Friends,

 

Increasingly, I am running into models of instruction that some call "the inverted classroom." That is, in comparison to standard chalk-n-talk courses where the teacher tells the content in class and students struggle to use the content on their own doing homework, the inverted classroom design has students acquire content on their own outside of class, and work together with coaching doing "homework" application activities in class.

 

Sound familiar?

 

What all of these have in common is a great deal of attention to well-organized, high quality outside-of-class prep materials.

 

Some of the elements I am seeing are:

 

1) Learning goals for the assignment/module

2) List of vocabulary to be sure to know

3) List of concepts to become familiar with

4) Reading page numbers to focus on, and why

5) Sometimes lectures/PowerPoint shows from previous semesters

6) Sometimes online quizzes (some ungraded, some graded to the point of having the iRAT take place online before class)

 

What else do you include in the materials you give to students to help them prepare outside of class for the in-class RAPs and application activities?

 

What's currently realistic for you, versus what might be an aspirational goal toward which we all might strive?

 

-M

 

 

Michael Sweet, Ph.D.

Director of Instructional Development

Center for Teaching and Learning

University of Texas, Austin

MAI 2206 | (512) 232-1775