Avoiding Expensive Mistakes: Moving toward learnercentered teaching

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Avoiding Expensive MistakesMoving toward
learner-centered teaching

• Nancy S. Shapiro
• April 9, 2007
• University System of Maryland
• nshapiro_at_usmd.edu

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Why the students we have are not the students we
want

• Over 25 of freshmen in 4 year college do not
  return for sophomore year
• Over 40 of freshmen in 2 year colleges do not
  return for sophomore year
• 60 of high school students say they cheat on
  tests
• 90 of high school students say they copied
  someones homework
• Most spend less than 4 hours a week on homework.
• John Tagg, The Learning Paradigm College, pp
  40-43.

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What do we know about learning?

• New science of learning
• Learning with understanding
• Pre-existing knowledge
• Active learning
• Deep learning vs. surface learning
• Deep learning is active/surface learning is inert
• Deep learning is holistic/surface learning is
  atomistic
• Deep learning integrates/surface learning
  externalizes
• National Academies, How People Learn, p. 8-13.
• John Tagg, Learning Paradigm College, p. 81.

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Implications for teaching and institutional
priorities

• Deep Learning
• Emphasizes intrinsic goals
• High levels of cognitive activity, highest
  rewards for high cost activities, deep
  approaches, complex cognition
• High ration of feedback to evaluation
• Long time horizons decisions bear consequences
  in the long run
• Strong support community
• Institutional behavior consistent, aligned with
  learning mission.

• Surface Learning
• Emphasizes extrinsic goals
• Low level of cognitive activity high rewards for
  low cost activities surface approaches,
  retention
• Low ration of feedback to evaluation
• Short time horizon decisions bear consequences
  in the short run
• Weak support community
• Institutional behavior aligned with instruction
  mission or misaligned.
• John Tagg, Learning Paradigm College, p. 101.

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Creating conditions for student success in
college DEEP Project

• Lay out a path to successstudents need to know
  what to expect (orientation, communication, intro
  to college courses)
• Frontload resources to smooth transition
  (mentors, tutors, peer groups)
• If activities are important, consider requiring
  certain learning activities (study abroad,
  service learning, student-faculty research)
• Create reward structures congruent with mission
  and priorities.

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Lessons Learned from DEEP continued

• Improve performance through frequent feedback
• Experiment with engaging pedagogies and active
  learning
• Use electronic technologies to enhance active
  learning
• Create company of peers outside the class through
  study groups and learning communities
• George Kuh, Student Success in College, pp.
  295-317.

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Principles of Course Redesign

• Define the problem to be solved
• Analyze, deconstruct and document the resources
  currently used to teach the course
• Redesign the whole course
• Encourage active learning
• Provide students with individualized assistance
• Build in ongoing formative assessment
• Ensure sufficient time on task and monitor
  students
• National Academic Course Transformation Project,
  www.theNCAT.org

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Why move toward learner-centered teaching?

• All learning involves transfer from previous
  experiences.
• Ability to transfer what they have learned to new
  situations provides an important index of
  adaptive flexible learning.
• Active learning promotes understanding and
  understanding is more likely to promote transfer
  than memorizing information.
• Transfer of learning is an active process.
• Major goal of schooling is to prepare students
  for flexible adaptation to new problems in new
  settings.

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For Further Reference

• Kuh, G. et al. (2005). Student Success in
  College. San Francisco Jossey Bass.
• National Academies. (2000) How People Learn
  Brain, Mind, Experience, and School. Washington,
  DC Author.
• Shulman, L. S. (2004). Teaching as Community
  Property. San Francisco Jossey Bass.
• Tagg, J. (2003). The Learning Paradigm College.
  Bolton Ankar Publishing Co.
• Twigg, C.A. (2005). Increasing Success for
  Underserved Students Redesigning Introductory
  Courses. Saratoga Springs National Center for
  Academic Transformation. http//www.thencat.org.