Category: Higher Ed Trends

  • 9 Pedagogical Approaches for Higher Ed Explained [Plus: 40+ Free Strategies to Implement in Your Classroom]

    9 Pedagogical Approaches for Higher Ed Explained [Plus: 40+ Free Strategies to Implement in Your Classroom]

    This article will provide you with an understanding of what ‘pedagogy’ is, why it’s important for every classroom and how pedagogy has been evolving to take 21st-century skills and learning into account.

    You’ll learn about the different aspects of pedagogy, as well as some common pedagogical knowledge and approaches. Examples for each will provide greater insight into how you can apply different pedagogical teaching styles to your own classroom.

    With tips on creating your own pedagogy, including taking into account how digital technology and online and collaborative work are changing teaching, you’ll understand why and how having a clear and concise pedagogy can support your curriculum. 

    There are countless pedagogies that can work for your course. Download our free guide, which highlights and explains 9 different pedagogical approaches and how they can be used to keep your students motivated and engaged.

    Table of Contents

    1.0. What is pedagogy?

    1.1. Why is pedagogy important?

    1.2. How do you say ‘pedagogy’?

    2.0. Different types of pedagogy

    2.1. What is constructivist pedagogy?

    2.2. What is inquiry-based learning?

    2.3. What is the Socratic method?

    2.4. What is problem-based learning

    2.5. What is collaborative learning?

    2.6. What is integrative pedagogy?

    2.7. What is reflective pedagogy?

    2.8. What is critical pedagogy?

    2.9. What is culturally responsive teaching?

    3.0. Creating your own pedagogy

    3.1. How can pedagogy support your curriculum?

    3.2. How does pedagogy impact the learner?

    4.0. How is pedagogy changing?

    4.1. Online learning

    4.2. Personalizing pedagogies

    5.0. Conclusion

    Pedagogy is often confused with curriculum. The definition of pedagogy refers to how we teach—the theory and practice of educating. Curriculum refers to the material being taught. Pedagogy, meaning the relationship between learning techniques and culture, is determined based on an educator’s beliefs about how learning takes place. Pedagogy requires meaningful classroom interactions between educators and learners. The goal is to help students build on prior learning and develop skills and attitudes. For educators, the aim is to present the curriculum in a way that is relevant to student needs.

    Shaped by the educator’s own experiences, pedagogy must take into consideration the context in which learning takes place, and with whom. It isn’t about the materials used, but the process and the strategy adopted to lead to the achievement of meaningful cognitive learning.

    In a literal sense, the word pedagogy stems from the Greek word that effectively means “the art of teaching children.” More specifically, agogos means leader in Greek, and pedagogue refers to the teacher. Paidagogos were slaves tasked with taking boys to school and back, teaching them manners and tutoring them.

    Pedagogy vs. Andragogy

    Pedagogy is the teaching of children or dependent personalities. This means that it is up to the instructor to determine how, what and when course concepts are learned. Andragogy is the facilitation of learning for adults, who are self-directed learners. Adults are primarily driven by intrinsic motivation and can solve complex problems relying on past experiences. This must be taken into account in order to best support them in retaining new ideas, learning new ways of problem-solving, and strengthening independent thinking.

    1.1. Why is pedagogy important?

    Having a well-thought-out pedagogy can improve the quality of your teaching and the way students learn, helping them gain a deeper grasp of fundamental material. Being mindful of the way you teach can help you better understand how to help students achieve deeper learning. And it can, in turn, impact student perception, resulting in cooperative learning environments. The proper pedagogical approach helps students move beyond simple forms of thinking as defined in the Bloom’s taxonomy pyramid, like basic memorization and comprehension, to complex learning processes like analysis, evaluation, and creation. Students can leverage their preferred learning styles with a teaching process that supports them, and the way they like to learn.

    1.2. How do you say ‘pedagogy’?

    Pedagogy is pronounced differently in various countries. The International Phonetic Alphabet pronunciation is ˈpɛdəˌɡoʊdʒi/ /ˈpɛdəˌɡɑdʒi/. In both the U.K. and U.S., it’s often pronounced “ped-a-gaug-gee” (as in “geese”) though some use the “j” sound and pronounce it “paidag-o-jee” (as in the seventh letter of the alphabet, “g”.)

    Others, particularly in the U.K., say “pe-de-gaw-jee,” with more of an “ugh” sound in the middle, and replace the “go” sound with “gaw.” The Merriam-Webster dictionary suggests it should be “pe-de-go-je” (or ga).

