Title: Classroom Research: Implementing the Scholarship of Teaching by K. Patricia Cross and Mimi Harris St
1Classroom Research Implementing the Scholarship
of Teachingby K. Patricia Cross and Mimi Harris
Steadman
- Reviewed by
- Susan Rogers
- Lecturer, English and Foreign Languages Department
2Bibliographic Citation
- Publisher
- San Francisco Jossey-Bass, 1996
- ISBN
- 0-7879-0288-8
- A COLT Class Project
- WebCT 800
- August, 2002
3Introduction to Authors
- K. Patricia Cross
- David Pierpoint Gardner Professor of Higher
Education at the University of California,
Berkeley. Author of eight books and over one
hundred and fifty articles and chapters.
Co-Author (with T.A.Angelo) of Classroom
Assessment Techniques A Handbook for
Faculty,1988. - Mimi Harris Steadman is a research specialist at
the National Center for Research in Vocational
Education at the University of California,
Berkeley.
4Organization of Contents
- Classroom Research Implementing the Scholarship
of Teaching, is divided into two major parts. - The first part of the book concerns the extended
definition of the terms Scholarship of Teaching,
Classroom Assessment, and Classroom Research.
5- The second part of the book is devoted to four
Case Studies, demonstrating how one would conduct
a Scholarship of Teaching project. The case
studies include - Case study written by Jerry Evensky, Associate
Professor of Economics at Syracuse University. - Leslie is a student in an economics class, who is
considering dropping the class as she does not
understand the material.
6- The next case is written by Priscilla Laws,
professor of physics at Dickinson college. - In a physics laboratory, a required course for
premeds, this study concerns the lack of interest
in physics exhibited by the premed students.
7- The third case study is presented by Pat
Hutchings, director of the Teaching Initiative at
the American Association for Higher Education.
The setting for this case is a history classroom
at a city college, wherein - Teachers record what they are trying to
accomplish in the classroom, and - Observations are recorded of students reactions
to the teachers efforts
8- The last case study was written by the authors as
a learning challenge to the readers of this book.
The reader is asked to identify the learning
issues in the case, and to integrate their
experiences as teachers and readers to become
active participants in the activities suggested
in this book.
9My Goals
- For the purposes of this book review, I will
focus on the first part of Cross and Steadmans
book, and outline the definitions of the terms
Scholarship of Teaching, Classroom Assessment,
Classroom Research. I leave the case studies for
another time, another presentation!
10What is Scholarship of Teaching?
- According to the Carnegie report, Scholarship
Reconsidered (Boyer, 1990), - Good Teachers
- stimulate active learning
- Encourage students to be critical, creative
thinkers - Are also learners
- Will be pushed in creative new directions through
reading, classroom discussion and questions posed
by students
11Cross and Steadman advocate the use of the term
Classroom Research
- Teachers implement the Scholarship of Teaching
when they - Use their classrooms as laboratories for the
study of teaching and learning - Observing students in the act of learning
- Discussing observations and data with colleagues
- Reading what is already known about learning
12Characteristics of Classroom Research
- Learner-Centered
- Learner responses to teaching
- Teaching becomes more effective
- Students assess and improve their learning
13- Teacher-Directed
- Teachers as active investigators
- Engaged in studies of learning in their discipline
14- Collaborative
- Active engagement of students and teachers
- Students are partners in the research
- Students share in analysis and interpretation of
results - Discussion and collaboration with teaching
colleagues
15- Context-Specific
- Research conducted for a specific classroom
- Research conducted for a particular discipline
- Technical research skills not required
16- Scholarly
- Builds upon current knowledge base of research on
teaching and learning - Requires
- Identification of a researchable question
- Appropriate research design
- Considerations of the implication of the research
for practice
17- Practical and Relevant
- Questions teacher faces in teaching the class
- Research deepens personal understandings
- Contribution to the knowledge and practice of the
teacher
18- Continual
- Classroom Research is ongoing
- New projects continually emerge from past
investigations - Process of continual evaluation and modification
- Process rather than product
19Classroom Research can be a useful adjunct to
- The application of educational research to
practice - Faculty development
- Assessment of student learning
- The Carnegie proposals to broaden the definition
of scholarship
20In what ways ? Classroom Research
- Assists teachers to
- Assess quality of learning in the classroom
- Provide assessment to students as well as teacher
- To conduct investigations into the nature of
learning - Aids in research and development
- Recognizing and improving teaching and learning
campus-wide
21Relationship of Classroom Assessment to Classroom
Research
- Classroom Assessment
- Limited scope
- Addresses what questions
- What did students learn from the discussion?
