A Holistic Approach to Teaching

1
A Holistic Approach to Teaching Learning

• Sandra Poindexter
• Professor of Computer Information Systems
• Northern Michigan University
• spoindex_at_nmu.edu
• faculty.nmu.edu/spoindex

2
What about you?
3
Academic Environment
What external pressures face academic
institutions that could impact the classroom?
4
Changes in the Wind External Pressures

• Competition and recruitment promises
• Retention issues
• double-digit student departure after yr 1
• what matters in college social, emotional,
  intellectual connectedness
• Faculty productivity
• Public accountability

It is faculty on the front line who must fulfill
these demands
5
Academic Environment
Who will be in the higher ed classrooms of the
next decade and what are these students like?
6
Changes in the Wind - Students

• Attention span
• Multitasking
• Time management and organization
• Teamwork
• View of authority
• Technology

7
Academic Environment
To what extent have faculty actually adopted
alternative learning approaches?
Holistic Approach
8
Changes in the Wind - Faculty

• Baby Boomers group approaching retirement
• Gen X group getting tenured and promoted
• more relaxed
• more adventuresome
• less apt to demand control

9
Innovation Diffusion

• Innovators I wonder if people
• Early Adopter respected leaders in governance
  and disciplines
• Early Majority early workshop attendees
  determine critical mass
• Late Majority traditionalists who give in
• Non Adopters traditionalists who dont

10
Internet Integration at NMU
11
Innovation Diffusion
12
Diffusion Topics
13
Peer Learning

• Collaborative, cooperative, team, group all
  based upon students learning from their peers
• More than just telling students to work together
• 90 of students in NSSE report doing group work
• Late majority stage

14
Active Learning

• Term coined in early 90s by Eisen and Bonwell
  Any in-class activity that helps students
  understand the material and how to apply it
• Embedded elsewhere
• In-class exercises
• Fact finding
• Current events online articles

15
Academic Service Learning
( )

• Growth began in 90s with volunteerism
• Project-based, problem-based, service-based
• 66 of students in NSSE 02 report service
• 50 of report service learning
• Early majority getting comfortable

16
Instructional Technology

• Academic value is a debate topic
• Professional value is clearer
• Fast adoption rate
• Laptop initiatives across the nation 173 by
  2004 (Brown)
• Late majority needed help of instructional
  technologist

17
Internet Integration

• Explosive growth
• Course management systems
• Improved connection speed and access
• More reliable sites
• Decreased costs
• Minimal use, e.g. faculty email, becomes
  standard

18
Holistic Teaching Learning
It is when the whole environment is considered
and multiple tools used that a higher level of
sustained learning can occur. A Case for
Holistic Learning
19
Holistic Approach
20
Celebration of Learning
21
Setting the Stage

• Communication
• Goal setting and expectations
• Sincerity and commitment
• Give up some control
• Training in approach
• Gather pre-knowledge tailor to it

22
Communication

• Critical and two-way
• Maintaining a dynamic class outline
• Class emails
• Team meetings
• Knowing names

23
Technology Integration

Tech
Classroom
24
Technology Integration

• Class E-mail
• File attachments
• Course website
• Internet resources
• Presentation software
• Library databases and e-books

• Laptops
• Server space
• Paperless classrooms
• Discussion board
• Technology-friendly rooms

Tech
Classroom
25
Classrooms Technology Group friendly

• Group-focused room
• Adequate workspace
• Sufficient connections

• Minimize instructor station as source of
  knowledge
• Funded by grant

26
Active In-class Exercises - Criteria

• Applies or extends textbook content
• Has a stated objective (what)
• Provides context (why)
• Gives general steps (how)
• Requires discussion (collaboration)
• Has a conclusion (analysis)
• Provides debriefing (reflection

27
Service Learning Components

• Live projects

real people problems opportunities one
assignment / full semester

• Participative

students identify scope, tasks, or preferences
projects lessons vary no one right answer

• Unstructured

28
Selecting a Service Site

• Which course objectives fit experiential
  learning?
• What preparations do students need to succeed
  with it?
• Start small and discrete
• Bring representatives to classroom

29
Selecting a Service Site

• Sources
• Schools, day care centers, elders programs / care
• Hospitals, health, fitness facilities
• Service orgs. and volunteer agencies
• Govt, activist and special interest groups
• Museums, historical and library centers

30
Cautious Peer Learning

• Permanent teams
• Instructor selected
• Heterogeneous on personality skills
• Goal and rule setting
• Team training
• Bonding important
• Team meetings

