YORK UNIVERSITY
Faculty of Graduate Studies
Summer 2003
UTAL 5000.03: Universitying and Learning
May 6 - June 19, 2003 (Tuesday and Thursdays)
2:30 - 5:30 p.m.
3006 Vari Hall
| Course Directors: |
|
Section A:
Leslie Sanders
706 Atkinson
416 736-2100, x66604,
leslie@yorku.ca |
Section B:
Janice Newton
S 638 Ross
416-736-2100, x88832,
jnewton@yorku.ca |
COURSE OUTLINE
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course examines the theory and practice of university teaching. Topics include: the philosophy and goals of higher education; ethics; learning theories and learning differences; critical pedagogy; feminist pedagogy; teaching strategies including lecturing, small group discussion, collaborative learning, problem-based and case-study methods, methods for teaching critical thinking and writing skills; the use of technology in teaching; evaluation of students' learning and evaluation of teaching.
COURSE GOALS
• To widen your repertoire of teaching and assessment methods, and provide opportunities for you to consider how to adapt them to teaching in your own discipline.
• To increase your understanding of teaching and learning processes so that you can make appropriate and informed decisions about course design and choice of teaching, learning and assessment methods.
• To provide an environment which supports you in experiencing a variety of teaching strategies and in giving and receiving constructive feedback on teaching.
• To foster habits of reflection and life-long learning in teaching development.
REQUIRED READINGS
Voices from the Classroom: Reflections on Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (2001). Newton, Ginsburg, Rehner, Rogers, Sbrizzi and Spencer (eds.) Toronto: Garamond Press.
Learning Through Writing (2001). Wright, Herteis and Abernethy. Dalhousie University.
Course Kit available from the York University Bookstore.
RECOMMENDED READING
Davis, Barbara Gross (1993). Tools for Teaching. San Francisco, California: Jossey-Bass Inc. (This text has been used in previous years and students find it an excellent reference source, consulting it frequently. Sections of the text are available at: http://teaching.berkeley.edu/teaching.html)
Active Learning (1999). Cameron. Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education.
Teaching Large Classes (1998). Gedalof. Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Learning Teams
To maximize your learning in the course, the class will be divided into inter-disciplinary learning teams of about 5 students. Learning teams meet throughout the course, inside and outside of class, to undertake a variety of formal and informal class assignments including, for example, preparing readings and developing questions and guidelines for discussion, sharing reflections, and the problem-based learning and micro-teaching sections of the course.
Problem-based learning (PBL)
In the PBL approach, learning teams discuss a case or try to resolve a problem taken from a typical university situation, identify issues the case suggests (Goal setting), and then pursue individual study of the literature relating to those issues. At the next meeting (Teach), team members discuss their findings and apply it to solve a problem, prepare a report or make a presentation. In a final meeting (Feedback), the team assesses the quality of their learning and the effectiveness of the process. Throughout the process, team members engage in self-evaluation and provide each other with constructive feedback on performance. There will be two PBL cycles in the course.
PBL 1
"What do you need to know to be a good university teacher?"
"What do you need to do to be a good university teacher?"
“How will you evaluate whether you’ve done it?”
PBL 2
You have been asked to re-design an introductory course in your discipline to that incorporates principles of diversity and inclusion.
What do you need to know to do this?
What do you need to do to do this?
How will you evaluate whether you have done it?
Micro-teaching (MT)
You will be organized into micro-teaching groups. Each group will book three 90-minute sessions in the CST meeting room outside of normal class meetings in order to undertake this assignment. For each session, two students will prepare to teach a complete learning segment, approximately 10-15 minutes in length. The plan for your presentation should take into account the diverse backgrounds of the team members. Your presentation should prompt the learning of a specific skill or concept and employ appropriate teaching/learning strategies. Each presentation will be videotaped and followed by feedback and discussion. The three micro-teaching sessions will allow each of the students in a group to receive feedback on their teaching and provide time for final reflection on the group's learning. Video-taping/feedback sessions will begin May 14 (each students will need to purchase a videotape for this assignment). Students will prepare a written report assessing their growth through this micro-teaching assignment for inclusion in your Teaching Portfolio. Video tapes may be also included in Teaching Portfolio. More detailed guidelines will be provided in class.
Attendance
Because much of the work of this course will be based on group work and in-class exercises, regular attendance is required. The course depends on everyone’s attendance and participation.
