BLC Wisdom (cont.)

When you began teaching – What did you think you needed to succeed?

How have your ideas changed?

• More focus on student learning.• Not as concerned abut covering as much material. Focus

on key concepts and big ideas. • I now invest more time into helping students develop a

coherent framework for understanding biology.• It’s not about how I teach; it’s about how students

learn.• I now care if students are engaged more than if they are

happy.• No, my ideas haven’t changed much.

As you began teaching what were your biggest concerns?

Which concerns actually occurred and how did you deal with them?

• All of them .. Accept that teaching and learning is a process and ever changing…

• I got things wrong a lot. Learned from them. Didn’t make a big deal of them.

• I learned by making mistakes and getting tips from senior instructors.

• I learned I don’t have to know it all. I just need to be willing to find it out.

• My emphasis now is on student engagement and development of skills and understanding of key concepts.

• Still struggling finding great activities.

What are your top 3 goals for your students? • 1) to be excited about/love biology. 2) to think critically, 3) to relate what they

are learning about biology to the real world. 4) Be prepared for upper level courses.

• Students should be able to apply information acquired in the course to solve new/novel problems. Students should be able to see the relevance of the information learned to their everyday lives. Student should integrate the process of learning in the classroom into an appreciation for the process of life-long learning.

• To become critical thinkers, to be able to effectively problem solve, to appreciate the scientific method.

• Understand the unity and diversity of life on Earth and how evolution is the mechanism of both. Get students to understand the “big picture” and how concepts relate to each other.

How do you communicate your goals to your students?

• I tell them in just those words. Seems the best way.

• I repeat the goals or some version thereof over and over during the course.

• I try to model curiosity, relaying my own questions and wonder as I learn. I encourage students to ask questions and am willing to “diverge” from the plan when they get excited about something… I don’t go for quantity regarding material covered, rather strive for quality.

• Constant practice, coaching and feedback.

• For all assignments I try to include the goal of the assignment.

What kind of learning environment have you developed in your Intro Bio class?

Has your idea of a positive learning environment changed over time?

• More student centered.

• At the beginning I most focused on what I was doing. Now I focus on what my students do. This includes emphasis on how to learn, active learning methods, etc.

When you made mistakes how did you handle them as a new instructor vs now?

How did/do you respond when you don’t know?

Then Now• That’s a good question: I’ll look up the answer and get back to you

30 33• Enlist the class in a learning opportunity 4

21• Indicate I don’t know but come up with a hypothetical answer or model how to answer or best guess; turn it back on the students as Socratic question

8 7• I revised the question into one I did know the answer to or made something up; or redirected the student to see me after class. 6

How do you know if you are doing a good job? • Feedback from students.

• I want data. I want help determining what data and how to get it. • With clickers I can quickly check to see if they are really understanding what I

have just taught and make adjustments based on the instant feedback. • A number of things play into this:How comfortable are studentsHow well are they doing on formative assessments and summative assessmentsWhat feedback am I gettingWhat is the tone of student emails, etc.How does the class do on pre vs post concept inventory that I use for evaluation. • Still haven’t figured this out yet. • Currently tracking learning outcomes success with student success in upper

division courses.

What do you think motivates students to learn?

• In the past students learned for the sake of learning. .. Today’s students strive to learn just enough to make the grade, to get the job to make the money. I have no idea how to motivate today’s students.

• I think that many students equate points/grades with learning and points/grades is their initial motivation. Once they actually see the products of their learning, I believe their motivation switches t one where they want to understand what is happening around them (or in their cells, or systems).

• Grades, career goals, intrinsic thirst for knowledge, faculty enthusiasm,

curiosity for the subject, relevance to their life.

• This is very personal and varies a lot. In my large classes I try to keep tabs on students I know are struggling and encourage them. Sometimes that helps. This is something I struggle with all the time.

What is most rewarding about teaching?

• The “aha” moments. Seeing knowledge and understanding dawn in a student’s eyes.

• I guess the best is hearing that something about the class sparked a new direction in their studies, major or career.

• Watching students succeed especially when they aren’t sure they will.

• Giving students opportunities they never imagined. • Helping students learn and learning myself.• Essentially sharing what I love with others.

What is least rewarding about teaching?

• Grading. Students who want a good grade but are genuinely not interested in learning. The fact that not all students are going to master the material regardless of what we do.

• It is disheartening to me when students give up without trying.

• When students don’t take responsibility for their own learning.

• You can’t please everyone. I often get evaluations that are on opposite ends of the scale.

• Noone realizes how many hours of prep went into that 1 hour of lecture.

• Dealing with other faculty who are resistant to change.• Dealing with politicians and administrators.

DiscussionGiven these data – how do we want our colleagues to answer these questions in 5 to 10 years?1) As a new faculty member, what mentoring and/or resources would you have liked?2) As an experienced faculty member, if you were in charge, how would you design an effective mentoring program for new faculty?

Outcomes -> Process -> Content

1,054+ years

1,054+ years# of students influenced?

1,054+ years# of students influenced?

mastered?

1,054+ years# of students influenced?

mastered?still learning

1,054 years# of students influenced?

mastered?still learning

thank you

What types of resources would you like to have to help you in your teaching?

Diagnostic quizzing that gives students an assessment of how well they have mastered the material. 2) Active learning exercises that develop critical thinking skills. 3) Animated interactive tutorials that foster understanding of complex biological concepts. It seems like there are more resources available from textbook publishers and on the internet (e.g. UTube) than can possibly be used. Perhaps one area that would be helpful would be a clinic on preparing new courses. More help analyzing the effectiveness of our teaching strategies. Funding! Instruction and guidance for non-traditional teaching (lickers, online, flipped classrooms, etc.) A central place where good exercises/resources/assessments could be more easily searched so I don’t have to reinvent the wheel.