31
Cautious Peer Learning

• Class partners
• Self or instructor selected
• Study partners mentors
• Classroom aids

32
Service Tech
33
Active Tech
34
Active Peer

• Career requirements from job ads
• Group answers to essay test immediately after
  individual test (critiquing)
• Brainstorming, fact identification, or article
  summarizing
• Current issues debates
• Question development practice

35
Active Peer Tech
36
Active Peer Tech
37
Active Peer Tech
38
Active Peer Tech
39
Active Peer Service Tech
40
Scenario Sharing

• Scenario 1 You are teaching a history or
  culture, or art course on Russia. The objective
  of a particular class session is to cover the
  topic of Siberias role in a given era
• Scenario 2 You are teaching a sociology or
  social work or nursing course on urban issues.
  The objective of a particular class session is to
  cover the topic of extracurricular options
  available to children raised in urban settings
  and the impact those options might have on their
  adult lives.

41
Scenario Sharing

• What alternatives to straight lecture could be
  used?
• How can you blend teachings strategies so that
  multiple approaches are incorporated?
• Specifically plan the class period with your
  preparation tasks, student preparation tasks,
  class time, and follow-up discussion.

42
Student Class Time Preferences?
43
Student Opinions

• Agree learning is their responsibility
• Accept teamwork and less structure in exchange
  for learning how to handle those situations w/o
  penalty
• Like to work in teams of mixed talents on projects

44
Evidence of success measures

• Increased knowledge gain
• More learning enjoyment
• Increased student confidence
• Improved course evaluation comments

45
Does This Work?
46
A Controlled Experiment

• Four sections of one course, Intro to Programming
• Equal number of students (25) per section
• Pre-tests, post-tests, and demographic
  information collected as controls

47
Phase I Traditional website

• Standard lab classroom configuration / laptop
  computer at each student desk
• 100 lecture using large screen projection
• Textbook tutorials and assignments are done
  outside of class time

48
Phase I Traditional website

• No scheduled student interaction time
• No permitted student collaboration
• Participation included attendance, asking
  questions, offering comments
• Course website posted syllabus, outline,
  handouts, files, and assignment instructions

49
Phase II Phase I interactive class time peer
learning

• 50 lecture and 50 experimentation
• Peer interaction encouraged
• Assignment collaboration permitted, not forced
• Course website now includes voice annotated
  presentation slides for outside lecture material

50
Phase III Phase II group room

• Tables in conference-room style w/ full
  connections for four laptops
• 40 lecture and 60 student experimentation
• Peer interaction expected
• Course website now includes posting of good
  assignment solutions for peer review
• Participation grade now includes evidence of
  helping peers in and out of class time

51
Phase IV Phase III expanded interactivity and
creativity

• 30 lecture and 70 student experimentation
• Casual learning environment where people feel
  free to talk
• Assignment creativity and solution variation
  encouraged
• Students could share ideas on variations. Being
  creative earned more participation points

52
Data collection

• Prior knowledge using a 30 question quiz
• Basic demographic information
• Personality temperaments (Keirsey Temperament
  Sorter instrument)
• Learning styles (Kolb inventory)
• Student attitudes towards computers (Gressard
  and Loyd attitude survey)
• Post knowledge - retook the 30 question quiz

53
Results
(linear trend line)
54
Road to the Holistic Approach

• Avoid innovation blinders
• Provide faculty training in instructional theory,
  not just techniques
• Cross pollinate faculty
• Reward faculty (at least cut them slack) while
  they experiment
• Look externally for models

55
(No Transcript)
56
References Used in Slides

• Bonwell, C. and J. Eison. (1991). Active
  Learning Creating Excitement in the Classroom.
  ASHE-ERIC Higher Education Report No. 1.
  Washington, D.C. The George Washington
  University, School of Education and Human
  Development.
• Brown, Ray (2004) Notebook Us b/NoteBookList.html
• Howe, N and W. Strauss. Millennials Rising-The
  Next Great Generation (2000) Vintage House New
  York, NY.

57
References Used in Slides

• National Survey of Student Engagement 2002
  (NSSE). Center for Postsecondary Research
  Planning. Bloomington, Indiana.
  
• Poindexter, S. (Jan/Feb. 2003) A Case for
  Holistic Learning Change, The Magazine of Higher
  Learning. Washington, D.C.American Association
  of Higher Education (AAHE)
• Poindexter, S., and Allen, D. (Fall 2001)
  Customizing the Classroom Learning Environment
  A Phased Experiment. Issues in Information
  Systems. 1.