I feel a need to throw in my two bits. This semester is the first time I have applied TBL to my courses. Two courses to be specific, and it is exceeding my expectations. I see students actually reading the materials and coming to class "ready." Sure enough they do much better in scores on the t-RAT than the i-RAT. They appear to be having fun and learning at the same time as they hunch over their IF-AT cards. I am finding that the most important part is the application activities. The best classes are those in which I have well-designed application activities that meet the 4's. The RATs are about 'readiness assurance' for the application activities where the best learning occurs. I am joyed at the success I am having with TBL and I feel rejuvenated. tom ------------------------- Tom C. Allen Instructor, Department of Criminology Kwantlen Polytechnic University 12666-72nd Avenue Surrey, B.C. V3W 2M8 Canada On 2013-10-20, at 6:01 PM, McCormack, Wayne T wrote: > I can’t help but respond to Neil Haave’s comment about online RATs in the discussion of IF-AT problems. Using an online LMS or audience response system “clickers” to record individual answers on the IRAT is a great way to speed up scoring. However, I would discourage the use of the online LMS or any kind of “electronic IF-AT card” instead of the low-tech paper IF-AT card for team answers. There is another really important advantage of using IF-AT cards, which is touched on by Neil’s comment “And students really do enjoy the tactile task of scratching the answers on the cards.” When we tried letting students answer TRAT questions online using our LMS, all of the fun, celebratory team-building behaviors that we always see with IF-AT scratch-off cards totally disappeared. Students no longer cheered, laughed, high-fived, etc. when they found the correct answers. The act of scratching off the cards (like winning on a lottery ticket) adds an important element of fun/enjoyment/reward that I believe supports team-building and motivation for learning. > > Wayne T. McCormack, Ph.D. > University of Florida College of Medicine >