Three Semesters of Active Learning in Lectures supported by Personal Response Systems

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Active Learning in Lectures
Three Semesters of Active Learning in Lectures
supported by Personal Response Systems David
Williams, Sally Gauci, Arianne Dantas, Deirdre
Feeney, Robert Kemm Department of Physiology.
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Small versus Large group Teaching Learning

• Small group
• Establish background knowledge
• High student participation
• Identify correct misconceptions
• Reflection
• Adapt the direction of session
• Student- centered
• Active learning

• Large group
• Didactic
• Minimal student interaction
• Impractical to promote active learning
• Focus on Information
• Memory retention

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Small versus Large group Teaching Learning

• Small group
• Establish background knowledge
• High student participation
• Identify correct misconceptions
• Reflection
• Adapt the direction of session
• Student- centered
• Active learning

• Large group
• Didactic
• Minimal student interaction
• Impractical to promote active learning
• Focus on Information
• Memory retention
• Asking questionsBuzz groupsColour- coded cards

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Personal Response System (PRS)
(GTCO CalComp, (www.educue.com).
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Chronology of PRS/Active Learning
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Chronology of PRS/Active Learning
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Initial Trial of Active Lectures in 2006

• Semester 2, 2006 - Interrupted Lecture - PRS
• PRS Units leased to undergraduate Science
  students in Physiology Control of Body Function
• Questions embedded in Traditional Lectures -
  Interrupted Lecture format
• Findings
• Engagement key benefit
• Improved learning outcomes
• Improved quality of teaching

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Active Lecture Style in 2007

• 2007, Traditional Lectures Turned Upside Down
• Pre-reading
• Lecture focus on concepts problem solving
• PRS used in a variety of ways
• demography
• background knowledge
• peer discussions/ debate
• competition quizzes
• ethical questions
• evaluation of the subject
• Initial results promising

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Working Examples from 2007 - Ficks Law

• Net Rate of diffusion (Q)
• Concentration Gradient (DC)
• Permeability of membrane to substance (P)
• Surface Area of membrane (A)
• Molecular Weight of substance (vMW) Molecular
  size
• Distance (membrane thickness) (DX)

Equation Q DC x P x A vMW x DX
Sherwood Table 3-1, page 74
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Question A membrane is twice as permeable to
solute A than solute B. Solute A has four times
the molecular weight of solute B. Which solute
has the highest rate of diffusion (Q) across the
membrane?

• Solute A
• Solute B
• The rate is equal for both
• Not enough information is provided
• Havent got a clue!

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Question A membrane is twice as permeable to
solute A than solute B. Solute A has four times
the molecular weight of solute B. Which solute
has the highest rate of diffusion (Q) across the
membrane?

• Solute A
• Solute B
• The rate is equal for both
• Not enough information is provided
• Havent got a clue!

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Ficks Law

• Net Rate of diffusion (Q)
• Concentration Gradient (DC)
• Permeability of membrane to substance (P)
• Surface Area of membrane (A)
• Molecular Weight of substance (vMW)
• Distance (membrane thickness) (DX)

What are we missing?
Equation Q DC x P x A vMW x DX
Sherwood Table 3-1, page 74
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Question A membrane is twice as permeable to
solute A than solute B. Solute A has four times
the molecular weight of solute B. Which solute
has the highest rate of diffusion (Q) across the
membrane?Assume the concentration difference
across the membrane is equal for both solutes.

• Solute A
• Solute B
• The rate is equal for both
• Not enough information is provided
• Havent got a clue!

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Ficks Law

• Net Rate of diffusion (Q)
• Concentration Gradient (DC)
• Permeability of membrane to substance (P)
• Surface Area of membrane (A)
• Molecular Weight of substance (vMW)
• Distance (membrane thickness) (DX)

constant
constant
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Equation Q DC x P x A vMW x DX
v4
Sherwood Table 3-1, page 74
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Small blocks of lectures in shared courses
2 lectures - Semester 3 Med Lectures
Musculoskeletal 5 lectures - Semester 2
Physiotherapy

• Competitive Questions answering in teams of 10
  to 16 over 2 lectures.
• Use of Personal Response units (PRS).
• Content of questions based on your previous
  muscle lectures, existing summary notes and
  Powerpoint hand-outs for 2006/7.
• Answers will dictate the content for
  learning/discussion.
• Any new material shown, and the questions you
  will address, will given to you as a hand-out at
  the end of the second lecture.

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Rules of the Game

• All questions have a time limit (counted down on
  the screen) your team must ltentergt your
  response within this limit.
• Each team has one request per lecture for time
  extension (15 seconds extra) CALL out TIME!
  Use it wisely!
• Each team has one query (challenge) of an
  answer. Use it wisely!
• Each question has a point value, Some text
  questions have multiple answers, some of which
  have higher point values.
• Enter your team name, team members names and
  progressive responses on your score sheets (hand
  these in after lecture 1).
• Referees word is final no correspondence will
  be entered into
• Prizes for the winning team

Put your notes and books away Do it by
discussion
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Likert ratings showing the percentage of students
responding in each of five levels together with
the average response and the standard deviation
(SD).
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Student Quotes
It made me look forward to study. Normally I put
off going over stuff again. It made me get into
it faster because I started thinking about the
kind of questions they could ask me. I can
actually stay awake in class on Mondays now and
the lectures are way more interesting and seem
shorter because we get to answer questions. What
can I say, I love PRS clickers! Recently I was
faced with a most tragic event, I came to the
physiol lecture without my PRS sighs. It was
devastating as people frantically 'locked in'
answers around me I felt like a part of my soul
had been ripped out for I had no clicker. Let
this be a warning for all those who are not
careful with their clickers, you only realise how
large a part it plays in your life when you
forget it at home. I will never forget the day, I
sat through a physiol lecture without my clicker
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Instructor Quotes
the thing that struck me was that they (the
students) were all involved there are always
murmurings of excitement at the start of the
lecture when I say turn on your clickers I
had very interesting results it told me stuff I
dont know, like how much they (the students)
already know and I was actually surprised to find
that I was underestimating their knowledge all
valuable information that you dont usually get
I uncovered a point of ignorance and I
remedied that which is really valuable.
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Challenges

• Arguably less time spent covering content
• Uniform approach in shared courses
• Lecture restructuring
• Technical Hurdles
• Funding

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Hints and Tips using an audience response system
and Active Learning in Lectures

• Encourage pre-reading be very prescriptive!
• Test prior knowledge
• Focus on concepts
• Be prepared to change direction during a lecture
• Match assessment (even exams) to learning styles
• Approaches to Questioning
• Encourage thinking, higher order questions
  preferred
• Promote peer discussion eg. Think-pair-share
  approach
• Guide students in problem-solving approaches

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KEEPAD Units
ResponseCard XL
ResponseCard RF
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