TIPS FOR EFFECTIVE TEACHING IN STEM HIGHER EDUCATION

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TIPS FOR EFFECTIVE TEACHING IN STEM HIGHER
EDUCATION

• Benjamin C. Flores, Ph.D.
• Director, Computing and Electrical and
  Engineering Division
• MIE Project Director
• June 24, 2005

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Interaction with Students

• Treat everyone with respect
• Learn your students names
• Face students and move around the classroom
• Use an e-mail account for the class
• Invite students to meet you during office hours
• Invite teams to visit your research lab
• Take advantage of different leaning styles to
  motivate students

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Shake hands with someone you dont knowAsk
him/her What kind of learner are you?
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Questions

• Encourage students to write questions on the
  board before the start of the period
• Ask a question to the entire class every 10-15
  minutes
• Allow students to discuss answers with a
  neighbor
• Use flash cards for quick feedback
• Restate all questions

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What is the typical attention span of a college
student?A) 50 minutesB) 20 minutesC) 10
minutes
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Lecture Strategies

• Share your passion about learning
• Project your voice and vary your tone
• Divide lecture into 10-15 minute segments
• Promote face to face interaction
• Integrate hands on activities
• Share notes with students
• Require 1 minute essays at the end of the period

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You are assigned to teach CHEM101. The lecture
room holds 144 students. The furniture is bolted
to the floor. The schedule calls for 80 minute
sessions. What can you do to promote
learning?Stop lecturing every 10 minutes or so
and ask a pertinent question that requires that
the students think for a minute and discuss it
with with a peer for two minutes.
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Team Based Learning

• Form random groups of 4 members early in the
  semester
• Check for gender and diversity balance and
  reassign teams if necessary
• Allow team members to get to know each other
• Let them pick a team name
• Discuss and promote individual accountability in
  class
• Meet with each team early in the semester to
  discuss group processing and team skills

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P Promotive interaction - I learn better when
I interact with othersI Individual
accountability - I am responsible for my own
workG Group processing - Our team must make
time to think about how we work togetherS
Social skill - It pays to be polite and
reasonable PIGS FACE TO FACE
Team Based Learning
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Syllabus

• Post it on the web before the start of the
  semester
• Think of it as a group contract
• Set expectations
• Discuss the syllabus in class
• List critical outcomes
• List important dates
• Include a statement on academic honesty
• Explain how final grade will be determined
• Help students take ownership of their grade

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Share with us the most unusual information you
have found in a syllabuscell phonesgoing to
the restroomsleeping in class
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Homework

• Develop a homework grading policy
• Give specific instructions to your TA on grading
  procedure
• Assign 1 to 3 problems every class period
• Post solutions on a regular basis
• Return graded homework on a regular basis
• Plan problem solving sessions with TA

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On average, how much time does a freshman study
for every hour of lecture?A) 4 hoursB) 2
hoursC) 1 hour
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You are assigned to teach CS101 Introduction to
Programming. You want to promote team work on
HW assignments but you are concerned that entire
code routines are being shared indiscriminately.
Develop a policy of what constitutes cheating
on HW assignments.
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Exams

• Remind students of exam dates
• Verify that test problems correlate with course
  outcomes
• Prepare test solution before giving the exam
• Check for length and time
• Make special arrangements for students with
  learning disabilities
• Discuss solution in class and post solutions

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You are teaching Thermodynamics this semester.
Unfortunately youve been too busy writing a
journal article and have not been able to prepare
an exam for the morning. Luckily you have found
an old Thermo book at the library and hastily
pick three end-of-chapter problems to make an
exam.What could possibly go wrong?
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NSF Curriculum, Course, and Laboratory
Improvement Program

• Seek external funding (NSF)
• Think outside the box
• Team up with senior faculty
• Do your research
• Publish your work Scholarship of Teaching

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Support for the MIE Program is provided by the
National Science Foundation