At the University at Albany we have somewhere between 100-170 faculty members using TBL. For the most part, we are not getting a lot of complaints
about lowered end-of-semester evaluations from our faculty. A changing culture is helping with that (many students see TBL in their first year or two here), but I think there are two things people are doing that really helps.
1. Midterm evaluations: most of our faculty are completing midterm evaluations and reviewing the results with their students. This gives you a chance
to re-set the discussion and tone of the course. One of the questions we ask is “what is helping you most in this course?” and many (often most) students say, “My team.” We encourage faculty to share this with their students. Negative students are convinced
that everyone agrees with them—when they get data to the contrary, it can soften their anger/righteousness. Also, it gives the professor the chance to address comments like “Why am I paying you when I’m teaching myself?” Explaining (or re-explaining) your
pedagological goals to students matters. Even if they still disagree, they tend to feel better being heard and answered—they’ll agree to disagree.
2. Explain why you’ve chosen TBL with students. It doesn’t need to be a sales pitch (that turns students off), but make it clear that you’ve chosen
this method because you believe it’s the best thing for their learning. Several of our faculty recreate the discussion Gary Smith describes in his “First-Day Questions for the
Learner-Centered Classroom” (National Teaching and Learning Forum, 17:5, September, 2008, p. 2:
www.ntlf.com/issues/v17n5/v17n5.pdf ) which helps them to see why it’s in their interest.
Kimberly Van Orman
University at Albany
From: Team-Based Learning [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
On Behalf Of Peter Balan
Sent: Thursday, September 18, 2014 8:38 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: polarized students' evaluations
Dear Colleagues,
I suggest that an important aspect of this issue is how students are prepared for a pre-learning teaching method.
Michele Clark and I have written a short piece in the most recent TBLC newsletter on orientation strategies to use when preparing students on the expectations, responsibilities
and positive outcomes when using TBL. The strategies are evidence based and we are collecting data on the outcomes. Course evaluations have been good - the steps are spelled out and we have some tools available. You might want to take a look.
Best regards
Peter Balan
University of South Australia, Australia
From: Team-Based Learning [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
On Behalf Of Krane, N K
Sent: Friday, 19 September 2014 4:59 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: polarized students' evaluations
I’ve had the same experience with second year medical students as Amanda. I obviously became a bad teacher when I moved everything to TBL because
my evaluations plummeted, with comments such as “I pay to have someone teach me…. he hardly said much…he made us do all the work….” BUT we tracked student performance on exams using the same questions pre/post implementation of TBL and as you might guess,
student performance showed statistically significant improvement. Guess there are many who think Teaching (based on evals) is more important than Learning.
The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences presented interested data that may address this. The added TBL to their first and second year
medical school curriculum several years ago and showed that similar to many others, the second years didn’t really like it, similar complaints. This is likely because we (as faculty) trained them to come to class unprepared where we gave them what they
needed to know to pass the test. BUT, the first year students at the same time, (naďve and untrained by the faculty) really liked TBL and rated it very highly.
Those who continue to think that giving lectures is the best way for students “get” the important material may really be the biggest problem in
moving students to the appropriate approach in terms of "what do we want students to do with what they’ve learned?”
Kevin
N. Kevin Krane, MD, FACP, FASN
Vice Dean for Academic Affairs
Professor of Medicine
Tulane University School of Medicine
From:
June Johnson <[log in to unmask]>
Reply-To: June Johnson <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Thursday, September 18, 2014 at 1:39 PM
To: Team-Based Learning <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: polarized students' evaluations
We looked at IDEA Center student evaluations pre- and post-implementation of TBL in a pharmacotherapeutics course, and it will be published this month in
Am J Pharm Education. Over time, we observed progressive improvements in course and faculty ratings, and other parameters but initially changing the culture of learning resulted in emotional and negative responses...just hang in there, it does get better as
both faculty and students adapt!
June Johnson
June Felice Johnson, B.S., Pharm.D., FASHP, FCCP, BC-ADM
Professor of Pharmacy Practice, Clinical Sciences Department
Drake University College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences
2507 University Avenue
Atrium Room 009
Des Moines, IA 50131
Pharmacy Consultant, Iowa Diabetes & Endocrinology Research Center
email: [log in to unmask]
Office phone: 515-271-1849
From: Team-Based
Learning <[log in to unmask]> on behalf of Levine, Ruth <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, September 18, 2014 12:23 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: polarized students' evaluations
In the article below Fatmi and her colleagues report that TBL increases performance but not enjoyment. It may be a good resource to share with students during
orientation.
Ruth
Fatmi M, Hartling L, Hillier T, Campbell S, Oswald A: The effectiveness of team-based learning on learning outcomes in health professions education: BEME
Guide No.30. Medical Teacher; 2013; 35:e1608-e1624.
From:
Team-Based Learning [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
On Behalf Of Deepti Vyas
Sent: Thursday, September 18, 2014 12:10 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: polarized students' evaluations
Are there any published papers speaking to this issue of evaluations with TBL?
