June 2011 Video

IDEA Paper #34 - Focusing on Active and Meaningful Learning by Ann Stalheim-Smith

LaShawn Williams presents this article about how to create opportunities for critical thinking inside of the classroom and talks about ideas of how to use the same technics via broadcast.

Link to the video.

April 2011 Video

The Impact of Study Skills Courses on Academic Self-Efficacy in College Students

Carol Rosenthal and colleagues talk about their study with students taking study skills courses at Utah State University, Logan Campus.

Link to the video.

March 2011 Video

Thayne Sweeten presents his research on "What do students think about IVC broadcasts and how do they respond differently to these broadcasts compared to face-to face delivery?"

Link to the video.

During our discussion, (go to 23:20 on the recording) Dan Allen shared how he uses Twitter in IVC classes for remotely located students to "raise their hands" virtually. Here is his written contribution describing what he does:

Twitter in IVC Classes

Dan Allen wrote: I teach business classes that range in size from 50 – 130 students. I like to promote involvement in class discussions by all students, which is a challenge with IVC technology alone. While teaching a marketing class with 128 students, I sought an alternate channel for communication and began an experiment with Twitter.

Twitter facilitates short (maximum 140 characters) comments, is free to use, and is trendy. Younger students react positively to having the freedom to use technology in class without guilt. Rather than banning laptops and cell phones during class, I give the students license to incorporate their use in class discussions.

In order for this to work, I provide my Twitter account information and invite students to “Follow” my “Tweets.” Upon receiving notice from Twitter that a student is following, I reciprocate by becoming a follower of the student. Once this exchange occurs, students may then send messages to me.

During class, I run an application called “TweetDeck.” This is another free program that allows users to bring multiple social networking sites to a single place for monitoring. However, the feature that is useful in a class setting is its ability to display a flash of the message in the upper right corner of my computer screen as Tweets are received. As messages come in, they appear on my screen and I can make a quick judgment as to whether I will acknowledge or respond. If I take no action, the message disappears in a few seconds. If I decide I want to hang on to the message longer, I simply place my cursor over the message and it remains as long as the cursor stays in place.

I do not require students to use this tool. It is offered on a voluntary basis as an alternative to the microphone. Benefits I have seen include less microphone contention, involvement of students who are timid about speaking in class, and the general excitement about using a cool, popular tool.

April 1 Meeting

The Impact of Study Skills Courses on Academic Self-Efficacy in College Students
by Brenna M. Wernersbach, M.S. and Carol Rosenthal, Academic Resource Center

The drive to retain students has led many colleges and universities to implement study skills courses and workshops designed to help academically underprepared students succeed. The effectiveness of many of these programs in increasing student GPA and retention has been supported in previous research. However, the impact of these programs on academic self-efficacy, another predictor of academic success, has not been investigated.

This thesis study, conducted by Psychology doctoral student, Brenna Wernersbach, M.S., in collaboration with the USU Academic Resource Center, examined pre-post levels of academic self-efficacy in students enrolled in a study skills course (PSY 1730) compared to students enrolled in a general education course. In addition, the predictive power of academic self-efficacy on academic outcome and retention into the following semester was assessed.

Discussion questions:

1. What are your reactions to the results of this research?
2. How can faculty integrate into their courses “learning how to learn”, through subject-specific, explicit study skills instruction and modeling, to enhance students’ self-efficacy with course material?
3. How might study strategies instruction in STEM courses affect under-represented and female students’ success and/or persistence?
4. What issues of student self-efficacy do you see in your courses? How would study strategies instruction impact what you see?
5. How did you learn to learn as an undergraduate? What learning strategies, study skills, study behaviors did you have to give up, adapt, or gain? Given your experiences, what could you explicitly model for your students?
6. What do you see as benefits for explicit study skills instruction imbedded with course instruction? What concerns do you have?

FYI- This research is presented in poster format and can be accessed at the RCDE Journal Club LibGuide (see link at left). Please read the poster and come to journal club prepared to discuss the questions above. Thanks, Lianna

POD Essays on Teaching Excellence

The link below will take you to the Professional and Organizational Development (POD) Network in Higher Education index page for their Essays on Teaching Excellence. There are many fabulous, short essays which distill big concepts in teaching such as Essays include references for further reading. This is a great place to start shopping for article ideas in addition to the USU LibGuide on Higher Eduction Resources for Faculty (see link in the menu to the left). Happy reading!

POD Essays on Teaching Excellence:
http://www.podnetwork.org/publications/teachingexcellence.htm

Doodle poll for summer meeting times

There seemed to be some interest in continuing to meet during the summer. So, please check your summer calendar, and then follow the link below to choose the day of month that best suits your schedule. Please choose all options that work. I chose 10am (current meeting time) as the default time of day, but if there is a better time please indicate your preference in the comments section at the bottom of the poll. Looking forward to seeing you during the summer! Lianna
http://www.doodle.com/du42tyt3487c8sbk

March 2011 Meeting

The March Teaching and Learning Journal Club will be held Friday March 18 at 10 am via IVC (see room assignments below). The day was moved from March 4 since this is the Friday before USU Spring Break. Check back here afterward to view a recording of presentation.

Presenter: Thayne Sweeten, Biology, Brigham City Regional Campus
What do students think about IVC broadcasts and how do they respond differently to these broadcasts compared to face-to face delivery? Thayne Sweeten will present data collected from his classroom and present a paper, "The Videoconferencing Classroom: What Do Students Think?" by Mark Doggett, to help answer these questions. Come prepared to share ideas in a discussion of how to effectively engage students taught via IVC. Click "RCDE Journal Club" under LibGuides at the left to access the paper.

Hope to see you on March 18th at 10:00.

Room Assignments:
Logan: Family Life 113
Moab: Mobile Cart
Ephraim: RM C
Brigham City: Conference RM
Tooele: RM 112
CEU: Reeves 128
Vernal: RM 128
Roosevelt: RM 173
Salt Lake: RM C
Monticello FLC: unable to receive due to class scheduling needs