Reflecting on large class teaching

Editor's Notes

• #5: Relative to what you are used to. When it becomes challenging to engage with each student individually.
• #6: Class size not distinguishing feature of student performance Lack of research evidence that less effective learning in large class (Allwright 1989a, 1989b; Ur 1996) Quality of teaching (what lecturer does in course), curriculum design and kinds of activities / assessment used more important than class size (Biggs 1999; Boulton-Lewis 1998; Exeter et al 2010; Kember 1998; Marton & Booth 1997; Meyers & Nulty 2002; Mulryan-Kyne 2010; Powell 1982; Rowntree 1987)
• #7: Large class can & should be welcoming & engaging space for learning - not about information transfer Principle for effective learning (American Association for Higher Education): Student-faculty contact: from day one; share who you are Cooperation among students Active learning: Learning is not a spectator sport. Active learning shown to increase student scores on exams (Freeman et al 2014) Prompt feedback Emphasise time on task: also link content to their lives Communicate high expectations Respect diverse talents and ways of knowing
• #13: Management: discipline, distractions (such as noise levels, coming last / leaving early), absenteeism, organising activities Physical: noise, can’t see/hear, provision of materials Affective factors: achieving rapport, not knowing students individually / anonymity, sense of community (drink tea with small groupings of students; arrive early / leave later to chat with students) Interaction: passivity; opportunities to speak; students not asking questions Marking and feedback: logistics of collecting assignments, marking load, moderate
• #14: Isolation / anonymity, Noise, Engagement /concentration, Motivation, Fear
• #17: Do survey in week 1 about who they are, and use it in class in examples Try to learn some student names - attempt is appreciated, as it communicates care Name cards in front of them Encourage use of consultation hours Students come in groups Give extra credit for students making use of consolation hours to discuss progress in course
• #18: Make yourself know to students, and always be honest Show care for and belief in students Start on day one with content Integrate student life in class, e.g., Valentine’s day Students have to get to know one another - tutorials very useful; study buddy; think-pair-share in class student-to-student interaction (rather than lecturer-student interaction) Do group work: online discussions, tutorials, collaborative project-based learning Respond to emails timeously Create a space in which mistakes are celebrated. But not the same mistake.
• #19: Must use mic / pa system Move around - mobile mic & slide mover Visual aids - images & colour in presentations Have some suspense & anticipation Put questions to students to discuss in groups, and have group questions back - think, pair, share Challenge of large class is keep students engaged in authentic manner Use of clickers Twitter Discussions with tutors Write / draw on paper Experiments / demonstrations Activity in class that count for class attendance Flip classroom
• #22: There must be control; but it does not mean no noise! Planned chaos Start & end on time - be a role model on time management Encourage spontaneity Use humour & entertainment Play music Thea’s toilet roll Healer act
• #25: Collaborative project-based work Tutorials Online - Blackboard, wiki, other online courses (MOOC) Students create personalised learning networks - have hundreds of experts involved in their learning
• #27: Continuous assessment Use marking rubrics & moderate Timeous and sufficient feedback so that learn from mistakes: start assessment early on; share list of common problems in assignments Peer review: provide marking guidelines, have two students mark it, get average of marks; have rebuttal period where student motivates to lecture why disagree with markers Lombardi’s authentic learning: real-world relevance, ill-defined problem, multiple sources / perspectives, collaboration, reflection, interdisciplinary perspective, integrated assessment More plagiarism in large classes?
• #28: Use markers: train them, moderate marking Have logistics sorted so that have week turn-around Increasing use various forms of exemplars to guide student efforts - also for markers
• #29: With other lecturer(s) & support divisions within UJ Effective use of tutors Make use of students working in groups
• #30: Tablets in class. Follow and share at #ujtablet or #ujhtl
• #32: Tech is a tool to be used to achieve learning Blended learning. What do with large class online? Wiki, blog, tweet