Course design paper
Design a course in your field using principles discussed in the course. Choose an introductory course that you may someday teach, a course you have already or are currently teaching, or one you want to teach. Pick a topic you know well and for which you have access to good resource material.
Your paper should include a course outline and a description of how your plan achieves the learning objectives of your course. Course outlines should be developed in conformity with the practices of your discipline but should include at a minimum the following:
- a course title and description;
- a clear statement of learning objectives;
- the required and recommended readings;
- an outline for a class schedule – you are not expected to give full details and/or readings for each session;
- a description of the assignments and assessment methods;
- a description of class activities planned for one segment of the course with demonstrated link to learning objective.
Further guidelines for this assignment will be given in class.
Professional Growth Portfolio
Evaluation of your performance in this course will be based on an assessment of your professional growth portfolio. See page 4 for complete guidelines on this assignment including expectations and guidelines for assessment.
Deadline: Professional Growth Portfolios are due on July 2, 2003. Please bring your portfolios to the Centre for the Support of Teaching.
| COURSE SCHEDULE
Note: “W” indicates the article is accessible through an E-journal on the York Library system, or can be directly linked on the Internet via the class web site.
“*” indicates the article is in the course kit
Unmarked readings are from required texts. |
| Date |
Topic |
Notes |
| May 6 |
Course Overview: first class issues, resource assignment, team formation Reading: * Barr and Tagg, “From Teaching to Learning – A New Paradigm for Undergraduate Education” Voices: Section I, Part I (all); Part II (Briskin, Sanders, James)
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Start work on resource assignment PBL 1 – Goal Setting |
| May 8 |
Theories of Learning: Learning styles; Deep and surface learning; Stages of cognitive development Reading: Voices, Section II W - Kreber, “Learning Experientially,” Teaching in Higher - Education, Vol 6, No. 2, 2001 * Svincki and Dixon, “The Kolb Model Modified for Classroom Activities” |
team meetings PBL 1 – Research |
| May 13 |
Discussion of Learning Theories: Cultural attitudes in the classroom; Philosophy of teaching Reading: Course Kit: * Tobias, “They’re Not Dumb, They’re Different” * Weimer, “Teaching Tensions” * The Five Tensions of Teaching” * Marcroft, “The Politics of the Classroom: Toward an Oppositional Pedagogy” W - Hansen and Stephens, “Ethics of Learner-Centered Education,” Change (Sept/Oct 2000) W - Huber, “Balancing Acts: Designing Careers Around the Scholarship,” Change (July/Aug. 2001) |
Groups for MT: schedule and book three micro-teaching sessions in CST |
| May 15 |
Exemplary Teacher Panel: Preparation for interviews. Panel of exemplary teachers. Reflection on panel. |
PBL 1 (Teach) Report on resources; E-copy of Resources assignment due |
| May 20 |
Course Design: Learning Objectives Goal setting Reading Voices: Section III W - Stout, “Radical Course Revision” * “What are Instructional Objectives and Why Do need them” |
Begin course design assignment |
| May 22 |
Inclusive classroom: Cultural attitudes in the classroom How does a good student behave? If we impose this behaviour, what are we doing? Do issues of inclusivity affect course design? Reading * Kaiser and Rogers, “Introduction: Equity in Mathematics Education” W - Ofori-Dankwa and Lane, “Four Approaches to Cultural Diversity,” Teaching in Higher Education v. 5:4 (2000) |
PBL (2) Goal Setting |
| May 27 |
Collaborative Learning: Class discussions Questioning Active learning Readings Voices : Section VI, Part 2 and 3. * Frederick, “The Dreaded Discussion: Ten Ways to Start” * Welty, “Discussion Method Teaching” * Crow, “Teaching as an Interactive Process” W - Trosset, “Obstacles to Open Discussion and Critical Thinking,” Change (Sept/Oct) 1998 Rockwood, “Cooperative and Collaborative Learning” National Teaching and Learning Forum, 5, no. 1, 1995 * Richardson and Turner, “Collaborative Learning in the Virtual Classroom” * Mullen, “Linking Research and Teaching,” Teaching in Higher Education 5:1 (2000) |
Self-evaluate your class participation |
| May 29 |
Assignments I: writing plagiarism Readings: Voices, Section V; Section VII, Part 2 Wright, Herteis and Abernethy, Learning Through Writing * Nancy Sommers, “Responding to Student Writing” |
Feedback on participation |
| June 3 |