    2. Pedagogical strategies

    There are countless pedagogies that can help you engage students. By implementing activities from different pedagogical techniques in your classroom, you’ll ensure students can tackle learning in a way that best meets their needs. Here, we outline nine pedagogical approaches that help students develop higher-order thinking skills and provide a more nuanced understanding of how their learnings fit into the world around them.

    2.1. What is constructivist pedagogy?

    Constructivist teaching strategies help students understand the meaning of their learning materials, instead of just passively ingesting content. Rather than focusing on the subject or lesson being taught, educators are encouraged to focus on how the student learns. 

    An example of a constructivist pedagogical practice:

    KWL(H) Charts are a great way to get an overview of student progress throughout the term. After finishing a unit or series of lessons, have learners fill out a chart with the following fields: What we know, What we want to know, What we have learned, How we know it.

    2.2. What is inquiry-based learning?

    Inquiry-based learning encourages students to ask questions and complete research while learning various concepts. The pedagogy focuses on helping learners acquire the skills necessary to develop their own ideas, as well as question themselves and group members in a constructive way. The four steps of inquiry-based learning are:

    • Developing problem statements that require students to pitch their question using a constructed response, further inquiry and citation.
    • Researching the topic using time in class where the instructor can guide students in their learnings
    • Presenting what they’ve learned to their peers or to a small group
    • Asking students to reflect on what worked about the process and what didn’t. Students focus on how they learned in addition to what they learned, to activate metacognition skills (or thinking about thinking).

    An example of inquiry-based learning: One way to incorporate inquiry-based learning in your classroom is through oral history projects. Ask students to research the personal histories of an individual of their choice, conduct interviews with the person (if possible) and create a presentation that includes artifacts, a feature article, a personal memoir and a photograph.

    2.3. What is the Socratic method?

    The Socratic method is a traditional pedagogy named after Greek philosopher Socrates, who taught students by asking a series of questions. The principle underlying the Socratic method is that students learn through the use of critical thinking, reason and logic. 

    An example of Socratic learning:

    To implement Socratic learning strategies in your classroom, arrange students in inner and outer circles. The inner circle engages in discussion, while the outer circle observes and takes notes. The outer circle then shares their observations and questions the inner circle with guidance from the instructor. The Socratic Method is one of many tools that professors at the University of Chicago Law School use to help theirstudents become lawyers. Elizabeth Garrett writes that “The Socratic Method provides all students greater confidence about talking to large groups, allows them to develop the ability to argue forcefully and persuasively, and teaches them to think critically. “

    2.4. What is problem-based learning?

    In problem-based learning, students acquire knowledge by devising a solution to a real-world problem. As they do, they acquire knowledge, as well as communication and collaboration skills.

    An example of problem-based learning pedagogical practice:

    Concept mapping is an engaging activity that helps students tackle complex course concepts. Divide the class into teams and present them with a course-related problem. One team member writes down a solution and passes the sheets of paper along to the next team member, who builds upon that idea and then passes it along to the rest of the team. In the end, a spokesperson can present their ultimate solution. In a study monitoring the learning of students in an Engineering course, the research found that participants’ learning gains from problem-based learning were two times their gains from a traditional lecture.

    2.5 What is collaborative pedagogy?

    Collaborative pedagogy rejects the notion that students can think, learn and write effectively in isolation. Collaborative pedagogy is a learner-centered strategy that strives to maximize critical thinking, learning and writing skills through peer-to-peer interaction and interpersonal engagement.

    An example of collaborative pedagogical practice:

    Set up stations or posters in a few locations around the classroom and get students to participate in a gallery walk. Divide students into small groups and have them rotate between each station together sorting their observations into categories. Finally, ask them to write down a list of questions about the source material they are viewing.

    2.6. What is integrative pedagogy?

    Integrative learning is the process of making connections between concepts and experiences so that information and skills can be applied to novel and complex issues or challenges.

    An example of integrative pedagogical practice:

    Hands-on learning experiences, like community service, are a great way to bring integrative pedagogy into the classroom. Holding fundraisers, volunteering at local schools or eldercare homes or preparing meals for those experiencing food insecurity are forms of experiential learning that can help students take part in community service activities, like volunteering at food kitchens, tutoring children in local schools, or working in local prisons and detention centers to help with literacy skills, like Queen’s Students for Literacy.

