Group items tagged

"The simple thing is to always be trying something new; novelty is really important to learning and to motivation"

Treating something as a "game" is usually a pejorative - meaning that the thing is not taken seriously or is manipulated outside its original purpose. But games (in all their forms) are also good at building skills and knowledge in the players, and at moving players from extrinsic to intrinsic motivation. Are there techniques used in games which apply to classes?

We want independent, self-motivated learners, but we also know clear expectations are key to teaching disciplinary modes of thinking (and avoiding basic errors). How do you balance that tension?

This excerpt from Dee Fink's book "Creating Significant Learning Experiences" argues for using both "scoreboards" - clear and reliable grading criteria - and "applause" - praise for accomplishments - to motivate students. I was particularly taken with the exercise at the end of the section in which students and a professor collaborate on a letter to thank the student's previous teacher for contributing to the student's development.

Students will ultimately perform better if we focus on effort and process (things which anyone can change) instead of talent and output (which can seem immutable).

What do classes look like as you move from infrequent, high-stakes assignments and exams to frequent grading of low-stakes activities? Warnock makes a number of claims, backed up by the literature - students become more confident and motivated, there's less incentive to cheat, the dialogue between students and faculty improves. I particularly like the last half of the article, where he talks about the practical elements of increasing informal writing or quizzing in a course.

Worth thinking about this as we wrap up the semester and plan for the next one. Did your students find your course to be difficult enough to be motivating, but still achievable?

This article discusses an interesting approach to discussion participation in the syllabus: what's expected, what's "good" participation, and how do you get students motivated to participate?

An interesting description of the "peer instruction" model used to achieve active learning in large lecture classes by Eric Mazur.

I'm actually a big fan of pop quizzes - I think they motivate students to keep up, and provide useful diagnostic information to the teacher. However, in-class quizzes chew up valuable face-to-face time, require manual grading (which slows their utility), and as this article points out, are deeply unfair to students with some disabilities. This article suggests other ways to hold a "pop quiz" which are equally accessible to all students (and potentially provide information faster to the faculty member). Hat tip to Erin Salva for the link.

"Our businesslike efforts to measure and improve quality are now blocking the altruism, indeed the love, that motivates people to enter the helping professions." How can we make sure our assessments are focused on the most important things - inside the classroom and of the classroom?

Good conversation about the ways in which we can use the study of memory and motivation to help us and our students follow through on our intentions to work and study well.

A review of the book "Minds On Fire", which discusses "subversive play" as an engaging pedagogy. Part 3 in a series on the "Reacting to the Past" series of "role-immersion" games; the other 2 entries are linked from this one.

Perhaps the biggest outcome of a liberal arts education should be the understanding that every discipline is more based on learned and practiced skills than innate aptitude. The four tips in this article might be boiled down to one umbrella concept - talk to your students about growth mindset.

Interesting contrarian article from Alfie Kohn, pointing out that too much focus on "growth mindset" might be a way to sidestep larger questions of curriculum, pedagogy, and the social structures of education.

As the semester rolls through week 11, I start to think about how I might better motivate my students and make teaching my subject more fun for myself. My thoughts usually turn toward flipping lessons, which I still maintain is an old idea, but what is new is the "urgency" to implement the concept more efficiently (for a variety of reasons). These FAQ answers should help ease the implementation. Oh, if you don't like the term "flipped classroom" that is the topic of one of the later FAQs. I'm not a big fan of his preferred alternative term, but it really is the pedagogical concept that you want to buy into -- not the name.

This is an interesting variation on contract grading that engages students directly with the concepts of risk, value, and probability.

"After all of the time I spent convincing students that these assignments were no big thing, I was sending the opposite message since clearly my grading problem was a real big thing." T.L. Cowan talks about designing a rubric for "low-stakes" writing assignments which motivates students and preserves her expressive style.

How can library research assignments help students learn to guard against accepting only the information which confirms their beliefs?

It can't be an accident that this was published just as faculty start staring down big piles of Thanksgiving break grading. The arguments, however, are about how grades serve as limiters on student learning.