Ah -- very interesting. I wasn't aware of much of this background. At the end, you ask: > So, the question becomes, does TBL allow teachers to scaffold students and > teams toward self-direction in learning or must the faculty keep constant > vigilance regardless of the context? While I don't have data, I'd suggest a tentative "yes." Several weeks into the semester, when they've experienced TBL and have bought into it, I'll sometimes leave the classroom for a minute or two to get a sip of water or to get something I left in my office. On my return the room is still abuzz with activity and hardly a students even acknowledges my return as they're busy working with their team. I love how TBL sets up incentives for this to come about. I don't know if this extends beyond my class, but I'd like to think so. It would be really interesting and indeed useful to know. - Bill Brent said: > Thanks for your thoughts on the Hawthorne Effect, Bill. Like it came straight > from one of my workshops. > > I fully agree; and, as you point out, so does most of the research. My point > might not have been clear; I was not introducing the Hawthorne effect to > advocate for it, but to point out that constant faculty oversight is like an > application of the Hawthorne effect. > > To avoid further confusion, I think it is important to differentiate between the > Hawthorne study conclusions and the Hawthorne effect. Management gurus > and practitioners still hold tight to the “happy employees are productive > employees” conclusion of the Hawthorne studies. However, this conclusion is > essentially “cow psychology”; as in, “a happy cow produces more milk.” Last > time I checked, most humans are a bit more complex than cows. Contrary to > the conclusions of the Hawthorne studies and the assertions of some > organizational psychologists, most research shows that performance precedes > satisfaction, not the other way around. in other words, employees who > perform tend to be more satisfied on the job. > > Rather than finding a connection between satisfaction and performance as > many assert, the Hawthorne studies showed that paying attention to > employees can result in temporary increases of productivity. MBWA serves as > an example of how a manager can use the Hawthorne effect to elicit > temporary increases in performance; “the boss is coming, look busy.” Faculty > oversight in TBL also serves as an example of how teachers use constant > oversight in attempt maintain performance levels in the classroom. > > A problem with relying on attention events to motivate performance is that > employees performance becomes dependent on extrinsic motivational forces. > This is why the Hawthorne Effect is the enemy of trainers; performance will > usually increase through an attention event, but it is difficult to determine the > degree to which performance increases can be attributed to the training or to > the attention. If training is not reinforced or if it does not provide subjects > with substantial new tools for sustained performance improvements, > performance will likely drop in direct correlation to the performance that was > motivated by the attention event. Homeostasis at work; it all balances out. > However, this does not mean that there is anything wrong with the extrinsic > motivators; we just need to be aware of the psychological forces at work, and > make sure we are productively using the attention events to foster > development rather than dependence. > > Regarding faculty oversight as an application of the Hawthorne effect, we > have to apply a certain degree of micromanagement when we are working with > students who have no experience in applying teamwork to learning, and with > students who lack the maturity for self-direction. > > However, is there ever a point at which students can develop sufficient > capacity and intrinsic motivation to collaborate without faculty oversight? > > In professional and adult development environments, managers and teachers > attempt to facilitate individuals toward independence and teams toward > interdependence by helping them gain skills and motivation for perpetual > development beyond the classroom. Fully delegating responsibility and > authority without any oversight is usually a mistake; but, we might find that > continuous attention events can ultimately hinder development of intrinsic > skills and motivation. > > So, the question becomes, does TBL allow teachers to scaffold students and > teams toward self-direction in learning or must the faculty keep constant > vigilance regardless of the context? > > Regards, > > Brent -- Bill Goffe Department of Economics SUNY Oswego, 416 Mahar Hall Oswego, NY 13126 315-312-3444(v), 315-312-5444(f) [log in to unmask] http://cook.rfe.org