    2.7. What is reflective pedagogy?

    Reflective pedagogy encourages the instructor to reflect upon lessons, projects and assessments, with the goal of improving them for future use. Students are also encouraged to reflect on their performance on assessments and look for areas where they can improve.

    An example of reflective pedagogy:

    Conversation stations are a great way for students to engage with their peers and reflect on their own learnings. Instructors start by sharing a list of discussion questions pertaining to a course reading, video or case study. Students are put into groups and given five-to-ten minutes to discuss, before rotating to another group. The students who have just joined a group have an opportunity to share findings from their last discussion, before answering the second question with their new group. Similarly, reflective pedagogy is useful when used as a complement to placement-based internships. These pedagogical strategies allow students to understand what they have learned and experienced on a deeper level.

    2.8. What is critical pedagogy?

    Critical pedagogy asserts that issues of social justice and democracy are not distinct from acts of teaching and learning. It is a theory and practice that helps students question and challenge prevalent beliefs and practices—and achieve critical consciousness.

    An example of critical pedagogy:

    Flipped classroom strategies aim to increase student engagement and learning by having students complete readings at home and then work on live problem-solving during class time. These strategies allow instructors to orient their teaching to be knowledge-based, focusing on the development of critical thinking skills and understanding what it means to create a just society.

    2.9. What is culturally responsive teaching?

    Culturally responsive teaching is a more modern pedagogy that acknowledges, responds to and celebrates fundamental cultures. It strives to offer equitable access to education for students from all cultures.

    An example of culturally responsive teaching:

    Use learning stations in your classroom to accommodate a variety of student learning styles at the same time. Whether due to culture, socialization, preference or learning needs, students respond differently to a variety of content. You can provide a range of material to each student by setting up learning stations where students can play a game or watch a video.

    3. Creating your own pedagogy

    To create your own pedagogy, start by forming a personal philosophy of teaching statement. This is a crucial step in the profession of teaching. This helps students manage their expectations about your teaching methods and better approach your curriculum. Critically, make sure to support students in finding the best ways to understand the subject matter and encourage engaging discussions in the classroom.

    It’s also important to be mindful of the different educational experiences students have and their preferred methods of participation, as well as their personal experiences and backgrounds. That might include monitoring for cues like wait time between talking in a conversation, eye contact or using written forms of communication, like discussion threads. You can use real-world experiences to demonstrate abstract concepts, and link them back to everyday experiences to which students can relate. Followed by activities that are purpose-built to involve students, this helps learners break down course concepts in their own ways.

    3.1. How can pedagogy support your curriculum?

    Pedagogy can allow students to gain a deeper understanding of subject matter and can help them apply their learnings to their own personal experiences outside the classroom. Teachers can work together with students to come up with the best way for subject matter to be studied.

    Once you’ve created your own pedagogy in higher education, you can then develop course material and activities that are challenging for students. This will assist them in cognitive development, ensuring that they advance their understanding of concepts to higher levels.

    With a clear understanding of your pedagogy, students can follow your instruction and feedback clearly. They know what they need to do and how to do it, and can respond in kind. This encourages engaging dialogue between educators and students, as well as among students themselves—that’s because everyone shares ideas, questions, and knowledge to explore concepts and deepen their knowledge.

    3.2. How does pedagogy impact the learner?

    With a clear and concise understanding of pedagogy, everyone is on the same page. Students can comfortably share ideas and understand how curriculum will be approached and what’s expected of them. 

    Students expand their knowledge base, but also understand how to use their learnings in authentic and relevant real-world contexts. They can draw on their own cultural knowledge as well to come up with unique and personalized thoughts and opinions. Concrete evidence, facts and data, are combined with the exploration of cultural differences of others to further expand knowledge. This allows students to reflect on new concepts and open their minds to different approaches.

    Through your pedagogical strategies, students can also learn what approaches work best for them: Which learning activities and learning styles they tend to gravitate towards—and how to develop concepts and build mental models to further their learning—are all important elements to consider. Overall, active learning makes student engagement rise. Students get to participate in personalized teaching strategies, rather than be mere spectators in the classroom.

    4. How is pedagogy changing?

    Pedagogy has been evolving to better support 21st-century skills and ideas. The traditional classroom lecture is no longer as effective as it once was. Teaching has expanded to include new forms of learning, like interactive and collaborative projects and online and remote curricula, and to accommodate more flexible schedules.