Assignments II: Assignment design (class presentations, exams, reading journals, posters, etc.) Evaluation of students: formative and summative What are we evaluating? What should an exam achieve? Readings Voices, Section VII, Part 1 and3. * Boud, “Assessment and the Promotion of Academic Values” |
Prepare reflection paper on PBL 2 - Teach |
| June 5 |
Lecturing: Lecture techniques Classroom assessment Active learning in large classes Readings Voices, Section VI, Part I * Habeshaw, “The Art of Lecturing,” Part I and II W: Browne and Freeman, “Distinguishing Features of Critical Thinking in Classrooms,” Teaching in Higher Education 5:3 (2000) * Fritz, “Using a Reading Strategy to Foster Active Learning in Content Area Courses” |
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| June 10 |
Technology in the classroom: Why are you using it? Technology skill sets: Workshops outside of class will be scheduled for students to learn basic skill sets, including: Getting your class lists Creating a simple course web page Using Excel to create grade sheets Creating a class listserv
For those interested, advanced workshops will also be available to demonstrate: Web CT Power Point Course design software |
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| June 12 |
Ethics in Teaching Challenges and difficult classes Readings: W - STLHE, “Ethical Principles in University Teaching” |
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| June 17 |
Evaluation of Teaching Teaching Dossiers Voices, Section VIII W - Senate “Teaching Evaluation Guidelines” |
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| June 19 |
PBL (1) (Feedback/reports); discussion, and course evaluation |
Reports on PBL 1 and 2 |
Required artifacts:
- Growth plan
- PBL reflection paper
- MT self-evaluation report
- Course design paper
- At least one reading
Critical reflection on each artifact addresses the following questions:
- What is the artifact’s purpose and general content?
- What have you learned about the relationship between teaching and learning?
- How has this artifact contributed to (or how does this artifact demonstrate) your understanding of the relationship between teaching and learning in your discipline?
Critical reflections might also include:
- descriptions of related theoretical principles
- comments on the nature of student learning
- descriptions of specific teaching practices including design, implementation and assessment
- descriptions of personal learning experiences
- descriptions of teaching experiences, prior experiences as well as experiences in the -teaching assignment
PROFESSIONAL GROWTH PORTFOLIO
What do you understand about the relationship between teaching and learning in your discipline?
A professional growth portfolio provides a framework and process for learners to describe and analyze their knowledge, learning experiences, and feelings within the context of collected artifacts. By carefully examining and analyzing all assignments, learning experiences, and readings, you will be able to reconstruct the learning journey which you have taken during the course, and apply your developing understanding of university teaching and learning to a discussion of the relationship between teaching and learning in your discipline.
Your growth portfolio should be organized in a three-ring binder and include:
- A cover page
- A table of contents
- An introduction that articulates the purpose of your portfolio, an overview of your professional development over the course, and a description of the nature and goals of your professional development in relations to the artifacts.
- All course assignments, formal and informal, and related formative and summative evaluations.
- At least one reading that has influenced your understanding of teaching/learning/assessment.
- For each artifact, a brief (1 page max.) report introducing the artifact and critically reflecting on what you have learned, how you learned, and why you have learned. By reconstructing and thinking through your learning process, you’ll understand better what effective teaching practice looks like and how you can implement it in the classroom.
- A conclusion which summarizes key ideas about your professional growth, including descriptions of:
- what you have learned about yourself as a learner, as an observer, and as a beginning teacher;
- what the portfolio suggests about your interests as a teacher and learner; and
- the themes or recurring ideas that were threaded through your analysis and discussion of the artifacts.
- A professional growth plan – what are your goals, strategies to attain the goals, and indicators of success for next year? As a learner? As a teacher?
