Post-lectureIUP course

September 2011

Frederik Voetmann ChristiansenMichael May

Course website

• Slides from the course:http://iupseptember2011.wikispaces.com

New ideas about teaching in conservative settings?

Conflict of interests

Two types of belief

• Self-efficacy beliefs: Belief in ones capacity to perform a specific task well (e.g. teaching).

• Outcome expectancy beliefs: Belief that the environment that you are in is somehow unresponsive or unappreciative of efficacy.

”People can give up trying because they seriously doubt that they can do what is required. Or they may be assured of their capabilities but give up trying bevause they expect their efforts to produce no results due to the unresponsiveness, negative bias, or punitiveness of the environment. ” (Bandura, 1982)

Psychological effects of interplay

Social activism: Making an impact

• You have degrees of freedom in the planning and teaching situations.

• Find allies - one at a time!• People in academia will listen to good arguments – write

things down.• Make suggestions specific: Do (some of) the work that

needs to be done!• Grab opportunities• Be patient: Changes do not come from one day to

another.

Conflict of interests

Teaching interdisciplinary groups

Turning a ”problem” into an asset

• 3 examples:

• Course in Science Communication (SCIENCE)• Course in Environmental (LIFE)• Course in Environmental Ethics (DTU)

• Giving up the teachers ”monopoly” on what is going to happen in the teaching. Student contributions and capabilities matter!

Problems in mathematics classes with ”boring proofs” etc.

1. First of all we need to distinguish different didactic situations!

• If students are there to study mathematics as a discipline they will have to understand proofs, model theory etc. – and they will learn to appreciate it(otherwise they should perhaps not study mathematics…)

• It students are there because they need mathematics courses to be able to apply some matematics in other sciences, you should consider if theyneed the proofs at all (examples of application would be more relevant)

2. If the proof is essential for your didactic situation, try and add some other elements to it (to make it significant, relevant and intuitive):

• History of science: How was the proof discovered?• Does the proof illustrate some general method or procedure in mathematics

that we also learn about (besides the particular proof)?• Is it possible (before giving the actual proof) to make the content of the

proof (what the proof is ”about”) intuitively understandable, i.e. do we have reasons to believe in this particular content (other than the proof)?

• If it is a long complicated proof, you should try to provide a logical outline, in order for students to understand the steps involved, and ”where you are” in the proof at any given moment…

How to handle ”difficult students” (ill prepared, disruptive etc.)

1. First of all you will know from this course that you should see ”difficult students” as a symptom (sign of) of underlying problems of a structural kind, i.e.

• Students might be ill prepared because they have to much work (e.g. in other classes)

• Students might be noisy, disruptive, come late to class etc. because they are not motivated, involved and made responsible for activities in class

• Students might be unfocussed on teaching because they do not understand how the course is relevant within their education as a whole

• Students might, of course, also engage in behavior/activities in class that you find unacceptable or out-of-place (in which case you will have to tell them!!)

2. Many problems can be resolved or at least clarified through the initial ”didactic contract”, i.e. how you frame teaching and learning activities within the course as a mutual responsibility, how it is relevant, how you establish a dialogue with your students etc.

Large class teaching

• Teaching Large classes by Graham Gibbs

• http://learningandteaching.dal.ca/reso.html