    Real-world scenarios and cultural differences are being taken into account, affording students new ways to acquire, construct and organize their learning. Pedagogy is shifting focus beyond basic memorization and application of simple procedures to aiding students in higher-order learning, including critical thinking skills, effective communication, and greater autonomy.

    4.1. Online learning

    Online learning has become a significant part of higher education. Any modern pedagogy must account for students finding, analyzing and applying knowledge from a growing number of online tools, platforms and sources. Higher-order skills, like critical thinking and the ability to learn more independently, as well as in larger groups, are essential for engaging in online learning in a meaningful way.

    Students must be comfortable using technology to help them learn, and to access, share, and create useful information and gain better fluency in a subject. Educators, in turn, can use technology to enhance course materials and further support their pedagogies through blended learning that combines classrooms with online teaching, flipped classrooms that provide materials students can access after class, like videos, lecture notes, quizzes, and further readings, and overall wider access to sources and experts online.

    They can integrate new forms of technology to teach, like videos, animations, and simulations through sources like YouTube channels, podcasts and clickers. Digital textbooks can incorporate content like video and audio clips, animations, and rich graphics that students can access and annotate. All of this content enhances the experience for students, and particularly benefits students who are struggling. It can also reduce spending since students have plenty of valuable, real-time updated information at their fingertips for free.

    4.2. Personalizing pedagogies

    It’s critical that what you’re teaching students is relevant and meaningful, and personalized to their experiences. The increase in non-formal, self-directed learning methods means that students have more access to information than ever before. It makes it easier for educators to track their learning through digital activities. But it also requires more attention in guiding them to the right sources, adjusting lecture content and adopting approaches purpose-built for engagement and collaboration.

    In many innovative pedagogies, there’s a power shared between educator and student. Students learn more independently, instead of following a set course of lectures and textbooks from an instructor. In many cases, students thrive in self-directed learning methods, while educators can use lecture time more effectively for discussion and collaborative work.

    The educator, then, becomes a critical guide and assessor for students, linking them to accepted sources of information and emphasizing the importance of accreditation. They are no longer the only source of information, delivered in chunks via lectures. And this requires an overhaul of the strategy towards how student learning is achieved, monitored and assessed.

    5. Conclusion

    Pedagogies are constantly evolving. You can develop your own, inspired by common ones and modified for 21st-century learning. A pedagogy must fit your audience, and focus on helping students develop an understanding of the material beyond basic memorization and surface knowledge. Students should be able to relate concepts back to the real world, and even their own lives.

    Every pedagogy is different. A good starting point is to create a philosophy of teaching statement that outlines your communication goals as an instructor, and how you plan to relate the work you do in the classroom to professional development once the student moves on to a career. Then, design classroom experiences around this philosophy, work with students to adapt methods to encourage positive responses and determine how you will evaluate and assess their performance. It’s also worth considering how you will integrate technology into lesson plans and classwork, as well as promote inclusivity.

    Taking all of this into consideration makes for a great recipe for a successful pedagogical approach. The more aware you are of the way you are teaching, the better you’ll understand what works best for your students.

    Download the free guide: 9 Pedagogical Approaches—and How to Use Them in Your Course

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  • Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy: 3 Ways To Reshape The Pyramid

    Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy: 3 Ways To Reshape The Pyramid

    Bloom’s Taxonomy is probably the most widespread and enduringly popular model in education. It was created in 1956 by Dr. Benjamin Bloom and colleagues at the Board of Examinations, University of Chicago. In 2001, the pyramid was revised by Lorin Anderson, a student of Bloom’s, resulting in Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy.

    Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy focuses on learning outcomes. The framework demands that very first thing that instructors need to think about is what students have to know by the end of the course. Learning objectives need actions to get to them. And Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy is hierarchical, requiring your students to achieve each level in succession—in order to understand a concept, you must remember it; to apply a concept you must first understand it, and so on.

    There’s no doubt that this way of classifying educational objectives has been extremely useful to millions of teachers over the years. But for those who might not have had conclusively positive results evaluating Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy or incorporating it into instruction, it’s worth considering some more ways to think outside the pyramid to improve teaching and learning. Here are three things you could bear in mind when using Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy in your lesson planning.

