" is David L. Pearson, PhD, Researcher Professor and Senior Lecturer for the School of Life Sciences. Dr. Pearson's research is focused on using the interaction of ecology, conservation, ecotourism and education to develop methods that promote sustainable use of biodiversity. He shares an active learning technique from his class that helped students create value for the content.David L. Pearson, PhDBio 100 tries to make biology pertinent to non-majors. We do this by introducing current and often controversial topics in the Active Learning Class that distill video lecture and online labs into an applied situation. Getting them to discuss and appreciate biology in terms of "What is beauty?", "Are you medically illiterate?", "To vaccinate or not to vaccinate?" and "Are we all really experts on sex?" was not a problem. But when it came to diffusion and osmosis, the students just couldn’t make a connection of why these ungainly mechanisms should have any importance for them and their lives. To resolve this impasse, I proposed a contest during the last 10 minutes of class. We divided the class into small groups of six, and then presented them with a question to research. The first group of students who developed a cogent answer, wrote it succinctly in their own words on the white board, and could then explain it well to the rest of the class, would win two bonus points on the next lecture exam. Using Google Scholar, Bing, their text book or whatever resource was available to them online in class, the students quickly and enthusiastically pursued answers to the question "What effect does osmosis have on diabetics?" All the groups came to understand and remember that osmosis is the primary cause of two major symptoms of diabetes - extreme thirst and frequent urination, and why. They also better appreciated that even non-majors are well-served by this knowledge. Do you have an activity that you do in class to help students see the value of a specific topic you teach? Please feel free to share it in the "Comments" section below.For more information about Active Learning, please check out these resources:Engaging "Gen Z" first year college studentsCenter for Teaching and Learning at the Univ. of Minnesota

When I started working in distance education, most people were adamant that students that took online courses would not feel connected to each other. My experiences proved that it was a challenge, but by no means impossible. Student-to-student interactions have been shown to increase deeper learning for students, and create better connections between content and application. (Swan, 2004) The key to successful student teams is to get people to connect to each other through common goals and interests, and develop strong lines of communication. I used these 3 tips to guide students to successful teams:FORMING TEAMS: In my classes, I didn’t let students choose their own teams. I told them that networking and learning how to work with different people were part of the learning objectives of the course, and group work would develop those skills. I had them blindly choose teams based on their interests in specific topics in the class.  Once those teams were determined, I gave teams time to go through the common team building stages from Tuckman of ‘forming, storming, norming, performing’. I started the first week of class with opportunities for the groups to take time to introduce themselves, and talk about teams that they had been on. What worked? What their preferences were for working in a team? I asked them to be honest with each other about their goals for the class, and what they were willing to do. Introductions are actually a required standard in the Quality Matters rubrics for creating strong online courses, and too often not taken seriously, so it was part of a participation grade. (Standard 1.9)SETTING NORMS: The second week of class, I asked groups to form "Team Norms", which were basically a list of ‘rules’ and communication guidelines that all members of the team agreed to. The document was specific, and included how often teams had group meetings, showed schedules, designated "roles" each member would play, etc. I encouraged teams to find modes of communication that were effective for them, whether it involved Twitter, email, SKYPE, Facebook, or regular online meetings, and include it in the norms. Because virtual teams organize and make decisions very differently than onsite teams, it is vital that team members have clearly defined roles and expectations. (Forbes Magazine, 2010)  This document was counted as an assignment, which I reviewed and gave feedback on.  "LAST STRAW": Throughout the course, I preached about the value of diverse opinions, and the need for teams to take advantage of everyone's strengths. However, my "last straw" rule was that teams could fire a student for not following the "norms". A team needed to document communication, but after multiple attempts to get the team member involved, they could fire the member after the midterm with my approval. That individual would then have to do the assignment by themselves. This very rarely happened, and most teams were able to work through the issues with very little guidance from me because of their established norms in the beginning of the class. What challenges have you faced with online teams, and what suggestions do you have to help them be successful? Click on the "Comments" text below to share ideas.

