TBLers
It's been an interesting week listening and reading responses to Molly
Worthen’s Op-Ed in last Sunday’s *New York Times* “Lecture Me. Really.”
<http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/18/opinion/sunday/lecture-me-really.html?smid=nytcore-ipad-share&smprod=nytcore-ipad&_r=0>
Here's
a very thoughtful response from my former college now director for the
Center for Teaching Excellent at Rice
https://josheyler.wordpress.com/2015/10/20/active-learning-is-not-our-enemy-a-response-to-molly-worthen/
Its also a celebration of active learning written by a medieval literature
professor who recognizes the impact of the 2014 meta analysis on active
learning from Proceedings of the National Academy of Science.
I teach in one space between social sciences and humanities and find TBL a
much better way of helping students to focus on concepts in sometimes
challenging theoretical articles. And students are then ready to see race,
class, and gender shaping space as they do fieldwork outside my classroom
(located on the main street of my city) as well as analyse text. They are
much better positioned to do fieldwork together. And, I use that
collaborative framework to then support a community project.
I'm interested to hear if folks in other parts of the world are seeing
similar calls for traditional modes of instruction and the perception of
threat?
Manda
Dr. Amanda Rees
Professor of Geography, Department of History and Geography
Tel: (706) 507 8358 Fax: (706) 507-8362
E-mail: [log in to unmask] Web: <[log in to unmask]>
http://columbusstate.academia.edu/AmandaRees
*Coordinator*
<http://history.columbusstate.edu/columbuscommunitygeography.php>*:
Columbus Community Geography Center*
<http://history.columbusstate.edu/columbuscommunitygeography.php>
Mailing Address:
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4225 University Avenue, Columbus, GA 31907, U.S.A.
Office Location:
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Room 350 (campus map
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On Fri, Oct 23, 2015 at 12:50 AM, Andrew Chambers <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:
> I agree, a very considered response. Here is an interesting Blog post
> (from a few years back) about ALT-C keynotes on this same subject:
> http://cathellis13.blogspot.com.au/2010/11/font-face-font-family-cambria-p.html
>
>
>
> “Tweckling, iconoclasm and lecturing as a normative discourse:
> reflections on two ALT-C keynotes”
>
>
>
> Associate Professor Cath Ellis is now Associate Dean of Education in the
> Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at the university where I work
> (University of New South Wales).
>
>
>
> Enjoy.
>
>
>
> *From:* Team-Based Learning [mailto:[log in to unmask]] *On
> Behalf Of *Nicholas DiFonzo
> *Sent:* Wednesday, 21 October 2015 10:49 AM
> *To:* [log in to unmask]
>
> *Subject:* Re: reaction to NYT article
>
>
>
> Thanks all, for some insightful responses to my post. The NYT article also
> sparked some online discussion in my college. A colleague reposted a
> worthwhile response to the NYT article that accords with many of the
> comments made in our discussion group:
>
> As many of you know, Molly Worthen’s piece prompted a flood of responses.
> Here is a pretty astute one.
>
>
> https://josheyler.wordpress.com/2015/10/20/active-learning-is-not-our-enemy-a-response-to-molly-worthen/
>
>
>
>
>
> *From:* Colin Mason [mailto:[log in to unmask]
> <[log in to unmask]>]
> *Sent:* Tuesday, October 20, 2015 4:05 AM
> *To:* Nicholas DiFonzo <[log in to unmask]>; [log in to unmask]
> *Subject:* Re: reaction to NYT article
>
>
>
>
>
> Hi there - I presume fellow converts to the benefits of active learning
>
>
>
> This is an interesting article, I agree. And there are several points
> that one might not disagree with. For example, I fully agree that
> note-making is an excellent active learning exercise and one very likely to
> benefit students enormously. Having facilitated staff and student
> development workshops on learning how (and why) to Mind-map, or, slightly
> less good, concept-map, the question is more pertinently, "what kind of
> note-taking should we promote". Mind-mapping is brilliant for visual
> thinkers and from feedback I received was a salvation for dyslexic
> learners.