    1. Cultivate judgment rather than transmit information

    The instructional strategies behind Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy require educators to begin with “lower order” tasks, arguing that students need to master these first. This means we front-load our courses with information: information that can be recalled, defined, identified or another objective in the lowest layer of the pyramid.

    But constructivist theories of learning—and our own classroom experiences—tell us that learning does not happen through information transference alone. A learner is an not empty vessel into which we pour definitions. He or she is not going to truly understand something without interpreting it, questioning it, or relating to it.

    So when designing your course, try to incorporate ways to strengthen and take advantage of their faculties of judgment.

    What would it mean to cultivate judgment during a course? Start by doing. Engage your students to take action in some relevant way—through a lab experiment, for example, or by field research. Another way to do this is role-play. When I taught history, we started out by taking on the identities of various countries, coming to decisions supported by research and analysis. The historical facts—and there were many—were all taught in this context. In this way, facts are put into the service of learning, rather than becoming an initial goal in themselves.

    2. Start, rather than end, with creativity

    As educator Shelley Wright has pointed out, Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy gives the impression there’s a “scarcity of creativity.”1 Only those strong enough or talented enough to work their way up to the summit of the pyramid can be creative. The truth is that everybody is naturally creative—just think of a seven year-old at play—except that this way of being in the world is often squelched or squandered. Ken Robinson, for instance, has strongly argued that creativity is typically “educated out” of us.2

    What could it mean to start with creativity? Have your students create on day one. (OK, maybe day two or three.) Wright explains how this works for her media studies class. Instead of beginning by laying out design principles and the history of media, she gets the students to make an advert mockup. Then they compare their mockups to published adverts. Wright helps them analyze differences and introduces, through student-facilitated research, the major principles and concepts of design that help them explain their own creation and those of others.

    A create-first approach could work just as well in courses that are theory-rich and fact-heavy such as philosophy, literature, or science. In environmental science, for example, ask students to propose a solution to deforestation or ocean acidification. Then, starting from their contributions, explore the principles, factors, concepts, contingencies at play, including the ones that were omitted. Have students compare their solutions to others’. Get them to elicit the principle involved, the recent literature in the area, and articulate and fully describe the concepts and the facts.

    3. Promote awareness instead of entrenching hierarchy

    The stratification of Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy into “lower” and “higher” order objectives sets up a value proposition. It leads educators to think that certain kinds of learning necessarily reflect superior kinds of cognition.

    But as Roland Case argues, tasks at every level of Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy can be performed thoughtfully or thoughtlessly.3 It is possible to defend a position in a completely superficial way. It is possible to propose a plan that lacks good judgment or analysis. It is possible to create something without building from a base of relevant knowledge. Indeed, that is why it’s necessary to practice and develop judgment, critical thinking skills and creative problem-solving.

    When Anderson and Krathwohl revised Bloom’s Taxonomy, they accounted for this with a second scale for assessment called The Knowledge Dimension, which lies as another dimension or axis to the cognitive domain. One should assess each of the revised categories (Remember, Understand, Apply, Analyze, Evaluate, Create) according to whether factual, conceptual, procedural or metacognitive knowledge is demonstrated.

    If no category is higher or lower than any other, then leveling makes no sense. With proper consideration for The Knowledge Dimension, we are far from a pyramid… and always have been! But who knew? As Leslie Wilson points out, “what most educators are given in training is a simple chart listing levels and related accompanying verbs.”4

    Bloom’s Taxonomy revised: A pyramid alternative

    And so, if we want to engage students’ creativity, cultivate judgment and make sure that each stage of learning is fully developed and attuned to the right outcome, then organizing anew the existing structure of Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy could go a very long way. Instead of a pyramid, how about a mandala?

    Bloom's Taxonomy in a Mandala or Rose format. CC-BY-SA 3.0 K. Aainsqatsi

    Strange things happen when we feel beholden to a structure. If lesson planning with Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy hasn’t been working for you or your class, rethink the background on how it should be applied. Reconsider the way you’re assessing student learning. Break down the hierarchy and rebuild.

    Illustration credits: CC-BY 2.0 Vanderbilt University; CC-BY-SA 3.0 K. Aqinsqatsi.