- A statement of teaching philosophy (500 words)
(These guidelines and the assessment rubric that follows are adapted from material prepared by Kathy Kubota-Zarivnij, Education, 1999)
Professional Growth Portfolio Assessment Rubric
| Performance indicators (weight) |
B |
B+ |
A- |
A |
A+ |
| Artifacts (2) |
Includes some of the required artifacts. |
Includes most required artifacts |
Includes all required artifacts |
Includes all required artifacts |
Includes all required artifacts, as well as additional relevant material |
| Organisation (2) |
A collection of artifacts minimal organisation; lacking a table of contents, introduction/ purpose, conclusion, and/or growth plan. |
A collection of artifacts with mostly clear organisation and some of: table of contents, introduction/ purpose, conclusion, and/or growth plan. |
A collection of artifacts that is clearly organised; including a table of contents, an introduction, purpose, conclusion, and/or growth plan. |
A collection of artifacts that is effectively organised; including a table of contents, an introduction, a purpose, conclusion, and/or growth plan. |
A collection of artifacts which is thoughtfully organised; including a table of contents, an introduction, a purpose, a conclusion, and a growth plan. |
| Analysis of teaching and learning (3) |
Simple descriptions of artifacts, with little understanding of their relationship to theory, student learning, teaching practice, personal learning, and/or teaching experiences. Artifacts are unrelated in theme or purpose. |
Clear and somewhat supported descriptions of artifacts, with some understanding of their relationship to theory, student learning, teaching practice, personal learning, and/or teaching experiences. Artifacts somewhat related in theme and purpose. |
Clear and supported descriptions of artifacts, with a developed understanding of their relationship to theory, student learning, teaching practice, personal learning, and/or teaching experiences. Artifacts related in theme and purpose. |
Clear and well supported descriptions and explanations of artifacts, with more developed understanding of their relationship to theory, student learning, teaching practice, personal learning, and/or teaching experiences. Artifacts clearly related in theme and purpose. |
Creative, insightful and articulate descriptions and explanations of artifacts, with in-depth understanding of their relationship to theory, student learning, teaching practice, personal learning, and teaching experiences. Artifacts clearly related in theme and purpose. |
| Writing mechanics (1) |
Problems in spelling, proofreading, sentence structure, and punctuation, making it difficult to discern meaning. |
Some problems in spelling, proofreading, sentence structure, and punctuation, that detract from meaning in places. |
Few problems of clarity and expression. Reader can focus on meaning. |
Free of problems in grammar and sentence structure; clear expression of ideas. Reader can focus on meaning. |
Graceful and lively clarity of expression which enhances the meaning of the text. |
| Overall communi-cation about personal and professional growth (2) |
Some analysis and connections between some learning experiences. |
Brief analyses and connections among all learning experiences. |
More sustained analyses and connections among learning experiences. |
A reflective and critical analysis that evaluates and synthesizes most learning experiences. |
A reflective and critical analyses that evaluates and synthesizes all learning experiences. |
TEACHING RESOURCES
Journals
- The Teaching Professor
- Change
- College Teaching
- Journal of Higher Education
- New Directions in Teaching and Learning
Organizations
Internet Sources
UNIVERSITY TEACHING AND LEARNING (UTAL 5000)
Teaching and Learning Resources Survey
Due May 15, 2003
Purpose
This assignment is designed to increase your awareness of the teaching and learning resources (journals, organizations, web-sites) available for university teaching and learning. The task will also increase your ability to locate teaching resources through reference aids and other avenues. The package of materials that the class generates should be a useful reference tool to assist you in the PBL components of the course as well as in your teaching for years to come.
The task
Each group will select one item from the adjacent teaching resources list, and identify a second teaching resource (not discipline-specific) that does not appear here, with the instructor’s permission. (Groups should select different resources) Write a one-page summary of the characteristics of each item:
- Where is it published?
- Who publishes it, who contributes, who participates?
- If it is a journal or web-source, is there a review policy for submissions? (Peer reviewed? Anonymous?) If it is an organisation, what are its organizational principles?
- What kinds of teaching/learning issues has it covered over the past 10 years? Does it focus on particular disciplines? Do you see any significant changes or trends in content or focus over the period?
- What are the notable strengths or weaknesses in coverage?
- Who would find this resource useful?
- Pick one item (for example, an article, a conference report, or a web-page) from your source and try to locate it using typical research or search aids. In short – reverse the usual research process to discover how easy it is to locate a particular item from a reference source. Identify the reference tools that could be used to locate material from this source, for example, the library catalogue (what kind of search), a serial index (which ones), abstracts (which ones), or internet search engines (what kind).
An E-mail copy of the assignments should be sent by May 16. All assignments will be posted to the course web site. You should be prepared to discuss your findings in class.
Teaching and Learning Resources List
The list on the left is a partial list of teaching and learning resources. Additional teaching resources may be found in the CST resource collection, the Scott Library, or on the Web.