>
>
>
> I have attended 'brilliant' lectures - not many, unfortunately. But the
> experience of most students whether arts/humanities or science/engineering
> is that such stimulating lectures are few and far between and furthermore,
> the number of lecturers capable of preparing and delivering such inspiring
> learning experiences is even fewer. Nevertheless, one has to concede, even
> in TBL only courses, some ‘lecturing’, eg mini lectures, summarising class
> discussions, providing briefs etc does take place, and therefore it is
> imperative that ‘lecturers’ are able to provide inspiring short
> presentations to students. After all, isn’t this one of the skills we want
> students to develop themselves through opportunities to summarise team
> discussions, present solutions to applied learning exercises etc. So,
> again I concede there is room for ‘good’ lecturing.
>
>
>
> However, this is not the same thing as conceiving that ‘lecturing’ as an
> example of ‘critical thinking’, where arguments are presented for both
> sides (or more) of difficult or disputed concepts and hypotheses, is
> actually a great learning experience for those on the end of an hour of
> intense listening (whether note-making, especially more interactive styles
> are facilitated simultaneously). My guess is that such role-modelling of
> presenting arguments, synthesising, contradicting, bringing together
> disparate academic resources is undoubtedly very good and pleasing for the
> lecturer, but has only a marginal effect upon recipients. Our aim as
> teachers is to help students to become ‘these analytical, critical and
> creative thinkers themselves. So for a whole course to adopt a
> lecture-only format surely leaves little space for such student-directed
> activity. Furthermore, the lecturer style neglects the social aspect of
> learning, where the huge diversity and inherent creativity of large groups
> and smaller teams can be unleashed.
>
>
>
> I have heard the arguments for/against lectures a lot of times (eg Donald
> Bligh’s book, “What’s the use of Lectures” and from many academic staff in
> diverse HE institutions (eg St Andrews, Scotland, Auckland, New Zealand,
> Melbourne Australia as well as my own Alma Mater, Bradford, England), and I
> am more convinced that those keen to lecture have, conscious or otherwise,
> a mindset: I know best, or would rather not be challenged (the opposite of
> a liberal approach to learning and challenging orthodoxy); or, I can’t be
> bothered with the extra work and very much higher skill demands of
> preparing for active learning classes. High class “researchers”, though
> not all, often have these traits.
>
> I am rather more sympathetic to colleagues very new to teaching in HE
> adopting lecturing, at least to commence their careers, as the demands to
> be knowlegable about their discipline, be confident and organised, often
> set against the pressure of teaching many cohorts of large numbers of
> students, in courses that they themselves are only vaguely informed about,
> and often at early levels (First year or second year), whilst their more
> esteemed colleagues have 'bought themselves out' of intensive teaching
> schedules, but point instead to the 'demands' of their own loads - final
> year classes (often fewer students), Masters Classes (even fewer students)
> and PhD supervision - all likely to enhance their reputations as academics
> and contribute to their research profile; often the only valued aspect of
> academic life in HE - unfortunately!
>
>
>
> Dr Colin Mason
>
> Formerly:
>
> Director and Professor of the Institute of Teaching and Learning, Deakin
> University, Melbourne, Australia
>
> Dean of Teaching and Learning, Unitec, New Zealand
>
> Director of Learning and Teaching Development, St Andrews, UK
>
>
>
> On Mon, Oct 19, 2015 at 9:25 PM, Nicholas DiFonzo <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> Hello TBL-ers. Our dean recently sent the link below which is a recent
> piece arguing in favor of the traditional ‘lecture’ as a valuable
> pedagogical approach to teaching. I am curious what people think about it:
> http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/18/opinion/sunday/lecture-me-really.html
>
>
>
> Nicholas DiFonzo, Ph.D.
>
> Professor of Psychology
>
> Department of Psychology
>
> 18 Lomb Memorial Drive
>
> Room 1-2363
>
> Rochester Institute of Technology
>
> Rochester, NY 14623 USA
>
> [log in to unmask]*
>
> Phone: 585-475-2907
>
> Skype: nicholas.difonzo
>
> Faculty Website <http://www.rit.edu/cla/psychology/faculty/difonzo>*Personal
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>
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>
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>
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>
>
>
> **Note: I typically process my email to zero around 10 AM and 4 PM each
> weekday.*
>
>
>
>
>
>
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