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    References

    1. Wright, S. (2012, May 15). Flipping Bloom’s Taxonomy [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://plpnetwork.com/2012/05/15/flipping-blooms-taxonomy/
    2. Parker, Q. (2018, October 3). The Possibilities of an Agile Classroom: Sir Ken Robinson [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://tophat.com/blog/sir-ken-robinson-qa/
    3. Case, R. Unfortunate Consequences of Bloom’s Taxonomy. Retrieved from https://tc2.ca/uploads/PDFs/Critical%20Discussions/unfortunate_consequences_blooms_taxonomy.pdf
    4. Wilson, L. O. (2017, January 20). Understanding the New Version of Bloom’s Taxonomy. [Blog post] https://thesecondprinciple.com/teaching-essentials/beyond-bloom-cognitive-taxonomy-revised/

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  • What Are Student Learning Outcomes?

    What Are Student Learning Outcomes?

    Learning outcomes are descriptions of the abilities, skills and knowledge that are used for assessing student learning. Learning outcomes should outline what students possess and can demonstrate upon completion of a learning experience or set of experiences. When developing a list of student learning outcomes for educators to set as curriculum objectives to improve student learning, consider the following recommendations:

    How to Build Student Learning Outcomes

    Choose between 3-5 learning outcomes: You should choose a sufficient amount of learning outcomes to ensure student progress can be measured without becoming overly complicated for educators to assess. It is also worthwhile to point out that not all educational activities will assess all learning outcomes. Each educational activity can assess students’ development and comprehension focusing on 1-2 student learning objectives for each class. Less than 3 objectives likely mean that student learning objectives are not robust enough for an entire course.

    Learning outcomes should be straightforward: The outcomes identified and described in your plan should be concise and simple. They should avoid complex phrasing or compound statements that mesh more than one statement together to communicate effectively. Each learning outcome should focus on the development of one skill or the meeting of one goal in order to be straightforward and ensure effective learning.

    Learning outcomes should be expressed in the future tense: It is very important for the proper implementation of student learning outcomes that they are expressed in the future tense. The statement should express what an individual student should be able to do as the result of specific instruction or educational activity. Outcomes should involve active learning, and be observable so they can be quantified for examining key student success metrics through learning assessment. They should create and make use of information literacy skills.

    Learning outcomes should be realistic: In order to ensure student learning outcomes are successful, they must be attainable for the students for whom they are designated. Outcomes need to be designed with students’ ability, their initial skill sets, cognitive development and the length of the institutional time frame (a week, a semester, etc) designated to attain these skill sets in mind. Further, they should also align with the material for teaching to students.

    Learning outcomes should align with the curriculum: The learning outcomes developed should be consistent with the curriculum objectives within the program and discipline in which they are taught. This is especially important when interpreting assessment results to analyze where changes in instruction should be made. Curriculum mapping is one example of an effective way to ensure that chosen learning outcomes correspond to the designated curriculum. A curriculum map is a diagram that explains which learning outcomes are plotted against specific program courses. This helps ensure that learning goals are reached in a timely manner.

    Methods of Constructing Learning Outcomes

    Implementing taxonomies: Taxonomies of learning experiences and student outcomes can be useful outlines for developing thorough and insightful lists of student outcomes. Taxonomies classify and compartmentalize the different types of student learning. Taxonomies usually follow a structure that divides learning into three categories. The first is the cognitive domain, which has six levels, ranging from the simple recall or recognition of facts, as the lowest level, up to increasingly more complex and abstract mental levels, followed by the highest order which is classified as evaluation. The second domain is the affective domain involves our feelings, emotions, and attitudes. This domain includes the ways in which humans deal with things emotionally, such as feelings, values, appreciation, enthusiasm, motivations, and attitudes. The final domain is the psychomotor domain, which focuses refers to the motor skills learners are expected to have acquired and mastered at each stage of development.

    Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives (1956) is one traditional framework for structuring learning outcomes. Levels of performance for Bloom’s cognitive domain include knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. These categories are arranged in ascending order of cognitive complexity where evaluation represents the highest level. There are six steps within Bloom’s Taxonomy to achieve learning outcomes. The first step is knowledge, which focuses on knowing and remembering important facts, concepts, terms, principles or theories. The second step is comprehension, which focuses on the understanding of specific learning concepts or curriculum objectives. The third step is application, which focuses on skills and knowledge applications to solve problems. The fourth step is analysis, which focuses on identifying different structures and organizations of specific concepts or subjects, identifying relationships and different moving elements within an organization. The fifth step is synthesis, which focuses on the creation and integration of new ideas into a solution, in order to propose an action plan and potentially formulate a new classification scheme by using critical thinking. The sixth and final step in Bloom’s Taxonomy is evaluation, which judges the quality of knowledge more broadly or a specific learning concept based on its adequacy, use, value or logic.