On Friday, October 24, we held a Concept Map Workshop for faculty and grad students. In this workshop we discussed what concept maps were, and how to use them in our classrooms. Some of the key takeaways were that concept maps can be used in a variety of ways, should be continually revised and updated, and that technology is great, but white boards and post-it notes can work just as well depending on your objectives.  We modeled some different tactics for concept maps, including:Using them as a discussion starter by having students silently build one based on the homework reading before talking about it in class.Continually going back to the class concept map and asking students if they need to revise or add more content to the concept map to build their knowledgeUsing Peer reviews to help students see what connections they might have missed, and build a a more thorough study guideIntegrating a module within Blackboard that has tutorials and technology information to help students become comfortable with concept maps before doing graded assignments.We also considered how to use concept maps for a graphical syllabus and best practices for assessing them. Finally, we used the web app, Yogile, to collect photos of our whiteboard concept maps and review them as a group.Below, are some of the resources from the workshop:Concept Map examples and HandoutsPowerPoint fileResource Links:•Kathy Schrock’s Guide (Website): http://www.schrockguide.net/concept-mapping.html •Cmap Website: http://learn.cmappers.net/ •Novak, Joseph D., The Theory Underlying Concept Maps and How to Construct and Use Them http://cmap.ihmc.us/publications/researchpapers/theorycmaps/theoryunderlyingconceptmaps.htm •Concept Maps Help Build Connections to Learning: http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/teaching-and-learning/concept-maps-help-build-connections-to-learning/ •Web-based Concept Mapping Tools for Learning: http://icoblog.wordpress.com/2010/04/09/concept-mapping-tools/ •Classroom Assessment Technique: http://youtu.be/Gm1owf0uGFM •Technology Training for Cmap,VUE and Mindmeister http://youtu.be/P0DBS-YbRc0 •Overview video: http://youtu.be/A625Yh6v6uQ?list=PLM-ncRMc-HjKZTIY7efD6p58dPTv7csDXAdditionally, if you would like some more information on any of these ideas, or explore concept mapping further, please email amy.pate@asu.edu

There are lots of opportunities over the next couple of months to share ideas for implementing technology and active learning into your classroom. Attend a SoLS Workshop, or a CLAS TeachT@lk Webinar to discuss new ideas with fellow faculty and learning professionals. Register for any of the workshops and webinars below at: http://goo.gl/forms/1or7An71KmWORKSHOP: Active Learning Activities with iCoursesFriday, November 14, 3-4pm, LSC180 Online students can learn actively! This workshop will present ideas for activities that engage your students, and some best practices for developing iCourses.WORKSHOP: Using Google Docs,Forms and SitesFriday, December 12, 2-3:30pm, LSC180/182 Google Docs, Sites and Forms are all free, and great resources for your class collaborative activities.  Learn some new ways to use these fun tools!WEBINAR: Quick and Fast vs. Slick and Professional" -Which videos are best for your classes?Tuesday, December 9, 3-4pmThis webinar will look at the many types of videos that you may use in your class. We will look at which kinds of videos are most effective and discuss some basic considerations when creating videos yourself. When do go into one of the studios on campus and when is it okay to shoot it yourself?

Thank you to all those who attended ourTeachT@lk Webinar!  Our TeachT@lk webinar, held on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 3-4pm, covered several important aspects of creating "good" rubrics to make the grading process more effective and efficient. Throughout the session, we reviewed crucial components of rubrics (ie., critieria, level of competencies, descriptors) and discussed multiple examples (e.g., discussion participation, standard-based rubrics). Additionally, we looked at strategies to get started creating good rubrics and using them with Blackboard.Below are some of the resources mentioned during the webinar, along with the slides and recording.  If you have questions, or are interested in integrating rubrics in your class, please contact Amy Pate (amy.pate@asu.edu).Webinar Recording & Slides:Adobe Connect Recording (60 min.)Presentation SlidesHelpful Resources:Assessments with Rubric, ASU TeachOnlineShould you use Rubrics, Faculty FocusRubrics: The Essentials, Faculty FocusExamples:rCampus.com - rubrics for various subjects & levelsRubistar4Teachers - free tool to help teachers get startedDiscussion Rubrics - selection of various rubrics for discussion participationASU-Specific:ASU Rubric Template - use this template to get startedAs always, feel free to make comments to this post, and share your experiences! (Also SHARE the blog, and help us get the word out!)