- Classroom Research
- Concerned with why questions
- Why did students respond as they did?
22Relationship of Classroom Research to Traditional
Educational Research
- Share common goals
- Improving education through the systematic study
of teaching and learning - Diverges in dependence of scientific method as
the only or most valid approach to knowledge - Experience and insights of teachers are just as
important as the scientific objectivity of
external researchers seeking generalized
knowledge about learning
23- The classroom researcher
- Desires relevance over rigor
- Uses
- Careful observation
- Interviews with students
- Understanding of classroom environment
- Qualitative, quantitative, or performance
measures - Invents own methods of data collection
24Applying Classroom Research to the Seven
Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate
Education (Chickering and Gamson,1991)
- Good Practice Encourages Student-Faculty Contact
- Teachers learn how to teach effectively when they
- Learn to know students
- Monitor student progress in learning
25- Good Practice Encourages Cooperation Among
Students-- and Colleagues - Classroom Research is a highly social activity
- Faculty share experiences
- Faculty learn from one another
26- Good Practice Encourages Active Learning
- Classroom Research requires active involvement in
learning about teaching - Teachers
- Raise own questions about their teaching
- Devise appropriate ways to investigate those
questions - Self-initiated inquiry most effective for
learning
27- Good Practice Gives Prompt Feedback
- Major function of Classroom Research
- Feedback about students learning
- Monitors student learning throughout entire
session - Allows students and teachers to take
self-corrective action throughout class session
28- Good Practice Communicates High Expectations
- Assumption is made that both students and
teachers - Take the business of education seriously
- Want performance feedback
- Will work on improvement
29- Good Practice Respects Diverse Talents and Ways
of Learning -- and Teaching - Assessment and research methods are highly
diverse and flexible - Teachers can use CATs (Angelo and Cross, 1993)
- Teachers can devise own methods of assessment
30In Conclusion
- A wonderful opportunity awaits us as we struggle
to develop our own online classes - We should embrace the opportunity to become
classroom researchers - The research we do within our online classrooms
can (and should) be published
31When planning a classroom research project, Cross
and Steadman suggest the following
- Formulate a question about the learning of
students in your class that is important to you
in your teaching - Keep your question simple, realistic, and focused
on your own experience. Follow your hunches
predict what might happen - Inform yourself about what is known about the
learning issue you have selected. Read with
focus-not necessarily exhaustively. Form a study
group to share the load
32- Reformulate your question into a researchable
question. What do you want to know? - Work with other faculty to discuss, design,
cooperate on, and interpret your Classroom
Research projects - Think through how students will benefit how they
can be included in the research what issues are
too sensitive for the student-teacher relationship
33- Decide how you will investigate your question.
(Avoid the temptation to use an instrument
because it is there or to collect data that have
no clear purpose.) - Conduct a pilot study, with yourself and
colleagues as respondents - Estimate the time needed for student response and
for analysis of the data
34- Even if you have no plans to publish, write up
your results to clarify for yourself what you
have learned - about doing research, about
learning, about your teaching.(226)
35On That Note
- Carol Holder has established an office of
Scholarship of Teaching Projects for CLASS on our
campus - Even though Carol will be spending 2002-03 as
Director of Faculty Development for CSU Channel
Islands, she has graciously allowed us access to
her web-site, which contains innumerable items of
interest to those interested in conducting
classroom research - www.csupomona.edu/cholder/links.html
- www.csupomona.edu/cholder/pubguides.html