Transcript www.bio.utk.edu

Instructional Strategies for Teaching K12
Evolution of Educational Theory
Socrates - didactic
Plato - innate
Aristotle – simultaneous and associative learning by similarity/contrast
Locke – tabula rasa
Skinner – behaviorism, reinforcement, conditioning, overt behavior
Gestalt – cognitivism, short-term/long-term memory, prior knowledge
Piaget - discovery, experiential, hands-on, active learning
Constructivism – Piaget, et al
(Information Processing, PBL, Transformative, Informal, Post-modern,
Neuroscience, Connectivism, Instructional, Networked & so on... )
Constructivism in Science Inquiry
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Building knowledge in parts via an iterative process (assimilation and
accommodation)
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Active learning, hands-on, learner-centered
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Collaborative, discovery, experiential
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(LdL) Learning by teaching
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Teacher as facilitator ('guide on side' vs 'sage on stage')
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Higher motivation, testing scores & knowlege retention
Memory: Learning is Multi-modal
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Learning=memory=retrieval
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Short term and long term memory
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Short term memory is working memory
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Learning takes place when short moves to long-term storage
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Neural networks are long-term
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Clusters of synapsed neurons
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Throughout brain foci
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Strong ties to cerebellum (longest)
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Triggers
Memory: Learning is Multi-modal
Memory: Learning is Multi-modal
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Implicit long term memory is
stored and retrieve
unconsciously and help us
perform tasks without
thinking
Explicit long-term memory
(declarative) requires
conscious thought
Semantic pathway is newest
in human evolution weakest
Memory: Learning is Multi-modal
information moves from
working memory
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thru hippocampus
to long term storage
areas
builds on preexisting
neural networks through
association
What's this doing in the presentation?
Bloom's Taxonomy
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Creating - designing, constructing,
planning, producing, inventing, devising,
making
Evaluating - checking, hypothesising,
critiquing, experimenting, judging, testing,
detecting, monitoring
Analyzing - comparing, organising,
deconstructing, attributing, outlining,
finding, structuring, integrating
Applying - implementing, carrying out,
using, executing
Understanding - interpreting, summarising,
inferring, paraphrasing, classifying,
comparing, explaining, exemplifying
Remembering - recognising, listing,
describing, identifying, retrieving, naming,
locating, finding
Instructional Strategies for K12
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Meaningful instruction
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Scaffolding
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Chunking
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Metacognition and reflection
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Cooperative learning
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Movement
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Hands-on and manipulatives
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Content mapping
Making instruction meaningful
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Relevant
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here and now to student's world view, concerns, current events, life stage
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biofuels, taxol anticancer drug from endophytes, food pathogens, health
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Context/pattern
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Emotion
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According to learning objectives
Scaffolding
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Beyond introductory
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Begins by eliciting student interest
(stories, questions, demos, moving location)
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Builds by drawing on prior knowledge
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Provides a starter “package of information”
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Sets the stage for continued knowledge acquisition
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Organizes information and enables long term memory formation
Chunking
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Younger = shorter/smaller
chunks
Moving chunks together
into long term memory
Breaking instruction into
smaller parts
Each part with a specific,
measurable objective
Chunking
Chunking
Metacognition and Reflection
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Student mastery over their own education – learning how to learn
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Ultimate indicator of knowledge transfer – making learning last
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Metacognition
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Being able to explain how a problem was solved
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Recognizing similarity to other problems and choosing solution parts that help
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Articulating what is not known in order to solve the problem
Reflection
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What was new about what was learned
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Predicting what other problems could be solved
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Determining other ways to solve the problem
Mushroom exercise: using senses, detecting patterns/modes of
sorting and classification, applying to an unknown
Movement and Learning
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Strong links between cerebellum and memory, decision making,
spatial perception, language, attention, nonverbal and emotion
Axons from cerebellum are longest and extend out to all parts of the
brain
Starting here enables attention and activates information acquisition
pathways to processing centers
Types:
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Kinestetics
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Hands-on
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Manipulatives
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Note-taking
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Modeling
Hands-on & Manipulatives
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Learning processes/procedural applications
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Demo: PCR amplification
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Term “amplification” meaning making more stuff not “louder”
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Part of the 'scrapbook lab tour' outreach workshop
Cooperative learning
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Humans are social
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Types
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Reciprocal Questioning: students work together to ask and answer questions
Jigsaw Classroom: students become "experts" on one part of a group project and teach it
to the others in their group
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Structured Controversies: Students work together to research a particular controversy
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Group quizzes
Grouping configurations
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Not gender
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Mixed ability best
Sample Lesson: Mitosis & Meiosis
Pipe cleaner mitosis/meiosis
Checking:
Hands-on
Collaborative
Objective driven
Mastery
Metacognition and reflection
Learning by teaching
Assessment
Formative
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Informal check for understanding, discussions, hand-raising, observing, homework, checklists,
concept maps (see www.Mind42.com)
Helps discern learning strengths and weaknesses of individual learners, whole class and
teaching method efficacy
Summative
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Tests, quizzes, essays, papers, lab process skills tests, lab reports
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Appropriate for unit testing, placement, grade assignment, certifying acheivement
Alternative
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Extra credit topics, special projects, web sites, models, products, journals, presentations,
portfolios
Helps check/test for learning through different venues: second language learners, multiple
intelligences
Appropriate for outreach, formative and summative assessment
Mycology & STEM: a natural
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Science – fungal biology, genomics, ecology, medicine
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Technology – lab, software
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Engineering – agriculture, industrial and medical
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Math - bioinformatics
Translating Your Research to a Younger Audience
and to the General Public
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Broader impact statements on grants
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Vertical integration and pathfinding to higher ed
Translating your research to a younger audience
and the general public
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Outreach opportunities
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lab tours (scrapbooking idea), family nights at local schools
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workshops with hands-on activities
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science camps, Saturday science
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science fair projects and mentoring
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citizen scientists and partnering with local government agencies
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podcasts, webcams/casts, youtube channels
Writing curriculum – longer view
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field testing
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using standards and measurable objectives
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lesson plan format expected
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assessment includes formative and summative
Evolving a Teaching Style: Andragogy
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Implementing learner centered activities (active)
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Offering options to accommodate different learning styles
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Considering prior experience and relevant learning experiences
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Building a friendly climate that allows risk taking and error making
as avenues of learning along with space and time for dialogue
and interaction to occur.
Owning their learning process – students take responsibility for
their own learning and have a voice in what is studied.
Instructor acts as facilitator rather than knowledge provider and
imparts a flexible environment and curriculum that reflect student
needs and interests.
Getting Started
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Your university. Check for UA equivalent of Office of Instruction and Assesment:
http://www.ltc.arizona.edu/content/resources
- Workshops
teachers
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- Higher Ed Teacher Certification
- Find a mentor - Observing other
Suggested Reading
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Teaching Tips: Strategies, Research, and Theory for College and University Teachers. Marilla
Svinicki and Wilbert McKeachie.
Tools for Teaching. Barbara Gross Davis.
Both of these contain nice, practical tips for teaching, along with key references to research that back
up the efficacy of the techniques.
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Classroom Assessment Techniques: A Handbook for College Teachers. Thomas Angelo and K.
Patricia Cross.
This is an awesomely useful handbook of techniques that can be used to probe students in different
classroom situations for their understanding. They are rated as to the quality of the information that
can be obtained, ease of use, and ease of interpretation.
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AAAS in partnership with NSF - Broader Impact & Public Education:
http://communicatingscience.aaas.org/Pages/newmain.aspx