    Using power verbs: When constructing learning outcomes, it is important to make use of concrete action words that are able to describe and quantify specific action that is observable and measurable.

    Using a Curriculum Map: Once learning outcomes have been developed and approved, making use of a curriculum map can help in viewing how the outcomes developed are being met in each course at an institution. A curriculum map is a straightforward way to visualize the ways in which an educator or institution can list learning outcomes in the rows and the program courses in the columns to demonstrate which courses contribute to each learning outcome. In each cell, letters can be placed to indicate how the course relates to the learning outcome. Use the letters “I,” “R,’ and “E” to identify which courses in the program “introduce”, “reinforce,” or “emphasize” the corresponding learning outcomes. By putting the curriculum maps into place, educators can watch for unnecessary redundancies, inconsistencies, misalignments, weaknesses, and gaps in their learning outcomes in order to optimize them for student success in their program review.

    Measuring Student Learning Outcomes

    Assessment of student learning outcomes: Assessment is a systematic and on-going way of collecting and interpreting information in order to analyze its effectiveness. The academic assessment process can also provide greater insight into how well learning outcomes relate and correspond to the goals and outcomes developed to support the institution’s mission and purpose. An ideal learning outcomes assessment process aims to answer the questions of what an institution is doing and how well it is doing it. Assessments begins with the expression of learning outcomes and course learning. The key to writing measurable outcomes involves describing the first three components: firstly analyzing the outcome, secondly, determining the method of assessment, Third, involves recognizing the criteria for success, as part of the student-centered assessment cycle.

    Program and Performance outcomes: program and performance outcomes describe the goals of a program rather than focusing on what students should know, do or value at the end of a given time period. Program outcomes can be as one-dimensional and simple as a completion of a task or activity, although this is not as meaningful as it could be and does not provide the educator with enough information for improvement. To accomplish the latter, educators and department heads should try to assess the effectiveness of what a given program has set out to accomplish. Performance outcomes usually have quantitative targets and specific timelines.

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  • The Benefits of Distant Learning

    The Benefits of Distant Learning

    What is distance learning?

    Distance learning refers to the education of students who may not always be physically present at a school. Historically, this involved correspondence between an individual and an academic institution by mail. Today, it involves learning through online tools and platforms. A distance learning program can take place entirely in online learning environments, or a combination of distance learning and traditional classroom instruction (called blended or hybrid). Massive open online courses (MOOCs), offering large-scale interactive participation and learning resources, are more recent developments in distance learning. During the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent campus closures, educators and institutions relied heavily on distance learning methods to complete the semester.

    Types of distance learning

    Within the scope of distance education there are two very important concepts: synchronous and asynchronous learning.

    Synchronous learning

    Synchronous learning requires some form of communication during classroom time. It has a less flexible learning plan because the classes are conducted on a set schedule using videoconferencing or live online webinars.

    • Fixed-time online courses are the most common type of distance education. Students sign into their online educational portal to access distance learning resources, including live class video streams. Using this method, students and instructors make use of live chats and discussion boards for communication.
    • Video conferencing takes advantage of tools and platforms, like Zoom, that have expansive capabilities and can be used globally. Video conferencing provides learning opportunities for students by allowing them to see their instructors and peers in real time, creating a sense of community in the virtual classroom.

    Synchronous distance learning most closely mirrors the typical in-class experience. Delivering course content virtually in real time creates a sense of intimacy and timeliness that is particularly effective for increasing student engagement. Depending on supporting technology, such as learning management platforms, educators can also respond directly to questions and discussions, provide feedback and use interactive polling and click-on-target questions to gauge comprehension and ensure students are moving in the right direction. This includes the ability for attending students to access lecture slides, engage with their peers in discussion threads, and answer interactive questions.

    Synchronous learning provides opportunities to apply concepts and collaborate. It’s especially useful when teaching material that requires immediate feedback or clarification to keep students on track. There are important social benefits as well. Given the new normal students and faculty find themselves contending with, the opportunity to connect with peers, work together and see each other can go a long way in alleviating the sense of isolation many may feel when learning in a virtual environment.

    Asynchronous learning

    Asynchronous learning allows the student to work at their own pace, and normally has a very distinct syllabus, with weekly deadlines for homework and other assignments. Students have regular access to their peers and their instructors, although this is typically managed through email and discussion boards.

