Critical Thinking and Analysis Meet ECollege Teaching and Learning

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Critical Thinking and AnalysisMeetE-College
Teaching and Learning

• Fayth A. Ruffin, JD, ABD
• Rutgers University, Newark Campus
• National Center for Public Performance

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Critical Thinking and Analysis

• Deploying the right type of thinking at the right
  time
• Not a skill
• Build complex integrated knowledge base
• Concept mapping

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Common challenges of CTA in e-college teaching

• Distance
• Absence of visual non-verbal communication
• Uncertainty of whether concepts are being grasped

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Common challenges of CTA in e-college learning

• Distance
• Inability to receive instant response to question
• Lack of confidence and self-esteem
• Not making connection between what you already
  know and what you are learning

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Meeting Challenges and Creating Opportunities for
CT A in E-college

• Glossary
• Use of subject headings
• Paraphrasing student in your response before
  adding new ideas and concepts
• Locate the student

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Meeting Challenges and Creating Opportunities for
CT A in E-college

• Distinguish your role
• Facilitator, Mediator, Participant
• Post questions that explore students answer
• End response with open-ended questions
• Validate all contributions

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Meeting Challenges and Creating Opportunities for
CT A in E-college

• Shift from surface approach to deep approach
• Allow students to share personal goals and
  objectives
• Relate course content to student goals and
  objectives

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Terminate the Surface Approach of

• Focusing on the signs discreet elements
• Relying upon memorization
• Failing to be reflexive
• Mixing principles evidence, new old info
• Viewing assignments as obligatory
• Divorcing assignments from everyday realities

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Employ the Deep Approach

• Apply significations not the signs
• Distinguish new ideas from old knowledge
• Differentiate evidence from argument
• Customize/organize and structure content
• Relate materials to students job

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What else can you do to facilitate CTA?

• Use the threaded discussion to interrelate what
  the students know and what we are teaching
• Demonstrate how to use ones existing knowledge
  base to connect the dots with and between new
  knowledge

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What else can you do?

• Apply examples from the readings to what the
  students is doing or may want to undertake at his
  or her place of employment
• Locate and provide locally relevant case studies
  that explore the students interests or concerns

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What else can you do?

• Know your teaching style
• Know the students learning style
• Mold your teaching style to meet multiple
  expectations and diverse audiences
• Owning strengths limitations
• Enthusiasm Promptness

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Search websites to better prepare yourself!

• Prepare yourself substantively
• Know the assigned readings!
• Prepare yourself procedurally
• Critically analyze student assignments
• Helpful websites
• www.Netnet.org/instructors
• www.uidaho.edu/eo/distglan