On Thu, Sep 18, 2014 at 10:05 AM, Kubitz, Karla <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
I have had similar experiences w/r/t student evaluations… everything from a student mentioning how wonderful my class was during her graduation ceremony speech to students
thoroughly trashing my class in their evaluations (and online… Rate My Professor, anyone?). One thing that helps me understand their perspective is the ‘stuff’ that I wrote about in my chapter for Jim’s new book. Most college students are in the stage of
cognitive development where they view knowledge as right/ wrong. The professor is the ‘expert’ and should ‘deliver’ knowledge (… yes, pour it into their brains). Peers/ peer input aren’t valued. We (in our TBL implementations) can nudge them into more advanced
stages of cognitive development by the things that are part and parcel of TBL. However, it’s not easy… growth never is. Karla
Karla Kubitz, Ph.D., FACSM
Program Coordinator, Exercise Science
Department of Kinesiology
Towson University
8000 York Rd
Towson, MD 21252
410-704-3168 (ph)
410-704-3912 (fax)
From:
Team-Based Learning [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
On Behalf Of Donna Oglesby
Sent: Thursday, September 18, 2014 12:44 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: polarized students' evaluations
I can echo this experience. My course is not required and as far as I know I am the only professor who has used the TBL method at Eckerd College. The course
was Diplomacy and International Relations taught Spring 2014. I learned of the approach from a colleague at Duke who praised it.
This year course evaluations were done online by students. So comparisons with all other years, when they were done on paper in the classroom, is problematic.
Still, those who loved the course, really loved it and felt they learned considerably more because of peer interactions. More students than I have ever had in any class over a 17 year period, however, expressed dissatisfaction. The big beef was no lectures.
I did mini-lectures and also posted lectures on-line to watch or read before coming to class, but I did not use class time to deliver standard lectures.
I made a point of driving home the methodology during the add/drop period and a few students did drop. Most stayed. Perhaps they had no framework for understanding
just how different the class would be. I also did a thorough mid-term review and worked with each team on their peer evaluations and how they might think about adjusting their teamwork if needed. Students did appear very engaged in the class, discussions
were much more lively, lots of debate. That may have made some students uncomfortable. Others thrived. Bi-modal R US.
The collaborative TBL discussion has been a great source of information and solace. Thanks to all.
Donna Marie Oglesby
Diplomat in Residence
Eckerd College/BES
4200 54th Ave. South
St. Petersburg, Fl. 33711
@winnowingfan
On Sep 18, 2014, at 11:17 AM, Smiley-Oyen, Ann [KIN] <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
Neil – I had the same experience in terms of a vocal (i.e., anonymous course evaluations) minority who trashed me and the course – actually, the worst teaching
evaluations I’ve had due to the extreme of their responses across the board. I use TBL in a class of more than 100 students, so it is difficult to monitor how the team dynamics are working, but I am wondering if one contributing factor to their dissatisfaction
was their team dynamics. I am attempting to keep a tighter tab this semester (note any teams I think are not working well and be ready to assist if necessary), and to more skillfully design my application exercises. In addition, I am allowing each student
to do a “Delta Plus” evaluation so I can try to address issues early in the semester (what they like and what they think could be improved). And, it is just a fact that some students do not want to engage – they want to passively sit, learn enough for
the exam, and move on. (My course is a required course.) We do have our limitations on ability to motivate and inspire.
Stacey – I like your app. I tried to do something like that, but it was on the last day of class and many had already completed the course eval (it is simply
sent to them by email in the final two weeks of the semester). Maybe I need to move that application just before the course eval site opens, and be a bit more systematic with it! Thanks for attaching your application.
Ann Smiley-Oyen, PhD
Associate Professor, Kinesiology/Neuromotor Control
Department of Kinesiology
244 Forker
Ames, IA 50011
From: Team-Based
Learning [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Neil Haave
Sent: Thursday, September 18, 2014 9:38 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Applications
Hi Marit,
I will be curious if your experience will be the same as mine.... I too have had the experience of implementing TBL and being so pleased with the results
as I witnessed them in the classroom: engaged discussion occurring whereas before TBL there was passive silence. However, when the end of term course evaluations were returned to me, I was surprised at the number of students who had a very negative reaction
to the teaching & learning strategy that is TBL. They were a minority, but a significant minority. It felt to me like a bit of cognitive dissonance was going on for students - they didn't recognize the learning experience for what it was. On my campus it really
feels like implementing TBL is counter-cultural in the sense that students have experienced and expect didactic lecture and to not do the same is to abdicate my instructor responsibilities.
I have a lot of work to do in not only teaching my students the course content, but also how to learn deeply so that their education lasts longer than their
degree program...
Cheers
Neil
Neil Haave, PhD
Associate Professor, Biology
Managing Editor, Collected
Essays on Learning and Teaching
University of Alberta, Augustana Faculty
Rm C155, Science Wing, Classroom Building, Augustana Campus
4901 - 46 Avenue, Camrose, AB, CANADA T4V 2R3
On Thu, Sep 18, 2014 at 7:40 AM, Ostebo,Marit <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:
I am implementing TBL for the first time this semester. It seems to work very well (judging from the high level of participation in the class and the good feeling I have when leaving the classroom). I teach a Human Rights and Culture class, and I just wonder if there are people out there who have been teaching similar classes and who would like to share their applications with me. Topics that I cover are e.g. Violence, conflict resolution and legal pluralism, Women’s Rights and Gender Equality, Human Rights activism, Anthropology and Human rights, Human rights and International Development +++
A few weeks back I had a focus on dignity, and the applications I had designed worked EXTREMELY well. If anyone is interested, - I am happy to share. It should be of relevance not only for those teaching human rights, but also for instructors in nursing, medicine, ethics, etc.
Please shoot me an e-mail off list if you are interested: [log in to unmask]
Marit Ostebo
Marit Tolo Ostebo (PhD)
Lecturer
Department of Anthropology
Address:
427 Grinter Hall – PO BOX 115560
Gainesville, FL 32611-5560
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