    • Open schedule online courses give students the greatest amount of freedom. All deadlines are pre-set and students are encouraged to be self-sufficient and complete their assignments on their own timelines. Without dedicated class time, students complete their coursework whenever they choose to allot the time to do so. Final exams normally occur at the end of the semester, and are open for several days to provide students with some flexibility as to when they choose to take it.
    • Hybrid distance education combines synchronous and asynchronous methods of online learning. Students must adhere to specific predetermined deadlines for assignment completion. The majority of the coursework is completed online, but in some cases, the student can physically speak with an instructor in person through live chats or video conferencing. Hybrid distance education may also include attending a physical classroom for certain periods of time. Conversely, it may involve covering specific modules and then returning to distance learning to complete additional modules and assignments.

    Asynchronous learning is particularly beneficial if students with varying levels of Internet access find it difficult to follow a specific schedule. Accessing all course materials, readings and assignments in a single place allows students to explore topics in detail and at their own pace. Discussion forums and one-to-one communications through email are simple ways to create engagement, even if much of the learning is self-directed. Asynchronous learning also provides the opportunity for instructors to promote peer collaboration, creating specific assignments that require students to work with each other or review each other’s work outside the confines of a class schedule.

    Without the benefit of live interaction, it’s especially important for students and instructors alike to communicate—or over-communicate —as the case may be. One of the disadvantages of asynchronous learning is student apathy and isolation. Taking time to set course expectations, provide clear assignment instructions and responding to student emails and discussion thread posts are essential.

    How distance learning impacts students

    There are many advantages to distance education. Online courses provide a more accessible learning experience for students. Accessibility in higher education means all students are provided with an equal opportunity to access course materials. This should be top of mind for educators in planning how to deliver their courses. It is no longer realistic to expect that all students have access to online materials outside of the traditional classroom, and even when they do, it’s important to take time to orient students properly. A Top Hat survey of more than 3,000 students found that 28 percent reported difficulty navigating and using online learning resources and tools. Accessibility goes hand-in-hand with flexibility: letting students choose how and where learning takes place can reduce barriers associated with finding success in higher ed.

    Forming an accessible course starts with giving careful consideration to ensuring all students can benefit from your teaching model.

    In online learning environments, students may feel isolated from their peers and campus communities. Participation has therefore become even more important with the shift to remote education. With in-person learning, instructors can gauge by a show of hands who understood your course material. In an online environment, opportunities for participation, such as discussion questions interspersed throughout lecture presentations, can help bridge the gap. Engagement in the classroom may start with icebreaker activities and diagnostic assessments. From here, instructors should consider introducing more collaborative activities such as case studies and debates to ensure students have ample opportunity to put theory into practice.

    Academic success isn’t the only concern students face. Stable housing facilities and regular access to food, along with physical and mental health resources are also top of mind for today’s college students. This is particularly in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. Empathetic teaching practices, such as shortening lecture modules to provide students with key takeaways and making those lectures available for students to review on their own, are essential in creating supportive learning communities. Empowering students starts with respecting their individual needs and circumstances. It’s also important to dedicate time to connect with students beyond the actual class schedule. As part of the responsibilities of teaching in an online learning environment, instructors should set aside time to answer students’ questions, provide feedback and connect with them on a more personal level, similar to on a social media site.

    The future of distance learning

    Students were okay with “good enough” online education at the height of the pandemic and subsequent school closures, according to Top Hat’s COVID-19 State of Flux Survey results. But they will be less likely to put up with subpar learning in the coming semester. The good news is that many students see value in the flexibility of virtual learning. In fact, around a third of students would prefer a blended approach, with both in-person and online components. The key to success is improving the online experience and ensuring students see the return on their academic investment.

    It is clear that distance learning is here to stay. The fall semester is approaching and pressure on institutions to be ready to teach effectively is increasing. Regardless of what the situation on college campuses looks like in the fall, it is paramount to ensure students see the value of investing their time and effort in courses that may need to be delivered online.

    Even when institutions reopen their physical doors and life returns to ‘normal,’ the ability to teach online, in-person or some combination of the two will yield important benefits in terms of flexibility, as well as dimensionalizing the learning experience. As educators and students grow more comfortable and more confident with the virtual classroom, so do the opportunities to infuse learning with new experiences and new possibilities.

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