On Friday, faculty met to learn about the future of icourses in SoLS (PowerPoint) and share some ideas for best practices. Mike Angilletta opened the workshop with a call for SoLS icourses that will draw students to a summer class, including unique classes that aren't taught during the regular academic year, and popular courses that have high enrollment. Details will be coming out soon in the new Undergrad Program Newsletter from Courtney Shobert. We went over the new suggested SoLS iCourse Standards for all icourses, and how they fit with building quality courses through the use of the Quality Matters rubric and best practices for online courses. The SoLS standards are set up to support the 7 categories of quality learning that include Course Design, Delivery, Content, Infrastructure, LMS, Faculty and Student Readiness. Faculty are encouraged to begin developing about 6 months before course starts, so courses are complete before the semester starts. We also heard from Peter van Leusen, Instructional Designer for CLAS, regarding the QCD Pilot Process. This process connects faculty and instructional designers to work together to assess current icourses, set priorities for improvement, and give support to faculty. The pilot has been highly successful, and SoLS will follow a similar model for reviewing and continually improving existing icourses. Faculty in the pilot spent approximately 30 hours on improving courses which included building assignments, recording videos and fine-tuning learning objectives.Finally, faculty quickly brainstormed ways to bring active learning to the online environments by translating traditional activities into online web meetings, student-created videos, peer reviews and blogs. Although each course is different, most traditional active learning activities can be done online with some support from instructional designers and technologists.If you want to develop an icourse for SoLS, please see the following "Action Items":Review the new standards for SoLS coursesFaculty are strongly encouraged to take the next ASU Online boot camp course starting Feb. 6 and become familiar with the Quality Matters program. Registration is at: http://www.eventbrite.com/o/asu-online-790244257 Set up a meeting with Amy Pate and Courtney Shobert to discuss your idea for a class and get started on the process.If you already are teaching an icourse, and want to take it to the next level:Go over the "Quick 10" Review Handout for our SoLS StandardsSet up an account for Quality Matters and do a self-assessment of your courseSet up a meeting with Amy Pate to establish a timeline and priorities for making your course ready for a Quality Matters Review.

This presentation was given to the ASU Association of Women in Science (AWIS).In a world where everyone can create a PowerPoint slide, we have to be able to stand out and be noticed when presenting information. If we are passionate about our research, then we want to get our audience excited, too. One way to do that is through visuals.The first tip was "Be Different". It isn't just about using different technologies, but using them differently. We demoed some technologies that look different and have different features than the typical PowerPoint, and we talked about using PowerPoint's animation to create promotion videos.The second tip was "Stay Simple". Best practices are the "Power of 3", using visually stunning photos, and sticking with a single technology. You can also use visual sentences and infographics to share more information, and PechaKucha presentations to keep you focused.The final tip was "Share Your Vision". This is done by realizing that the initial presentation is just to engage the audience, then you give details through other technologies like blogs, videos, websites and ePortfolios. Telling a story with an emotional component also helps engage an audience.Below are some of the resources shared:PowerPoint SlidesHandout of Links and TechnologiesVideo SummaryTake a minute to share some of your favorite technologies and tips for presentations! (use the comment feature below)

