the cdio approach to engineering education: 4. engaging students in their learning and assessing...
TRANSCRIPT
THE CDIO APPROACH
TO ENGINEERING EDUCATION:4. Engaging Students in Their Learning
and Assessing That Learning
November 2007
CDIO AS THE
CONTEXTTHE CDIO SYLLABUS
INTEGRATEDCURRICULUM
INTRO TO ENGINEERING
DESIGN-IMPLEMENT
EXPERIENCES
WORKSPACES
LEARNING
FACULTY COMPETENCE
ASSESSMENT
PRO-GRAM
EVALU-ATION
WHY WHAT
HOW
HOWWELL
SESSION FOUR
SESSION FOUR OBJECTIVES
Give examples of active and experiential
learning methods
Describe a variety of methodsto assess learning
Recognize the importance ofaligning curriculum, teaching,
learning, and assessment
RATIONALE FOR ENGAGING LEARNERS
“The teacher’s fundamental task is to get students to engage in learning activities that are likely to result in their achieving the desired outcomes.
Remember that what the student does is actually more important in determining what is learned than what the teacher does.”
-- Thomas J. Shuell
(Courtesy of Queen’s University Belfast)
CONSTRUCTIVE ALIGNMENT
What shouldstudents know orbe able to do as aresult of thecourse?
How can studentsdemonstrate that theyhave reached theintended learningoutcomes?
What activities areappropriate for
students in order toreach the intended
learning outcomes?
Teachingand learning
activitiesAssessment
Intendedlearningoutcomes
Intendedlearning
outcomes
ACTIVE AND EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING
ACTIVE LEARNING
Engages students directly in thinking and problem solving activities
Emphasis on engaging students in manipulating, applying, analyzing, and evaluating ideas
Examples:Pair-and-ShareGroup discussionsDebatesConcept questions
EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING
Active learning in which students take on roles that simulate professional engineering practice
Examples:Design-implement experiencesProblem-based learningSimulationsCase studies
CONCRETE
EXPERIENCE
REFLECTIVE
OBSERVATION
ABSTRACT
GENERALIZATION
ACTIVE
EXPERIMENTATION
Tutorials, Activities, Labs, Simulations
Lectures: Concepts, Models, Laws
Design-Implement Projects, Field Work
Journals,Portfolios,Lab Notes
USING A VARIETY OF METHODS
(Adapted from Kolb, 1984)
METHODS THAT ENGAGE LEARNERS
Concept Questions
Pre-Class Readings & Homework
Case Studies and Simulations
Cooperative Learning
Learning Objectives
Muddiest-Part-of-the-Lecture
Cards
Project-Based Learning
Ticking
Circle the teaching and learning methods used in your course or program.
CONCEPT QUESTIONS
• Focus on a single concept
• Are not solvable by relying solely on equations
• Reveal common difficulties with the concepts
• Have several plausible answers based on typical student misunderstandings
SAMPLE CONCEPT QUESTION
To maximize endurance, an airplane must fly in a manner that
1. Minimizes drag
2. Maximizes drag
3. Maximizes the lift/drag ratio
4. Maximizes power available
5. Minimizes power required
SAMPLE CONCEPT QUESTION
Social negotiation promotes learning because students
1. Have opportunities to evaluate their own understandings
2. Are placed in situations with students they wouldn’t otherwise meet
3. Learn the principles of workplace negotiations4. I have no idea
TICKING
• Students are asked to prepare solutions to a set of problems. All students work on the same set of problems
• At the recitation or class session, students tick on a list the problems they are willing and prepared to present
• Students are chosen at random to present the problems on the board - one student per problem
• The student must demonstrate an honest effort to prepare the problem, and be able to lead a classroom discussion to a satisfactory solution. Should they fail in this, their ticks are cancelled (for that session)
• Ticking at least 75% of the problems is required, or rewarded with bonus points, or similar
• Note that the reward is given for the ticks. As the purpose is purely formative, the quality of presentations does not affect the grade
COMMENTS ABOUT TICKING
WHAT STUDENTS SAY:
“I now realize that in every course before this, I have only solved problems to get them done, without thinking really.”
“This gave me motivation to prepare for class, because I did not want to stand up and say that I couldn’t do it.”
This is the first time I have seen friends, who are generally weaker students, really “get it”.