(Adapted from an assignment created by Janice Newton, 1999)
UTAL 5000, Due May 15, 2003
| Items |
Presenters |
| Journals The Teaching Professor |
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| Change |
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| College Teaching |
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| Journal of Higher Education |
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| New Directions in Teaching and Learning |
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| Organizations |
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| American Association for Higher Education |
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| Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education |
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| Canadian Society for the Study of Higher Education |
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| Staff and Educational Development Association |
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| Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education (POD)
|
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| Higher Education Research and Development Society |
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| Internet Sources |
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| Journal on Excellence in College Teaching |
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| Deliberations - on Teaching and Learning |
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| The National Teaching and Learning Forum |
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| A Berkeley Compendium of Suggestions for Teaching Excellence |
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| The Teaching Tips Index, Honolulu Community College |
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Criteria for Evaluation
UTAL 5000 – Section B Only!
Course Evaluation:
| Professional Growth Portfolio |
75% |
| Group Participation |
15 |
| Class Participation |
10 |
Class Participation:
Learning in this course depends on everyone attending and fully participating. The course instructor will evaluate class participation according to the following criteria:
| § |
Attendance in class (present, on-time, stay for duration) |
| § |
Preparation for class (do the required readings and prepare assignments) |
| § |
Engagement with the course material (demonstrate frequent thoughtful engagement with material) |
| § |
Balanced participation in the class discussions (voice ideas in agreement or disagreement without dominating discussion) |
| § |
Respectful behaviour towards others (listens carefully when other’s speak and responds with civility) |
Group Participation:
The group work is crucial to the success of this course and depends on everyone in the group participating fully. Group members will evaluate themselves and each other according to the following criteria. Each group member’s evaluation will be weighed equally.
| § |
Dependable (present, reliably performs tasks) |
| § |
Prepared for class (required readings and assignments) |
| § |
Prepares high quality work for the group |
| § |
Helps further the group’s objectives |
| § |
Participates in a balanced way (voice ideas in agreement or disagreement without dominating discussion) |
| § |
Behaves respectfully towards others (listens carefully when others speak and responds with civility) |
| § |
Completes a proportionate share of the group tasks |
| § |
Engages seriously with the course material (demonstrates frequent thoughtful engagement with material) |
PROFESSIONAL GROWTH PORTFOLIO
UTAL 5000, Spring 2003
What do you understand about the relationship between teaching and learning in your discipline?
A professional growth portfolio provides a framework and process for learners to describe and analyze their knowledge, learning experiences, and feelings within the context of material collected from the UTAL course. By carefully examining and analyzing all assignments, learning experiences, and readings, you will be able to reconstruct the learning journey which you have taken during the course, and apply your developing understanding of university teaching and learning to a discussion of the relationship between teaching and learning in your discipline.
Your growth portfolio should be organized in a three-ring binder and include:
- A cover page and table of contents.
- An introduction that articulates the purpose of your portfolio, an overview of your professional development over the UTAL course, and a description of the nature and goals of your professional development in relation to the materials that follow in the portfolio.
- Specified materials including:
- At least one reading that has influenced your understanding of teaching/learning/assessment.
- PBL reflection paper
- MT self-evaluation report
- A statement of teaching philosophy (500 words)
- An outline of a course you may someday teach, including a weekly breakdown of topics, all course assignments (including formal and informal, and related formative and summative evaluations), and a class plan for one topic in the course outline.
Critical Reflections: For each of the items listed above, provide a brief (1 page max.) critical reflection introducing the material and critically reflecting on:
§
What is this material’s purpose and general content?
§
What have you learned from it about the relationship between teaching and learning?
§
How does this material contribute to (or demonstrate) your understanding of the relationship between teaching and learning in your discipline?
Critical reflections might also include:
§
descriptions of related theoretical principles
§
comments on the nature of student learning
§
descriptions of specific teaching practices including design, implementation and assessment
§
descriptions of personal learning experiences
§
descriptions of teaching experiences, prior experiences as well as experiences in the micro-teaching assignment
4. A professional growth plan – what are your goals, strategies to attain the goals, and indicators of success for next year? As a learner? As a teacher?
5. A conclusion that summarizes key ideas about your professional growth, including descriptions of:
§
what you have learned about yourself as a learner, as an observer, and as a beginning teacher;
§ what the portfolio suggests about your interests as a teacher and learner; and
§ the themes or recurring ideas that were threaded through your analysis and discussion of the material.
(These guidelines and the assessment rubric that follows are adapted from material prepared by Kathy Kubota-Zarivnij, Education, 1999)
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