This week's Guest Blogger is Sara Brownell, PhD. Dr. Brownell is a neuroscientist turned full-time education researcher. As a Science Faculty with Education Specialty, she uses both qualitative and quantitative data to better understand how undergraduate biology students learn and how instructors can develop more effective ways to teach.One of the great benefits of being a college-level instructor is that we have great flexibility in what we teach (e.g. what example to use, what level of detail to omit) and how we teach it (e.g. case studies, demonstrations, or traditional lecturing).  However, in designing our lesson plans, we can also be inadvertently choosing who we are teaching to.   This is obvious, but each student is unique and their life experiences before showing up in our classes can be incredibly different.  They come to our classrooms with different prior knowledge in biology, different reading levels, different math abilities, different interests and motivations, and different social identities - race/ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status, political ideology, etc.  We want to create classrooms where we don’t just teach a select few students, but rather we are as inclusive as possible to all students - but this won’t just happen automatically.  We have to be conscious of our own biases and structure our classrooms to promote equity.     A recent study of mine has shown that in large introductory biology classrooms, even though female students make up 60% of the classroom, their voices are only heard 40% of the time.  While we don’t know why there is a gender gap in participation in introductory biology, we do know of a very simple strategy to get rid of this gap: random call.  Instead of having instructors either call on students they know by name or a student who raised his or her hand, an instructor can call names out from a randomized class list.  This ensures equity in who gets the opportunity to share out in class.  A low budget way of doing this is to have students fill out index cards with their personal information on the first day of class to get to know them and then shuffle the cards before class to determine the order of calling on students.  Another easy way to do this (especially in large classes) is to randomize your class list using Excel’s random number generator feature and just bring the printout of the list to class.  For the tech savy instructor, there are even apps that can do this for you! (Click here for a short video about the technology)Although students may balk at being singled out, instructors that do random call are giving students the experience of sharing their ideas in a low-stakes environment. Effective communication of ideas is an important skill for students to develop and in-class participation is a way for them to hone these skills.  However, for random call to work, it is important that instructors create a classroom environment where it is OK if a student does not know the answer and that being wrong does not mean that the student is dumb.  Some students will feel less comfortable sharing in front of the whole class and instructors need to be patient with students and create an atmosphere where the student can participate without feeling judged.  Even if a student shares an incorrect idea, this can be learning experience for the student and the rest of the class.  Instructors need to be mindful that how they react to wrong answers will influence whether students feel safe participating in class.  Random call is just one of many methods that instructors can try to ensure that all students get the same opportunities to participate in class. Additional Resources:For 21 easy teaching strategies to promote equity in your classroom, please see a recent article by Kimberly Tanner: http://www.lifescied.org/content/12/3/322.fullFor more information about gender gaps in introductory biology, please see: http://www.lifescied.org/content/13/3/478.fullClick on the 'pen' below to leave a comment and share your ideas! 

Our Guest Blogger for this week is Shelley Haydel, PhD. Dr. Haydel is an Associate Professor in the School of Life Sciences and a Researcher in the Center for Infectious Diseases and Vaccinology at the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University. She is posting about one of the most difficult areas in teaching for both students and faculty.Group work presents unique challenges for both students and instructors. I always tell my students that they will never work in a vacuum. No matter their career choice, they will have to interact, communicate, and work effectively with others.Think about nurses - they must interact, communicate, and work effectively with physicians, other nurses, technicians, administrators, etc; and they must interact and effectively communicate with patients and family/friends of their patient.Think about working in a lab - in an effective research environment, everyone is working together towards a common goal. The same is true for group work. Students are working together as part of a team to accomplish a goal (i.e. an assignment).Inevitably, problems arise. I have had students do everything from fighting in the hallways to crying in my office. There are students that take over the entire project and those that contribute absolutely nothing. I've found these articles from Carnegie Mellon to be really helpful in starting to implement groups:Grading Methods for GroupworkAssessing Group ProjectsTools for Group ProjectsUltimately, it is the instructors responsibility to deal with all of these issues, and embedded within all of the group work problems is how to deal with grading. I use the following strategies for group interactions and group work grading:I meet with members of the group at least once during the semester to get the "pulse" of the group.For all assignments (written papers, oral presentations, etc.), all students complete partner evaluation rubrics with defined criteria.Peer assessments are confidential, so students alert me of problems and essentially "grade" their group partners in terms of participation, accountability, contributions, etc. Students assess each other at the end of each major assignment.The partner evaluation score is embedded into each student’s grade for each assignment. In other words, a portion of the grade for each assignment is based on contribution and participation within the group. Submitting the partner evaluation and the composite score (I use a range) from the partner evaluations can equal 10-20% of the grade for a particular assignment. Below are some examples of documents I use to support group work and peer assessments:Peer Evaluation - Oral PresentationPeer Evaluation - Grant ProposalPeer Evaluation - Group Project and ResearchIf you have ideas and techniques for working with groups, please click on the pencil below and share your comments!