WHAT INSTRUCTORS SAY:
“Suddenly, students don’t want to leave! They stay and work after class, discussing alternative solutions. During all my years as a teacher I have never seen anything like this.”
“This raised the level of the whole course. The lectures, as well, have become interesting to students, now that they have the basis for understanding them.”
(Courtesy of KTH-Royal Institute of Technology)
KEY PRINCIPLES
• Generating time on task
• Generating appropriate learning activities
• Providing prompt feedback
• Providing feedback that the students pay attention to
• Helping the students internalize criteria for quality
It’s about improving what the student does.
(based on Gibbs, 1999)
COOPERATIVE LEARNING (JIGSAW)
Divide the class into groups of three or four. These are students’ base groups.
Within each group, count out the number of concepts to be learned.
Students move to the group with all the same number, e.g., all the 1’s together.
In this new group, students discuss the assigned concept. They decide how they will teach this concept to their base groups. They can use sketches and examples to clarify the concept.
Students return to their base group and teach their concept to the whole base group.
When all groups have learned all the concepts, check for understanding.
PROCEDURE
CHECKING FOR UNDERSTANDING
• What are some of the ways that I can check to see if you understand the concepts you learned in the Cooperative Learning Jigsaw activity?
• What is the role of the instructor with cooperative learning activities?
CHECKING FOR UNDERSTANDING
• What are some of the ways that I can check to see if you understand the concepts you learned in the Cooperative Learning Jigsaw activity?
• What is the role of the instructor with cooperative learning activities?
PROJECT-BASED LEARNING
• Student-centered and self-directed
• Organized around real-world problems
• Focused on authentic skills
• Collaborative• With faculty as facilitators
BEST PRACTICE
CDIO Standard 8 -- Active Learning
Teaching and learning based on active and experiential learning methods
CDIO Standard 11 -- Learning Assessment
Assessment of student learning in personal and interpersonal skills, and product, process, and system building skills, as well as in disciplinary knowledge
CONSTRUCTIVE ALIGNMENT
What shouldstudents know orbe able to do as aresult of thecourse?
How can studentsdemonstrate that theyhave reached theintended learningoutcomes?
What activities areappropriate for
students in order toreach the intended
learning outcomes?
Teachingand learning
activitiesAssessment
Intendedlearningoutcomes
Intendedlearning
outcomes
ASSESSMENT METHODS
Performance Assessment
Design Project Assessment
Peer and Self- Assessment
Reflective Journals and
Portfolios
Learning Objectives
Circle the assessment methods that you use in your course or program.
Informal Assessment
Self-Report Instruments
INFORMAL ASSESSMENT
• What did you learn so far today?What did you learn about?
What did you learn how to do?
What do you have more confidence about, or change your opinion about?
• Without looking at your notes, write three or four things you learned.
NOMINAL GROUP TECHNIQUE
Procedure
When everyone has finished writing at least three responses, ask the first person for one response from his/her list.
Record the response so that everyone can see it. (Do not discuss; simply record.)
Go to the next person, ask for a different response. A person who does not have any different responses to
add to the common list simply passes. Continue around the group until all different ideas have
been named (nominal) and listed. Summarize the responses.
PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT
Design ConsiderationsStudents prepare and present a
performance of a valued activity, e.g., oral presentations and technical briefings, problem-solving, teamwork
It is the process itself that is assessed
ProcedureUse rubrics that address specific
criteria relevant to the process and scales with 3 to 5 levels of mastery
CRITICAL DESIGN REVIEW
DESIGN PROJECT ASSESSMENT
Design ConsiderationsA project whose focus is on the
development of a tangible product
The product itself, the process, and quality of reasoning are all assessed
ProcedureUse rubrics that address
specific criteria relevant to the product, process and quality of reasoning and scales with 3 to 5 levels of mastery
SAMPLE DESIGN PROJECT ASSESSMENT
• Product Assessment– Built to
specification– Time
• Team Collaboration• Written
Documentation• Reflective Journal
(Courtesy of Chalmers University of Technology)
Formula Student Project
SAMPLE DESIGN PROJECT ASSESSMENT
• Product Assessment– Built to
specification– Course completion– Time– Number of trials
• Team Collaboration • Articulation of robot
logic
LEGO Robotics
(Courtesy of Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
ACTIVITY: MUDDIEST-PART-OF-THE-LECTURE CARD
What is still “clear as mud” to you?
What teaching, learning, and assessment methods can you introduce or improve in your courses?