In
my classes, I expect you to be actively engaged with the course
material and to demonstrate your active intellectual and personal
involvement in the coursework. This is what makes for real
learning!
How we learn: A Hindu
priest once told a student of mine that there are four ways to gain
knowledge:
Only one quarter of
our knowledge comes from teachers (lectures)
Another quarter comes
from self-reflection (reflection on and processing our learning -
metacognition)
One quarter comes
from discussion with others (our fellow learners: group discussion)
One quarter comes
from behavior modification (practicing new skills)
Thus in my classes I try
to "mix it up" with a variety of teaching and learning
strategies. I tend to avoid formal lectures and focus on discussion -
between myself and my students as well as students in small groups. I
also ask my students to reflect more personally on what they are
learning (journaling).
Learning is not a passive reception of
information, it is the processing of that information by the student.
In the teaching-learning paradigm, the emphasis is on learning - how
the student perceives, changes, and benefits through the learning
experience. Real learning
moves beyond
rote memorization of facts toward higher order thinking and deeper
understanding. "Higher order" thinking skills
include:
Comprehension: demonstrates the ability to grasp meaning, explain, and restate ideas
Application: demonstrates the ability to use learned material in new situations
Analysis: demonstrates the ability to separate material into component parts and show relationships between parts
Synthesis: demonstrates the ability to put together the separate ideas to form a new whole, to establish new relationships
Evaluation: demonstrates the ability to judge the worth of material against stated criteria
Learning comes from within, deep within. Taking in information from outside sources - a book, teacher, Website, video, field experience - is not real learning. Real learning takes place as you process the information in your own unique way through higher order thinking skills such as comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation. Your performance in
my classes will be based on your demonstration of your learning. You do not demonstrate your learning by simply spitting back basic facts. Your knowledge of the facts will become clear as you demonstrate higher order thinking skills. You cannot comprehend, apply, analyze, synthesize, and evaluate without knowing the facts. However, you can discuss basic facts without using higher order thinking skills. In all you do in
my classes, you should always remember to use higher order thinking skills, not merely absorb information and spit it back.
A successful learning outcome is the generation of transformative knowledge. Transformative learning is that which creates a change (transformation) in the learner. As you work your way through
any course, you should consider how you are growing and changing as a learner and as a person through your involvement in
the course. Explore the material being studied not just from an academic standpoint but through the personal meaning you derive from it.
How to get an A? Don't worry
about it. Smart students treat each class like an individual challenge. Your goal should be to find the most efficient possible way to really learn the material. You might not always get this right. Sometimes, you’ll make stupid mistakes on a test or bet on the wrong thesis, but that’s okay. So long as you’re getting better at being a student, over time, most (not all) of your grades will be great.
You are not in school to get grades. You are here to learn! Accomplish
that and the grades will take care of themselves.
Perfectionists: take it easy!
Do not stress out. You do not need to get an A on every assignment to get an
A in the course! You only have to have an A average amongst all your work.
If you get a B or even a C on one or two assignments but your other work is A
level, that A grade is still possible!
Do
not expect your grade in my class to be based solely on exams! If
you are a "bad test taker" you can still pass my courses if
you do well on your other assignments. You may find that I give my
students more graded assignments than other teachers. The benefit here
is that your course grade does not hang on a single assignment. Most of
my assignments range from 5% - 15% of your course grade. If you mess up
on one assignment or exam, this will not necessarily affect
your final grade in the course.
The
"Fair F" - I give at least half credit for doing any
assignment or exam, no matter how late, no matter how poorly. While half
credit is still failing, it is far better than a zero for not doing the
work at all. In the end one zero can make a difference of a full letter
grade (or more if the assignment is worth more than 10% of your
grade).
Effort
counts! I believe that students learn from doing and thus I
encourage my students to do the assignments, even if it is late (a late
penalty will, however, apply so the "sooner the better" but
"better late than never")
General grading rubric charts (also note
specific criteria for given assignments):
(No, that's not me. That's from E-Learning
A-Z by Susan Smith Nash, PhD))
Use this Time
management scheduling chart to help you plan your weekly time
for work, classes, study, personal time, etc. This way you can see just how
much you have to do, plan when to do it, and see if you may have too much to
do and decide where you can cut back.
My
Study PlanWhat and how do you do the things you need to do
to be a successful student? What can you do differently to be more
successful? Use this chart to take stock of your student success strategies.
Study
Guides and Strategies Website: provides advice for students on a number of
learning strategies, including preparing to learn, study skills,
classroom participation, learning with others, project management,
reading and writing skills, test preparation and test taking skills,
using the Web, math and science skills.
College Student Study Skills Guide
web page: provides suggestions for time management, procrastination, note
taking, preparing for and taking exams, etc. Includes links to other helpful
websites on these topics.
NOVA provides a series
of video workshops and related resources on a variety of topics related
to becoming a better student. Click on any video and enter your name to get
started. (requires Flash browser plug-in).
Learn how to learn:What's your learning
style? What are your intellectual strengths? How do these affect the way you learn? How can you help yourself
learn more productively? Follow this link to explore learning styles and multiple
intelligences.
Active
Learning Strategies: Once you know your learning style and
intellectual strengths, see if you can make use of any of these active
learning strategies (specially designed for learning about religion)
Research shows that we
form stronger and more lasting memories by exposing ourselves to
information over time. Repeated cycles of learning, consolidating, and
then reencountering material fix it firmly in our minds.
Quiz yourself, tying to
recall the material from memory. Use any study guides, review
activities, and practice quizzes your professor may provide you with.
Make up your own quiz questions, anticipating what you might be tested
on.
Recalling information is
far more effective than passively reading it over (testing does not
simply measure what you know, it reinforces what you know)
Every time you summon
facts from memory, you strengthen your brain's hold on the material
Preparing
for Exams: are you a passive or active learner? Cognitively active
learning behaviors are proven to be more effective in the process of
absorbing and retaining information. This worksheet will help you
distinguish between passive vs. more active study strategies and encourage
you to add more active strategies to your study routine.
"Evaluating
information from the World Wide Web": an on-line tutorial
from Montgomery College (MD) Libraries. If you'll be using Internet
resources you'll want to make sure they are reliable. How can you know
the difference between a good Web site and a not so good site? This
on-line tutorial can help guide you.
Here's a checklist
you can use to help you evaluate websites.
Here's a video presentation that walks you though what to look for
when evaluating websites you might use for research:
What
about Wikipedia? There are appropriate uses of Wikipedia but in
general it should not be cited as a direct source in your research.
Check out this
video demo for suggestions on how to make use of Wikipedia.
affect
your final grade in the course.
