CIT Teaching & Learning Unit

Week No

Date

Title & Descriptor

3

Tuesday,

2^nd October 2018

Research-Based Teaching Strategies - The Pause Procedure & Minute Paper

The pause procedure and minute paper are two simple teaching strategies that can be introduced into any lecture. This session will provide examples of their use in action and point to some evidence of their effectiveness.

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Resources:

• Chowdhury, F. (2016) ‘THE POWER OF USING PAUSE PROCEDURE DURING ACCOUNTING LECTURE: AN ACTION RESEARCH STUDY’, European Journal of Business and Social Sciences, 5(06), pp. 101–108.

• Stead, D. R. (2005) ‘A review of the one-minute paper’, Active Learning in Higher Education, 6(2), pp. 118–131.

4

Tuesday,

9^th October 2018

Research-Based Teaching Strategies - Peer Instruction

The teaching strategy peer instruction was popularised by Eric Mazur to support the teaching of physics to undergraduate students at Harvard and is now one of the most widely used instructional strategies in undergraduate physics education. It has wide applicability outside of the physics discipline.

This session will demonstrate peer instruction in action and discuss some of the evidence in favour of its effectiveness.

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Resources:

• A great article in which Eric Mazur, who popularised Peer Instruction, talks about the instructional methodology and its origins....https://harvardmagazine.com/2012/03/twilight-of-the-lecture
• A great, recent review of the literature on peer instruction: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4353089/ 

5

Tuesday,

16^th October 2018

Research-Based Teaching Strategies - The Generation Effect

The generation effect refers to a broad range of techniques that require learners to generate information on a topic e.g. create a presentation or predict an outcome. There is a growing body of evidence which shows that having learners generate information is more effective than if they simply read the information.

This session will review this body of evidence and discuss ways in which we could incorporate this strategy into our day-to-day teaching.

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6

Tuesday,

23^rd October 2018

Research-Based Teaching Strategies - Using Tests to Improve Information Retrieval

Having students retrieve information from long-term memory on a regular basis, is known to have a positive impact on learning. This is especially true when learners need to put a bit of effort into that retrieval process. Hence providing opportunities for learners to take tests (e.g. computer based multiple choice tests) can be a very effective strategy.

This session will examine some of the evidence in favour of testing and discuss options for using this strategy.

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Resources

• Rowland, C. A. (2014) ‘The effect of testing versus restudy on retention: a meta-analytic review of the testing effect’, Psychological bulletin, 140(6), pp. 1432–1463. doi: 10.1037/a0037559
• Miller, R.L, Santana-Vega, E., & Terrell, M.S. (2006) 'Can good questions and peer discussion improve calculus instruction?', Problems, Resources, and Issues in Mathematics Undergraduate Studies, 16(3)
• Day, I.N.Z, van Blankenstein, F.M, Westenberg, M. & Admiraal, W. (2017) 'A review of the characteristics of intermediate assessment and their relationship with student grades', Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, DOI: 10.1080/02602938.2017.1417974

8

Tuesday,

6^th November 2018

Research-Based Teaching Strategies - The Spacing Effect

The spacing effect refers to the process of spacing a topic that is to be learned over time, rather than teaching the topic in an intensive session. The implication for our modules is that rather than teaching all of LO1 in weeks 1 and 2 (for example) we should consider if it is possible to divide the topic and teach some in week 1 and then revisit (perhaps in greater depth) later on in the semester. The topic is then spaced out over the semester. The available evidence tells us that this is a more effective strategy.

This session will explore this strategy in more detail and present some of the evidence that supports this strategy.

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Resources

• Son, L.K., Simon, D., 2012. Distributed learning: data, metacognition, and educational implications. Educ. Psychol. Rev. 24, 379–399.
• van Dongen, K.W., Mitra, P.J., Schijven, M.P., Broeders, I.A.M.J., 2011. Distributed versus massed training: efficiency of training psychomotor skills. Surg. Tech. Dev.

9

Tuesday,

13^th November 2018

Research-Based Teaching Strategies - Cooperative Learning Groups

This session aims to examine some of the different types of learning groups that you may create within the classroom and explore some of the issues associated with facilitating and supporting those groups. We will also examine some of the evidence that advocates for the use of cooperative learning in comparison to individualistic or competitive learning.

At this session, participants were divided into groups of 5, and were asked to use a cooperative learning technique known as the jigsaw approach to answer some questions on the following two resources:

• Cooperative Learning: Improving university instruction by basing practice on validated theory
• Student Team Learning

11

Tuesday,

27^th November 2018

Research-Based Teaching Strategies - Class Discussion

Designing and managing in-class discussions is more challenging than the pause procedure or minute paper, but there is convincing evidence that collaborative learning works.

This session will model an in-class discussion and discuss some of the evidence that supports this strategy.

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Resources:

• Smith,M. K.,Wood,W. B., Adams,W. K.,Wieman, C., Knight, J. K., Guild, N., & Su, T. T. (2009). Why peer discussion improves student performance on in-class concept questions. Science, 323, 122–124.
• Curt Dudley-Marling (2013), Discussion in Postsecondary Classrooms: A Review of the Literature, SAGE Open, DOI: 10.1177/2158244013515688