The Role of Lecture in Course Redesign

Lori Van WallendaelUNC Charlotte

Department of Psychology

Special thanks to my partners in the PSYC 1101 General Psychology Redesign:

Bill SiegfriedSue Spaulding

Our Challenges

Large course sections (typically 300 students)Mostly first-year students

Often unprepared for college-level workNot very engaged in learningReluctant to take responsibility for their own

learning

Hybrid Format

Replaced one of two face-2-face meetings each week with online activities, media assignments, quizzes, & practice exams

Why We Did It

• Encourage student responsibility for learning• More efficient use of resources (space)• Serve more students

What We Learned During the Pilot Semester

• Students will see the face-to-face portion of class as “optional” unless you require attendance

• Students chase points, not knowledge• Students are not technologically

sophisticated!• Working on one’s own does not necessarily

equate to taking increased responsibility

In Class• Had to make class time relevant but not

redundant• Letting go is hard to do – combined, we have

85 years experience teaching Introductory Psychology

• Learning a new way of teaching is invigorating

Modifications to face-to-face component of course

Try to rely less on lectureUse clicker quizzes to reward attendance and

preparationMore classroom demonstrationsUse of YouTube and popular TV clips (House

MD, Big Bang Theory, The Office), sometimes tied to clicker quizzes

Covering a chapter in 75 minutes of face-to-face time

What is not already being covered in online activities?

What works better in a large group format than in an online setting?

What concepts do students find most difficult?

Our opportunity

Online component of course included media assignments, chapter tests, study plans

Work due BEFORE we cover a chapter in face-to-face class

So, data on student success on chapter tests could become a guide for what we needed to cover in greater depth in the face-to-face meetings

Chapter tests provide great clues

An example: Chapter 6 (Memory)

My original plan:Define stages of memoryEyewitness memory demonstration (video)Short term memory span testEncoding specificity; levels of processingSerial position effectFalse memory demonstrationMnemonics, visualization

Request student performance data on Chapter 6 questions

An example: Chapter 6 (Memory)

My revised plan:Define stages of memoryEyewitness memory demonstration (video)

RecognitionShort term memory span test RecallEncoding specificity; levels of processingSerial position effectFalse memory demonstration RecallMnemonics, visualizationClicker quiz on recognition/recall

Student Outcomes• Two hybrid sections and one traditional

section were included in the Spring 2011 pilot. Three hybrid sections, 1 traditional section, and one online section were offered in Fall 2011.

• Comparisons were made in performance and course satisfaction across all formats

Grade Distribution

DFW – Grade of D or F or Withdrawn

ABC DFWSpring 2011

Fall 2011

Spring 2011

Fall 2011

Hybrid 69% 69% 31% 31%Traditional 76% 72% 24% 28%Online 83% 76% 17% 24%

The Friday section of the Hybrid course in both Spring and Fall performed significantly below the traditional, other hybrid, or online sections. The students’ beginning GPA in the Friday section was significantly below the other sections.

Exam Performance, 2 best unit exams and comprehensive final exam, Fall 2011

Performance on core items in common final exam – Fall 2011

0

20

40

60

80

100

Percent correct

Hybrid 1

Hybrid 2

Hybrid 3

Traditional

Online

ONLINE

TRAD

HYBRID

F

HYBRID

W

HYBRID

M

Why the online advantage?

More juniors and seniors (44%) in the online course; mostly freshmen in the hybrid (68%) and traditional (59%) courses

Students in the online course had higher average gpa (2.97) than students in the hybrid (2.66) or traditional (2.83) sections

Does lecture still matter?

Does being PREPARED for lecture really matter?

Student SatisfactionHybrid Traditional OnlineN = 492 N = 218 N = 61

MPL contributed to my success in course? 69% 46% 57%Recommend MPL to

friends, other students? 67% 57% 64%Wish other Psychology

professors used MPL? 53% 45% 53%MPL added value to

this course? 69% 51% 64%Compared to traditional

format, like hybrid? 49% NA NA

Advice We Might Offer

• Need for DETAILED tutorials for students• Need reliable technology support• Need to be creative in getting TA help• Expect lower evaluations during the

development phase of the redesign• But have fun with it! Especially if you can

work with colleagues, you’ll learn a lot.